All eyes turned toward him.
“No, you’re the one for the undercover work, but the kid’s got a point, Connors. I can’t take much more of your discussing the same fucking thing over and over, man. I tried…” Kreed stood and stretched, reaching for the pizza box in the middle of the table. There was one piece left and Aaron had eyed that thing for the last hour. Kreed lifted the thin crust pepperoni and pineapple slice and took a big bite, before dropping it on a paper plate in front of Aaron. He wished he’d grabbed the piece first, half the damn thing was gone in that one bite Kreed took. But at least Kreed shared.
“So what’re we gonna do with Knox? I know him too well. He’ll bother us all to death until he just forces his way back in.” Kreed stated.
“He can’t,” Connors said, sounding a little disgruntled, but surely to God that wasn’t the first time he’d been told he talked too much. “He’s got to stay put and let us wrap this up.”
“Not gonna happen,” Kreed replied, moving toward the water cart placed by the door. He grabbed two iced bottles of water. “We have to give him a job.”
“It’s too risky. His face is too well known,” Brown said, stretching his arms over his head. Evidently he hadn’t been the only one bored out of his mind with Connors. From the look on Brown’s face, he’d had enough too. Kreed placed one of the water bottles in front of Aaron, still never really looking his way. Since they’d arrived at the FBI building, with the exception of the little show downstairs, Kreed had basically ignored Aaron, so the food and water gesture took him by surprise. Maybe the guy wasn’t half bad after all. Aaron picked up the pizza and took a bite then opened the water bottle as Kreed kept talking.
“Besides, he’s got security attached to him. So if we’re busy keeping an eye on Stuart and Mitch is secretly watching us and his security’s over there watching him watch us… Something’s gonna fuck up.”
When no one responded, Kreed hooked a thumb toward Aaron as he took a big gulp of water. “We need to decide what we’re gonna do and wrap up this meeting. I need to feed him before he starts eating his arm.”
“We just ate pizza,” Connors protested loudly.
“That’s just a snack for him. You should see him eat.”
“Where do you put it?” Brown looked over at him incredulously.
“Focus,” Aaron said, his mouth full of pizza. He didn’t normally like to talk with food in his mouth, but extreme times called for extreme measures.
“Send Mitch to Dallas to guard Colt and Jace. It’ll keep him busy. Plus, if something goes wrong, he’s in close proximity to Redemption Apostle Tabernacle. Midlothian’s about thirty minutes from Dallas,” Kreed said, reaching for his jacket.
“That would keep him busy. What story are you telling him?” Brown questioned.
“I’ll keep it vague, but he’s persistent,” Kreed responded.
“Yeah, but he usually uses me to gather his information,” Aaron explained. Eagerness to leave had Aaron quickly displaying the job listings posted on the church’s website on the mounted monitor. Kreed had been right; it was one of those massive, mega complexes that sprawled out over several acres. The church was enormous and just happened to have a permanent job opening in the IT department.
Typing quickly, Aaron split the screen. He’d had more than enough time during the hours of Connors’s ramblings to build a proper undercover background specific to the job’s requirements. He’d also done a quick mockup of a fake Texas driver’s license. His new name was Josiah Smith of Krum, Texas. He had a master’s degree in computer science from New Found Faith University. Linking himself to a strict fundamentalist college had been cause for giving himself a mental high five.
“If you agree with all this, I can load this information, get it in the required databases, and apply for the job tonight,” Aaron offered, pulling the cords from the electrical outlets. He really wanted to get the hell out of Dodge.
“It’s great. Looks good,” Brown praised, reading the screen.
“You can’t look like you…or at least not like you do right now,” Connors said, staring up at the screen before turning back to eye Aaron. “Those church boys are clean-cut. I don’t think they have multi-colored hair. You would stand out like a sore thumb.”
“Yeah, you need to look like Connors,” Kreed added, giving a chuckle.
“No offense, I’m not doing that.” Aaron removed everything off the screen, frustrated with the turn of this conversation. He should have just uploaded the information on his own. It was far easier to ask forgiveness than permission—technically, the anthem of his entire life. Besides, he’d combed through his picture files to find a photo from his brother’s wedding where his hair was styled reasonably well.
