promise,” Luke replied. “But I’ll try.”
Chapter Eight
Luke knew Daniel would be disappointed when he woke up to find him gone, but there was only so long he could stay in one place without feeling claustrophobic. He hadn’t gone far. Just to the porch with a coffee to look at the sunrise. They’d woken and made love again in the darkest hour. Not had sex, but honest to goodness, all singing all dancing made love. Luke had affection inside him that was bursting to get out and that was scary in itself. He was here the sum total of another two weeks and he wasn’t staying so what was the point of learning more about Daniel?
“Hey,” Daniel’s voice echoed in the wide wooden porch. He sat down on the swing hanging from the rafters and Luke settled it with one foot as it rocked with Daniel’s weight.
“Hey,” Luke replied. He sipped at his coffee and looked out to the trees and the tip of the mountains beyond. “This is new isn’t it? This cabin. I don’t remember it from when I was here.”
“Yeah, built it with the guys just before I left on my first tour. Kind of needed a place to aim to come back to.”
Luke winced. That sounded so damn final. He’d been up close and personal with Daniel and he’d noticed the slight limp and the expression of discomfort when Daniel moved his shoulder sometimes. He’d seen more detail when he’d trailed kisses down his spine last night. A wicked looking scar curved from shoulder to near the spine itself.
“How were you injured?” he asked.
“IED.”
“I’m sorry.” That is what you said right? When you asked stupid questions and got one word answers.
“Don’t be.” Daniel sighed. “I made it home fairly much in one piece from that tour.”
“Must be hard though not to be part of the family out there. You know, the marines…”
Daniel looked directly at him and frowned. Luke waited to be shouted down. He didn’t know what it was like being in the forces, especially something as close knit as the US Marines and he fully expected to get the punch that Daniel had previously held back.
“No one has ever said that to me.”
“I’m sorry—”
“Don’t be. My friends, colleagues, they were my family. You watched the back of the next guy because you knew he was watching yours. We were like brothers I guess and yeah, coming back here to normality in small town USA was quite a bit of a culture shock. I don’t think a single other person has ever summed up what I had in the Marines as family before though.”
“Did anyone else come back? From your team.”
“Two are still out there. I don’t know anything, but I kept in contact with their families here so I would know. What made you leave this morning?”
“I didn’t exactly leave. I’m on your porch.”
“You know what I mean. I woke up and we were twisted together as close as you can get without sex then when I next woke up the bed was empty and it wasn’t much past dawn.”
“I wish I could put it into words,” Luke said. How to sum up panicking and dreams, and being here at the cabins, not getting too involved with a gorgeous soldier, and the whole heap of shit going on in his head. “I try not to think about it.”
“So, tell me about Colorado,” Daniel changed the subject.
“Work. I’ve been looking at positions for English teaching at schools in Aurora and Denver.”
“That’s a long way from Richmond?” Daniel looked at him with questions in his expression. How was Luke going to explain this one? In the end he decided to go with what he had convinced himself was a good reason.
“Somewhere new. Wanderlust. You were a marine, you know what it’s like.” Luke shrugged. Daniel had to know what it was like to not want to settle in one place. The very nature of his job was to move from country to country.
“Not me,” Daniel replied. He sipped his coffee then leaned his head on the back of the swing. “Home is here. Doesn’t matter where I’d get taken, home
Chapter Eight
Luke knew Daniel would be disappointed when he woke up to find him gone, but there was only so long he could stay in one place without feeling claustrophobic. He hadn’t gone far. Just to the porch with a coffee to look at the sunrise. They’d woken and made love again in the darkest hour. Not had sex, but honest to goodness, all singing all dancing made love. Luke had affection inside him that was bursting to get out and that was scary in itself. He was here the sum total of another two weeks and he wasn’t staying so what was the point of learning more about Daniel?
“Hey,” Daniel’s voice echoed in the wide wooden porch. He sat down on the swing hanging from the rafters and Luke settled it with one foot as it rocked with Daniel’s weight.
“Hey,” Luke replied. He sipped at his coffee and looked out to the trees and the tip of the mountains beyond. “This is new isn’t it? This cabin. I don’t remember it from when I was here.”
“Yeah, built it with the guys just before I left on my first tour. Kind of needed a place to aim to come back to.”
Luke winced. That sounded so damn final. He’d been up close and personal with Daniel and he’d noticed the slight limp and the expression of discomfort when Daniel moved his shoulder sometimes. He’d seen more detail when he’d trailed kisses down his spine last night. A wicked looking scar curved from shoulder to near the spine itself.
“How were you injured?” he asked.
“IED.”
“I’m sorry.” That is what you said right? When you asked stupid questions and got one word answers.
“Don’t be.” Daniel sighed. “I made it home fairly much in one piece from that tour.”
“Must be hard though not to be part of the family out there. You know, the marines…”
Daniel looked directly at him and frowned. Luke waited to be shouted down. He didn’t know what it was like being in the forces, especially something as close knit as the US Marines and he fully expected to get the punch that Daniel had previously held back.
“No one has ever said that to me.”
“I’m sorry—”
“Don’t be. My friends, colleagues, they were my family. You watched the back of the next guy because you knew he was watching yours. We were like brothers I guess and yeah, coming back here to normality in small town USA was quite a bit of a culture shock. I don’t think a single other person has ever summed up what I had in the Marines as family before though.”
“Did anyone else come back? From your team.”
“Two are still out there. I don’t know anything, but I kept in contact with their families here so I would know. What made you leave this morning?”
“I didn’t exactly leave. I’m on your porch.”
“You know what I mean. I woke up and we were twisted together as close as you can get without sex then when I next woke up the bed was empty and it wasn’t much past dawn.”
“I wish I could put it into words,” Luke said. How to sum up panicking and dreams, and being here at the cabins, not getting too involved with a gorgeous soldier, and the whole heap of shit going on in his head. “I try not to think about it.”
“So, tell me about Colorado,” Daniel changed the subject.
“Work. I’ve been looking at positions for English teaching at schools in Aurora and Denver.”
“That’s a long way from Richmond?” Daniel looked at him with questions in his expression. How was Luke going to explain this one? In the end he decided to go with what he had convinced himself was a good reason.
“Somewhere new. Wanderlust. You were a marine, you know what it’s like.” Luke shrugged. Daniel had to know what it was like to not want to settle in one place. The very nature of his job was to move from country to country.
“Not me,” Daniel replied. He sipped his coffee then leaned his head on the back of the swing. “Home is here. Doesn’t matter where I’d get taken, home
Similar Books
