Love is Always Write Anthology Volume 3

Charlie. I'm Charlie. Jones."
    Bob-the-teller snorted, but when Charlie glanced over, he was still diligently counting out bills, apparently oblivious to the exchange except for the amused smirk on his face. Oh, shut up, Bob , Charlie thought petulantly.
    Niko didn't seem at all bothered by Charlie's incoherent stammering. His smile was back, wider than ever, revealing a set of perfect dimples that Charlie wanted fiercely to dip his tongue into.
    "Charlie," he repeated, as if testing the weight of it on his tongue. "I like it."
    For some reason, this made Charlie blush even more. As if Niko liking the name he was given at birth without any input from him was somehow a reflection of approval for Charlie himself.
    "Thanks," Charlie replied, only realizing in that moment that he still had Niko's hand in his. He let go quickly.
    "So, listen. I never do this, but I was wondering—"
    Unfortunately, Charlie did not get a chance to learn more about Niko's thoughts, because a voice cut suddenly across his, loud and mean.
    "Alright, people, hands up! This is a robbery!"
    Charlie turned to see four large men standing near the front door of the bank, all wearing balaclavas and holding guns that looked larger and far more deadly than any of the ones he'd seen in Halo. He almost laughed. Of course this would happen. Of course the bank would get robbed on the day he was (hopefully) about to be asked out by the sexiest man he'd ever seen. This could only happen to him.
    "I said hands up!" the man screamed again, stalking forward and gesturing toward Bob with his gun. Bob lifted his hands into the air, his eyes alight with anger. When the gunman's attention shifted to him and Niko, Charlie's hands flew into the air, his heart pounding. The wry, disbelieving amusement he'd felt a moment ago dried up the second that gun was pointed at him.
    The largest gunman marched over to the elderly security guard and shoved his gun in the man's face with a growl. The guard's hand froze in its discreet journey to his hip where his own gun rested in its holster.
    "I'll take that," he growled, pocketing the pistol for himself. He took the man's radio too, crushing it under his foot before he turned back to the rest of them. "What the fuck are you looking at? On the ground! Now!"
    The shouted order had Charlie's heart slamming even harder in his chest as he dropped to the ground. A shaky movement to the right of him drew his eye; the woman who had been behind him in line was trembling while trying to dial out on her iPhone. Unfortunately, her less-than-subtle attempts had also caught the attention of the nearest gunman.
    "Hey! Hey!" he shouted, moving to point his gun straight in her face. "Drop the fucking phone, now!"
    The tip of the gun trembled and Charlie glanced up to see the man's eyes, wild and crazed behind his balaclava, his fingers twitching around the gun spastically. He was obviously high, though whether it was from drugs or simply pure adrenaline was anyone's guess. Either way, Charlie had a feeling the man could snap at any moment and he breathed a tiny sigh of relief when the woman complied.
    Twitchy bent to retrieve the phone with a trembling hand while the man who'd taken the security guard's gun spoke again.
    "I want all cell phones, wallets, and jewelry right now! Empty your pockets! And if anyone tries anything, we'll fucking shoot them!"
    Charlie hurried to comply. His hands shook as he tried to dig into his pants pocket while pressed against the floor. Finally, he managed to pull out his cell phone, wallet, and keys. With shaking hands, Charlie tossed them toward the nearest gunman and sat back, trying to appear hunched and as little of a threat as possible. Fingers wrapped around his wrist and he jumped in surprise. Niko leaned close as his thumb stroked soothingly over Charlie's erratic pulse.
    "It's going to be okay," he murmured. "I'll get us out of here."
    Charlie frowned and shook his head. "How do you plan on doing that? They've got huge fucking guns and Twitchy over there looks like he'd shoot you just for looking at him wrong."
    Before Niko could reply, a meaty hand fisted in his jacket and yanked him away from Charlie.
    "You heard the boss, empty your fucking pockets!" This gunman was huge. He stood at least three inches taller than Niko and was twice as wide, built like a bear. His beady eyes widened suddenly and he shoved Niko back against the counter, shoving his gun into Niko's chest. Charlie made a sound of