Tenants and Tyrants (Book 5 of The Warden series) (10 page)

“That was sweet,” Nevia said from the couch.

He jumped surprised by her. He had forgotten she was there. She was peering over the couch, watching him. His smile faded unintentionally. “I’m always willing to tell my friends they’re being thick as a brick.”

“No, I mean, your sympathy toward women. I didn’t think you had any chivalry.”

He paused seeing the opening for him to make himself look good in her eyes. “I don’t.” He wasn’t going to take it, but he saw it. “I think women are a bunch of scrubbers who deserve what they get.”

Nevia’s eyes narrowed in anger. He was almost pleased to see it. He wasn’t sure if this was a new game or cheating at the old one, but he just needed to do something to change the dynamic between them. At this point, being back where they first were together, he was just as likely to slap her as kiss her.

“You’re lying to me,” she growled crawling over the back of the couch, which she somehow did gracefully. “Why would you say that to me?” she asked closing the distance between them. He shook his head and looked away. He didn’t have a good reason. “Do you seriously prefer hating me to wanting me?”

Her interpretation of him as usual was dead on. He shook his head. “I’m sorry. I just don’t know what to do with you.”

“You don’t have to do anything with me. We’ve…” she glanced at the door debating if it was solid enough to mask their conversation from Heaton. He understood the house to be soundproof, but he didn’t mention it. “We’ve had our fun. It’s pointless to keep trying to relive the experience. Just let it go and move on. I’m sure you want to get back to your normal routine.”

He didn’t bother to lower his voice as she did. “I just love how intuitive you are, but yet you keep bypassing what I’m actually saying to you. I already told you I’m not ready to move on.” He leaned forward slightly just to see if she would retreat. She did. “I still want you. I want to bend you over this table. I want to plough you on that couch. I want to find out what that goddamn twenty-something touched on you, and lick it clean.”

Even though he didn’t actually get up, the threat of the statements made her turn tail to the couch. She leaned on it and crossed her arms like it might protect her from his lascivious attention. “I get that, Daniel, but why? I thought you were the love ‘em and leave ‘em type. I thought that this would be easy to walk away from. What do you want?”

“You!” He stated again.

“Yes, yes,” she ground out trying to maintain volume control, “the table, the couch, but then what? What do I do when you’ve had your fill and want to go back to just being partners?” She raised her hands in surrender before he spoke. “Look I get it. I feel how much you want me, and I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t tempted, but Daniel I’m not a one night stand kind of gal. I haven’t slept with anyone since you, and frankly until I am on the path to marriage I probably won’t.”

“No one since me?” he asked trying to remember how many men left the bar with her. Had they just walked her home, and left her at the door like gentlemen. Was he seriously the only person that knew her body biblically?

Nevia rolled her eyes. “Is that all you heard?”

“No, I just thought otherwise. I don’t know what I want from you beyond sex. I’m in uncharted territory here too. You may have only been with me, but I’ve never been with a woman I didn’t want to be rid of the next day. Wanting you goes against my natural compulsion.” He pushed his hands through his hair. His gel had long since worn off, and his hair was starting to flip-up like one unending cowlick. “I probably would have a better time getting over my little obsession if you would stop coming over and offering yourself as a sacrifice in your damned experiments.”

“I’m not trying to tease you, Daniel. I legitimately want to help you with your powers. I think you have so much potential.”

He could see the sincerity in that statement. She didn’t have an ulterior motive. She found him fascinating, and forcing him to hurt her, was her way of encouraging him to try harder. She didn’t want him to be satisfied with just dispersing people. She wanted him to be able to heal them as well. “Thank you. I suppose someone has to be my cheerleader, especially if I won’t do it myself.”

Heaton chose that moment to return from his cigarette break. He came in smelling of smoke and warming his hands. He looked over the scene and perked an eyebrow. “Am I interrupting something?”

Daniel was about to say no, but Nevia jumped on the opportunity. “Heaton do you really think you can hide from me forever. If you have a problem with me being your partner, just say so, don’t hide behind your disgusting habit.

Heaton’s face blanked and he opened his mouth a moment before speaking. “I actually like you quite a bit, Jordan. I think you’re an excellent marksman and you are welcome to our team.”

Daniel could see that he was taken aback by her accusation. Although he said it rather perfunctory, he got the sense that Heaton was being honest. “Really,” Nevia said. “Then why did you tell Daniel you wanted to transfer.”

Daniel cringed as Heaton’s face changed from shock to disappointment. “Because that was a private conversation between us, and I often say things to Daniel that only pertain to the moment. That’s why he and I are such good friends. We don’t talk about each other behind the others’ backs.” Daniel wanted to explain, but there was nothing to explain.

“But you’ve been…” Nevia started.

“Jordan!” Daniel didn’t mean to yell it, but he wanted to make sure she understood. “Four years.” The expression on her face was a mix of understanding and shame.

“I’m sorry Heaton. I made him tell me, I thought…” she looked to him as if the apology was as much for him as Heaton. She shrugged. “I thought I could help. I’m just not used to the dynamic of this partnership yet.”

“You’ll get it,” Heaton said as he walked through to the stairs. “Hell after four years, Daniel’s still figuring it out.” He called behind him.

Daniel closed his eyes and prayed that this incident would not ignite a new level of passive aggressive behavior. When he felt Nevia put her hand on his, he fluttered his eyes open and stood. “Good-night, Jordan.” He stormed off not willing to turn around and listen to an apology. This was the reason he didn’t want a female partner. One minute he was trying to convince her to sleep with him, the next he was trying to stop her from ruining his relationship with his friend.

