Aaron eased off Rob, lying to one side and watching the man who’d stolen his heart sleeping. He had incredibly long lashes, beautiful, thick, and Aaron could imagine the deep green that lay beneath. Full of secrets, Rob was an enigma.

He left the room a couple of times, to use the bathroom, to get another drink, but each time he crawled back onto the bed and lay next to him. Just because Rob hadn’t left this morning didn't mean he wouldn't vanish altogether. He was adamant he was done, that there was nothing left, and the grief that carved inside Aaron stole his breath.

His job was to save lives and dispatch to people who could care and nurture and make his patients whole. But with Rob, he wanted to do that. He wanted to make him see there could be a chance.

When Rob woke, he was facing Aaron. His eyelashes fluttered and then closed.

“Are you watching me?” he asked and turned to face the other way.

“Absolutely,” Aaron said and ran a finger down Rob’s spine, pausing briefly over T5 but not so much that Rob would feel it.

“That’s creepy.”

“Whatever.”

Rob turned his head on the pillow, and this time his eyes were open, and the green was intense with emotion.

Aaron reached for him, cupping his face and kissing him. The angle was awkward, but Rob moved as well, rolling to lie on Aaron, and deepen the kisses.

And just like that, passion took them, and there was no second when Rob would let him pause or worry about his back or make any attempt at conversation. Rob was naked, and Aaron still wore his jeans and a T, but he made short work of that, or as quick as it could be when he didn’t want to break the kissing.

“Condoms? Lube?” Rob asked.

Aaron pointed at the drawer. “In there.”

Rob pulled the drawer hard, awkward on the bed, and cursed when it didn’t open immediately.

“I want you to…” Rob said, passing the things to Aaron and waiting.

“I don’t think…” Aaron had a lot to say about pain management and need being diametrically opposed, but then Rob kissed him, and he knew there was only one way to do this. He arranged Rob on his back, spent a while licking and sucking Rob’s erection, which made Rob demand more.

“Stay there,” he ordered. Then added more gently, “Promise me something.”

“What?”

“If your back hurts, you need to tell me. We don’t have to do this.”

Rob reached up and tangled a hand in Aaron’s hair. “Yes, we do, Army.”

Aaron hurried to strip off, squeezing lube onto his fingers and positioning himself so Rob could see him stretching himself. Rob reached for him, closed a hand around his cock, and moved it in time to the press inside, and suddenly Aaron wasn’t sure exactly how long he’d last if they didn’t get on with this quickly.

He wiped his hands on his discarded T-shirt and hurried to open a condom, but Rob took it off him, smoothing it over his cock and fisting himself.

“Are you sure? I can—”

Aaron cut off whatever Rob was going to say with a kiss, and then he lowered himself onto Rob.

“Wait,” Aaron paused, licking his way into Rob’s mouth, taking every taste he could, waiting for his body to relax, swallowing the soft groan of approval from Rob.

“Please…”

Aaron kissed away the plea and began to move, his breathing heavy. Slowly, firmly he rose and sunk back again, and through all of it, Rob never shut his eyes.

“I’m so close,” Rob warned, reaching up to cup Aaron’s face, drawing him down to kiss. They carried on a little longer. Then Aaron used a hand on himself, timing it to the erratic beat of Rob’s heart, and then finally, abruptly, Rob was coming, and Aaron twisted his hand, deliciously on edge, and painted Rob’s chest with white.

For a while, Aaron stayed still. Then somehow, they separated, Rob dealing with the condom, and then both of them lay back on the bed.

This was it. In Aaron's mind, they had made love. What was Rob thinking? When Rob curled a hand into his and laced their fingers, he knew for certain this was more than just sex.

“The boys. You. All of you make me want more,” Rob murmured.

And that was all Aaron wanted to hear.

Rob must have slept; a low dose of Fentanyl and the massage had taken the edge off the pain enough for him to at least close his eyes again. The next Aaron knew, he blinked his eyes open, and it was dark, Rob snuggling into his side and an arm casually over Aaron’s stomach.

He really should wake Rob up.

In a minute. No rush just yet.

The next time Aaron woke, he was confused. He didn’t realize at first what had woken him, and then he realized it wasn’t a natural awakening, but Rob kissing his way down Aaron’s body, spending time nibbling and tugging on his nipples, cupping his balls, licking and sucking his cock. Every touch was electric, but Aaron lay still. Until Rob moved to face the other way and abruptly, in the half dark, Aaron was met with a decision whether to suck Rob as Rob was doing to him. No brainer really.

For the second time, when they were done, he slept again, but this time he placed a hand over Rob’s, which rested on his belly, and everything felt a little less wrong.

When he woke to daylight, Rob was sat on the bed next to him.

“I have to go. I said I’d teach Bran how to dive.” Rob gave him one last long-lingering kiss, the kind that rocked Aaron to his core, and finished it off with cradling Aaron’s face and smoothing his thumbs under Aaron’s eyes.

Aaron was concerned. “Are you sure that’s a good idea?”

“I just want to give him one more memory.” They kissed again. “You’re an addiction,” he murmured. “I wish I had time for more memories with you.” Then he was gone, and the pain in Aaron’s heart was enough to steal his breath.