Page 40 of Men of Fort Dale: The Complete Series

Sean lolled against his shoulder. “I think we should get food.”

“We’ve been ordering takeout for days now. What’s going to stop us?”

“Yeah, that cute delivery guy stopped showing up. The girl who showed up the last time looked like she was barely out of high school. I’m not going to risk traumatizing her.”

Sean smirked. “Little guy, nice smile, seems to like delivering around here.”

“Uh-huh.”

Sean looked at him, the corner of his mouth twitching. “Are you getting jealous?”

Aidan blinked. “No.”

“I think you might be.”

Was he bothered that Sean had decided to call someone else cute while Aidan was sitting right there?

Jealousy wasn’t exactly a foreign emotion to Aidan; he’d felt it before, though it had been years since he’d experienced it.

Then again, it had also been years since he’d ever felt a pull toward someone as he did with Sean, which was especially interesting considering how much they’d pushed at one another in the beginning.

Push and pull, and now they were finally settling on the pull.

Aidan grunted. “Fine. Maybe a little.”

Sean pushed him onto his back, chuckling.

Aidan put up token resistance, enough to make sure he wasn’t pushed over immediately but not enough to make Sean think he wasn’t into it.

Despite being tired and a bit sore, he was more than happy to have Sean’s weight bearing down on him.

The man was a damn furnace, naturally, and his skin felt hot pressed against Sean’s.

Well, and it triggered the part of Aidan that got a little hot and heavy at the idea of being held down, something Sean was fond of doing now he knew Aidan loved it.

“Don’t be,” Sean said.

Aidan raised a brow. “Yeah?”

“Yeah.”

“I feel this is where I should note we’re not exactly...well, we don’t actually know what we are.”

Sean cocked his head. “Would you feel less jealous if we were officially dating?”

Aidan opened his mouth, realizing he didn’t know what the answer to the question was, and clamped his lips together. They’d only known each other a month or so, and only in the last few weeks had they put any effort into getting along.

No, that wasn’t it.

Aidan realized they’d never had to work to get along.

From the very start, the two of them had been actively working against getting along.

They hadn’t learned how to get along in the past month; they had just learned how to stop fighting each other nonstop and look at one another with less stubborn and hotheaded eyes.

“I...don’t know, actually. Probably not,” Aidan admitted.

Sean gently touched Aidan’s cheek, stroking his thumb in slow circles. “Alright, I won’t make comments about other people.”

Aidan grunted. “I don’t need you to hold my hand, Staff Sergeant.”

“I’m not holding your hand. If it makes you uncomfortable because we’re not something you can feel stable with or something you’re confident in, then I’m not going to do it.

Fuck knows we spent enough time at each other’s throats before this.

I won’t fling it back to square one over something so trivial. ”

It was one of the most reasonable things he’d heard anyone say, let alone the stubborn and usually combative team leader Aidan had first met. It still left Aidan feeling a bit unreasonable, but at least, as far as he could tell, Sean wasn’t making him feel that way.

It went some way toward making him feel the same confidence Sean mentioned, and that was a nice bonus.

Aidan sighed. “Okay.”

It wasn’t some grand proposal, but Aidan didn’t feel the urge to argue the point. Plus, his agreement brought a warm look of contentment to Sean’s face, and Aidan was getting used to the sight.

Sean kissed Aidan’s collarbone, nuzzling into his neck. “I’ve been...enjoying what we’ve got going on. I’m not in any rush to make this more than we’re ready for.”

It was exactly what Aidan needed to hear, and he could feel his twisting nerves begin to settle.

It didn’t hurt that he was already growing familiar with the sensation of Sean touching him and how it made him feel comfortable.

Aidan didn’t think it was Sean intentionally manipulating him, which he might have once suspected.

He had honestly come to accept that what was happening was purely genuine.

Aidan said nothing, laying back and closing his eyes as Sean continued to lay on top of him.

Their bodies fitted just right as he listened to Sean’s breathing, feeling the man’s hand stroking his side and down over his hips.

It was so unbelievably peaceful and utterly civilian, and Aidan was willing to soak up every last second.

Until he felt a familiar presence pushing against his thigh.

