Doubling Down

by Bianca D’Arc

  “It’s so late, though. I don’t usually—”

  “Trust us,” Jay cut in. “We’ve dealt with this kind of thing before. You had a lot of adrenaline flowing through your body before. You’re probably still feeling a little unsteady, right?”

  “Well… Yeah. I guess so.” She drew a bit closer to where they’d set themselves up on the couch. Each guy had taken an end, leaving a space between them, right in front of the pizza boxes.

  “Come here, Becky,” Zack coaxed, patting the cushion next to him. “Trust us. We know how it feels and the best methods for dealing with the after-action high.”

  And so, she found herself sitting between the two hunky men, perched on the edge of her couch, sorting through pizza boxes, looking for a small slice with toppings she liked. She found a plain cheese pie and took the smallest slice she could find, using one of the paper plates that had apparently been delivered along with the pizza and beer. There were napkins, too, and she took one of those, as well, before sitting back with her prize and nibbling.

  The nibbling became munching, then happy chewing. She really was hungry, she was astonished to find, and she wished she’d taken one of the slightly larger slices.

  “There,” Jay said, making her look up at him to find he’d been watching her eat. “I bet you’re starting to feel a little better already, no?”

  She pursed her lips, considered, and then nodded at him. “Yeah. You guys were right. But I can’t believe you pig out on pizza every time you find yourselves in stressful situations.” Their Greek god bodies belied that idea.

  “Not every time,” Zack confirmed. “But we did it a lot in the beginning. After we got home.”

  There was a story in his words, but she sensed it was a private tale. She wanted to ask them about their experiences, but she didn’t want to be rude or pry. So, she just got herself another small slice of pizza and let it and the wine calm her jacked up nerves.

  When Zack turned on the television and tuned it to a documentary, Jay moved closer, putting his arm around her shoulder. She was a little surprised by Jay’s offer of comfort. She’d gone on the date with Zack. Shouldn’t he be the one putting his arm around her? But, then, Jay had kissed her first. Maybe he was just the naturally more affectionate of the two?

  Too confused to worry about it and needing the solid warmth of his partial hug after what she’d been through that night, she mentally shrugged it off and snuggled closer to him. It was a platonic sort of hug, anyway, right? She let the question go and simply enjoyed his embrace.

  They’d protected her. They’d put themselves in the way of bad guys who fought like ninjas or something. And they’d fought back—like even better ninjas. For her. How did a girl get so lucky to have friends like these?

  A tear leaked out of the corner of her eye, but she refused to let more fall. She would not be one of those silly, weepy heroines in some movie, falling apart at the least provocation. No way. She was not that girl.

  Jay ran one big hand down her back in a soothing motion, right along her spine. Damn. That felt good. As soon as she began to relax under his repeated, slow strokes, she realized just how tense she’d still been. It had been one heck of a night.

  The television droned on. She had no idea what they were watching and didn’t much care, but she stared at the screen, anyway, where some guys in orange rubber suits were dragging giant metal rectangles off the sea floor in a snowstorm. They were fishing for crab or something? It didn’t matter. Just watching the activity, with the sound on so low she almost couldn’t hear it, gave her something to focus on besides her inner turmoil.

  The distraction, plus Jay’s gentle touch on her back, soon washed away the residual fright. The adrenaline high—as they’d put it. She could feel it draining out of her system by slow degrees. And, when it was gone, she started to feel the effects of a long, more exciting than usual, sort of day.

  Her eyes began to close. No matter how hard she tried to keep them open, she felt herself drifting. And, then, Jay turned her in his arms so that she was laying against him, and it felt so darn good, she drifted away to a dreamless sleep.

  “She’s out,” Jay reported to his partner silently.

  “Think she’ll stay that way?”

  “I’d bet on it.” Jay looked at the sleeping angel in his arms. She’d had a rough night and likely wouldn’t wake anytime soon, as long as they didn’t make too much noise. Of course, silence was kind of a specialty of theirs.

