I don’t have him tied and gagged in my dungeon, asshole.”
“Oh, kinky,” Felix said breathlessly. “Is that an available option?”
Jude snorted, finally acknowledging Felix’s sidebar conversation. Jude extended the phone to him. “It’s for you, dear.”
Felix accepted the phone from Jude, who then sat up and turned on the bedside lamp. Soft light flooded the room, but it was bright enough to make Felix blink.
“Hey, Major,” Felix said.
“I was going to ask where the fuck you’ve been all night, but I guess I know. Why the fuck couldn’t you have at least answered the fucking phone?” Felix had never heard Rocky sound so angry and drop so many F-bombs in succession.
“I—”
“This is typical Felix behavior. You claim to be part of the team, yet you leave us to worry about you.”
Warmth spread through Felix when he realized Rocky’s anger was from being scared out of his mind. “You’ve heard about the explosion, then.”
“Felix, I’m going to drive over there and throttle you.”
“Can you wait until after I heal?” Felix asked.
Rocky swore again. “Are you okay? How bad is it?”
“A little bit of road rash on my shoulder blades and some sore muscles. I’ll heal in no time,” Felix assured his friend. “My cell phone was destroyed in the aftermath of the blast, so that’s why I didn’t call you.”
“You could’ve borrowed the asshole’s phone before you started playing house together,” Rocky countered. He blew out a puff of air. “Jesus, I sound like such a jerk right now. You could’ve been killed, so of course you jumped his bones.”
“Jude took me to the hospital and brought me back to his house so we could talk through some things,” Felix explained. “I might’ve been a little wrong about Jude, Major.” The man in question quirked a brow. “Okay. I was a lot wrong about Jude.”
“Is he making you say that?” Rocky asked. “Blink twice if you’re okay.”
“Blink twice? How would you see it? Please tell me you’re not watching us through night vision goggles or something.”
Rocky laughed. “No. I’m a fucking mess and talking out of my ass.”
“I’m fine, Major. I promise.”
“I tracked down one of the EMT workers who responded to the incident, and he described the man who was with you. How did Jude arrive on the scene so quickly?” Rocky asked suspiciously.
“I know what you’re thinking.”
“I don’t think you do,” Rocky said. “I went to the hospital and charmed some answers out of a nurse too. I knew you were with Jude, but fuck me, it was hard to breathe a sigh of relief when he has such a large cloud of suspicions floating over his head.”
“We do have a lot to tell you guys.”
“We?” Rocky asked. How’d he pack so much disdain in one little word?
“Yeah, we,” Felix said. There was no way in hell he’d air Jude’s secrets behind his back. “I need to get a new phone first thing in the morning. Then I’d—”
Jude cleared his throat.
“We’d like to meet with you, Jonah, and Avery.”
Rocky sighed heavily. “Fine. I’ll text Jonah now and let him know you’re not dead.”
“Come on, Major. Stop being a drama queen. You already knew I wasn’t dead.”
“You weren’t when you left the hospital, at least,” Rocky replied, getting the last dig.
“I’m safe, and I’m where I want to be,” Felix said. Jude reached over and brushed a knuckle over his cheek. “Your concern means a lot to me.”
“You’ve grown on me.”
“Like a hairy mole?”
Laughing, Rocky said, “Slightly better than that. Text or call when you have your replacement phone. We’ll figure out when and where to meet.”
“Will do. Good night, Major.”
“Night, Fee.”
Felix handed the phone to Jude, who disconnected the call and set it on the nightstand. Jude reached over to turn the light off, but Felix gripped his bicep to stop him.
“Leave it on. I remember how much you love seeing your dick moving in and out me.”
Jude’s mouth fell open on a soft gasp, and a deep pink blush stained his cheeks. Felix slowly spread his legs wide beneath the covers, and Jude broke their eye contact to watch the action.
“Are you sure you want this?” Jude asked.
God, yes. “I’m sure I want us,” Felix replied. Old insecurities and doubts clawed their way to the surface like skeletal hands reaching up out of a grave. Felix’s fear of never being good enough was the rotting skin clinging to the brittle bones of his past. “Do you?”
“So goddamn much.” Jude’s voice shook with emotion. “If we do this, I