Page 38 of Reflex

“Fuck off,” he growled.

“Fuck you?”Xane deliberately misquoted.“You know I totally would if you’d let me.”

“You’re in a relationship… ships.”

“Doesn’t mean I don’t think about banging other people.There’s no law against imagining.Judging by how wound up you currently are, you need to spend a whole lot more time indulging your fantasy life.”

Spook buried his nose in the coffee mug and scowled as he drank.“Maybe I’d prefer not to be thinking about her at all.And maybe I’m not exactly thrilled to learn I was last night’s porn channel entertainment.”

It more than mildly disturbed him that he’d put on any sort of show at all.He avoided wanking as a matter of course.Bad enough that his body had betrayed him without witnesses to the act.

Not just any witness either, but one who was disturbingly comfortable with it.

Fine, so Xane practically lived for sex, but that didn’t make it okay.It made it… He didn’t know what it made it.Something.Something that grated on his nerves, and was presently inducing toothache.Conscious that he was gritting his teeth, he purposefully flexed his jaw.

“For fuck’s sakes, Spook.I was going to get off anyway, and it’s not like I lay alongside you tugging it.”

“Small mercies,” he muttered.“That I only have your word for.”

Xane rolled his eyes.Now finished with the hairbrush, he discarded it on the bed.

“You should call her.”

“I don’t want to fucking call her.”

“She’s probably worried sick about you.”

Low blow.“You sent her a message to say I was okay, didn’t you?”

Xane lifted his shoulders, and slowly let them drop.“That’s not the same as hearing it from you.”

He was right, but it didn’t change anything.“I’m not calling.”For a whole multitude of reasons.Even pushing the intricacies of their non-relationship aside, he didn’t want to relive any part of last night.Too much of it was still far too clear in his head.More importantly though, “I’m not calling her and telling her I’m okay when it’s an outright lie.”

He didn’t lie – not like that.

Xane came closer, and made a space for himself on the side of the bed by Spook’s knees.He folded his hand over the top of the one Spook had on the outside of the covers.“Talk to me.”

The fuck?They’d had this conversation already.“There’s nothing to say.”Spook snatched his hand away from Xane’s touch.It didn’t help.Xane only grasped it again, and started rubbing his thumb back and forth over the pulse point on Spook’s wrist in an infuriatingly soothing manner.

“I’m not going to piss off.”

“Honestly Xane, there’s nothing to say.Some jerk wanted to fuck me.He’s not the first, and probably won’t be the last.Yes, he copped a feel.No, I’m not thrilled about that.Yes, I’d like to sever his nuts from his body.Anything else you’d like me to divulge?”

“Allegra—where’s it going?”

“Nowhere.”Was his response abrupt?Well, that’s because he was tired of repeating himself.Hell, if it wasn’t for the fact he abhorred the idea of mucking with body chemistry –last night’s drunkenness was an acceptable lapse under the circumstances – he’d have considered chemical castration.

A lack of a libido at this point would be a godsend.

Instead a fever was building inside his veins due to the mere mention of her and sex within the same ten minute time frame.

“It can’t go anywhere.”

“It could if you let it.”

Which he was not going to do.He threw back the covers and got out of bed.

“Why not give it a chance, Spook?You know it’s what you want.”