  “She’s got a computer over there,” Zack observed. “I’m going to do a little research and send a few emails to the team. They all like her. They’ll help.”

  “Good call. I’d help, but I don’t want to wake her. She was having a rough night even before the shit hit the fan.”

  “Really? How so?” Zack asked as he silently stood and walked over to the laptop sitting on a table in the corner, next to some paperwork and a small filing cabinet. That little nook must be Becky’s home office area.

  “She had a headache before.”

  “Rough.”

  Both Zack and Jay knew all about headaches. They’d had some doozies when the experimental treatments had first started. They’d settled over time, but in the beginning, both men had wondered if they’d volunteered to have migraines for the rest of their lives. Thankfully, after the initial period of adjustment, the headaches had gone away. For the most part. Now, they only happened after long periods of using their telepathy over distances that were really at the edge of their range. Overtaxing their abilities caused the headaches, now—or so the docs claimed.

  It made sense. They’d kept track of when, and under what circumstances, the headaches occurred, and there was a definite pattern.

  “You know, we’ve both got a lot of leave saved up,” Zack sent to Jay while busily tapping keys on the laptop.

  “Yeah. I agree. It’s definitely time to use some of it.”

  Jay closed his eyes, content to let his partner do the research this time. Jay was comfy cozy with their woman in his arms, stretched out on her couch. Life was good. At least for the moment.

  There was still a boatload of shit to deal with, but that was their other specialty. They’d figure out why that gang of jackasses knew so much about their woman, and then, they’d deal with it. Nothing and no one would threaten Becky. Not while Jay and Zack breathed.

  They’d be no good to the rest of the team until this was settled. Their commander would realize that, and unless World War Three broke out overnight, they’d get some time off to deal with this personal matter.

  “I sent an email to the commander, explaining a bit about our need for some leave. He’ll see it in the morning,” Zack reported a minute or two later. Jay’s eyes were still closed, and he was on the verge of falling asleep himself. “I’ll take first watch and get on the research. You catch some z’s.”

  “Thanks, man.” Given permission to sleep, Jay gave in to the heaviness in his limbs and let sleep take him.

  The warm presence of Becky in his arms was one of the most pleasant ways he’d ever gone to sleep. He’d wanted to savor it, but they’d split the watch, so someone was always awake and alert. They’d take care of their own.

  Chapter Six

  Midway through the watch they’d set for themselves, Zack closed the laptop and stretched. He’d learned quite a bit, but still needed a few answers to important questions. Daylight and a more secure connection—which he had back at their place—would be the remedy for some of it. And sleep. Yeah, he needed some sleep.

  Which meant waking up his partner. He hated to do it, but they’d agreed on a split watch. He leaned back in the chair and looked at Jay, sleeping soundly with Becky tucked into his arms. Jay looked…odd. Like he had a smile on his face or something.

  Son of a bitch was smiling in his sleep. Zack had to stifle a laugh. It wasn’t a full-assed grin. Just a faint lift at the corners of Jay’s mouth, which typically were in a straight or slightly frowning position, come to think of it. Tha
t’s why the expression had struck Zack as odd.

  Trained to notice the slightest of details, Zack had never consciously studied his partner’s face, but to look at him now, Jay was the image of contentment. Lucky bastard. Speaking of whom…

  “Jay,” Zack sent quietly along their mental link.

  Jay’s eyes opened a fraction, just enough to take in the situation. They’d trained themselves to wake cautiously and completely ready for battle, if need be.

  “We’re secure,” Zack was quick to add. “It’s four-thirty. You slept about two and a half hours.”

  “How did your research go?” Jay asked as he began the cautious process of extricating himself from the couch without waking Becky. It was a challenge, but he could do it. Stealth was their byword.

  “I got a few answers but also a few more questions. When I started going in circles, I shut down the laptop.”

  “Good call,” Jay agreed, as Zack had known he would. “You want me to try?”

  “Yes, but I think we’re going to need better equipment than what she’s got here.”

