Once again the car ride with Justin was silent, but there was a different kind of tension filling the air this time. Gabriel stared out the window, fighting the need to touch his lips. They still tingled from the stolen kiss in the hallway. Had he really agreed to more with Justin? Obviously, he’d lost his mind. He wasn’t even sure he liked the man. He was careless and reckless. He jumped headlong into a situation without properly studying it and the potential dangers.

But when they kissed, the world fell away completely, and Gabriel just wanted more of the man. He wanted to get lost in his touch, in the sounds he was making, and the soft scent of his cologne as it teased his nose. He wanted to pin Justin down and fuck him until they couldn’t move any longer. And if he was really honest with himself, he wanted Justin to do the same to him. The need to feel his weight on him, to give up all control to Justin and let the man do whatever he wished, practically vibrated within his bones.

Not an option.

Never an option.

He shouldn’t be considering anything with Justin. The kiss in the hallway. Jerking off last night. Fuck…just holding hands had given too much of himself away. He couldn’t take that risk anymore. And there was an equally nagging voice in the back of his brain demanding that he not let Justin take that risk either. It wasn’t safe.

A soft sigh slipped past his lips and he slumped in the seat, staring out at the car that passed them by on the expressway. They’d left the posh neighborhood behind and were winding back toward downtown.

“You wanna talk about it?” Justin’s gentle voice was like a caress and Gabriel closed his eyes against the desire to open his mouth and start spilling his guts. Ivan had been the only one he’d ever shared his thoughts with.

“I was thinking that we should maybe check out this Dr. Elba before we go to see Dr. Jones’ husband,” he said instead.

“I take it that the real Gabriel Prescott is firmly in the closet.”

Gabriel clenched his teeth and tightly gripped the armrest handle for the passenger side door. “We’re not talking about me.”

“I’d offer to talk about me, but I really don’t think you’re in the least bit interested.”

“Interested in the fairy tale that you’d cook up as to who you really area?” Gabriel scoffed. “No, thank you.”

“Then at least tell me whether last night was your first time doing anything with a man,” Justin countered. His voice was harder and more serious than it had been just a moment ago. Gabriel could hear an underlying current of worry, maybe even panic there. He wanted to remain silent. Let Justin suffer as he worried about all the different potential meanings of their brief encounter the night before.

Closing his eyes, he rubbed them with his thumb and index fingers. At the same time, images of smiling Justin flashed through his mind. Justin who playfully called him G. Love. Justin who talked with him while he cooked and bravely made jokes while Gabriel picked shrapnel out of his body. Justin who trusted him to keep him safe as he slept. Justin who kissed him like he was more important to him that oxygen and a good beer.

“No, last night was not a first for me. Not by a sizeable margin,” Gabriel found himself admitting. “But it has to be the last time for us. It’s not wise.”

“I…disagree.”

Gabriel chuckled and dropped his hand from his eyes. He looked over at Justin who relaxed with one hand on the wheel. His chin was lifted a little bit and Gabriel could have sworn that the man was holding back a smile.

“Why am I not surprised that you disagree?”

“I just get the impression that you haven’t made a lot of smart decisions in regards to your sex life, G. And I think, while we’re working together on this contact, that you should just let me make those sex-related decisions for you.”

Gabriel’s harsh laughter filled the car. He lurched forward, pulling at the seatbelt strap across his chest. He looked over at Justin’s face that held a wide grin. “You’re ridiculous.”

“But I’m not wrong.”

Gabriel sat back and shook his head, but the worry that had pressed down on his chest had eased. The laughter had made him feel lighter, easier than he had in hours.

Would it be so wrong to have a little fun with Justin if the man was freely offering? It’s not like they felt anything for each other. They’d enjoy a release or two. Make some money. And then they’d go their separate ways and never see each other again if they could help it. They’d both been in the business for years and never encountered each other before. It was unlikely they would again unless Gabriel happened to take a job where Justin was the target. But for now, it was just sex.

“What do you say, G?”

“Play the song again, Special Sauce,” Gabriel said.

