Cut and Run 4 - Divide and Conquer

He gave in to the desire he‟d
    quashed earlier and slowly tried to wind himself tighter around Ty.
    Ty let him do as he pleased, indulging in the kiss even as he
    started their dance again, and Zane felt better than he had since before
    the accident. The tender kisses kindled a cozy golden glow inside him.
    With his lips on Ty‟s, his eyes closed and Ty‟s arms around him, the
    world didn‟t feel dark and foreboding.
    They continued like that, swaying languidly to the music, and
    when their lips finally parted, Zane heard himself whisper, “I love
    you.”
    Ty snorted softly, as if the words amused him. He didn‟t stop the
    swaying motion of their dance. “You‟re being seduced,” he said in a
    warm voice. He murmured his words against the corner of Zane‟s lips.
    Zane sighed shakily, a tremor of shock echoing through him. He
    hadn‟t realized what he‟d said before Ty‟s reply, and his pulse kicked
    up as it crashed in. Now he didn‟t know what to say at all, and he felt
    flushed all over, still shocked by what had slipped out. He wasn‟t sure
    if he was relieved or disappointed that Ty had brushed it off—all he
    could feel was the swelling ache in his chest. “Seduced?” he managed
    to get out.
    Ty hummed and smiled against his cheek. “I was good at this sort
    of thing once.”
    The awareness rippling through him made Zane huff out a quiet
    laugh as he tried to get ahold of himself and let the panic fade. “You‟re
    still good at this sort of thing. You could tell me to do anything right
    now, and I‟d try.”
    176 | Madeleine Urban & Abigail Roux

    Ty slowed their motions to a stop. He grazed his lips over Zane‟s,
    still holding him as if they were dancing. His words were whispered
    when they parted. “Then I want you to close your eyes and dance with
    me. Tonight, forget that you can‟t see.”
    Zane obeyed, and his eyelids fluttered down as he focused on
    feeling Ty, absorbing the power and magnetism of his presence, so
    strong that a warm buzz rippled through Zane, urging him to release his
    surprise and worry, to simply be with Ty.
    Ty readjusted his hold, pulling him closer and starting into the
    slow sway again. He began to hum along with the song, and soon he
    was singing quietly near Zane‟s ear. Zane had never heard him sing. He
    truly did have an incredible speaking voice, deep and soulful with that
    hint of a growl. His singing voice was no less impressive. It washed
    through Zane, their bodies melding with the dance, and Zane was
    hopelessly, helplessly lost in him.

    Divide & Conquer | 177

    Chapter Ten

    GRAHAM‟S parents had been in France for the last two months and
    would be there for another week, so Pierce‟s crew had been using his
    house as a home base. Graham sat at the kitchen table, one leg
    bouncing furiously underneath it as he tapped at the laptop in front of
    him, paging through news articles. Their press coverage increased
    every day, feeding Pierce‟s confidence. As if his ego needed any more
    stroking. Pierce had been on his high horse for days now, ordering
    them around. Ross seemed happy enough to keep on with Pierce‟s
    schemes, but ever since finding out about Mr. Garrett, the great master
    plan had lost its shine for Graham. He was pretty sure Hannah felt the
    same way. Every time he saw her, she looked more and more like a
    scared rabbit.
    “So, Ross,” Pierce said from his seat at the head of the table,
    chest puffed up with self-assumed authority, “you‟re going to get those
    keys so we can get into the gym to plant the bomb. I‟m picking up the
    last of the supplies tomorrow, and then I can start building it. This
    bomb will be the best yet.”
    “Sure thing, Pierce,” Ross agreed, tapping out his orders on the
    iPad in front of him.
    “What gym?” Hannah asked.
    “We can‟t get into a cop gym. They‟re, like, guarded or in the
    bottom of the station, aren‟t they?”
    “We got into their baseball diamond, didn‟t we? Anyway, we‟re
    not going after a cop gym. We‟re planting it at the Y on Druid Hill,”
    Pierce said.
    178 | Madeleine Urban & Abigail Roux

    “The Y?” Hannah‟s voice edged up. “I thought we were only
    blowing up places with cops. That we weren‟t going to go after regular
    people. The mall was bad enough.”
    “The mall was our best hit yet! And it was because there were
    civilians there. And the press. The pigs are more likely to fuck things
    up if they‟re showing off for the fucking media,”