Aidan chuckled, reaching down to squeeze Sean’s hip. “Really? Aren’t you tired yet?”

“I swear, it’s just from the cuddling. I’m not thinking dirty thoughts.”

“Uh-huh.”

“Okay, maybe now there’s a dirty thought or two.”

Aidan cracked his eyes open. “Oh? Like what?”

Sean smirked, inching his face closer. “I might be thinking of me fucking you against the shower wall last night.”

Aidan tilted his head back. “That’s a good memory.”

“It was a good nap afterward, too.”

“That it was.”

Sean leaned in closer, his breath brushing Aidan’s lips. “We might need another shower soon.”

“A shower,” Aidan repeated with a raised brow.

Sean hummed in acknowledgment, leaning down to kiss Aidan.

Giving a low sigh of appreciation, Aidan wrapped his arms around the man’s neck and pulled him into the kiss.

His hips shuddered, grinding against Sean as his now hard cock rubbed against his flat stomach.

He suspected that by the time they managed to leave Sean’s apartment, they would be sore and tender all over.

A strange rustling noise brought Aidan’s head back with a bewildered frown.

It was only as he watched the front door to the apartment swing open that he realized what he’d been hearing had been a set of keys in the lock.

Before he could do anything but give a choked gasp, the other three members of their team poured into the room.

Nick rolled his eyes. “I can’t tell when you’re being serious anymore.”

“I’m stone-cold serious,” Matt said, frowning at his best friend.

“Anyone who thinks the movies did a better job of telling the story of Lord of the Rings is obviously brain-damaged. Which, to be fair, we already knew about you,” Nick shot back.

“They were absolute masterpieces, able to take everything Tolkien rambled on about for thousands of pages and make it coherent and enjoyable!”

“If you like the cliff notes versions, sure.”

Matt huffed, turning to Ricardo, who was no longer distracted by the argument and was staring at Aidan and Sean. “Ricardo, tell him the movies are better.”

Ricardo cleared his throat. “Uh?—”

That was all it took for Matt and Nick to turn in bewilderment toward the couch. Aidan and Sean hadn’t moved, frozen in complete shock as they stared back at their startled teammates.

“Oh shit,” Matt managed with extreme eloquence.

Nick averted his eyes with a laugh. “Damn you guys, what the fuck?”

Sean snorted, pushing himself upright. “What do you mean, what the fuck? You barge into my apartment and act shocked when you see something a locked door is supposed to keep you away from?”

Ricardo chuckled, holding up his key ring and a plastic bag. “We texted you about a movie night tonight. Like...two days ago.”

“You did?” Sean asked in bewilderment.

Matt snorted, covering his mouth. “I guess you’ve been a little preoccupied.”

Aidan sighed, flopping back onto the couch.

There was no point trying to hide himself or make excuses.

Being naked around his team was a non-issue in Aidan’s book.

You got used to it after a while. He and Sean had been caught naked, with Sean on top of him, and there was no hiding that.

The only comfort he had left was the fact that the intrusion had killed their hard-ons, so at least they weren’t on total display.

“I guess you took my advice,” Ricardo asked, trying and failing to hide his amusement.

Sean stood up, somehow managing to look dignified despite his red face and complete nudity. “Was still working on it, actually.”

“You were working on something,” Matt said, smirking at Aidan.

“Until you walked in, yeah,” Aidan said in annoyance, sitting up.

Nick groaned. “Oh, God. Please stop. I don’t...oh, Jesus.”

“Problem?” Sean demanded.

Nick peeked around, wincing. “Dude, I know you like dick, and I don’t care that Aidan likes dick. And I don’t care that you guys like each other’s dicks. I just don’t...I don’t want to think about it too much, okay? It’s weird. You’re the team leader and...I don’t want to think about it.”

“Put on some pants, man. You’re traumatizing poor Nick,” Matt said, snickering as he spoke.

“Bite me,” Nick hissed, shoving Matt.

Matt looped his hand around Nick’s neck and pulled him down into a hold. “And I bet you’d like it too.”

Nick flailed at him, trying to punch his side. “Let off!”

Aidan snatched up his shorts from beside the couch, having been cast off at some point during the past few days. He should have known he and Sean’s little getaway from the world wouldn’t last forever. He had no idea where Sean’s shorts ended up, but he suspected they were still in the bathroom.