  “Yeah,” Jay replied slowly as he worked his way out from beside Becky. She stirred once but didn’t wake, and within moments, Jay was standing. He walked silently toward Zack and Becky’s laptop computer in the corner. “Let me take a look at what she’s got, and maybe we can do a few upgrades for her. I might have spare parts for this model in my workshop.”

  When most guys talked about having a workshop, they meant a place to do woodworking or some kind of mechanical thing. When Jay used that term, Zack knew he was referring to a place he owned in an industrial part of town that was filled with computer and electronic components.

  Jay and Mike’s dad might have been the silent partner in Foster Electronics with Peter Foster’s dad, but while Mike and Peter hadn’t really been involved with the family business, Jay had interned and later worked at Foster Electronics while he’d been in high school. In fact, he still tested equipment for them in his spare time.

  Jay was a computer genius. Not so much with programming, though he was darn good at that, but with the electronic components themselves. He could build anything with a circuit board and some electrical tape. Add in a soldering iron, and the man could move mountains.

  They switched places in front of the little laptop, which was perfectly adequate for casual civilian use. Zack knew if Jay tinkered with it, the innocuous purple laptop—purple of all things—could become a true wolf in a purple wool suit.

  “Let me check this system out and see what she does with it. At the very least, I can soup it up a bit for her.” Jay began tapping on the keys as soon as the thing started up.

  Zack knew his partner could get lost for hours while examining a piece of hardware, so he headed for the couch. Becky was curled up in the middle, with room on either end. Zack placed the soft throw that had been on the back of the armchair over her and sat down in the space closest to her head. He wanted to touch her, but he wasn’t sure he dared.

  She’d gone to sleep with Jay holding her. What would she think if she woke up in Zack’s arms?

  “I’ll stand watch inside until daybreak, then go out and pick up a few things,” Jay said into Zack’s mind, pulling him from his thoughts. “We need to make this house more secure, and I’ll get breakfast on my way back. I’ll call Mike and Peter as soon as it’s light and ask them if they can stand watch from outside while you sleep a bit. We’ll both need more rest if we’re going to be any good today. Becky, too.”

  “And what if Mike and Pete want to stay in bed with their lady?” Zack countered.

  “Then, I’ll contact one of the other teams. You know they all like Becky. They’ll help out.”

  Jay had a point. The guys would definitely help if they knew Becky was in trouble.

  “All right. Sounds like a plan, then. Just make sure you don’t leave us uncovered.”

  “I would never,” Jay protested. Zack sent an amused chuckle over their shared line of communication.

  “I know, partner. I’m just yanking your chain.”

  That got Zack an annoyed growl in return, and he had to work to keep from chuckling out loud. “I’m going to sleep, now,” Zack said into Jay’s mind a moment later, and putting action to his words, he promptly closed his eyes and let himself drift.

  When Zack woke a few hours later, the sun was up, and Jay was back. Zack could smell coffee and breakfast scents coming from the direction of Becky’s kitchen. And Becky herself… Well, somehow, she’d ended up in Zack’s arms.

  He honestly couldn’t remember how that had happened. Whether she’d come to him or the other way around, somehow, she was tucked up next to him, as if she belonged there, lying half-over him on the couch. Part of him had definitely taken notice of her position even while he’d been asleep, because he woke hard and ready, his dick pressing against her inner thigh. Oh, yeah.

  Only a couple layers of fabric separated them, but his dick didn’t seem to think that was much obstruction. And, then, she moved her thigh, stretching as she came awake, rubbing against him and making him gasp at the sensations.

  She froze. One of her hands was on his chest, the other on the couch as she pushed up, blinking sleep from her eyes. “Jay?” she whispered before she could really see him.

  “Zack,” he corrected her gently.

  “Zack?” She could see his face, now, and the expression on hers was adorably confused. “But Jay…”

  “Yeah, I know. You started off with him, but you ended up with me. Hope you’re not too disappointed.” He tried to make light of the situation, but he had to admit, it made him sad to think that she might not accept both of them. Sad and a little panicky—which, in turn, made him grumpy. He sat up, helping her to do the same. “Jay brought breakfast.”

