A Mended Man (The Men of Halfway House Book 4) (55 page)

Your ass always looks good. Feels even better.

Jessie immediately dropped into his seat and cleared his screen of the message. He took a deep breath, hoping to cool the heat now racing through his body and thickening his dick. He glanced over at Aidan, narrowing his eyes at the mischief still firmly in place.

Oh, he was so going to get it tonight.

Aidan strolled back into the precinct with Manny and Travis after executing several warrants. More names checked off the list since bringing Jessie on board a month ago. They had arrested cops on the take, more dirty judges, and a shit-ton of corporations and government contractors along the line. Everyone pushed through their exhaustion and pulled extra hours with a sole goal: wrap this shit up. All this corruption made him feel entirely too dirty for his comfort.

He straightened in the seat to look at Jessie across the room. Fuck stolen glances, they'd made a few busts today and he needed a good look.

He frowned at the empty chair.

"He's with Wall," Sunny yelled over to him from her desk, a little louder than needed, thumbing through a file. She peeked up with a wicked grin as if what she had said armed a ticking time bomb ready to explode, and she had front row seats and popcorn waiting for the show to begin.

Travis looked up and Manny turned at his desk, a mix of worry and humor in their eyes.

Jessie and Wall seemed to get along, far better than the others. Jessie never felt threatened around him and that, for Aidan, was the most important ingredient—knowing Jessie was safe and that Wall would be a rock-solid backup guardian in a pinch. Aidan knew there wasn't anything between them other than friendship, but he wouldn't deny the ugly green monster tried to pull him toward the dark side. He trusted Jessie and never questioned his love.

Sunny flipped through another page, humming. She actually fucking hummed.

Aidan clasped his hands behind his head, trying to remain casual, knowing his partner was setting the stage for a massive attack with whatever bomb she waited to drop. "Since you seem to be all-knowing, care to share where they are?"

"Gun range."

Travis covered the "O" of his mouth and Manny hid his face in his hand.

Guns…were his thing. He slowly rose from the chair, ignoring the creaking under the force of his slow rise.

He refused to give in and go batshit crazy or let that hideous green monster strangle him. He would remain calm, because that was what happened in relationships. That was what good partners, boyfriends—or whatever stupid label society decided to slap on him—did.

Screw this shit.

He grabbed his keys and wallet and stormed out of the office, ignoring the chuckles in his wake. He'd played right into Sunny's tease. Fuck them. He stalked through the hallway, down the stairs, and through the walkway leading to the training gun range connected with the precinct building. During his trek and through the pounding in his ears, he realized it wasn't anger thrumming through his body like a live wire. Or hate or jealousy.

He stopped for a moment, just outside the range office entrance, closing his eyes and taking a few deep breaths.

He was scared. Terrified was probably more accurate. Jessie wouldn't cheat. But Aidan was a difficult son of a bitch to take and there were a million other better alternatives out there in the world who made things much easier. He swung open the door, nipping that thought in the bud before it had a chance to take root. It was close to quitting time for most staff. As expected, only the one desk clerk was stationed in the otherwise vacant space.

"Hi, Rafe," Aidan mumbled in greeting.

"I didn't think I'd get anyone else this late," the attendant said. "Did you bring your own or do you need a loaner?"

"I've got mine." He withdrew his firearm and removed the magazine, clearing the chamber of any rounds for Rafe's inspection. "Anyone else here?"

"Yeah. I've got two guys in range B."

Aidan nodded, grabbing his gun. He worked his way through the series of shooting lanes to reach the rooms. He'd walk in, no big deal. If the two guys weren't Wall and Jess, he'd shrug it off as his bad and take advantage of the range time and get a few shots in. He finally reached the room and held on to the doorknob for a few seconds, taking a deep breath, hoping to settle the storm brewing within. He rubbed his chest, trying to ease the sharp ache.

He swung open the door and there were Wall and Jessie, leaning over a taken apart gun lying on a towel. In one split second, three things were pointed at him: two stares and the barrel of one gun.

Wall immediately lowered his weapon and scowled, relaxing the arm he'd swung behind himself to shield Jessie with his body.

"You're going to give me a heart attack," Jessie said, stepping out from behind Wall.

"I heard you guys were here." He entered the room and shut the door.

Jessie grabbed each piece of the gun and began assembling the parts together, completely enthralled in the task. Wall immediately stopped him if he reached for one of the incorrect pieces and pointed to the correct part. Aidan rubbed the easing tension from his chest, watching in rapt silence as Jessie swiftly assembled the gun.

"So you're learning to take apart a gun?" Aidan asked.

"Wall already taught me how to clean one and take it apart, so now I'm just putting it back together." Jessie continued piecing the parts without looking up, biting his lip and reaching at the end of the table for the next piece.

Aidan smiled at Jessie's eagerness. And in all truth, Wall had a never-ending fountain of patience to teach people how to clean and take apart a weapon. Far better than he could. He was usually most concerned with clocking his completion and beating his record every time he took one apart.

"And…just in case you're wondering," Jessie said, not shifting his focus from his metal puzzle. "No, Wall has not taught me to shoot because we both agree, that's your area." He inserted the magazine into the gun, extending the pistol to Wall for his inspection. He turned to Aidan, challenging him.

Uh-oh
.

Wall gave Jessie a thumbs-up then put away the cleaning kit and rolled up the towel, stowing everything away in his bag. He stopped at the door before exiting the room, finally spinning on his heel to face Aidan. "Apologize for being a prick. If he dumps your sorry ass, we all suffer." Wall's brow furrowed and his jaw muscles twitched. He turned and exited the room, leaving Aidan in stunned silence.

"Aidan?"

