Page 8 of Deranged
Field’s hands automatically went to Henry’s perfectly trimmed beard. “I don’t know how. You’re so soft.”
He felt Henry’s laughter. His eyes danced with it. Field was caught. He was fascinated. Henry didn’t act like this. All of this was for him, because of him. Field couldn’t look away.
“You’re beautiful.”
Henry swiped his lips across Field’s again. “I was just thinking the same thing about you.” With a regret-filled sigh, Henrypulled away. “We should head out before I change my mind and take you upstairs, and make these guys think they can slack.”
“We can’t have that.”
Henry’s smile didn’t dim. He continued shocking Field by taking his hand and holding it all the way to the garage. Field wondered if he felt stiff to Henry. It wasn’t that he wasn’t happy. This just wasn’t the life he was accustomed to, and it didn’t feel real.
Once that thought took hold, Field fought the demons. What if it wasn’t real? Had he vanished inside his mind again? Did his body do horrible things while he currently lived in a dream world? Hyperventilating looked like a real possibility. Field intentionally hit himself in the shin with the door to the car Henry chose. The pain stopped his silent panic attack. This was real. He was here. In the U.S. With his brothers and Henry now too, it seemed. That was wild.
Henry put one foot in the door and immediately pulled it back out again. “Shit. I’ll be right back. I forgot to give Fabrice a list from Kylo.” He closed the door, leaving Field alone inside the car. Field watched Henry walk away. He swore he didn’t even blink. Admittedly, Field had teased Henry for months, begging him to be his daddy. There was a reason for that. The guy was just hot. He owned every space he was in. The way he walked made Field hungry. Plus, he had a delicious ass. His phone buzzed, distracting him. He dug out the device.
Shadow:What are you doing today?
Field:I’m headed to check out the new construction on the property with Henry.
Shadow:LOL! That guy will end up killing you one of these days.
Field chuckled. It didn’t look like the house was full of gossips. He was kind of grateful for that. Field wanted to see where this was headed. Right now, they were just two guys who had fucked.
Field:Did you need me for something? I can make time.
Shadow:Nah. I’m good. Have fun. I was just checking in.
Field was so focused on his phone, he didn’t see Henry return until the trunk slammed closed and he climbed inside.
Henry nodded toward the phone Field held. “You still good to go?”
“Yeah.” Field shoved the phone back in his pocket. “Shadow was just checking in on me.”
“You seem closer to him than the rest.” Henry backed from the garage. He sounded like he only made conversation, which was good. No one, no matter how sexy, came between Shadow and him. Since Field wanted to know Henry, he stuck to the topic.
“Yeah. I suppose.” Field really hated talking about himself. Nothing about him was pretty. “He’s the only one who isn’tscared of me. So he doesn’t back away when I fall apart. He still shows up. I think—besides Mickey and him—everyone else has given up on me. Obviously, that’s cool. I can’t blame them.”
Henry cocked his head to one side as if thinking things over. “I’ve seen you with just about everyone in that house. They all love you.”
A wave of sadness he didn’t want consumed him. “Loving me and expecting I’ll make it are two different things. What about you? Despite working for Beau, you two seem really close. Did you used to date or something?” Field infused as much humor in his voice as he could, hoping to distract Henry from talking about him anymore.
“No. Actually, he was my neighbor in Italy. We grew up together. Best friends our entire lives. I got bullied a lot for being poor and neglected. So I got into a lot of fights. Beau was always right there with me, except he knew how to destroy people mentally. Then Beau’s girlfriend got pregnant when they were sixteen. Their parents made them marry and then kicked them out to fend for themselves. Now, I should mention I’m two years younger than Beau. So, at fourteen and around the same time, I got fed up with getting beaten at home and I killed my dad. To this day, I don’t understand how, but Beau made some backroom deals that kept me from even being arrested. He started making money and going places so fast, it was head spinning. But he kept me right there with him and I made sure no one touched him.” Henry shrugged. “Since then, I’ve had a ton of training. I’ve done whatever it takes to keep us safe. That’s how it’ll be until I die. Through good times and bad.” He flashed Field a laughing smile. “A marriage created in Hell.”
Field shook his head. He seriously doubted anything had been that cut and dry. Field got it, though. It took a million tiny stories to end up where they had. This life wasn’t one where people just ended up. It was ugly—filled with blood and violence. It took Field a moment to realize they had left the property. When they had gotten in the car, he had thought Henry simply hadn’t wanted to make the quick ten-minute walk. He had let Henry distract him. Now they were more than a mile down the road.
“Where are we going anyhow? I thought you needed to check on the construction crew.”
Henry flashed him a wicked-looking smile. “Yeah. They’re not even working today. It’s too muddy. I just wanted to have you alone.”
A surprise bark of laughter burst from Field. “You invited Clay first. What if he had said yes?”
Henry shrugged. “I knew he wouldn’t. Fabrice is his best friend, and Clay doesn’t like working with me. Given the option, he wouldn’t choose me.”
That had Field curious. “Why doesn’t he like working with you?”
An odd look shot his way. “Most people don’t like me.” He said the words as if they should have been obvious. Field didn’t know what to say. He liked Henry. Field would make sure he knew it.
Henry turned down his hidden driveway at the opposite end of the property. They were quickly swallowed by wilderness. He was more than a little surprised Field hadn’t asked questions. Unfortunately, Henry knew it was because Field didn’t care what happened to himself. He finally reached his destination and climbed from the car. Field followed without being prompted. Henry opened the trunk and grabbed the basket of food Fabrice had put together for them.