Justin’s eyes jerked from the road to Gabriel’s face, and he was sure that he’d never seen the man look more stunned since he’d met him. “Whatever you say, G. Love.”

Less than a minute later, the same fun song bounced through the car as they slid over to an exit and wove through Sunday afternoon traffic to pull into the parking lot for what appeared to be a grocery story. Justin threw the car into park but didn’t turn off the engine as he rocked behind the wheel in time to the song that went on about peace, love, and happiness. Not exactly the most appropriate song when they considered their chosen occupation, but at that moment, it didn’t matter. Justin’s joy was a palpable thing in that car and Gabriel was happy to soak it in while he could. His own life contained too few moments like this.

“We just need to pop in for some Kosher salt and mushrooms. I’ve got a nice Bordeaux that I’ve been saving. I just didn’t realize that I was saving it for your coq au vin,” Justin teased after the song was complete and he turned off the engine.

“It takes a few hours to make, right?”

“I figure that it will take me about three because I’m out of practice.” He got out of the car and smirked across the roof at Gabriel as he stood as well. “You can keep me company in the kitchen by reading me information about Dane Hamilton from the Iaso website.”

Gabriel said nothing as he walked beside Justin into the grocery store. His companion paused long enough to grab a little basket. The main entrance opened straight into the produce section and Gabriel couldn’t help but wander down one small aisle after another looking over the brightly colored fruits and vegetables. It had been a while since he’d ventured into a grocery store or even a farmer’s market. He’d been constantly on the go for years. Cooking was limited to things that he could quickly heat or reheat. Or if it was more, the ingredients were ordered over the internet and then delivered to wherever he happened to be living at that time.

“In the mood for something else?” Justin suddenly asked, drawing Gabriel from his thoughts.

He shook his head, hating the heat he could feel starting to warm his cheeks in embarrassment. “No, I…I haven’t grocery shopped in a while.”

“If you think of something in particular you’re craving, we can always arrange it,” Justin said with a wink.

Gabriel reached out and gave Justin’s shoulder a little shove to get him moving again. “Let’s go find your salt and mushrooms.”

Justin snorted. “I think maybe we should look into oysters for you.”

“If I wanted something slimy in my mouth…” Gabriel broke off from what he was saying because his eyes fell on two men walking together. One held a basket like Justin’s and they were holding hands…in the grocery store…like it was the most normal thing in the world. The two men caught him staring and smiled at him. One even winked. But he couldn’t look away. Not until Justin stepped into his line of sight with a look of worry filling his blue eyes.

“This isn’t Russia,” Justin said softly. It took Gabriel a moment to even realize that he’d even said it in Russian.

“I know,” Gabriel said sharply. More so than he’d meant to.

“I’m sorry.”

Gabriel didn’t want his pity or sympathy. Didn’t want to think about any of it. “You owe me coq au vin,” he repeated simply because it was all he had to cling to in that moment that wasn’t from that world.

Justin smiled, but this time it didn’t quite reach his eyes. “Yes, and then we’ll discuss the coq you owe me.”

They continued their grocery shopping with little conversation, just picking up a few random items along with the necessary ingredients for their dinner. Justin winked and slipped over the personal care aisle, but Gabriel refused to accompany him, preferring to glance through the magazine rack without actually seeing anything in front of him. Was he really considering having sex with Justin? The man was sexy as hell and if Justin had made a pass at him while they were in a bar, Gabriel wouldn’t be second guessing it.

But they weren’t strangers who would never see each other again. They had to complete this contact together and it was still unclear as to how long that would take. If they got a lucky break, it could be a matter of days. Unfortunately, their luck so far had been anything but good so far. Sex with Justin was stupid. He knew better. His cock was ruling his decisions and that was not a good thing.

Even as he made the decision while standing in the check-out aisle next to Justin, he knew that he was secretly hoping that Justin would talk him out of it. There was something so contagious about the man’s enthusiasm and joie de vivre. He wished he could be the type to seize the moment and just live. Not that he expected to live long after adopting such an approach, but it would probably be a pretty fantastic ten minutes.

