Page 54 of Code Violation

“This will be fun. I’ve never ridden in the front seat of a cop car before,” Forrest said.

“Who says you’re riding in front today? Vik, front or back?”

“I’m happy in the back.” Picking up his backpack, Nero followed the siblings to the waiting cruiser.

“Nice to see you again, Mr. Vik. Please call me Lani,” Lani said, her gaze catching his in the rearview mirror.

“Call me Nero. It’s a pleasure, I’m sure,” Nero responded.

* * *

“Check in later.” Nero heard Lani Cooper order her brother. “I’m on shift for another few hours, so I can’t stick around here. But if you forget to call me, I’m coming back out here, and you will regret it.”

“Fine, yes, I will call you. Bye, Sis.” Forrest emphatically shut the passenger door and limped to where Nero was waiting. “Damn, I hurt all over.”

“Me too,” Nero admitted. “I think I’m going to have bruises everywhere. We were damn lucky.”

“Fuck yeah.” Forrest let them in the house. “I’ve got ibuprofen,” he said.

“Yes, please and thank you.”

“I’ll be right back.”

Forrest slowly disappeared down a hall off the living room while Nero gently lowered himself onto the couch. Probably, he should have headed back to Cabin Five, but he didn’t want to yet. He and Forrest had nearly died, and Nero didn’t feel like being alone with his thoughts. Didn’t want to dwell on how his life of nothing much had flashed before his eyes.

“Here.” Forrest was back and holding his fist out. Nero opened his hand and two ibuprofens dropped onto his palm.

“Thanks.” Nero tossed them back without water.

“Ew.” Forrest made a face. “How can you do that?”

“Dunno. Habit, I guess.”

Forrest stood in front of Nero for a second, staring at him as if he’d just now realized the depths of his depravity.

“I promised food, didn’t I?”

“You did, but with everything that’s happened, I can just head back to town.”

“No!” Forrest said loudly. “I mean, stay and I’ll cook something. I need something to do or, as Lani says, I’ll do something really stupid.”

“Would it be okay if I took a shower?” Nero didn’t have any clean clothes with him but he still wanted to scrub the smell of fear and near death off his skin.

Forrest looked down at his own jeans covered with grass stains and mud. “Not a bad idea. You go first. There’re fresh towels under the sink. Feel free to use the shower gel or shampoo too.”

Whimpering, Nero rose slowly from the couch, and he wasn’t sure moving was worth the effort but the idea of the hot water hitting his aching body kept him moving toward the bathroom.

There were indeed fresh towels under the sink. Reaching into the tub surround, he turned on the water and waited for it to warm up. This was luxury compared to the tiny shower at his cabin. Stripping his clothes off and folding them on top of the toilet seat, he stepped under the spray.

It felt fucking incredible, and there was even a massage setting on the showerhead. He could’ve stayed in for much longer, but it probably wasn’t good form to use all of your host’s hot water. On the other hand, he had almost died today, so the few extra minutes were deserved.

As he rubbed lavender-scented shampoo into his hair, Nero let the unexpected day replay in his head. Even though they’d had sex already, Nero would never have predicted that they’d spend an actual day together—and nearly die at the end of it—and to wrap it up, the man would offer to cook Nero dinner. He was a dream come true.

When he stepped out onto the bath mat a few minutes later, Nero found that Forrest had taken his grimy clothes away and replaced them with a pair of soft sweatpants, a plain white t-shirt, and a hoodie. He’d been so lost in thought that he hadn’t heard the door open. The sweats were a bit long on him and the t-shirt’s limits were tested by his broader chest, but the clothing was clean and it was a thoughtful gesture. The sexy, confounding man continued to surprise him.

He hung his damp towel up on a wall hook after generally wiping down the shower, not wanting to leave the bathroom a mess. No one ever said Lili Vik didn’t raise a well-mannered boy. Then he opened the door and made his way back to the kitchen, where he found Forrest busy concocting something for them to eat. His stomach rumbled.

Forrest looked up from the cutting board. “Are you allergic to anything?” he asked.

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