Aidan looked to the ground, scuffing his boot on the concrete floor. "I liked it better when he didn't talk."

"C'mere."

Aidan looked up, the tension in his shoulders easing with the now softer expression on Jessie's face. He took the few steps needed to stand just outside of Jessie's personal zone. "I didn't think—"

Jessie crossed his arms and stared at him.

He lowered his head again and chewed his lip. "I'll admit I wasn't thrilled to hear you were here with him." He looked up, checking if he should quit before he said something really wrong. Jessie nodded, encouraging him to continue. "It's not because I questioned whether you were cheating or not. I know you wouldn't do that. It's more…" He shrugged, feeling like a horse's ass.

"Guns are important to you and you wanted to be the one to share it with me."

Aidan nodded. "When you say it like that, it makes me sound…I don't know."
Sentimental? Childish? Temperamental?

"How would you have said it then?"

"Guns are personal and I didn't want you handling anyone else's weapon."

Jessie stifled a laugh.

Aidan rolled his eyes. Okay, his way sounded wrong. And a little perverted. And
did
make him sound jealous.
Shit
. All this talking and head sessions and crap had him over-analyzing everything.

"Is there a camera in here?" Jessie asked.

"Yeah. Video only. One is obvious and above at our right and there are two a bit more hidden at each corner of this side of the room," he responded without letting his focus stray from Jessie.

"Okay, I wouldn't want to
handle your weapon
if anyone was watching," Jessie said, oozing with a not-so-subtle suggestion.

Aidan laughed, shaking his head. He was never going to hear the end of this.

"Okay, Mr. Hotshot. Teach me," Jessie said, sliding on his protective glasses and inserting the soft foam earplugs.

He swallowed heavily. When Jessie was in teasing mode, he was a force to be reckoned with. And Aidan was a total weak son of a bitch at his mercy. He took his gun to the lane table and loaded the magazine, cocking the gun then pointing at the paper target to demonstrate how to hold the proper position. He motioned for Jessie to come over and directed him on his stance. He placed his hands on Jessie's hips, positioning his body in a side-to-side placement. He reached down, nudging the back of Jessie's knees so he'd bend them slightly. He damn sure wouldn't deny he ran his hand along the back of Jessie's thigh a hell of a lot longer than needed.

"I'm planning on shooting the load in the gun, not me. So stop that."

Aidan chuckled. He stood behind Jessie and lowered his arms slightly so Jessie's elbows weren't in a locked position. "Focus on the target," he whispered in Jessie's ear.

"I can't focus much if you keep doing that."

"You need to zone out any distractions when you shoot." Aidan lowered his hands to Jessie's waist, not caring if Rafe had pulled up a chair to take advantage of the little peep show. "The trick is balance and grip. You need to balance your weight to counteract the kick from the gun. So let's start with that."

"What do I do now?"

"Look through the sight, aim for the target, then squeeze the trigger slowly." He remained standing behind Jessie with his hands gently resting on his narrow hips.

A shot rang through the air and Jessie lost his footing, held only by Aidan's grip on his waist. Jessie straightened and looked out to the target. "I didn't even come close. Why the hell not?"

Aidan smiled at the frustrated pout on those plump lips. "Anticipation."

"Don't tease me. I'm being serious."

"Not everything has a double meaning. You anticipated the shot so you probably flinched and that forced the shot to go elsewhere."

Jessie tilted his head and nodded slowly. "Okay. Let's do it again." He stood in the same stance, but Aidan shifted his leg and adjusted his knees—copping a feel in between—to a front-to-back position for his second attempt to see if the change granted him better balance. "You keep doing that and I'm not going to be able to do this."

Aidan chuckled. "Maybe this position will help you keep your balance better. Aim and squeeze the trigger again. Slowly. I'm not going to let you fall on your ass. So don't worry."

Jessie blew out a few deep breaths then finally pulled the trigger, staying a little steadier on his feet this time around. He lowered the gun and looked at the silhouette target. "At least I hit the paper this time," he grumbled. He straightened his arms again, ready for another shot.

Aidan reached up from behind, cupping his hands around Jessie's, letting him position the gun to aim but holding it steady in his hands. "Fire when you're ready."

His third shot echoed in the room. Jessie set the gun down and flipped the switch on the lane divider, recalling the target through the electrical pulley system. He removed the sheet from the clips and inspected his work. The second shot had barely made the edge of the paper, but the last one had hit the black target fringe of the silhouette.

"Aidan, I hate to break it to you, but I have a feeling you're going to be the gun twirling one in this relationship."

His loud laugh resonated off the walls. "I don't expect you to be packing. But I would feel better knowing you're comfortable holding one in your hand and know how to use it."

Jessie nodded. "I can deal with that. I can say I was scared to hold one until today." He held up the target, inspecting it again. He looked up abruptly, staring at Aidan as if a thought had just come to mind. "I've never seen you shoot. Show me."

A chance to show his guy something he could do without effort?
Hell yeah!
He took another paper target and set it up on the clips, flipping the switch to set the target back out into the lane.

"That's farther than where I had it." Jessie craned his neck, watching the paper get smaller as it flew farther away.

Aidan didn't say a word until the target hit the end of the lane. "How many shots would you like me to take?" he asked, cocking his gun.

Jessie looked at the target at the end of the lane then back to him. "Just one."

Aidan peeked over his shoulder for a quick second to judge the distance, then returned his focus to Jessie. One glance. That was all he needed. He straightened his arm toward the target while keeping his focus on Jessie. "You sure you just want me to shoot
one
shot?"

"Just one," Jessie said with a huge grin.

Aidan looked over to the target, aimed, and instantly pressed the trigger. He placed the gun on the table and flipped the switch to return the target back to them.