Pride of the Veld

horrified at the thought that anyone wouldn’t value Danie. Danie was perfect.
    “Did I say that, Geo?” Andrea cocked his brow. “Danie might be the only man whose heart could come close to your own. But his is closed, and yours is as open as the African sky at dawn.
    “I’m drawn to beauty, caro, and your heart is the most beautiful thing I’ve seen in a very long time.”
    “You’re delirious,” Geo huffed through the heat in his cheeks. Wide African sky or not, he felt closed in and cornered at the moment. Rising, he walked over to Danie.
    “Make me feel better, Danie.” He leaned against the Rover, brushing shoulders with the man.
    Danie stared at him for a few moments. “We’ll be fine, Geo. We always are. This is just a temporary thing. Christiansen will be here in a couple of days. It’s just like we’ve moved base camp. We’ve done it a million times, Geo. More than a million times.”
    Geo pondered that. “It doesn’t feel the same without you, Danie,” he muttered under his breath.
    Danie drew back. “You’ll always have me, Geo. You’ve always had me.”
    “Maybe.” Geo shrugged and pushed off the fender. He picked up his rifle and moved to the perimeter of their camp. “One last check around. I’ll see if there’s more wood. Back in fifteen.” He didn’t wait for Danie’s approval, just slipped into the grass, letting his attention focus on the environment around him instead of the two men playing havoc with his mind back at camp.
    ****
    As soon as Geo slipped out of sight, Danie turned on the Italian.
    “I want to know what you told him that made him so upset,” Danie snarled, yanking the man out of the chair by his shirt. And it was his shirt. Danie and Geo had both leant him clothes to wear. Andrea was broader and taller than Geo, so Danie’s shirts were a better fit, though still loose across the chest and shoulders. But Geo preferred his cargo shorts baggy and slung low across his hips. On Andrea they fit perfectly across his ass and modeled his package nicely. Not that Danie had been noticing that. Much.
    “I simply told him that the two of you seemed to be in agreement. And since neither of you has claimed the other, there is no reason for me not to make the most of a very pleasant opportunity in the middle of a very unpleasant situation. I haven’t lied to anyone here.”
    “What did you say, exactly,” Danie hissed with a shake.
    “I said that I have waited my whole life to meet a man as beautiful and lovely as he is, and, as I am not a fool, I would do anything to have a chance at the heart of one of the two best men I’ve ever met at home or in my travels. I want Geo, Danie. And since you don’t seem to care beyond the duties of your employment with his grandfather, I suggested that I was the better person to keep his heart not only safe, but singing.”
    Danie stumbled back as if struck.
    “You can’t have him!” Danie snarled, jerking the man forward again. “What right do you have to stumble into our lives and take over? All we’ve done is help you. All I’ve done is try and protect you! Why?” Danie felt tears forming in his eyes. Releasing Andrea to wipe a hand across his face, he almost missed the whispered response.
    “Because, Danie― I want you, too. You are the second man whose heart I’ve fallen for. I want you, I want Geo… God, I want you both. And I know that you want me too. I wasn’t quite asleep last night when you and Geo had your talk. It’s a very small tent to have very private conversations in.”
    The confession wrapped itself around Danie’s chest, squeezing the breath out of him. He opened his eyes to stare into Andrea’s hazel pair. There was no humor, no smirk, just a deep intensity that made his mouth dry and sent shivers down his spine. Dear God. Forgive me Geo.
    Danie raised a hand to cup Andrea’s jaw, rubbing his thumb across a perfect sculpted cheekbone. The man shuddered, letting his lashes sweep closed as Danie yanked him close enough to cover the man’s mouth with his own.
    ****

CHAPTER FIVE
    The campsite was empty of life when Geo finished his check of the surrounding area, night following swiftly on the heels of the setting sun. Wandering over to the fire to dump a final load of dead wood next to the blaze, he poked at the flames and considered making a fresh pot of coffee for the long night ahead.
    A low moaning broke the silence of the camp, raising the hairs on the back of Geo’s neck. Andrea.