Sean rolled his eyes as Nick and Matt thudded to the ground, still wrestling. “Make sure they don’t break anything.”

Ricardo snorted, stepping over the two men without so much as a glance. Without hesitation, he flopped down on the end of the couch where Aidan and Sean had been lying only moments before.

“So, is this a screwing thing, or something else?” Ricardo asked, raising a brow.

“We’re still in the planning stages,” Aidan said, eyeing the man warily.

“Meaning neither of you has figured it out.”

“That’s what I said.”

Ricardo smiled. “You don’t have to get defensive.”

Nick panted from the ground, one arm holding him up, the other gripping Matt hard. “Yeah, c’mon. You’re both adults, and you’re getting along, so why not?”

“They were doing it before getting along,” Ricardo said.

“How did you…” Aidan began.

Matt laughed, the sound weak as he got pinned to the ground on his back. “Oh shit! They were hate fucking? Nice.”

Nick shoved at him. “Shut up!”

“Is he weirded out by the whole gay thing?” Aidan asked, a little unsure.

“No, he sees you both as brother figures,” Matt explained.

Sean stomped into view, looking irritable. “That’s gross.”

“Now you know why it weirds me out!” Nick cried as he was flipped on his side.

Sean kicked lightly at them, and Aidan noticed the kicks were all aimed at spots that wouldn’t do any damage. “Quit it, both of you. I don’t give a fuck if this place is a piece of shit. You don’t need to make it worse!”

“He started it!” Matt protested, batting at Sean’s foot.

“I don’t give a shit who started it! You’re both idiots.”

“But we’re your idiots,” Matt beamed.

“Forever and ever,” Nick added, smirking.

Sean huffed, walking back into the kitchen. “Don’t remind me.”

Aidan watched him go, speaking softly to Ricardo. “How much of that grumpiness is an act?”

Ricardo chuckled. “I’m not brave enough to answer that.”

Sean emerged again, eyeing Ricardo. “Smart man.”

Nick lay flat on the hallway floor, breathing hard. “So, you two are like, not a thing, but a thing?”

“We’re working on that,” Sean grunted, flopping down gracelessly beside Aidan.

Nick sighed. “Okay, but, like, can you please make sure not to like...screw on the couch when we’re over, please?”

“You walked into my apartment!” Sean shot back.

Ricardo held up a finger. “Had we known, we wouldn’t have.”

“Well, now you know!”

Aidan frowned, looking around. “You guys really don’t give a shit? I mean, it’s technically against?—”

Matt laughed, pushing himself to sit with his legs spread out before him.

“Like we give a shit if it’s against the rules.

I don’t care if you guys are just fucking, or if it’s getting serious.

If it makes you happy, and you’re both game, what do I care?

Just don’t do all the shit you guys were doing before. ”

Nick snorted, getting onto his knees. “Seriously. You two at each other’s throat was the worst thing.”

Ricardo shrugged. “So long as I don’t have to see you guys rubbing dicks together again, I don’t really give a shit.”

Aidan smiled, knowing it looked evil. “So, I shouldn’t tell you there aren’t too many clean surfaces left in this apartment?”

Nick’s eyes widened. “I’m fine...right?”

Aidan looked down at him, eyeing the spot as if in thought. “Mmm...it’s been a lot, so keeping track is hard.”

Sean tapped a red mark on Aidan’s knee. “That’s rug burn. It might have been there.”

“Ooh, good point.”

Nick leaped up. “Not funny!”

Aidan snorted. “I bumped my knee in the shower earlier. Calm down, it’s not rug burn.”

Nick sagged in relief. “Thank God.”

“I bumped it after Sean bent me against the wall,” Aidan continued.

“Goddammit!”

Laughter filled the apartment as everyone but Nick burst out laughing. It was the first time Aidan thought he’d ever heard the whole team laugh together in earnest since the forest, and somewhere inside him, he realized they were all going to be okay.

He and Sean might still have to work a few things out, but if the warm, happy gleam in the man’s bright eyes were any sign, they would get there. And they would get there together, with their team at their backs the whole way through.