Page 61 of Stand By Me

"Don't worry about me, worry about Jeremy," Clay said dryly. "He looks like he's going to murder somebody before the night is over."

Martinez smirked. "I reminded him we'd be tasked with taking him down if he tried anything and that wouldn't end well."

"Who do you think would be more pissed, Pascal or Kalei?"

"It would be Jeremy's funeral either way, and he knows it."

Clay hummed in agreement, although he hadn't had a chance to meet Pascal officially yet. He'd heard a lot about him by now, but mostly through the good-natured ribbing Martinez was constantly giving Jeremy.

The atmosphere at KRK resembled the best parts of being in the Secret Service—the camaraderie, joking around, having each other's back—and Clay found working with these people almost too easy at times. He'd spent the majority of his time so far with Martinez, but since the guy seemed especially skilled at bringing people together, Clay got to know Jeremy better, too, as well as James and his work partner Ryan, among others. He also hung out at the comm center with Eddie a bit, which made James watch him warily.

Maybe James was finally getting a clue, like Martinez hoped when he'd given Clay that rundown of who's lusting after who at the company.

Now, the two of them continued their back-and-forth as they moved to their new positions. Clay was going to be out there, canvassing the crowd, and Martinez would be in the security office, watching the party through the feeds of various cameras and coordinating through the channels with the rest of their team. For the last few hours, it had been the other way around.

Wandering around, Clay kept to the sidelines for the most part, taking in the crowd and the murmurs of conversations, looking for anything that suggested trouble.

The evening was going smoothly, though. The atmosphere was joyful, as if the success of the education bill finally passing and being signed into law have put everyone in a great mood.

Even the speeches were more interesting than the usual ones Clay had been forced to hear numerous times in the past. He briefly wondered if Troy had written any of them, but he dismissed the idea. Troy had done a lot for the bill as it was—Clay wouldn't be surprised if he was here, frankly, celebrating the success, but maybe making the public appearance like that was the line he didn't want to cross.

Pascal's speech was the best one, in Clay's opinion, enough so that even Martinez held back any commentary in his earpiece throughout the whole thing. Clay couldn't join in the applause, of course, but he still appreciated the well-crafted and brief speech, and he was looking forward to meeting Pascal even more now.

A few hours later, when the party was over and the team tied up everything they needed to, they all dispersed, leaving for the night—and for the weekend. Since there had been no incident worth noting, they agreed to debrief early on Monday before the company-wide meeting. Martinez needed to get back to the headquarters to drop off all the equipment, but he waved off Clay's offer to go with him.

With the adrenaline buzzing inside him, making it hard to focus on any one thing, it still took Clay a while to even start the car to head out, but as he drove through the empty streets, he felt the tension leak out of him slowly, replaced by the deep satisfaction of a job well done.

Tonight went as good as it could have, which was perfect for the first assignment at the new job.

Now, he was free to enjoy his weekend—and with another date with Mario scheduled for tomorrow night, Clay planned to enjoy itthoroughly.

* * *

Someone was going to die.

Clay had gone to bed around four in the morning, and now someone was out there, abusing his intercom by leaning on it without a break.

He almost fell off the bed as he got up, but he managed to stumble through the hall towards the door in one piece. A glance at the clock told him it was eight thirty.

On a Saturday morning.What the fuck.

"What?" he growled through the speaker, rubbing the sleep through his eyes. He'd be embarrassed later, but right now, he didn't care. Whoever it was, deserved the attitude.

"It's me," came through the speaker and Clay froze. "Ben. Open up, will you?"

Clay pulled himself up to his full weight. This, he did not expect.

He buzzed his brother in and unlocked the door as he went to the kitchen to make himself tea. He might be wide awake now, but he definitely wasn't at his best, so he needed a boost. With the kettle on, he returned right in time to hear a knock.

Running a hand through his hair, he took a deep breath. There was no use dragging it out, was there?

He opened the door.

Ben had his backpack with him and a big cup of coffee in hand. He looked pretty tired, so he was likely coming here right from the hospital.

Or not. It was eight thirty on a Saturday morning, after all. Who wouldn't need a little help with staying awake?

Clay moved to the side and gestured him in without a word, but Ben hesitated.

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