“Yeah, you are. I’ll get him cleaned up tomorrow morning. I’m sure the hotel has a salon. Can you add a new picture in the morning before you send all this out?” Kreed asked.
“It doesn’t matter. I’m not cutting my hair or looking like him.” Aaron didn’t look up as he began packing his shit up.
“Yeah, kid, you will.”
Great. The most annoying side of Kreed Sinacola’s personality was coming out to play—the one where he had all the answers and would just wait for everyone else to catch up. The air around him changed, and he glanced over to see Kreed’s booted feet extremely close by. Aaron slowly lifted his gaze to meet Kreed’s, where the man now stood, towering over him. The deputy marshal’s dark stare bore intensely through him and the smirk on those full lips was about as close to a freaking you’ll-do-whatever-I-ask grin as you could get.
Goose bumps prickled along his skin and his body tightened in response. Desperation made Aaron want to kiss that smirk right off Kreed’s face, feel the plumpness of his beautiful lips. For a second, Aaron completely lost himself and would have agreed to do anything Kreed wanted him to do in order to stay lost in that intense and sultry gaze. Brown coughed on the other side of the room and broke the spell Kreed held over him. Aaron quickly looked away, hoping no one else in the room heard the pounding of his heart.
Aaron shook his head to clear his thoughts as he continued packing his equipment away. Damn it to hell! Aaron couldn’t believe he’d let Kreed get to him. It wouldn’t happen again. He took a deep breath and straightened before turning, this time scowling at that handsome face that mocked him, letting Kreed know he wouldn’t win this argument or any other, for that matter. Aaron slammed his laptop shut. Not too hard, but enough to get everyone’s attention.
“Why are you mad? It’s hair. It’ll grow back,” Connors stated, confused.
“I’m starving and your scraps just piss me off. I’m out.” Aaron shoved his laptop into the bag, slung the strap over his shoulder then spun on his heels and started moving toward the door, not waiting for Kreed. The guy could go jump in an ice-covered river for all he cared. He should have never been in this position in the first place. Today had gone from bad to worse. Now, he was the asshole going undercover. How had he even let that happen?
“I guess we’re done for tonight,” Kreed joked, gathering his things. The guy tossed his plate in the trash as Aaron hit the conference room door.
“No, you guys continue. Stay all fuckin’ night talking about the same thing over and over.” Aaron added his own hint of mockery to his tone. Aaron walked out the door, leaving it open, and never looked back as he headed toward the elevators. Fuck Kreed Sinacola!
“He’s got his period,” Kreed drawled from behind him. Aaron quickened his pace. Maybe he could get on the elevator and downstairs before Kreed caught up to him. Did taxis wait out front of the FBI building? Only one way to find out.
“Fuck you. I’m taking a cab to the fuckin’ airport.” Aaron readjusted his laptop bag strap on his shoulder as he reached for the elevator call button. He absolutely wasn’t cutting his hair or wearing the standard Men’s Warehouse rack suit—not that they had even mentioned that yet, but he knew it was coming. No fucking way. He drew the line right there.
“Come on, smart boy. It’s not so bad,” Kreed taunted from behind. “You need to wave your badge in front of the reader like this if you want to get anywhere.” Kreed pressed the button and when it turned green, he lifted his wallet over a small section above the button. The doors opened.
Smartass!
Aaron stayed rooted in his spot. He didn’t want to get in the elevator car with Kreed. He’d take the next one down. In Kreed’s typical annoying way, the guy stepped toward him, hooked an arm around his neck and hauled him against his side, forcing them both inside the small box. Kreed’s scent filled the air around him, engulfing him in exotic spices. His brain cells momentarily went on hiatus again as his dick plumped and, damn it, that pissed him off even more.
Aaron was mad as hell, nowhere close to being attracted to the cocky guy, no matter how his body betrayed him. Aaron couldn’t afford to get involved with anyone right now, and he damn sure wasn’t going to get tangled up with the irritatingly bossy Deputy US Marshal Kreed Sinacola. It had to be that damn cologne Kreed wore—cinnamon, clove, and a hint of citrus. Aaron liked that scent way too much for his own good.