14

Cori wasn’t sure what time Ethan had finally crawled into bed. She expected that he would stay to his side of the bed to punish her for her offense. She understood why he was angry, but not the degree to which he was. They had never spoken of children before, and frankly the idea was still a little startling to her.

She hadn’t meant to upset him by suggesting she should speak with Belus, but he was objective and taciturn. He would not be reluctant to give her the truth about the risks to raising a child in this place. She hadn’t meant to take the decision from their hands, but simply prepare them for the burden.

As soon as he was in the covers, his arms wrapped under and around her pulling her to him. If she had not already been awake the sudden shift may have scared her.

His face tucked in next to her ear and he kissed her cheek before whispering. “I’m sorry.” She knew he was, as was she, but it still didn’t take away his reaction. She nodded, but didn’t voice her apology. She didn’t want to just smooth this over only to have it come up again later as a bigger sorer issue.

“I shouldn’t have brought up something that big and not let you have time to absorb it,” he continued. She nodded again. She liked the sound of that better, at least he was thinking about her perspective. “You should talk to Belus.” She turned back to look at him.

“I thought…” She started.

“I was wrong.” He jumped in. “If this is something that you want, then you should find out what the risks are. We both know this place is a circus of dangers. You can’t ask Danato about it if he’s baby crazy. You need someone who can honestly tell you what we’re getting into.” She smiled at him. She wasn’t sure what had happened between now and before, but she was glad he was seeing her side of things. “That is…if you want to have my baby.”

His eyes set on hers with a desperate need for satisfaction. She still thought it was unfair for him to spring this on her, when he had clearly been thinking about it a while, but she knew if he wanted something that badly, she could hardly deny him just because she was busy.

She twisted a little further and kissed him. “I’ll talk to Belus about it tomorrow…discreetly.” It wasn’t exactly consent, but it put a smile on his face and he settled himself in to his pillow. His hands were still firmly wrapped around her with no hope of release, but she didn’t seem to have trouble falling asleep now that she knew he wasn’t angry at her anymore.

15

Danato didn’t know how the day had gotten away from him so quickly. The morning breakfast seemed more like the cafeteria in the prison. With three extra mouths to feed, he was tossing French toast on the griddle for nearly a half hour just to get enough for the four men. Cori had taken sausage duty and Nevia jumped in to start another round of coffee, and get water going for Heaton’s tea. In the end, he wasn’t sure he liked having guests as much as he thought he might.

He called everyone into the office shortly after he arrived at the prison, because he got a call from his communications officer, aka Taps Man. They were getting an unexpected visit from the Council of the Moon. Along with the group that he had planned on arriving today, and the impromptu visit from Annette, he was about to go cross-eyed keeping track of visitors.

Belus arrived shortly before everyone else and he filled him in. He took his spot on the file cabinet, just as the others arrived. Cori and Ethan came in holding hands. They looked over the two seats and decided to share one. He sat down first and gave her a quick pinch on the butt that he probably thought no one noticed, before guiding her down to his leg.

Heaton came in and found a spot to lean against the wall. Danato had not seem him in a good number of years, but he had changed quite a bit since the last time he was there. Heaton had always struggled to find an exterior identity. He liked to keep up with style and trends. Which in and of itself was not a bad thing, but always changing his look made him seem discontent with himself.

Daniel strutted in taking the open seat and letting his long legs splay beyond the reasonable space that a body should take up when sitting. Danato had never liked him. He wasn’t sure if it was just the memories that coincided with his arrival at the prison, or if he just detested any man that openly flaunted his shortcomings.

He was about to advise Nevia against bringing her gun into the room, but she stopped promptly at the entrance and removed her firearm from under her blue blazer. She released the cartridge and placed it in her back pants pocket. She popped out the loaded bullet kissed it and tucked it in her bra, before placing the glock in the bin. She did it so fast Danato almost didn’t catch the kiss. She must have done it that way a thousand times, and probably didn’t even know she was doing it.

She came in and shut the door behind her. Heaton watched her settle into the wall beside him before kicking his partner’s chair. “Dude.” Heaton managed to put enough emphasis on that one word that Daniel looked at him with concern. “Think you might want to offer the chair?” Heaton glared. Nevia for her part stayed quiet and blank faced. If she cared whether she had a chair, she didn’t show it.

Daniel looked her over and turned back to settle in his chair a little deeper. “Nah, I only give my chair to women I hope to sleep with some day.” He leaned forward and turned toward the other chair. “Cori, love, would you like my chair.” Either the absurdity of the statement or what she knew would follow, gave Cori warrant to laugh at him.

“Flirt as much as you want,” Ethan said with as much amusement as threat on his face and in his voice, “but try anything and I’ll cut your balls off with fingernail clippers.”

Heaton groaned and shook his head. Daniel hissed presumably with feigned pain, but his smile returned as fast as it left. “Oh, my friend, you don’t realize what you’ve done.” Daniel reached over and picked up Cori’s hand with his index finger and thumb. His slow movement must have kept her from ripping her hand away. “You just gave me permission to flirt with your wife.” Daniel smiled and put Cori’s hand to his lips. She smiled, and let him kiss it once, before she drew her hand back to tuck it into Ethan’s.

Ethan perked an eyebrow at his friend. “I’m not really worried.”

“If I had known you would be a perk of the job,” Daniel said with a smarmy tone. “I would have applied for Ethan’s position in a heartbeat.” Cori rolled her eyes at that statement. Danato glanced at Belus. He wondered if Daniel knew how vehemently Belus fought to get him considered for the position. In the end, the board would not approve someone with such a violent criminal record and Danato had put the brakes on long before that edict anyway.

Daniel looked like he was going to say more, but Danato had had enough of the boys club for one morning. “Gentlemen, can we get on with what I called you here for.” Ethan and Cori snapped to and shut-up.