Alpha, Delta (2 page)

“I can summarise for you now,” Niall said. He opened his mouth to begin but a man stepped up next to Niall with a plate of snacks and coffee.

“Eat something,” the new arrival insisted. He spared Finn a quick glance and a smile then focused back on Niall. “Seriously, if you don’t eat you’ll fade away to nothing.” The new guy had a similar Scottish accent to Niall but it wasn’t enough to hold Finn’s attention like Niall’s. Finn didn’t imagine the look of exasperation on Niall’s face, nor did he think for one minute Niall would fade away. He may be a little on the small side, but then, most people were next to Finn with his six four in height to be fair. But there was something solid about Niall, he was all lithe muscles and slim build… In fact he was built for—

“Mr. Hallan, this is my brother Ewan,” Niall said. “Ewan, meet Mr. Hallan—”

“Finn.”

Niall ignored him and carried on with the introduction. “He’s with the ERU.”

Ewan whistled and looked impressed. “A real life Delta in our midst. You here for your annual health and safety briefing?”

“Just picking up what we need to know.”

“Might help if you listen to me then,” Niall deadpanned. “I was examining the fact that when we’re deconstructing the oil platforms that security is lower and there is a skeleton staff until handover and that this could well be a security risk.”

Finn wasn’t entirely sure what to say to that. His role in Delta was the backbone of the war against terrorists in Norway and the locale, which covered the oilrigs in the Norwegian sea. He should really have listened to Niall. So how did he apologize then ask for a recap without looking like a complete dick.

“I heard all that,” he lied.

“Yet you asked me about what I wanted to be when I grew up?” He stepped out of the light a little and Finn was blown away by Niall’s eyes, a stunning mix of golds and browns. They were damn near twinkling with the teasing.

“I didn’t exactly phrase it like that,” Finn defended himself. Then he backed down. “Maybe I could get a private consultation,” he said slyly. This was the perfect time to test the waters with the decommissioning engineer, or whatever he was called.

“Call your team and I’ll do a group talk before I leave on Friday,” Niall offered. “It was good to meet you, Mr. Hallan.”

“Finn,” he repeated in the hope he would hear his name on Niall’s lips in that soft bur.

They shook hands again, then Niall was lost to the crowd, his brother at his side guiding him around the different people. Finn resolved to look Niall Faulkner up when he got to a quiet space. There was something intriguing about the man with the hazel eyes and the soft steady voice. Oh and his pants, there was something about what was in his pants, and the way they hugged his groin tightly…and that ass…

Niall allowed Ewan to guide him away and was thankful for the interruption. “Thank you,” he said in a quiet voice.

“Was he making you nervous?” Ewan asked with a backward glance at the man they had left by the back window.

Niall considered the tall, broad, in-your-face, dark-haired, blue-eyed man. Nervous, no. A little turned on, yes. That Delta ticked every single one of Niall’s items on the checklist. Taller. Bigger. Stronger. Fuck, even his libido had his cock hardening in his pants and he couldn’t allow himself to get turned on like some horny teenager. Not here. In this place he was a respected engineer with years of experience behind him and his opinion was requested. He held a high position leading a team of engineers at NorsDev, one of the biggest energy companies in the world, and he wasn’t even thirty yet.

He did not have time to fuck that all up by mooning over Mr. Tall and Sexy in his uniform. And hell, that uniform. It stretched in all the right places, and add in the trim waste and flat stomach and Niall was a goner. God knows what he would have done if he’d actually gotten a look at Finn’s ass, but it had to be fine given the way his uniform pants clung to muscled thighs and—

“Earth to Niall,” Ewan interrupted is thoughts. “You okay?”

“Yeah, I’m fine… And no, he didn’t make me nervous. So who’s next on the agenda?”

“Adam’s here from finance, something about budgets.”

Oh. Hell. No. “You have to get me out of here,” Niall said urgently. “That man will kill me with boredom.”

Ewan turned to say something but it was too late, Adam was there, folders under his arm, and Niall abruptly saw an hour of his life disappear into a black hole. When he glanced back at where he’d left Finn he saw the man was still there. He was leaning back against the window, arms crossed over his broad chest, and he was staring right at Niall.

