Cut and Run 3 - Fish and Chips

that restless?”
    “Yes,” Ty answered in frustration. “I haven’t gone for a run in a week,” he grumbled as he sat up, and his knee began to bounce rapidly. “The only thing I’ve managed to do is climb half a rock wall and then nearly fall off. And paddle lazily around some private island.”
    “So go for a run,” Zane said easily, ignoring the sarcasm. “There’s a really nice running track around the upper outside deck. You’ve got the body of a runner. No one would think anything about it.”
    “Oh, I have the body of a runner, huh? Zane,” Ty said slowly, closing his eyes as he leaned forward, as if he were about to broach a complicated subject with a small child, “I have never been leered at so much in my life,” he said with emphasis. “By men or women. There is no way in hell I’m going to any of the gyms or running anywhere unless it’s nighttime and everyone’s at the clubs trying to get laid.”
    Zane couldn’t hold in the quiet laugh. “Poor baby. You cannot tell me you haven’t been ogled a lot in your life.”
    Ty looked at him with wide eyes, his frustrated expression one of complete sincerity. “No,” he insisted. “At least if I was, I never fucking noticed it!”
    Zane frowned. “You’re serious?” He looked Ty up and down significantly.
    “Yes,” Ty said in an affronted voice. He shifted uncomfortably under the sudden scrutiny and stood. “Why?” he asked defensively as he began moving toward the balcony.
    “Because….” Zane had seen Ty use his good looks to his advantage. He knew that Ty was aware of how he appeared to others. He could turn on the charm and all but the coldest of hearts would melt for him, and half of that battle was physical. But Zane suspected what Ty was talking about now was a different type of ogling, and he thought better of a flippant answer. He studied Ty for a long moment, realizing that blowing off the question wouldn’t make his partner feel better. “You’re a very handsome man,” he settled on, keeping his voice low and serious.
    Ty turned and looked at Zane over his shoulder, one eyebrow raised as if he expected there to be a joke following the statement. When he saw that Zane was serious, he gave him a slight jerk of his chin and snorted at him before turning to look out at the ocean that rolled past the ship.
    Zane rose to his feet and walked over to stand behind him, curling his arms around his waist. He was getting used to this being-able-to-touch thing. “What’s the matter?” he teased gently. “It’s all fun and games ’til somebody pays you a compliment?”
    Ty was silent, his head bowing as he looked out the balcony doors diligently. “I guess you catch me off guard when you’re being honest,” he finally decided with a wry twist to the words.
    “I think we’re honest with each other,” Zane murmured against Ty’s cheekbone. “We just don’t… volunteer much to be honest about.”
    Ty turned his head slightly, tensing briefly under Zane’s hands before he relaxed again. “Volunteer,” he repeated carefully.
    “Neither one of us is much for sharing,” Zane stated, one of his thumbs beginning to rub Ty’s belly.
    “I share,” Ty argued stubbornly. His hand slid into Zane’s hip pocket in an unconscious gesture.
    Zane cleared his throat in a disbelieving sound. “Such as?”
    Ty was silent, obviously trying to come up with an answer. Finally, he grunted. “What do you want me to share about?” he asked. He sounded uncomfortable.
    Zane just shrugged. “It was more of a comment on past information,” he said. He wasn’t about to push Ty to “volunteer” anything right now. They hadn’t seriously argued in two days. He enjoyed the bickering and teasing much more.
    Ty was chewing on his bottom lip, one hand in Zane’s pocket, the other resting on top of Zane’s. “I don’t mind questions, you know,” he finally said softly. “If I can’t tell you what you want to know, I’ll just tell you that,” he assured Zane. “Just… for future reference,” he said.
    “Like if I asked about the phone calls in the middle of the night that send you off to work without me?”
    Ty was silent for a moment, and then he lowered his head slightly and leaned forward. “I can’t tell you what you want to know,” he answered, voice low and monotone.
    Zane nodded. He’d known Ty wouldn’t be able to talk about the odd jobs, but he’d asked anyway. He had his suspicions. After a few months of