Page 24 of Cross & Crown

foreign to him, but when Nick had shown him the drawer

full of sex toys beneath his bed, Kelly had been both shocked

and incredibly turned on. He kind of wondered what else

Nick had managed to hide away in spaces Kelly didn’t know

were there.

The clouds hid the moon in the sky, and only the skyline

of Boston provided light. Kelly closed the shades against it

and threw the yacht into almost pitch darkness. He didn’t like

the press of a big city so close to him.

He flopped onto the couch in the salon, letting his eyes

adjust to the darkness and glancing around at the nooks

and crannies where Nick stored all his personal belongings.

Hardback books were piled everywhere, most of them on

history, archaeology, or lost treasures and mysteries. That

had always been Nick’s thing, though. Nick was one of the

only jarheads Kelly had ever met who didn’t have a single

gun magazine subscription or hang knives on his walls. Kelly

wasn’t even sure where Nick kept his medals, because he sure

as hell didn’t have them sitting out or displayed.

The coffee table was covered with files Nick had brought

home from work. He’d intended to take vacation days, but

Kelly had convinced him not to. He’d used enough of his

24

vacation last year for emergencies; Kelly didn’t want him

wasting more to stay home. He wanted him to takereal

vacations this year. Preferably somewhere warm. Preferably

with him.

Over dinner Nick had mentioned a few details of the case

he was working on, a robbery gone wrong that had ended

up in murder. Then he’d apologized for bringing work home

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