Semper Fidelis (9 page)

“I want those too,” Phil confessed. “I’m going to be working on a boat in below zero weather, pounded by wind, ice and snow. I’m going to need to remember all this sex to keep me warm.”

Dean slid his hand down over the curve of Phil’s hip to his ass where he ran his finger over Phil’s opening. He carefully pressed it in, wanting to see how stretched Phil still was from their earlier activities. Phil groaned, but didn’t stop him as he sank farther in. Taking Phil’s mouth, Dean plundered it as he scissored his fingers, doing his best to relax Phil.

Breaking away from his mouth, Phil said, “Here. Use the lube, but you don’t have to spend too much time on getting me ready.”

He took the slick from Phil with his free hand. Phil arched his back, silently begging for more. Dean wasn’t about to disappoint him. He slid back a little to give himself more room, then he popped open the tube.

Phil caught his knees to pull his thighs back to his chest, offering Dean more access to his ass. Dean sighed as the sight of that pale, firm butt displayed for his eyes only. He couldn’t help reaching out and caressing one smooth cheek before going back to what he had been doing.

“Please, Dean. Move a little faster,” Phil whined.

He quickly positioned his cock at Phil’s hole, then shoved, not stopping until he was all the way in. Only then did he pause to let Phil get used to being impaled on Dean’s cock. After Phil tightened his muscles around Dean’s length, Dean began to move, slow and long strokes in and out.

Phil undulated in time with him, and Dean loved how perfect their bodies felt together, matching in every way.
How did I get so lucky? It’s like he was made for me.
He leaned over to kiss Phil’s chest, latching on to suck up a mark, knowing where he could leave marks so the other men wouldn’t see unless Phil took his shirt off in front of them.

“Oh,” Phil gasped when Dean dragged his teeth across one of his nipples.

He chuckled, loving how responsive Phil was, especially his nipples. He’d always wanted to see if he could get Phil to come just from playing with them, but he usually got distracted by Phil in some way, and ended up fucking him silly.

Seconds blurred into minutes. Dean tasted the sweat coating Phil’s skin as he continued pumping in and out of Phil, enjoying the moans and whimpers his lover made while they moved together.

Dean slid his hands underneath Phil to tilt his hips, and give him a better angle to hit Phil’s gland each time. He forced himself to keep moving slow and gentle, not wanting to rush their lovemaking. There would be a longer wait after this time when Dean’s body demanded more rest.

He rocked into Phil, rubbing over his sweet spot each time, and all of sudden Phil clenched around him so tight, Dean almost cried out in pain. Shuddering, Phil came, shooting cum all over his stomach, chest, and even managing to get some on Dean’s abs as well.

Phil’s climax surprised Dean, driving his own from him. He flooded Phil’s ass with spunk until it started to drip down the inside of his thighs. Dean heaved and trembled until he didn’t seem to have any strength or cum left. When his muscles finally gave out, Dean collapsed into Phil’s embrace before brushing a kiss along the man’s jaw.

He didn’t try to move or say anything until his breathing evened out, and Phil didn’t seem inclined to talk either. Once Dean figured he could climb out of bed without falling flat on his face, he rolled away from Phil, who groaned as Dean slid out of him. Reaching over the side of the bed, he searched blindly for a T-shirt or something to wipe them off with. He couldn’t find anything within reach, so he grunted as he stood.

Glancing back as he headed for the bathroom, Dean saw Phil watching him with a smile on his face. “What are you grinning at?” he asked right before he left the room.

“I just love your ass, Dean, and getting to see it naked is one of the highlights of my life,” Phil called out.

Snorting, Dean wrung out the washcloth, then returned to Phil. “Then you need to get out more if seeing my pasty white ass is a highlight of the day for you.”

After cleaning Phil off, he tossed the cloth in the direction of the bathroom, unconcerned at the moment whether it made it back there or not. Dean crawled back into bed, and sighed as Phil tugged him close.

Dean entwined his legs with Phil’s and rested his head on Phil’s shoulder. “I love you, Phil,” he whispered.

“I love you too,” Phil replied, and Dean let sleep claim him, knowing the man he loved held him tight.

