Love is Always Write Anthology Bonus Volume

shorts. "Thank you. Now." Daren sat up straight and looked very proper. "Fashion show."
    Sebastian made a face. "It's just a suit."
    "Paid for with my money and purchased at my instruction. Go change, so I can inspect."
    Sebastian picked up the suit bag and stomped off to the bedroom. He'd never been one for suits. He'd only ever worn them for funerals, court dates, or job interviews. He had figured that once he was out of the Navy he'd never have a dress inspection again. Of course, the Navy did drill into him the ability to get dressed very quickly, even for inspection.
    He walked out into the living room where Daren was waiting. He gave a little turn.
    "Acceptable?"
    Daren stood and walked around him. He peered at the tie, rubbed the fabric of the jacket between his fingers, and brushed away a bit of invisible lint from the lapel. "Not bad. You'll pass. You look a little like a hit man, but that might not be a bad thing. The shirt needs to get ironed."
    "Ironing is something I can handle. Now can I get out of this until tomorrow?"
    "If you like. You know, after tomorrow we'll have enough that you won't even have to take that job? And you can pay off all those bills too."
    The thought had crossed Sebastian's mind more than once. He didn't like the idea of not working, of living off of someone else's money, but he also knew that Daren wasn't really in any shape to be left at home every day. "Let's not get ahead of ourselves. I'm going to go change."
    Sebastian pushed aside a space in his closet to hang the suit jacket where it wouldn't get musty from his other suit or catch fluff from a horrible knitted hoodie he'd picked up somewhere along the line. He let himself brush his hand over the crisp lapel. He'd never owned anything so nice, not even his dress uniform, which never got a lot of use.
    He found something kind of amusing in the idea that the finest thing he ever owned was bought for pulling off something that was just to the left of a bank heist. He left the pants and shirt out so he could iron them after dinner.
    He looked over the brown suit jacket he'd worn to his job interview just a couple of months earlier. The same job he was meant to start three weeks earlier, except the date he was wanted for it had got pushed. Sebastian had a feeling that he wouldn't be showing up for that job. He'd been tempted to call them all day but had a feeling that might jinx it. Better to wait until he had the cash in hand.
    A tightening in his stomach reminded him that it was well after lunch. and there were still things that needed to be done.
    ****
    It was nearly midnight when Sebastian finally headed to bed. He knew he should have gotten an early night, but his brain wouldn't settle down as it spun with all the things he had to remember for the next day. Daren hadn't just opened accounts at five different locations; he'd done it under five different identities in the hope of keeping them hidden from his family, friends and the government.
    Daren had planned out the whole retrieval mission down to the second, but there were always things that could go terribly wrong.
    Sebastian had found himself up late searching the net for anything new on Gerald Delaware, the family, or Agent Kim. A sub-sub-sub-story hidden deep in the BBC business section hinted that an investigation into the Delaware business and financial empire was soon to be called off, but other than that there were only the usual conspiracy theories.
    Sebastian slowly pulled back the blanket on the bed.
    "Why do you always sleep on top of the sheet?" Daren mumbled from the dark.
    "I didn't know you were awake."
    "Couldn't sleep. Why the thing with the sheets?"
    "Um… I didn't…" Sebastian stumbled.
    I didn't want to send you into flashback or an identity crisis by waking up with another man pressed against you, he thought but couldn't get the words past his lips.
    He couldn't make out Daren's face in the dark. but he could hear a small sigh. Daren's pale hand reached from under the blankets and pulled back the sheet, giving Sebastian full access to the bed and to him.
    Sebastian climbed in but carefully kept to his side. Daren sighed again and slid over until they were hip to hip. He tucked his head against Sebastian's shoulder.
    "Sebastian?" Daren whispered.
    "Yes?"
    "If anything happens tomorrow, I'm really sorry."
    "For what?"
    "Getting you mixed up in my life."
    "I could have walked away at any point." Sebastian lied. He knew clearly that there was no point