“I promise to get you all fixed up tomorrow—just a little styling. You won’t have to look like Connors. Believe me, nobody but Connors can pull that tight-laced, chronically constipated look off with such ease.”
A laugh came from behind them and Aaron jerked his head up. He hadn’t noticed Brown or Connors stepping on the elevator with them. Brown gave a few quiet chuckles before a hearty side-splitting laugh erupted.
“Fuck you all,” Connors said, pressing the first floor button. “Short hair’s easier to deal with.”
“I’ll feed you and make everything better. You’ll see.” Kreed stared right at him, and he finally lifted his gaze to look back. Great. Another teasing jab, but Aaron took a deep breath and chose to let the remark go. The mention of food seemed to work in elevating his mood. Aaron didn’t say anything more. His earlier annoyance hadn’t dissipated by much, but he also hadn’t moved out from under Kreed’s arm. The weight of the guy’s arm over his shoulders somehow calmed him, plus Kreed smelled too damn good and his attitude was contagious. He’d stay right there in that quasi-embrace and think about what he wanted for dinner.
Chapter 6
Kreed stirred, listening to what sounded very close to a mechanical typewriter clicking away in the distance. He cracked an eyelid and looked toward the curtain. There wasn’t any light peeking through the bottom yet so that meant it was still dark outside. When the sound didn’t lessen over time, he looked at the alarm clock by the bed. 4:30 am. Weirdly enough, this had been the first night in longer than he could remember that he’d actually slept. He wasn’t in a mindset to give that up. Kreed turned over, pulled a pillow over his head, and snuggled back underneath the warmth of the blanket, hoping to fall back asleep. Several minutes passed and all he could do was concentrate on whether he could hear that irritating noise.
Yep, there it was. What the hell? Tossing the pillow aside, he fisted the blanket and threw it toward the end of the bed.
Kreed kicked his legs over the edge and stood, before quietly padding across the hotel suite toward the partially opened door separating his room from Aaron’s. He’d insisted on leaving the door open before bed. He knew that made no sense to Aaron, and it honestly hadn’t made much sense to him either, but it was something he and Mitch had done while in the field. Being on the marshals’ special teams task force meant they hauled in the worst of the worst criminals. On rare occasions, the bad guys found the deputies first and Kreed never wanted a locked door to be an obstacle that slowed him in getting to his partner’s side. Now, apparently that same protective instinct applied to Aaron as well.
The sounds grew stronger as Kreed ducked in the closet to grab his gym shorts before pushing the door to their adjoining rooms wide open. Aaron sat at the desk in the dimly lit room, two monitors, a keyboard, and a tower in front of him. Where the hell had all that equipment come from?
“Have you slept?” Kreed asked, stifling a yawn as he pushed his fingers through his hair. Aaron looked up from his computer, a startled expression crossed his face as their gazes met. That was when Kreed noticed the earphones. Aaron reached up, pulling one of the earbuds from his ear, letting it dangle from the wire around his neck. He looked younger than his twenty-nine years, especially in the light reflecting off the monitors. Aaron was shirtless, wearing only a pair of shorts as he sat kicked back in the desk chair. He’d stretched his long muscular legs across another chair, the one originally placed in front of the suite’s window. He must have moved it across the room. All the screens went dark as Aaron angled his head to look at him over his shoulder. Kreed had no idea how he accomplished the feat of turning off the monitors when his hands were no longer on the keyboard.
“What?” Aaron asked.
“Have you slept yet?” Kreed sucked in a breath when Aaron dropped his legs to the floor and spun completely around in his desk chair to face him, exposing a well-defined chest, inked with an impressive tatt that ran across his shoulder and down his chest. A flash of silver on the kid’s nipples caught Kreed’s attention and held it. Nipple rings?
Oh fuck me, yes!
