Page 16 of Bazooka

Roomies

Luz

Pfft. Rules, schmules. Didn’t he know me at all?

I was a rule breaker, not a rule follower.

Bazooka was going to have to learn that about me the hard way, because I wasn’t giving him a heads-up.

And that thing about not hitting on him?

Please . It was my reason for living. How else was I supposed to get into his pants, which was my ultimate destination?

What I learned, though, were two things.

First, being Bazooka-less was a state impossible to endure.

When he went on that gun smuggler chase and I had to spend a day and a night without him, I nearly went crazy.

I missed him like hell, and I was worried like hell.

I’d already decided that if he wouldn’t let me stay here, I would chain myself to bed and throw away the key.

On the opposite end of the spectrum, being around him was a Spanish boot level of torture.

Yesterday, when he gave me that stinky cream treatment, I got a boner.

I knew it. He knew it. Neither of us addressed it, but we both knew it was there.

So, how the hell was I supposed to live with him without losing my mind?

I was already head over heels for him, but to feel his hands on me, to see him smile, to be able to smell him…

I was on the road to the blue balls land without a return ticket, which got me thinking.

Maybe I should turn this seduction thing up a notch. Test the water. Breathe a little.

Incidentally, Bazooka slept on the sofa last night, and I didn’t like it.

Simply put, it seemed like a step in the wrong direction.

Not just because I hated being alone lately, but because I wanted him in my bed, even if only platonically.

It was the next thing for me to deal with, and I decided it even before I fully woke up.

Then, I did my morning routine in the bathroom, thrilled to realize that my foot didn’t hurt as much as yesterday.

When I came to the room , which I still didn’t know what to call because of its lack of identity, I stopped in my tracks.

Bazooka was there, and not only him. The table was there too, albeit unassembled.

And four chairs. He was sitting on one of them and studying the paper in his hand.

And he wore eyeglasses, which was another nail in my boner coffin, because he looked delicious.

“Did I wake you up?” he asked me without looking up.

Cops! How did they know what was happening around them without looking? It was pure witchcraft.

“No,” I replied, yawning. “How come you’re still home?”

“I have a day off.”

Oh, goodie! Wonderful news.

I walked up to him and plopped down in his lap. He raised his head and looked at me as if I’d lost my mind. Or caught malaria.

“There are three more chairs here, you know?” he said, cocking his eyebrows.

I grinned. “We need to check how sturdy they are. The glasses suit you, by the way. You look sexy.”

“I use them only for reading,” he said, looking at the paper in his hand. “And I need to read this so I can assemble that table over there.”

He still didn’t make me leave his lap, and I rejoiced in the fact.

“Is it complicated?” I asked him.

“If I don’t lose any screws, it should be fairly simple.”

“Can I help?”

“No, thanks. Just be mindful of your injured foot and rest.” He looked at me, making my heart skip a beat. “You’re still sitting in my lap.”

I lowered my gaze, playing with the hem of his shirt.

“I just wanted to thank you for letting me stay,” I murmured, doing my best to appear humble. “I really appreciate it.”

“It’s okay,” he said solemnly.

“I’ll make it up to you. What can I do? Do you want me to pay rent or something?”

“Can you afford it?”

“I have money. It’s not an issue.”

His eyes narrowed. “How come? You don’t work.”

It was a trick question. Damn it.

“I know what I’ll do,” I said, changing the subject. “I’ll make us breakfast.”

“You can cook?” Bazooka asked me, sounding unconvinced.

“I’m a pretty good cook, actually,” I replied, opening the fridge. “God, Baz. You don’t even have eggs in here.”

“I bought stuff,” he grumbled. “It should be in the kitchen somewhere.”

“You bought junk. I can’t believe you have all those muscles if this is your food of choice. Do you work out?”

“Nope. Mother Nature was generous, I guess.”

“Too generous, if you ask me,” I murmured. “By the way, do you think I’m attractive?”

When he didn’t reply, I looked at him, only to find his gray gaze fixed on me.

“Objectively… yeah,” he said finally.

I smiled widely. “And subjectively?”

He pushed his glasses up his nose. “Subjectively, I think you’re a nightmare.”

My smile fell.

“Fuck you, Levi.”

His smile appeared.

“You too, Lucius.”

My plans for a romantic breakfast were ruined, but I was nothing if not resourceful.

Since cooking was postponed for the time being, I headed to the bedroom.

Now that I finally had my clothes here, I felt almost at home.