Chapter Four

“Hey Jake, did you check the weather report for the next couple of hours?” Todd ‘Sully’ Sullivan, Dean’s partner, asked while walking into the cramped office

Dean glanced up from where he sat at his desk in one of the helicopter hangers on Kodiak Station. He held up the paper he’d been studying. “I have it here. Doesn’t look good. I’m thinking we’ll be going out on a rescue within the next hour or two.”

Sully dropped into the chair across from Dean and shook his head. “Crabbers have to be some of the craziest bastards in the world. Who goes out fishing during a hurricane?”

“There are some who think we’re as crazy as they are. We go out in the storm to save them, and we jump into the water voluntarily.” Dean grinned at his best friend.

“True. Guess that does make us crazier than them.” Sully rocked his chair back on two legs. “Heard from Phil lately?”

Dean set the weather report aside, and nodded. “Yeah, he called me two nights ago. They were pulling out of Dutch Harbor the next morning. They should be at the crab grounds by now.”

It had been two weeks since their rendezvous in Anchorage, and Dean missed his lover, but being able to Skype Phil was great. Yet with him being out on the boat, Dean knew they wouldn’t be able to talk again until Phil came in to off load his cargo.

“Man, you two have got to figure something out.” Sully frowned. “Two years and you’re still just meeting up once a month. No way to keep a relationship going. Why don’t you see about transferring to the station at Dutch?”

Dean shoved back from the desk then stood. He wandered over to the window and stared out into the clear morning sky. There was a hint of red along the horizon, causing Dean to think of the old sailing rhyme.
‘Red sky in morning, sailors take warning. Red sky at night, sailor’s delight.’

“I know, but what can I do? I’m still working for the Guard, and he’s still a crab fisherman. Neither one of us wants to be the one who asks the other to give up his job.” Dean shoved his hand through his hair. “Though I’m a lot closer to retirement than he is. I thought about transferring, but I don’t want to leave you and, until this last weekend together, I wasn’t sure he would want me somewhere he might run into me with his family around. ”

“He’s not out to them yet? After all these years, and you being together for so long, he’s never said anything to them?” Sully shook his head.

Sully seemed about to say something else, but Dean didn’t want to talk about his relationship with Phil. After whirling around, he rested his butt against the windowsill and met Sully’s gaze.

“I don’t have a good feeling about today, Sully.” He waved back in the direction of the sky. “Something tells me we’re in for a world of hurt. The weather reports all are saying there’s a huge storm barreling down on the crab grounds. Even though the boats all know about it, something in my gut is saying it’s bigger than any of us think.”

“My gut’s saying the same thing, Jake. It’s going to be a long twenty-four hours, and we can only hope Mother Nature is kind to us today.” Sully stood, then made his way around the desk to rest his hand on Dean’s shoulder. “We’ve gone through days like this before, and we’re ready for it.”

Sully and Dean had been partners for a long time, and there was only one other person Dean would trust to have his back besides Sully. Unfortunately, that other person was out crabbing with a dangerous winter storm headed his way.

His partner was right. They trained every minute they weren’t standing watch, and they tried to plan for every possibility, but nature and the sea were unpredictable creatures. Humans tried to foresee what was going to happen, and sometimes they were right. Yet a majority of the time, they ended up looking like fools while the weather did as it wanted.

“You’re right,” Dean agreed, but he couldn’t help the little twinge of fear beating in his heart. Something terrible was going to happen at some point, and he could only pray that it wasn’t to Phil and his boat.

“Let’s go over all our equipment and make sure the Jayhawk’s stocked with what we need,” Sully suggested.

Dean went with him, even though he knew they’d done all that stuff when they returned from the last rescue. It gave them something to do while they waited for the emergency calls that were sure to come in. As the sky darkened even in the early morning, it wasn’t a matter of if it was going to happen, but when.

And like the Coast Guard motto, Dean and his team was always ready to go out and rescue those trapped by the storms or endangered for some other reason.

Four hours later, Dean glanced up as his commander called him and the others into his office. After they took their seats, Commander Randle held up a piece of paper.

