Where We Left Off - Romeo Alexander Page 0,23

up.

When he determined that he’d gone long enough leading them around by their noses, he finally stopped and sank down onto a park bench. A couple of minutes later, the well-dressed duo turned the corner in full view of him. Tyler noted the smallest hesitation in one of them, but they kept walking. Tyler caught their gazes, nodding politely at them but then continued staring off into space.

When they walked on, he leaned forward, watching them as they stopped several yards from him. One of them made a call, talking in a low voice so Tyler couldn’t hear what was being said. The other stood at his partner’s side, looking downright pissed as he glared ahead of him. The man on the phone didn’t look much happier, and Tyler wondered just how bad a temper the security people in charge of someone’s safety was supposed to be.

“Suckers,” he muttered, chuckling to himself.

He pulled out his phone and texted a picture of himself grinning, with the men in the background to Nate.

Got them off your back. Good luck.

A moment later, his phone buzzed.

I’ll thank you when I get home. Just saw a drunk man urinate on a trash can.

Tyler chuckled. Yeah, that sounded like the metro, alright.

It was good to see you, Nate. Maybe next time we can get some privacy.

I missed you too.

Tyler smiled fondly down at his phone, taking another drink from his coffee. Whether or not he had been reading more into Nate’s words during their conversation than he should have, he was truly glad to have Nate back in his life. In what capacity and for how long remained to be seen, but still, it was better than where they’d been before running into one another.

Nathaniel

It took less than twenty-four hours after his meet-up with Tyler before his phone started buzzing in his pocket again. Nathaniel pulled it out, looking at the screen to see it was Tyler before setting the book in his hand aside. He was alone in his room, so he didn’t hesitate to hit the accept button, only belated realizing it was a video call request.

The screen blacked out before suddenly lighting up. He could see what looked like a large garden in the background, but it was the foreground that had Nathaniel’s attention. Tyler was more dressed than he’d been the day before, but his forehead shone with sweat, and his t-shirt stuck to his broad chest from all the moisture. Tyler grinned when Nathaniel’s feed came through, and Nathaniel felt his heart trip over itself.

“Hey, you safe?” Tyler asked.

“If by that, you mean alone, then yes,” Nathaniel told him.

“Yeah, that’s what I meant.”

“Well again, yes, I’m alone. We can talk without having to behave ourselves.”

Tyler chuckled, the sound low and throaty. “Oh, we can misbehave, huh?”

Nathaniel cleared his throat, only belatedly realizing what his words could have been implying. On its own, it was something he might have been able to tolerate. However, he’d never known that Tyler’s voice could come out like a purr before, and he could feel his dress slacks growing a little more uncomfortable at the realization.

“What are you doing?” Nathaniel asked, not wanting to draw attention to his thoughts.

“Well,” Tyler glanced over his shoulder at the garden. “I was supposed to be helping with some of the yard work. But then Elliot decided to slack off instead of doing his job, so I’m doing the same and decided to see how yesterday went for you.”

From the background came an annoyed grunt. “I am not slacking.”

Tyler looked past the camera, raising a brow. “You’re sitting in a lounge chair, drinking a beer.”

“It’s called a break! I’m allowed one.”

“That you’ve been on for half an hour.”

“An extended break.”

Nathaniel chuckled. “Good afternoon, Elliot.”

Elliot’s voice immediately took on a cheery tone. “Heya, Nate! Been doing alright?”

“As well as I possibly can.”

“That’s good.”

Tyler’s face pinched suddenly. “Uh, oh.”

“What?” Elliot grunted.

A new voice entered the background. “I leave you two alone for less than an hour, and I find you drinking and talking on the phone.”

Tyler winced. “The supervisor is back.”

“Babe, I’m on a break,” Elliot complained.

“Don’t ‘babe’ me. You can’t sweet-talk your way out of this one,” Clay’s familiar voice told him.

Tyler winked at the camera. “Bet you he can.”

“And you,” Clay said, and Tyler blinked. “Quit talking with your boyfriend and get back to work.”

“Clay!” Tyler complained. “Quit being an ass. He’s not my…”

“Fine, call him what you want, but you should’ve been on the phone with him after you