Flustered, it was all Niall could do to concentrate on Adam and his wish to cut three million from the budgets for decommissioning the Forseti platform. When next he got a chance to check on Finn, the sex-on-legs guy had gone. Niall couldn’t help the bite of disappointment. Yes, Finn Hallan made him feel all kinds of nervous, but it was a good nervous, and he already missed the sight of him.

And what did that say about attraction between two people? Because Niall was ready to jump the man’s bones and they’d barely shaken hands.

“I’m going up to get some work done.” The time had long since passed eight p.m. and he was off the clock now. Someone else could be the expert, the one who answered questions, all Niall wanted was a tumbler of whiskey, his PJs and his laptop. And sleep.

Ewan passed him another plate of whatever leftovers there were on the main table. Niall took them because he knew it was a waste of time arguing with his little brother. After all, Ewan was just looking after him.

“I know you won’t call room service,” Ewan said on a sigh. He tucked a plastic bottle of Coke into Niall’s laptop bag and handed him the whole thing. “Go. Before Adam corners you again.”

Niall did as he was told, edging his way out and making sure not to meet anyone’s gaze. He only did these safety audit assessments once a year and it seemed like everyone in NorsDev wanted a piece of him. When he made it out to the main corridor juggling plate and laptop bag it was like the last day of the summer term and he had the long stretch of weeks ahead of him. Okay so it was only one night but that was a long time in a really nice hotel with a shower built for two.

Unbidden, thoughts of Finn in the shower had him groaning at the rush of lust. Jesus, he was losing it big time today. He pressed the button for the elevator and stood back. He was on floor seventeen of the Radisson Blu with a wonderful view of Oslo and he couldn’t wait to see it all lit up in the dark again. The elevator was way up there at twenty-four but he wasn’t moving. He’d have a long wait but climbing up seventeen flights of stairs would probably mean he’d be found near dead on floor thirteen. He chuckled at the thought but stiffened when a familiar voice spoke behind him.

“Niall,” Finn said softly. “You going up?”

Niall turned very slowly to face the object of his fascination and he swallowed. Finn had changed out of his uniform and into jeans that hugged his legs like a second skin, and a scarlet T-shirt that stuck very close to every single muscle. In uniform he looked edible, but dressed like this with damp hair from the shower he looked like every gay man’s wet dream. His eyes were so damn blue, his lashes long and dark. He may have showered but he hadn’t shaved and stubble darkened his jawline, which gave him an almost dangerous look. Niall needed to say something, Finn had asked him a question. Something about the elevator.

“Seventeen,” he said.

Clearly that was enough, Finn nodded. “Are you finished for the day now?”

Niall nodded and heard himself sigh. “All done for another year.”

“Except for my one-on-one,” Finn pointed out.

“I didn’t say a one-on-one. I said I’d talk to your whole team.”

The elevator arrived and they both got in. He pressed seventeen and stood back with the expectation that Finn would press for his own floor. When he didn’t Niall assumed that they were on the same floor. That was until the doors shut and Finn stepped right up in his space.

“I wasn’t talking about the security briefing,” he said all sexy-growly. Niall moved back until his back hit the mirrored wall and Finn stepped forward.

Abruptly, Niall was flustered and words failed him. “Wh-what were y-you referring to.”

Carefully,
oh so gently
, Finn used a single finger to tilt Niall’s chin up.

“Our one-on-one,” he said.

“Ours…”
Oh God, oh fuck, I am going to break the zipper in these pants.

“Unless I read this wrong and you don’t want me to hold you down and suck your brains out through your cock.”

Finn hadn’t moved any closer, in fact it appeared he was deliberately well out of Niall’s space. This was the moment that Niall had to make a decision. He could brush this off, ignore the erection pressing painfully against his zipper, forget the fact that desire and lust fought for every inch of his body.
Hold me down. Fuck…
Or he could take everything those blue eyes promised and have one night of the kind of sex that he imagined he would have with Finn. He heard his brother’s voice.
Go for it. No one is ever promised a tomorrow. What do you have to lose?

Swallowing, Niall shifted the weight of his computer bag from his shoulder, distracted by the flash of numbers as the elevator passed twelve, thirteen… He had to make a decision.

“You didn’t read it wrong,” he said. His voice came out surprisingly normal despite the fact that his tongue felt too big for his mouth.

