Chapter 6
Boone glanced at the clock, untucking and retucking his crisp olive-green shirt into his pants. Did his clothesreallyhave to rebel against him today? Why was getting dressed suddenly so difficult? He could’ve done this with his eyes closed a year ago, damn it.
Today, however, seemed fit to make a completefool of him. Boone grumbled to himself as he fixed his pants' legs, shaking them straight.
He sighed, running his hand through his hair. Boone only hoped he could focus on the lesson once Demarien arrived. He chewed his lip nervously. He hadn’t heard anything from Demarien or the others since last night.
Boone wasn’t one to pay much attention to gossip. Small-town talk was all talk, after all. However, the buzz around town was nothing short of terrifying. It had already gone from one body to six, with talk of corruption in the police department as well. Despite knowing better, it was enough to make him worry even more than he already was.
A murder in Myrtlewood Bay?Boone grimaced.Been a long time since anything this big happened.
Boone rubbed his eyes, letting out a long sigh. He’d been so worried about Demarien and the others that he hadn’t slept much last night. Every time he thought sleep was about to claim him, his stupid brain came up with another horrible thing that could happen to Demarien.
Eventually, he ended up dragging himself from his bed and started poring over the lesson he had planned out. After all his time in the military, that kind of structure soothed him. It was easy to lose himself in the words, watching the motions play out in his mind. He could probably re-enact the entire lesson without missing a beat.
A series of squeaks echoed through the large room, snapping Boone from his gripes. Boone chuckled to himself. The small kitchen, separated from the main room by a half-wall barrier, had become a guinea pig reserve at least until Boone and Demarien could get those little piggies to Felix.
True to his word, he had found a guinea pig next door at the rescue that was ready to go to a new home. It even came with friends, just like Demarien.What’s two extra guinea pigs, anyway?He thought.
A small niggle of worry grew in his stomach again. Demarien was late. What if the murderer decided that the cabin by the beach looked interesting? What if they came back and demanded something else from the estate? What if --?
I should have stayed with him last night.Boone grimaced as he paced the floor.Not every day you come face-to-face with something like that.Poor Demarien.
The bell above the door jingled. “Sorry, I’m late, I --”
Boone spun around as Demarien’s concerned voice called out to him from the entrance. The poor guy barely had a chance to move before Boone was in front of him, wrapping him up in a huge bear hug.
“I’m so glad you’re safe,” Boone whispered, begrudgingly peeling himself from Demarien. “You have no idea how worried I was for --”
Boone’s voice caught in his throat as he raked his eyes over the form-fitting outfit Demarien wore. He was dressed in a ridiculously sexy exercise outfit. At least it was sexy to Boone. Then again, Demarien could be dressed in a garbage bag, and Boone would still think he was sexy.
A thick, pink bandana pushed Demarien’s hair up from his face, and a matching pink tank showed off his arms. A picture of the golden girls stared at Boone from the shirt, their knowing smirks judging him. The grey leggings and pink short-shorts showed off Demarien’s ass and thighs perfectly.
“The shirt is too much, isn’t it?” Demarien snorted. “It’s my favorite workout shirt, so I couldn’t resist wearing it.”
Boone looked him up and down, blood heating. “I like it.” He couldn’t keep his eyes from Demarien. The man had been cute when they were younger, but now? He was absolutely captivating. Boon couldn’t stop staring, eyes devouring every inch of the man in front of him.
After a while, Demarien waved his hand in front of Boone’s face. “Helloooo? Are you okay? Do I need to come back later? Youdolook a bit tired.”
Boone’s face flushed. “Sorry. It’s been a morning. Didn’t sleep too much last night. Was too worried to sleep.” Boone sighed, reaching out for Demarien’s hand. “But don’t worry about me. How is everyone on your end holding up?”
Demarien squeezed Boone’s hand and grimaced. “About as well as expected. I guess now we can advertise as Oregon’s first haunted inn. The biggest tourist attraction of the town.” Demarien chuckled under his breath as his face fell.
“No, no, no, that sad face won’t do at all.Not on my watch.” Boone pulled Demarien to the mats in the center of the room.“Okay. This mat right here? This is where I need your mind to go blank. Go on, give it a try.”
Boone held his breath as Demarien’s eyes slipped closed.
“Don’t think about anything outside the confines of this mat.” Boone clasped Demarien’s hands tighter. “Here, it’s just you, me, and Mac.”
Demarien’s eyes shot open. “Mac? Who’s Mac? The mat?”
“Mac is a dear friend of mine. One who’s gotten me out of trouble many times.” Boone snorted. “Welcome to your first lesson in Modern Army Combatives.” Boone stepped back from Demarien and circled him. “Now, we have a lot of ground to cover. Let’s start with --”
“Gotta warm up first, right, teach?” Demarien smirked, widening his stance before he started doing simple windmill exercises. Simple, yet just enough toreallyshow off some firm muscles in his arms and legs. He bent over and touched his toes.
Is it suddenly warm in here?Boone turned his attention to the nearby lockers, swallowing hard as Demarien sighed deeply behind him.
“Okay, let’s get started.” Demarien balled his hands up into fists and took a defensive stance. “What’s first on the list?”
