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“A little,” he finally answered with a sigh. “A lot happened when I was overseas, and it’s still hard to accept that it was all real. It feels like I was caught in some kind of dream.”
“You need some more time off?” Rowe asked, his gaze shrewd.
“No!” A couple of heads turned their way. He cleared his throat and said it more casually the second time. “No.” The last thing he needed was another damn vacation.
Rowe smiled and ran his hand through his thick, red hair. The man was actually shorter than Daniel, but he worked out so much, he seemed bigger. He wore a close beard that reminded Daniel of Edward’s. Kind of like his smile—it was the sort that transformed a face. Just like Edward’s. He inwardly cursed. Everything reminded him of Edward these days. A thick head of black hair would have him turning fast only to see it was some stranger on the street.
Edward was always in his thoughts, and it was driving him crazy.
“It’s Thursday and I know you’ve already put payroll through. Take the rest of the day and tomorrow off. Have a long, relaxing weekend.”
Daniel sighed. “I don’t do much better at home.”
“Then go for a hike.”
“A hike?” He laughed. “Is that what you do when you’re stressed?”
“Mostly I go downstairs and shoot guns, but occasionally, Noah and I will drive down to Red River Gorge. We’ll spend the weekend hiking. It’s a nice time of year for a camping trip.”
“Yeah, camping is not really my thing, but I may take you up on the day off. See if I can get my head on straight.”
Someone whooped and his attention returned to the sparring match. Noah had Garrett in a headlock, both men straining and grinning. Daniel shook his head. The level of testosterone in the air was smothering.
Rowe followed his gaze and chuckled. “They always think they can take him down.”
“He’s gone down a couple of times, but the man is a machine and gets right back up.”
Rowe grunted, his expression softening as he stared at his boyfriend. Then his lips suddenly tightened as his gaze moved in another direction.
Daniel followed and felt the large room narrow down into a tunnel as Edward walked into the area. He wore loose jeans and a white T-shirt that made his hair look very black. He glanced around the room; then his gaze narrowed on Daniel and he stopped walking. Daniel blinked, sure he was hallucinating.
“Is that the guy you ran off with?” Rowe asked.
“You mean the agent I went on a mission with? Yes, that’s him.” Daniel moved away from the pillar but couldn’t seem to make his legs move closer to Edward. That was when he noticed that the fight had stopped, and everyone stood around staring at the newcomer. Edward frowned, his head tilting as he took in all the men who were just as big as him.
The music stopped, the sudden silence jarring.
They were probably all guessing who Edward was because several of the men looked from Edward to Daniel. Daniel ran his hands down his slacks because his palms were sweating. The joy that swelled in his chest at the sight of Edward felt like it filled the whole first floor. He couldn’t stop his smile.
Then Edward smiled back, and his heart picked up a crazy rhythm.
Quinn, who’d been watching quietly on the sidelines spoke up. “Is this the guy who got you shot at?”
And it wasn’t Daniel’s imagination when the tension ratcheted up several notches. A couple of the bodyguards stepped toward Edward, who pulled his hands out of his pockets, his body visibly tightening like he expected to get jumped.
“I am,” Edward said, his hands tightening into fists at his sides.
“Hey now,” Daniel gushed, rushing across the mats to stop in front of Edward. He turned and frowned at his coworkers. “You guys are being asses.”
“We’re just standing here,” Garrett said with a wicked grin.
Noah snorted and snagged a towel to wipe the sweat off his face. He had his shoulder-length hair pulled into a short tail at the nape of his neck. He never took his eyes off Edward.
Daniel rolled his eyes and turned back to Edward, his gaze raking over him with pleasure. “Ignore them.”
“I put you in danger. They’re your friends. I understand the distrust.”
“Well, I don’t.” He shot a quick glare over his shoulder. “Come on, we’ll talk in my office.”
“Oh, come on, Daniel!” Noah shouted.
“Let him stay! We just want to play with him a little,” Dominic added with a chuckle.
“Yeah, Daniel. We won’t break him…much,” Rowe called.
Daniel glared over his shoulder at his coworkers as he pushed and prodded Edward up the stairs. He couldn’t help but roll his eyes again. He knew they were just teasing, but he didn’t relax until he had Edward in his office, the door shut, and the shades closed over his inner office window.
