AllFreeNovel
Share Us
They travelin relative silence for over thirty minutes. The whole time they’ve been in the car, Rian is barely able to breathe. He glances at Tayida now and then, his mind completely disconnected from the ongoing dangerous situation they find themselves in.
It is some minor miracle they have not been followed, but until they are miles away, preferably in another state, Rian knows he wouldn’t be able to breathe easily anyway. His head is all over the place.
As if sensing his agitation, Ty clears his throat to get his attention.
“Ri, I know you must be pretty stunned right now, but I need you to try and focus, okay? We must be prepared for shit to hit the fan at any moment. I need you to be brave. I know we can do this. Together.”
Ty keeps his eyes on the road as he speaks calmly to Rian. It’s easier to listen to Tayida that way – when those gorgeous dark eyes are not staring straight into his soul. Somehow facing each other is too distracting. It reminds Rian he has so many other questions. The most important, glaring one, being,Where the hell have you been?
Ty goes on, after Ri mumbles, flustered “I'm listening.”
Tayida glances at Rian briefly. The tension in his eyes is thick. He turns his attention back to the road. Signs for the airport are becoming a common sight. This makes Rian nervous, but he keeps his cool.
“I’ve planned out a route of sorts. We’ll go through various pre-planned vacation bookings until we feel it’s safe to deviate and slip into a smaller flight to a spontaneously chosen location. I have cash and clothing stashed along some of the way. We’ll have enough money to hide…for as long as it takes for the authorities to make a solid case against Harris Kelly. Until then, we must lie low.”
Rian is growing fearful of the plan of action Tayida is outlining. He’s giving him only the rough details. Ri wants to know more, but he’s damn sure most of it will fly over his head. He can’t fucking focus. Ty’s scent is filling the cabin of the car. Ri can practically feel his body heat. And now that Rian knows how it feels to be completely crushed in Ty’s arms, his body craves the feeling constantly.
Where have you been?
Rian’s physical reaction to Tayida is nothing less than visceral. He wonders, is this what it feels like to have a drink after years of sobriety? His head is swimming. His peripheral vision is blurred. His body is tingling, pleasantly buzzed by the sound of Ty’s voice.
He should fucking focus.
But he can’t.
It’s impossible to ignore the way his whole being reacts to Tayida – with an instinctual, deeply proprietary need to coil himself around him, claim him. Touch him. Feel him. Reassure himself, once more, that this is real.
Mine. My home. My family. My beloved.
He cracks the window open, taking in deep breaths of stinky air – burned tires, gasoline fumes, and dust. If that doesn’t bring his mind out of the gutter, nothing will.
Ty lays a heavy hand on his shoulder. “Are you alright, Ri? Am I driving too fast? Do you want me to pull over?”
“No. No, please don’t,” Rian snaps back, flustered. “I…I guess I’m…”
“It’s a lot. I know. I promise to get us out of here. I swear to you, I won’t let you out of my sight.”
His piercing brown eyes still hold the soft warm look, Rian remembers from years ago. But there is a lot more in Ty’s expression now. His gaze is filled with promises and determination.
Rian feels instantly at ease. He’s hypnotized by this new intensity he senses in Ty.
“Run me through the plan again. Please,” he mutters. Ty smiles weakly at him. He rests his paw of a hand over his in the middle console briefly, giving his hand a gentle reassuring squeeze, before taking hold of the wheel again.
* * *
Rian is looking at Ty,expecting to be shaken out of this impossible dream in the harshest of ways. The brown eyes he has been sketching for years are steady and focused, picking up every move in their surroundings. Ty is vigilant and moves with purpose, while at the same time, glancing at all times to Ri and Bran. He has reached for the little one more times than he has touched Ri for comfort and somehow, that is bringing Rian so much peace.
They try to blend in, but nothing about them looks like they are a family unit going on a vacation. For one, Ty is still wearing the clothes that have the WESTERN ENDEAVOR logo. He does look like he has just stepped out of an office meeting – fake glasses with thick black plastic frames, and an expensive-looking watch with a black leather band – all accessories and part of his disguise. The look he’s going for is supposed to be business casual, but he still looks sizzling hot.
How is this nerdy get up looking so badass on him?
There really is no way Ty could ever be lost in the crowd – his attractive face and gorgeously sculpted body are drool-inducing, no matter what he’s dressed in.
Does he freaking know how mouth-watering he is?
His black preppy polo shirt does nothing to conceal his bulging muscles. He is wearing a black windbreaker that is threatening to crack wide open as it struggles to accommodate the wide expanse of his muscular back. A vivid fantasy flashes through Rian’s mind – light dancing over Ty’s back as his muscles strain and his hips buckle. Rian can imagine his own fingers digging possessively into Ty’s flesh, claiming it as his own.
Rian’s digits twitch. He can almost feel the heat on his fingertips. He is helpless to banish the flood of sensual illusions his imagination has chosen to torture him with.
