Fish & Chips by Madeleine Urban, Abigail Roux Page B
Authors: Madeleine Urban, Abigail Roux
Tags: Suspense, Gay, Mystery, series, M/M romance, Novel, glbt, dreamspinner press, abigail roux, madeleine urban, paperback, Mystery/Suspense
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his quick study that Corbin wouldn"t care about what other people thought. Only Del—Ty—mattered, and his hand stayed in Zane"s, his thumb rubbing Zane"s fingers gently, sliding over the smooth metal of his fake wedding ring. It was oddly soothing.
It was easy to watch Ty"s masterful performance for the rest of lunch, and Zane let himself enjoy it.
Fish & Chips | 71
Chapter 4
TY LAY on one of the teak deck chairs, stretched out with his hands behind his head and his eyes closed against the bright winter sun filtering through the protective glass that housed the indoor pool. Just after lunch he and Zane had decided to show their faces and actually try to enjoy themselves before they got deeper into the case. Ty had opted for the pool before remembering the piece of synthetic skin covering his tattoo. He wasn"t sure if it could be submerged, and he wanted to test that in private before he dove in.
He"d been lying still for far too long, though. He kept telling himself it was part of the cover. This was the only thing anyone expected him to do. They figured being in plain sight the first afternoon would be a good plan, and the pool area under the dome meant it was plenty warm, especially with the sun shining through the glass.
Ty wasn"t sure where Zane had gotten off to. He knew he couldn"t dog his partner"s steps for fear of looking too suspicious, but it made him nervous nonetheless, letting Zane out of his sight. He knew there were agents on the ship somewhere, no doubt looking out for them. But he had yet to make any of them, and that alone disturbed him.
No one was so good that they could consistently hide when a trained eye knew to look for them. Ty told himself they were probably keeping a low profile and not to worry about it.
Finally, he couldn"t take the relaxation any longer, and he raised his head, squinting as he looked around to see if Zane was anywhere near, searching for a dark head somewhere. He passed over the first 72 | Madeleine Urban & Abigail Roux
three almost immediately. Then he caught sight of a man surfacing in the pool amidst a gathering of women in various amounts of swimsuit.
Ty cocked his head, allowing himself to examine the tightening of his chest in reaction to spotting his partner. It had been happening more frequently lately. Ty didn"t know if it was because he just had more opportunities to spot Zane in a crowd now, or if it was due to the more obvious possibilities. He had stopped trying to deny the fact that he was in love some weeks ago. The fact that they were not only able to show each other some attention here on the cruise ship, but that they were encouraged to do so, was only adding to the weight of the feelings he"d realized in the mountains of West Virginia.
He still had his doubts, of course, and the thought still unnerved him, but he had pretty much come to terms with it. It was almost amusing. If he"d been a betting man, he would never have picked himself from the two of them to be the sap who fell in love.
Ty sighed slightly and shielded his eyes, watching Zane idly.
It was clear that several of the women were flirting with him, and it was crystal clear that Zane—Corbin—was vastly amused. Zane slicked his wet hair back with one hand as he spoke with a couple of them before the group laughed and Zane gave that full-of-it smile Ty had quickly come to associate with Corbin. The real Corbin Porter was obviously a dick, if Zane"s impression of him was anything to go by.
But Zane, with the self-assured addition to his attitude, was hitting buttons Ty hadn"t even known he possessed. He sighed, looking down at the silver ring on his finger. It was still odd to see it there. And it was unnerving that he still couldn"t seem to get it off. He tugged at it like he had been all morning. It was just a little too tight, and it didn"t budge over the still-swollen, scarred knuckle. Tonight he intended to take some soap to it. Or if that failed, Astroglide.
He looked back
It was easy to watch Ty"s masterful performance for the rest of lunch, and Zane let himself enjoy it.
Fish & Chips | 71
Chapter 4
TY LAY on one of the teak deck chairs, stretched out with his hands behind his head and his eyes closed against the bright winter sun filtering through the protective glass that housed the indoor pool. Just after lunch he and Zane had decided to show their faces and actually try to enjoy themselves before they got deeper into the case. Ty had opted for the pool before remembering the piece of synthetic skin covering his tattoo. He wasn"t sure if it could be submerged, and he wanted to test that in private before he dove in.
He"d been lying still for far too long, though. He kept telling himself it was part of the cover. This was the only thing anyone expected him to do. They figured being in plain sight the first afternoon would be a good plan, and the pool area under the dome meant it was plenty warm, especially with the sun shining through the glass.
Ty wasn"t sure where Zane had gotten off to. He knew he couldn"t dog his partner"s steps for fear of looking too suspicious, but it made him nervous nonetheless, letting Zane out of his sight. He knew there were agents on the ship somewhere, no doubt looking out for them. But he had yet to make any of them, and that alone disturbed him.
No one was so good that they could consistently hide when a trained eye knew to look for them. Ty told himself they were probably keeping a low profile and not to worry about it.
Finally, he couldn"t take the relaxation any longer, and he raised his head, squinting as he looked around to see if Zane was anywhere near, searching for a dark head somewhere. He passed over the first 72 | Madeleine Urban & Abigail Roux
three almost immediately. Then he caught sight of a man surfacing in the pool amidst a gathering of women in various amounts of swimsuit.
Ty cocked his head, allowing himself to examine the tightening of his chest in reaction to spotting his partner. It had been happening more frequently lately. Ty didn"t know if it was because he just had more opportunities to spot Zane in a crowd now, or if it was due to the more obvious possibilities. He had stopped trying to deny the fact that he was in love some weeks ago. The fact that they were not only able to show each other some attention here on the cruise ship, but that they were encouraged to do so, was only adding to the weight of the feelings he"d realized in the mountains of West Virginia.
He still had his doubts, of course, and the thought still unnerved him, but he had pretty much come to terms with it. It was almost amusing. If he"d been a betting man, he would never have picked himself from the two of them to be the sap who fell in love.
Ty sighed slightly and shielded his eyes, watching Zane idly.
It was clear that several of the women were flirting with him, and it was crystal clear that Zane—Corbin—was vastly amused. Zane slicked his wet hair back with one hand as he spoke with a couple of them before the group laughed and Zane gave that full-of-it smile Ty had quickly come to associate with Corbin. The real Corbin Porter was obviously a dick, if Zane"s impression of him was anything to go by.
But Zane, with the self-assured addition to his attitude, was hitting buttons Ty hadn"t even known he possessed. He sighed, looking down at the silver ring on his finger. It was still odd to see it there. And it was unnerving that he still couldn"t seem to get it off. He tugged at it like he had been all morning. It was just a little too tight, and it didn"t budge over the still-swollen, scarred knuckle. Tonight he intended to take some soap to it. Or if that failed, Astroglide.
He looked back
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