  He tried to clamp down on his feelings. It wouldn’t do to show her what a surly bastard he could be. Not so soon, anyway. He stood up and headed for the kitchen without looking at her.

  “Zack…” she called behind him softly, but he pretended not to hear.

  Becky knew she’d hurt Zack’s feelings. She hadn’t meant to. Damn.

  She ran her fingers through her hair and realized it must be a terrible mess by now. She got up and headed for her bedroom and the master bath attached to it. She needed to make herself presentable before she faced Zack and Jay, again. She didn’t want to come between them, and she definitely didn’t want to cause any hard feelings on either side. She liked them both. Given half a chance, she suspected she could easily come to love either one of them.

  Heck, she was halfway there already. With both of them! That would never do. She scowled at herself in the bathroom mirror. Common sense told her she’d have to limit herself to one or the other, but it was really hard to decide. Which was why she’d hoped they would settle it between them, so she wouldn’t be setting the two friends against each other.

  It was all so complicated, just thinking about it made her want to scream. She’d even fantasized about a world where she wouldn’t have to make a choice but could have them both. Now, wouldn’t that be something?

  Wait. Was that what the guys were hinting at? Was that why she’d gone to sleep in Jay’s arms, and woken up in Zack’s? Were they actually planning to share her? And how in the world would that work? Had they done it before?

  That thought both tantalized and made her angry. She wanted to be the only woman who would have them both—if, and that was a big if, that was what they had in mind.

  She showered, her mind straying time and again to the idea of being with both of them. Banishing those tantalizing thoughts, she got out of the shower, then dressed in casual clothes and steeled herself to face them. If they had any inkling of what she’d been thinking about for the past ten minutes, she would probably die of embarrassment.

  Firming her shoulders, she walked out of her bedroom, down the hall and into her kitchen. Jay and Zack were there, sipping coffee at her small dining table set at the far end of the country-style k
itchen. A wide array of food containers sat in the middle of the table, some with steam escaping from the sides.

  When the men caught sight of her, they stood and welcomed her to the table. Impeccable manners, as always, even in the totally non-formal setting of her kitchen’s breakfast nook. Jay pulled out a chair for her and dropped a peck on her cheek as he seated her. She started a little, but the caress was so fast, it was over almost before it began. And, then, she was seated, and Zack was opening containers and asking her what she wanted to eat.

  Zack insisted on serving her, and she pointed out the items she was interested in. She ended up with a plate of scrambled eggs with home fries and toast. Jay poured a cup of coffee for her and fixed it just the way she liked it with a little cream and sugar. He’d apparently been watching her—or, rather, the bartender—when she took her end-of-the-evening coffee break to go over the books.

  “Don’t you guys have to work today?” she asked, almost dreading their answer. She loved having them around—especially after what had happened last night.

  “Actually, we got a week off,” Zack told her. “Jay fixed it with our boss.”

  “If you don’t mind, we’d like to spend the time with you. I brought some stuff from my workshop to begin upgrading your security system,” Jay added.

  She’d caught her breath when he’d said they both wanted to spend time with her, but then, his next sentence made her realize they were worried about her safety. Her fantasies would have to remain just that—fantasies.

  “You can do that?” she asked, thinking about what he’d said regarding her alarm system. “I mean, I thought I’d have to contact the alarm company if I wanted to make changes. Does it even need changes? I thought I’d gotten their top-of-the-line system when it was installed.” Now, she was just confused.

  “It was good for its time,” Jay said, making a face. “But it could definitely use some upgrades, now. As for the company that services your alarm, don’t worry about it. Foster supplies them, and I’ve still got ties with the company. I can put the upgrades in today and clear it with the alarm company. Though, chances are, they’ll never know how much I’ve added unless they send a tech over.” Jay frowned. “Come to think of it, if you need service in the future, after I change things, you’d be better off just calling me. I’ll be your tech from here on out.”