The elevator came to a smooth stop and Finn moved his finger and stepped back.

“Is your room okay?” he asked softly.

Niall attempted to remember how he had left his room. The maids would have been in to tidy but Niall wasn’t the neatest. He’d been in the hotel three days and was still living out of his suitcase.

It seemed suddenly sensible to set guidelines. “Yes. Tonight, just tonight. Okay? And do you have… Are you…”

The elevator doors made to close but Finn held out a hand and stopped them. “Condoms, lube. Check.” He didn’t address the whole one-night thing.

“This all seems a bit clinical,” Niall said, simply for something to say.

In answer, Finn held out a hand and took the plate of food. He stepped out of the elevator and waited for Niall. When Niall let them into his room he had to concentrate on getting the card in the slot and disengaging the lock. He considered the sad fact that he wasn’t exactly coming off as the most competent engineer in the world.

When they were in, Niall placed his laptop bag on the floor under the desk and watched as Finn placed the food on the desk then shrugged off a small runner’s backpack. That must be where the condoms were, because there was absolutely no room in the pockets in Finn’s jeans. Niall didn’t know what to do next. He’d never really had a one-night stand. How did it happen? Did they just get on with it? The first times he’d had with all three of his boyfriends had been after dinner where wine had played a part. “You look really worried,” Finn said. He was using a soft tone like you would with a child and that gave Niall a bit of confidence to prove he wasn’t actually in need of the tone.

“I don’t really do this.” He waved between them.

“Have sex?”

“Have one-night stands.”

Finn stepped in his space again, and this time, with the desk at his back Niall had nowhere to move. Then Finn did something that had Niall near melting into a puddle. The damned cop cradled his face gently.

“Who said anything about one night?” He tilted Niall’s face and leaned down at the same time. With his hands cradling Niall, he kissed him. The kiss was firm but not pushy. There was none of the shit that happened in clubs whenever Ewan managed to drag Niall to one. Seemed like all that happened there was tongues and teeth and a whole lot of demands. This was…

Different.

Finn touched his lips with tongue, pressing inside. With a whimper that Niall hoped to hell was just in his own head, he opened his mouth and tentatively matched the movements. He didn’t know what to do with his hands. Should he leave them at his sides, or could he touch…? He rested them on Finn’s biceps but couldn’t stop with that touch, instead locking his hands at the base of Finn’s spine and pulling him closer. They kissed that way for the longest time, Niall so hard it was painful.

Finn moved one of his hands from Niall’s face and trailed his fingers down Niall’s back, finally coming to a rest on his ass, pressing and lifting so that Finn was near on tiptoe. If they didn’t do something soon, release the pressure, if he couldn’t undo his pants, then he might do serious damage to his cock. As if he’d somehow telegraphed the message, Finn’s hand moved and this time it was to slip under the top button of Niall’s pants. He lowered the zipper, finally pushing his fingers into Niall’s jersey boxers and closing around Niall’s hard cock. Niall pulled back sharply from the kiss and cursed loudly.

All Finn did was chuckle,
the bastard
, then guide Finn back for more kissing while twisting his fingers and tugging on Niall. Niall could stand like this until he came, held up just with the desk at his thighs and Finn holding him upright, but he wanted his hands on Finn and he wanted it now. Copying Finn’s movements he loosened the tight buttons on Finn’s jeans and finally managed to get his hands inside Niall’s pants. Just the feel of his hands on Niall was enough to have him deepening the kiss, more frantic in his need to taste Finn. Then Finn released his hold of Niall’s cock but before Niall could complain Finn yanked at Niall’s hand on him, releasing the hold, then lifted him, hands under his ass, and carried him the short distance to the bed.

They tumbled onto the wide mattress, bouncing and awkward and a mess of uncoordinated limbs. But all too soon they were stripping clothes until finally they lay naked and hard against one another. There were questions in Finn’s eyes and Niall instinctively wriggled and spread his legs, letting Finn settled between them. He wanted a lot, he wanted everything: Finn’s mouth on his cock, Finn’s fingers in his ass, more kissing, fucking. He wanted it now. Finn slid off and grabbed his bag, emptying the contents on the bed. Lube and condoms showered the quilt and in a quick movement he covered his erection and had his hands slick with lube.