Cut and Run 2 - Sticks and Stones

Then he winced apologetically. Very trite. He sighed. Trite but true.
    He could feel Ty holding his breath. Then his partner snorted quietly and bit his lip, trying not to laugh. He tightened his hold on Zane and pressed his nose to Zane’s again. “Thanks, Garrett,” he managed to say, though his voice wavered with the threat of laughter.
    “Go ahead and laugh. It was awful, I know,” Zane admitted grudgingly.
    “It’s the thought that counts,” Ty tried. He laughed suddenly and then kissed Zane impulsively, getting a smile out of him.
    Zane was glad to hear the happy sound, short as it was. He relaxed again, enjoying the slight tremors passing from Ty’s body to his own. “This wasn’t exactly what I thought I’d be doing today,” he murmured after a few moments of merely enjoying the embrace.
    “No kidding,” Ty responded wryly. He turned his head and began to burrow his face between Zane’s uninjured cheek and the rolled up coat beneath them, using Zane like he usually used his pillow when they were at home. Zane smiled affectionately as he did it. It was like a puppy rooting through a blanket.
    “What’s so different about today?” Ty asked, his voice muffled.
    Zane sighed and slowly slid his hand over Ty’s back. “It’s my birthday,” he admitted.
    Ty jerked his head back and looked at Zane in shock, pushing up onto his elbow and dislodging the coat that had been keeping them warm. Even in the darkness, his expression was plain to see. “What?” he asked in disbelief.
    Zane would have laughed if he didn’t feel so stupid about bringing it up. “My birthday. October fifteenth.”
    Ty stared at him for a second before he thumped him hard on the chest, and Zane gasped. “I knew I should have stolen your file!” Ty claimed angrily as he settled back down again, pulling the coat over them both with a yank. “Why didn’t you say something?”
    “What was I gonna say? Take me out for dinner, Grady, it’s my birthday,” Zane posed as he rubbed his chest.
    “Better than not telling me at all,” Ty said with sincere annoyance.
    Zane snorted and shook his head. “See how you feel once you’re past forty. It’s not really something I try to celebrate.”
    “How’s that working out?” Ty asked in a wry drawl.
    “Well, they keep on coming, so I guess I must be doing something right.” Zane slid his hand down to Ty’s waist and pulled him closer again in order to give his ass a good squeeze.
    Ty shook his head, but he didn’t bat Zane’s hand away like he usually did when he was annoyed and Zane tried to grope him. “You should have told me, Zane,” he scolded as he shifted his shoulders, trying to get comfortable in Zane’s arms. “Would have been the perfect excuse to tell Dick we were going to some nice little tropical island instead of coming up here!” he hissed.
    “Yeah, all right. Mark your calendar then,” Zane answered with a roll of his eyes. “And you can give me an IOU for this year.”
    Ty smiled slowly, a hint of mischief entering his tired eyes for the first time in days. “I could do that, yeah,” he agreed slowly, his tone one that suggested he might have a better idea.
    Zane tipped his head to the side as he looked at Ty speculatively. He was never sure whether to be worried or elated when he heard that tone of voice from Ty. “Or?” he prodded.
    “The best presents are received in your birthday suit, Zane,” Ty advised in answer. “But we’ll wait ’til we get home to break those out,” he decided as he pressed his nose to Zane’s once more, obviously deciding to forgive him for not telling him about his birthday earlier.
    “Sounds like good times,” Zane murmured. He closed his eyes, unable to stop the smile as Ty began to burrow again. He sighed slowly, the warmth of having Ty right up against him actually working to lull him to sleep as his mind worked over the things Ty had told him. He couldn’t imagine the kinds of things Ty had seen, the kinds of things he must have been reliving to evoke that look he’d had in his eyes earlier. He supposed when you got right down to it he didn’t really know much about Ty at all. The few experiences they did have with each other that extended beyond the bedroom weren’t what Zane would call personal. It seemed like there were more bad memories between them than good.
    Zane thought maybe he should work on changing that.

Chapter 13

    T HEIR plan had been a good one, in theory.
    Earl and Deuce