Better, even. I changed into a white T-shirt and jeans before returning to the room.

When Bazooka saw me, he blinked.

“You look good.”

I gasped theatrically. “Noo, is that a compliment?”

“I mean, I’m used to seeing you in my sweats, so… Wait, are you wearing makeup?”

I scoffed, looking at my cuticles. “Pfft. Of course not.”

Was the concealer really makeup? Really?

Bazooka smirked, opening a bottle of water. He could see right through me, the bastard.

“You finished the table,” I said, dragging my hand over the smooth wooden surface. “It looks nice. Incidentally, have you ever fucked on a table?”

He choked on water, spilling some of it over his shirt.

“Jesus Christ, Luz,” he breathed, wiping his chin with the back of his hand. “Language. God.”

I blinked innocently. “Are you a prude?”

“No, I’m not a prude, but you can’t say whatever crosses your mind.”

“Hmm,” I hummed. “I’ll think about it. Do you need anything from the store?”

“No, why?”

“I’m going to get us some groceries so I can cook us proper meals.”

He cocked his eyebrows. “Aren’t you forgetting something?”

“Clearly I am, but I don’t know what it is.”

“How about rule number three?”

Oh, right . It was the rule that said I can’t leave the apartment without him by my side. Darn it.

My face fell. “But we need food, Baz. And I need fresh air. I have been cooped up in the bedroom for days. Please. I’m begging you.”

Bazooka took another sip of water, eyeing me. Was he checking me out? No way he was checking me out.

“Okay,” he said finally. “We’ll go to the store, but let’s make it short. I have to go through some case files when we get back.”

I rolled my eyes. “You have a day off.”

“There’s no such thing for a cop,” he said, passing by me, only to stop in his tracks. “Oh, and by the way,” he added, smirking. “To answer your question, I fucked all over. Including the table.”

I gulped while he headed to the bathroom, whistling. Did he just say that? Oh, fuck him. Now, I had to go to the store with a semi.

But I handled it. I disguised the reason for my limping, pretending it was my ankle that bothered me. Bazooka wrapped his arm around me and helped me climb down the stairs, which didn't help with my problem. Luckily for me, the store was across the street.

“I think we should get you crutches,” Bazooka said when we stopped at the red traffic light.

I gasped, alarmed by the idea. “No fucking way.”

He chuckled. “Stop being so vain, Luz. The crutches will make your life easier.”

“I don’t care. I said no, and you can’t make me.”

Bazooka was still chuckling when we entered the store, but I didn’t find it funny. Also, why would I use crutches when I had him to carry me around? It was much more fun, not to mention enjoyable. So, it was no to the crutches. Yes, to the Bazooka-transportation.

After we filled the cart with food and argued for half an hour about who was going to pay for it, we left the store. He paid, which made me livid.

“I’m not your fucking charity, Bazooka,” I hissed as we crossed the street. “I’m not staying at your place and eating your food without contributing somehow.”

“You will contribute,” he said coolly.

“How? By giving you blowjobs? This is a real offer, by the way. What do you say?”

He burst into laughter. “I don’t think so, sweetheart.”

Be still, my heart. He called me sweetheart. Sweetheart.

I was still over the moon when we reached the park, and I spotted an ice-cream cart.

“I’m buying you ice cream,” I said, taking his hand in mine and pulling him after me. “If you try to take out your wallet, I will set it on fire. And you know I’m capable of it.”

It was a good thing we’d arranged for our groceries to be delivered.

“No, Luz,” he protested, trying to stop me. “I don’t want ice cream.”

“Well, you’re getting one,” I insisted. “And stop resisting, or I swear to God, I will take off my sneaker and hit you with it.”

After I bought us ice cream, we found an empty bench in the park across from a small pond. I sat beside Bazooka and put my feet in his lap, and then, for a while, we ate ice cream in silence.

“What do you think of my friends?” I said when I got bored with looking at the swans.

“They seem nice,” Bazooka replied, pushing his sunglasses up his nose. “How long have you known them?”

“Since college. We met at the club and clicked instantly.”

“What did you study?”

“Coding.”

He blinked in disbelief. “You’re kidding me?”

“No. Why? Do you think I’m dumb?”

“Of course not. I was just expecting something more creative.”

“Yeah, my fath—” I stopped abruptly, biting my tongue. “I kind of got forced into it, I guess. It was either that or piloting. What about you?”

“What about me?”

“Your job? Your friends?”

