The table burst into laughter. Sam smiled good-naturedly and pulled Viktor close.
I couldn’t hold back any longer. I did the same, pulling my man to me. Daniel startled and stared at me, but he didn’t say no or try to get out of my embrace.
Fuck, that felt so good.
I never got to do this: sit quietly with a bunch of friends around a table, eating delicious food, no one panicking, no one dying, just holding him. I had always been an adrenaline junkie, as Daniel liked to call me, but maybe I was getting old, or maybe I was just so in love.
I wanted this with him. I dreamed of a different life where I got to wake up with him and do mundane stuff like cook breakfast, bicker over how much coffee I drank, and touch him whenever I wanted. The longing hit me out of nowhere, the force of it so strong that I couldn’t speak for a moment.
No one noticed except him.
Our eyes met, and whatever he read in mine made his expression soften.
“So what happened next?” Adrien asked.
“The U.S. government sent a plane in the middle of the night. Emergency evacuation. But the locals wouldn’t let me get on. I was the only Aussie left by that point. They didn’t get that the U.S. and Australia had an understanding. They were the low-level soldiers. They were trying to hold the last line of defense and fight the rebels off alongside us.”
“People lose reason under pressure,” Grant said.
“Exactly.” I nodded. “And we had language issues. They didn’t understand English, and trying to explain wasn’t working. They were adamant that I couldn’t get on the plane. I know that sounds dumb sitting here, but it was mass panic and chaos.”
“Damn,” Adrien said. “So now you’re stuck? Getting left behind?”
I looked at Daniel, who had taken to fidgeting with his sleeves repeatedly.
“Yes. And I was okay with that. It’s part of war. The plane was almost done loading, and the pilot needed to leave before all hell broke loose.”
Remembering that moment had goosebumps erupting over my arms.
Viktor pointed an impatient finger at me. “And? What happened?”
“Well, your roommate here refused to leave me behind. He declared on the spot that I was his husband. That granted me American citizenship instantly. We had a small officiating ceremony… our unit commander acted as the officiant and our men as witnesses.”
“That’s epic,” Grant said.
The men around the table looked riveted by our story. Telling it aloud like this made me realize just how unusual it was.
I nodded. “It was quite something. We had an hour to find something to make our rings. Scrap metal, debris, lost items, anything.”
I glanced down at Daniel, but he suddenly seemed oddly subdued.
“I didn’t even ask his opinion or permission,” Daniel said quietly. “I didn’t give him a choice.”
I frowned. What did he mean?
Suddenly, with a loud noise, Daniel’s chair moved.
Before I could understand what was happening, he was out of his seat, running out of the cafeteria.
“Did he get paged?” Viktor asked in confusion.
I shook my head, just as dumbfounded. We watched him disappear. I thought everything was going so well. We were on our way to mend whatever rift had come between us.
“Reed.” Sam was watching me keenly.
“Yeah?” I turned my head to face him, still feeling extremely confused.
“Are you planning to end things between you both?”
