Page 148 of Broken Wheels

A lump appeared in Josh’s throat, but he swallowed it down. How could anyone not love Dixon? He had the whole vibe of being strong and tough, but he was also tender and caring. And if he hadn’t persevered, Josh would have missed those qualities.

“So, how about that video?” Josh asked.

Dixon slipped his phone from his belt and put it down in front of Josh. The nice thing about the cameras in CrossBow was they were all initially top of the line, and then Josh had tinkered with them to improve them. Now the cameras were good enough to be able to see a flea jump, with a microphone sensitive enough to hear a fly fart. Okay, maybe not that good, but the thought did make Josh snicker.

He watched as Kathy was walked briskly to the door by three agents, except that she was fighting them all the way and it looked more like they were dragging her.

“I was promised protection!” she shrieked.

“Not our problem anymore,” Dixon told her, opening the door so the FBI could finally get her from the building. “And you were told that your safety was contingent on your continued cooperation. Right now, it doesn’t seem to me like they’re getting a lot of that.”

“I helped you protect those people. And Malone.”

“Because your life was threatened. Don’t ever pretend like it was something noble and decent, because from where I sit, those qualities don’t exist for you. Lives could have been saved if you’d found your conscience earlier. And yeah, I know, people have disappointed you your whole life, but that doesn’t mean you need to be like them.”

The door closed, and Josh couldn’t hear anything else as they put her into the car. He imagined it would take a while for the realization to sink in that her life was no longer her own but belonged to the US government, and it wasn’t likely they would be as considerate as CrossBow had been.

At least, Josh hoped not.

He ate the last of his sandwich, then dug into his macaroni and cheese. Damn, that was full of yum. He still liked the powdered cheese sauce, but this probably nudged ahead just a bit. When he finished, he realized Dixon was right. His tummy was happier than it had been in a while.

“Thank you for that,” he said. “I didn’t realize how hungry I was.”

Dixon took the dishes to the sink and rinsed them out, then placed them in the dishwasher. When he came back to the table, he took a seat across from Josh.

“So, what did you think about my idea of taking a nap?”

It sounded amazing, but Josh had other ideas, ones that had been fermenting ever since his last checkup. “You know what I really want?”

“No, but tell me and I’ll try to make sure you get it.”

“You, me, naked in a big bed, with a bottle of lube within reach.”

Dixon grinned, wide and lascivious. “Ooh, tell me more.”

Josh arched his eyebrows. “Why tell when I can show?”

It had been several weeks since they’d had sex, and right now, Josh was feeling needy. It wasn’t that he was necessarily horny—more a case of wanting the closeness, to feel the heat pouring off Dixon’s body, to hear his pants and gasped breaths. Josh needed a reminder that he was alive, and that Dixon would make sure to keep him that way.

Dixon stood and held out a hand to Josh. “Let’s go take care of that, okay? And then we’ll both nap.”

That sounded just perfect to Josh.

Dix watched as Doc stripped off his clothes. As he suspected, the man wasn’t eating well at all. He made a mental note to work on making Josh good, healthy meals. Of course, that would mean calling his mom for recipes. But Doc was worth it.

He slipped out of his clothes as Doc slid into the bed. It was so hard to believe this was reality, because Dix had been having these dreams since he met the guy.

“On your stomach,” Dix said. Doc flipped over without a word. Dix opened the drawer and drew out a bottle of oil, but not the lube kind. Yes, Doc said he wanted sex, probably as much as Dix longed to be buried in him again, but what he really needed was sleep, and that was something Dix could help with. He put some oil on his hands, then crawled over Doc’s legs and put his hands on the slender back.

“Hey, lube doesn’t go there,” Doc protested, but then he yawned.

“Hush. Rest. Sleep for me.”

“But—”

“Sleep, Doc.”

His eyes drifted closed as Dix pressed the palms of his hands into the muscles tight with tension. When Doc moaned, Dix knew he’d made the right choice. He leaned in and sang his favorite song from when he was younger, “You and Me” by Lifehouse.

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