Bazooka shrugged, gazing into the distance. “It’s kinda family occupation, but I always wanted to be a cop. As far as my friends… I don’t have any. Tye Thorsen is the closest thing to a friend that I have.”

I rolled my eyes. “Yeah, yeah, because they don’t fit in a duffel bag.”

Bazooka grinned. “Exactly.”

I finished my ice cream and stood up, staring at his tongue that traced a drop of melted chocolate down the cone. I jogged a bit in place to prevent another boner, although my ankle protested. When Bazooka finished his ice cream, I plopped down in his lap.

“Just for a short while,” I begged. “My butt hurts.”

He cocked his eyebrows. “You’re a touch-starved little kitten, aren’t you?”

I shrugged and wrapped my arm around his neck. “At least you didn’t call me a pest this time. And you said that kittens are cute. Do you think I’m cute?”

“Cute-ish,” he replied. “Stop fishing for compliments.”

“How about a girlfriend?” I said, pushing my sunglasses up my nose. “Why don’t you have one? Apart from the fact that girlfriends don’t fit in duffel bags.”

“I’m not exactly the relationship type, if you haven’t noticed.”

“Don’t you ever get lonely?”

“I’m used to it, I guess. What about you?”

I shook my head. “I’ve never been in a relationship. Not a proper one.”

“Why not?”

“The right one never came along, I suppose.”

Not until him, at least, but I wasn’t saying it.

“What about sex?” I asked him, digging deeper.

“When I want it, I have it,” Bazooka replied.

“And how do you know you’re straight?”

He chuckled. “How do you know you’re gay?”

“I like dick.”

“Well, I like pussy,” he countered.

“I liked it once too,” I said with a shrug. “It doesn’t mean anything.”

“So, you’re a little mind-changer,” Baz said, pushing away a strand of hair from my forehead.

Yup, I almost died.

“I’m also known for changing people’s minds,” I said, wrapping my other arm around his neck. It was bold of me, but he kind of brought it on himself.

Bazooka looked at me, seemingly amused, and it made me realize we’d never been so close to each other before. Not kissing-distance close. I glanced at his lips, wondering if I should give him a little smooch, but I had a feeling it would be a bad idea.

He confirmed it when he spoke. “Are you done flirting, pest? Can we go home now?”

I groaned in frustration.

“Do we have to?”

“We do.”

I didn’t want to go. I was in vanilla heaven, and I didn’t want to leave it, but I had no other choice.

“Fine, then. Let’s go home.”

Bazooka stood up with me still clinging to him before he let me slide down his body… slowly . His entire body. Every muscular inch of it, and there were a lot of muscles there. A lot of inches. And he did it on purpose. To fuck with me, probably.

When his gray eyes found mine, filled with laughter, I gulped.

“Are you okay?” he said, sounding amused.

“You know I’m not. By the way, when will you give me my birthday present?”

There. How about that?

He put his hands on my shoulders and pointed me toward the street.

“I would love to, but your lips are busted.”

“Fuck off, Levi.”

“Likewise, Lucius.”

He would never admit it, but he was flirty, too. There was a playful, lighter side to Levi “The Bazooka” Bradley, which I was only starting to notice. He kept it hidden, but it would burst here and there like light through the cracks.

After we returned home, I gave up on cooking because my ankle hurt. Instead, I sat on the sofa while Bazooka ordered us a pizza. After the food arrived, we had our first proper meal at the table, like normal people.

“It looks more homely now,” I said, looking around the room. “There’s still more work to be done, though.”

He hummed noncommittally, clearly not too interested in the topic. I had other plans, but I didn’t share them with him, because I wanted it to be a surprise.

We spent the afternoon in bed after I asked him to join me there.

Fine, I begged. I bugged him for half an hour until he finally gave in.

He joined me in bed with the laptop in his lap, and it only cost me six hours of non-flirting.

I accepted because I didn’t want to be alone, and because I was allowed to flirt again in the morning, so it was a win-win.

I watched TV while he worked, and it was the most peaceful time I’ve ever spent with anyone.

It wasn’t very late when my eyes started closing. When Baz made a move to leave, I reached for his hand and stopped him.

“Please. Until I fall asleep.”

To my surprise, he stayed, and I didn’t even have to beg.

“Today was the second-best day of my life,” I murmured as he covered me with a blanket.

Bazooka chuckled. “You’re a loony, Luz.”

“Nah,” I said, yawning. “You like me.”

“I do. Don’t fuck it up.”

“I won’t.”

It sounded unlikely, but I decided to give it a try.