“Updated weather report, gentlemen. It’s not good news, I’m afraid.” Randle shook his head. “The storm has hit the crab grounds, but it seems to have stalled. There hasn’t been any kind of movement in any direction from it. We have hurricane force winds, plus driving snow and freezing temperatures. We can only hope that if something does happen, it happens soon because we’ll be losing most of our light sooner rather than later.”

Dean shot Sully a quick glance, and his partner grimaced. The worse kinds of disasters were the ones that happened at night. When it got too dark and they had to give up searching for survivors, it destroyed them to have to wait until the sun rose to start looking again. Usually by then it was too late, and anyone left in the water was dead.

“Senior Chief Jacobson, I want you and your team will be the Alpha team today. Senior Chief Bentley, you’re Beta team. The other stations are standing by as well.” Randle frowned. “They said this is one of the worst storms we’ve seen in a couple of years, men. We’re going to be earning our pay in the next couple of days.”

Just as Randle finished speaking, the speaker crackled and came to life.

“We have received an Emergency Position Indicating Radio Beacon from the Western Dreams.”

Randle gestured to Dean. “Show time, men. Go out, and bring them back alive.”

“Yes, sir.” They all stood and saluted before racing out of the room.

Dean gathered his team. “Remember we’ve trained for this, and we know what we’re doing. The weather is going to be rough, but I have faith our pilots will be able to handle it enough for us to get the crew. Grab your stuff and let’s haul ass.”

They each grabbed a pack, then sprinted out to where the Sikorsky HH-60 Jayhawk helicopter waited for them on the tarmac. As they settled into their seats inside, Commander Roger Belinski and Lt Commander Stanley Jones were already firing the ‘copter up.

After making sure his helmet radio worked, Dean asked, “How soon can we lift off?”

“We’re cleared for lift off, Jake. Airborne in five,” Stan answered him while Roger finished the last minute routine.

“This is Kodiak Rescue Coordination Center. We’ve been in contact with the Western Dreams. Sending you the coordinates right now. They’re taking on water. The captain has ordered the crew to abandon ship.”

When Dean heard the Western Skies’ position, he snarled slightly before shooting Sully an annoyed look. “What idiot tries to take their boat through False Pass during a storm like this?”

Sully shook his head. “I don’t know, Jake. I know seasoned captains who wouldn’t take False Pass even on a sunny day in the middle of summer.”

“The winds have died down some. I guess the storm has either blown itself out or has started to move again,” the controller at RCC spoke up. “We also have cutters responding. The captain says he’s made sure all the crew have put on their immersion suits.”

“It sounds like the boat might go under, but it hasn’t taken them by surprise,” Stan pointed out as Roger got the Jayhawk airborne, and heading out to sea.

They’d all strapped themselves in, knowing the flight would be rough, even if the weather had died down a little bit. Dean had flipped a coin with Sully, and won the toss. He’d be the one going into the water to help get the men out. Sully and Dean checked his cold suit over closely because once he got into the below freezing water, if things weren’t perfect, he could end up hypothermic and as close to death as the men they rescued.

As they were approaching the scene, the radio went off again.

“Dutch Harbor Station, this is RCC. We have an EPIRB from the fishing vessel, the Angela Kayla. The captain has been in touch and says the boat has capsized and there are men in the water. Here are the coordinates.”

Dean froze, and there was a silence inside the Jayhawk that one wouldn’t expect with the helicopter being in flight as everyone stared at him. The Angela Kayla was Phil’s family’s boat. Phil was in the water in the middle of a storm. Dean’s heart stopped for a second when all the things that could happen to his lover rushed through his mind.

“Do you want us to request being relocated to where the Angela Kayla is, Jake?”

Roger’s question shook Dean out of his paralysis, and he inhaled sharply. “No. The boys at Dutch are good, plus I think they have a team of parajumpers with them to help out. I trust them to do their jobs, and I trust in God to bring Phil out of this all right.”

After saying that, Dean sent a prayer up to Heaven, begging for God to have mercy on Phil, and keeping his lover alive until his rescuers got there.

“We’re here,” Stan announced as they began to hover over where the Western Dreams had run aground on the beach along the narrow False Pass.

Dean looked out from the side of the helicopter and spotted three orange suits floating in the water. Also, he saw one of the orange rubber lifeboats all the fishing vessels were legally supposed to carry on board.