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“I’m thinking that our crew isn’t properly equipped for this mission,” Charlie announced suddenly, shattering the quiet.
“What are you talking about?” Ed asked, sounding as if Charlie had woken him from a doze.
“I’m thinking we don’t have enough stealth.”
West snorted and even Kairo made a disgruntled noise. “Fuck you. I’m all stealth,” the driver grumbled.
“Your best stealth comes from a distance. The same with West. You’re both sneaky fucks, but you do some of your best work from a distance,” Charlie argued.
A low, long chuckle rumbled up from Ed, causing Will to twist around to stare at him. “I see what you’re getting at. You think he’ll come?”
Will turned to look up at Charlie. “What? I don’t understand.”
Charlie shifted in his chair to smile at him. Exhaustion was digging lines in his face and making his eyelids droop. “There’s no one sneakier in the world than a cat burglar.”
Kairo cackled. “I dare you to repeat that where Alexei can hear you. I fucking dare you.”
“No chance. That kid is psycho.”
Kairo laughed. “I dare you to call him a kid to his face, too.”
“I’m assuming you’re talking about Soren,” Will interjected since he was still feeling lost. “I thought you said he was vacationing with his boyfriend. Would he really leave that to come here?”
Kairo broke into another laugh, this one hard enough to make the van swerve slightly into the next lane. “Definitely. Soren might bitch and whine about it, but if he tells Alexei, they will be on the next flight.” Kairo glanced over his shoulder at Will and flashed him a grin. “Ignore what Charlie is saying about Alexei. Yes, he’s an assassin and scary dangerous, but he also loves Soren with every fiber of his being. He’s really sweet, actually, and adventurous.”
“Because he’s twelve,” Charlie spat out.
“He’s twenty-three, which makes Charlie feel old and insecure,” Kairo teased.
Twenty-three and an accomplished assassin? Who the fuck are his parents? Do they know what he’s doing?
But Will got the feeling old and insecure part. Hearing about Alexei was starting to make him feel old and very insecure.
“Cat burglars are sneaky. Assassins are sneaky. Sounds like we’d be picking up a double threat if we can get them to come help,” Ed said. “Make the call, Charlie. Ask Soren to bring his boyfriend to come play with us.”
Charlie released Will and leaned over in his seat so he could pull his cell phone out of his back pocket. “I’ll shoot him a text and see if he can stop screwing his boyfriend’s brains out long enough to talk.”
“Jealous,” West muttered. His voice was low and husky like he was half-asleep.
“Fuck yes, I’m jealous,” Charlie grumbled. “The second this nonsense is finished, I’m taking my boyfriend to some private beach and fucking his brains out. Somewhere none of you lunatics can find us.”
Will cocked his head, looking up at Charlie with his eyebrows raised. “Boyfriend, huh?”
His lover’s expression was completely unrepentant as he smirked at him. “Mine,” he growled, and Will swore he could feel the vibrations of that single word across his soul.
19
CHARLIE SANDS
Charlie found Will sitting on the bench swing that hung in the small backyard. The doctor appeared to be staring off into space while the sun set just past the tall concrete walls that circled the property.
The place Kairo and Ed had lined up for them felt like it was in the middle of nowhere on a tree-lined street that the rest of the world forgot about. He’d learned long ago not to ask how they found these gems. During their time with the CIA, they’d all studied how to disappear and blend with the crowds. But Kairo and Ed always found a way to do it without sacrificing comfort, something he appreciated more with each passing year.
They’d been at the house for two days now, allowing Ed and Westin time to recuperate and Kairo to rebuild his stockpile of technical equipment while they waited for Soren and Alexei. Everyone seemed to be relaxed, but Will appeared to be growing more anxious.
If he was being honest with himself, though, he was starting to wonder if reentering Will’s life was the smartest thing. Assuming he kept running with Kairo, Ed, and West in their mercenary-for-hire enterprise. Wasn’t he just dragging Will into danger? It didn’t matter if Will remained in the van or at the safe house, death, danger, and violence clung to them like a second skin. It would still find Will and threaten his life. That was the last thing he wanted.
Maybe it was time to leave this all behind.
What the fuck was he going to do with himself?
Will pushed the swing back and lifted his eyes to meet Charlie’s, a slow smile forming on his lips.
He was going to do whatever Will needed him to do.
“I’m starting to learn that’s your worried face,” Will called with a tilt of his head to the side.