As they walked outside, Justin made a loud sniffing noise as he shifted the plastic bags to his left hand while digging for the car keys. “Do you smell that?”

Gabriel sniffed the air but didn’t smell anything beyond the usual car exhaust and maybe a hint of something fried from the nearby fast-food restaurant. “No, what?”

“It’s like your brain is working overtime and you’re burning up brain cells. Stop thinking so hard.”

Gabriel groaned. “Sex is a bad idea and you know it.”

“The only time I’ve seen that sex is a bad idea is when it’s with a crazy ex who happens to be wearing a wedding dress and holding a butcher knife.” Gabriel stared at his companion for a moment and then shook his head. “Oh wait! It’s also a bad idea if you spot something oozing that shouldn’t be oozing.”

“Oh God! I didn’t need that visual, Justin!” Gabriel shouted horrified. There was no telling what was going to come out of this man’s mouth next and it really needed to stop. He was beginning to fear that he’d never be aroused again after that. “Please, just stop.”

“I’m saying that neither is the case right now, so sex isn’t a bad idea.” Popping the trunk with a press of a button on the key fob, Justin stopped to carefully place the bags in the back.

At the same time, a large engine roared to life. Gabriel was aware of Justin saying something to convince him that sex was their best plan of attack for the night, but he was turning in place to track down the source of the noise. It was like someone had gunned the engine and the hairs on the back of his neck were standing on end. They were standing toward the rear of the parking lot and there was only one other car on the other side of Justin’s Mercedes. They were out in the open and vulnerable.

“Get in the car,” Gabriel ordered.

“What?” Justin replied.

It was already too late. A large black truck with tinted windows surged out of a parking spot three rows over and charged toward them. A window rolled down on the passenger side and the muzzle of an automatic weapon was suddenly visible.

“Shit!” Justin swore a breath before Gabriel crashed into him, throwing them both to the gravel covered pavement. They hit hard and kept rolling, moving in between the Mercedes and the other sedan beside them. The quiet of the day was shredded by the blast of firepower as bullets pummeled the car. Tire after tire exploded as it was punctured by the bullets.

Gabriel’s heart was pounding so hard that he could feel it in the back of his throat. Justin swore, his right hand pressed against the wound on his left side while he crawled behind the sedan. Gabriel followed close behind him, pulling his gun from where is rested under his left arm, but he was keeping his damn head down. They weren’t in a good position to defend themselves. They couldn’t counter that kind of firepower and there was no telling how many people were in the damn truck.

Tires squealed on the asphalt, but they sounded like they were moving away from them. Gabriel slowly lifted his head, while keeping one hand on Justin in case he needed to shove the man in a particular direction. The black truck was speeding out of the parking lot and toward the expressway entrance. With the gunfire complete, he could now hear panicked shouts and loud sobbing.

“They’re gone,” Justin said, patting the hand Gabriel had clamped on his shoulder.

He quickly tucked away the gun he’d drawn and looked around at the people who were rushing out of the various stores in the shopping center. Police sirens sounded far off, but they were steadily growing louder. People would be descending on them in a matter of seconds.

“Are you okay?” Gabriel asked.

“I might have torn a stitch or two, but fine otherwise. You?”

“I’m fine,” he murmured as he walked around the bullet-riddled car. It really was a shame. The silver Mercedes had been a damn nice car, but now it looked more like metallic Swiss cheese than a vehicle. “How are we a target already? Were we followed from your house?”

Justin shook his head. “No. Maybe Gretchen is being watched.” He looked past Gabriel toward the store and likely the growing crowd of gawkers. “But we’ll talk about it later.”

“Anything we need to hide from the cops?” Gabriel muttered under his breath as he stood next to Justin.

“Nah. The car is clean. Fucking bastards. This was not how I wanted to break it in.”

“Why do I feel like your first choice would have been sex in the back seat?” Gabriel asked. Justin looked up at him and managed to lift one corner of his mouth, which was really pathetic for this man. To his own surprise, he put his arm around Justin’s wide shoulder. “We’ll get even.”