Kreed couldn’t believe all that had been hidden under Aaron’s clothing. The kid was just full of surprises. He was staring, but he couldn’t help it. Damn it, if he was going to hell, he might as well enjoy the view. Kreed’s eyes dropped lower to follow the treasure trail of dark hair disappearing into the waistband of the nylon shorts sitting low on the kid’s hips. Shit, the guy was mouthwatering. Kreed’s cock hardened instantly. What the fuck? He’d never reacted like this to the men he worked with. He’d offered sex before they started the assignment, but once they made it to the FBI building, that was off the table. Yet, his behavior bordered on inappropriate and he absolutely hated he couldn’t get a hold of his attraction for this guy. Damn it.
“Yeah, I just don’t sleep a lot. Did I wake you?” Aaron scrubbed his fingers through his hair.
Kreed really wanted to be the one to do that, but instead he casually reached inside his shorts and straightened his dick. He tried for a normal guy move, something that didn’t reek of creepy pervert. He really hoped it was convincing.
This kid was going to be a problem.
Kreed took a seat on the edge of the bed, praying he didn’t tent as he chastised himself. Why the fuck had he even come in here? Kreed’s sexual arousal kept him on edge, and outside of Aaron’s momentary visual appraisal at the airport—had that even really happened?—Kreed wasn’t certain Aaron was actually gay. At dinner earlier, Kreed had observed Aaron closely. The guy seemed to have a wandering eye, especially for the ladies, which raised more questions than it answered.
“Where did all this come from?” His brain hadn’t registered Aaron’s question, so he asked the first thing that came to mind.
“I had it shipped. The box was waiting for me when I got here.”
“Huh. Were you working?”
“Nah, gaming. I usually game this time of day. Mitch’s on. He still plays when Cody’s sleeping. Cody isn’t into video games.”
There was a small creak in the desk chair as Aaron leaned back. Kreed’s eyes were drawn to Aaron’s lap. The keyboard covered his dick, but it sure didn’t look like the kid was having his same problems.
“You don’t game, do you?”
“Nah, but Knox sure plays the shit out of ’em. It sounded like someone was typing on an old timey typewriter.”
“It’s the mechanical keyboard I have.” Aaron lifted a hand and randomly typed some keys to show the clicking.
“It’s kind of the thing right now in this world. Sorry I woke you.”
“It’s good. Where are your glasses?’ Kreed asked, looking at Aaron’s face a little closer.
“They aren’t prescription. They’re just vanity glasses. I wear ’em like I change my hair, whenever I want something different,” Aaron replied, and Kreed just nodded. This kid seemed to always keep him guessing.
“I’m probably gonna go get a workout in,” Kreed said on a yawn as he put his hands on his knees and pushed up from the bed. Between the options of a cold shower or working out, he chose the latter. He needed some serious meditation time too. Something was off over how attracted he was to Aaron right now. He shouldn’t be so caught up in this kid he barely knew. He needed to stop this crazy infatuation from developing further.
“I did that already,” Aaron said, swiveling in his chair to keep an eye on Kreed as he got to his feet and headed toward their shared door.
“You left without telling me?” Kreed asked, looking back at him.
“You were asleep.”
“We’re partners now, with a crazy man on the loose. My job’s to keep you safe while you gather intel. You gotta tell me where you’re going and when.” Kreed shook his head as he left. When he made it back to his room, he called out, “I can already tell you’re gonna be a pain in the ass about that.”
“We’re not in Texas yet. And I’ll probably be the best pain in the ass you’ll ever have,” Aaron replied sarcastically.
Kreed stuck his head around the corner and watched Aaron lifting the earbud back to his ear. He swiped across one screen, turning the monitor back on. He picked up the keyboard and placed it on the desk. Kreed remembered that was Mitch’s preferred gaming stance, too. Aaron had called him back in the room with a sexual innuendo then just completely dismissed him. Why in the world was that so hot? Nobody on the planet dismissed him like that except, on occasion, Mitch. But he could make Mitch crazy, and Aaron seemed completely unaffected by most things, unless he was hungry. Maybe if he rubbed whipped cream and hot fudge all over his body, he could get the guy’s attention.
Nice Guys Collection With Added Bonus Material Page 78