03-Strength of the Mate (49 page)

Eric groaned and ran a palm over his face. “I don’t want to know.”

“Did you act differently with Groucho and Harpo, than you did with the other two?” Tim asked.

“Hell yeah,” Adam replied. “I was as submissive and docile as I could be when The Bully was guarding me. But things were more relaxed with the Marx Brothers. They didn’t push me around, but I also didn’t give them a reason to.”

“Why did you refuse to say what they wanted you to say on the video?” Tim looked like he knew what Adam’s answer would be.

“I thought they were going to kill me,” Adam answered simply and truthfully. “I knew nothing I said or did was going to change that, so I had nothing to lose. I wasn’t gonna lie on tape and give them what they wanted. I was gonna die without any regrets about what happened in that room.”

“And when it turned out they never intended to kill you, you had shifted the balance of power, just a little,” Tim said with an amused smile.

Adam shrugged. It was strange, having Tim’s open approval. “I guess. I just knew I was gonna go out on my terms, not theirs.”

Tim sat back in his chair. “Have I ever told you about SERE?” he asked.

Adam frowned, scanning his memory for that term. “If you did, I wasn’t sober.”

Tim laughed. “That’s possible. SERE stands for Survival, Evasion, Resistance, and Escape. It’s a class military and government personal are sent to that teaches us how to avoid capture by the enemy. It also teaches us how to resist our captors if we are captured, and how to escape, if we get the chance to do so safely.”

“I vaguely remember you mentioning something along those lines,” Adam admitted. “If memory serves, it had to do with Jeremy trying to talk you into attending some work shindig of his, that you didn’t want to go to.”

Tim ran a palm over the back of his head. “I have no idea what you mean.”

Eric snorted. “I really gotta meet this guy, if he can keep Timmy on the run.”

Clearing his throat, Tim continued. “Anyway, my point is…you could be a textbook example of successful SERE training.”

“What exactly does that mean?” Eric asked. “Is it a good thing?”

Grinning at Adam, Tim replied, “It’s very good. It means baby brother did everything he could have, to keep himself safe, focused, and grounded, while he was a hostage. And he did it without any training.” Tim frowned. “You haven’t been through any training, have you? That’s not something Ares sends you to, is it?”

Adam shook his head. They didn’t get much training at all, considering they were driving trucks that were essentially giant bombs through combat zones.

“So, no imminent meltdown?” asked Eric.

“Probably not.” Tim pointed a finger at Adam, shooting him a serious look. “This doesn’t get you out of talking to the shrink, though.”

Adam grunted. “Fine. Whatever.” He lay back against his pillow, closing his eyes.

There were faint sounds of a commotion at the far end of the corridor. Adam drifted on the verge of sleep, only just aware of the heavy fall of combat boots coming steadily closer to his room.

“Emotional werewolf inbound,” Tim said, getting to his feet. He grabbed Eric by the arm. “Now is when we leave.”

The door to his room swung open forcefully. Adam knew who it was, even before he saw him. Dawson was glorious, striding across the room toward Adam’s bed. If he realized anyone else was in the room, he didn’t show it. His eyes burned into Adam’s, his expression determined.

Without a thought, Adam opened his arms. In a single, smooth motion, Dawson reached him, sat on the edge of the bed, and drew Adam into his embrace. Adam felt the tug of his I.V. as he wrapped his arms around Dawson’s shoulders. Dawson’s arms around Adam’s back were strong, nearly bruising, and just what Adam needed.

They sat, chest to chest, clinging tightly to each other. Dawson buried his face in the join of Adam’s neck and shoulder, inhaling over and over. He rubbed his cheek against the side of Adam’s neck, the light bristle of his beard slightly ticklish.

Adam ran his palm over Dawson’s shorn hair. He’d waited more than a month to do that again, and it felt just like he remembered. He’d missed this so much.

Dawson pulled back until he could grasp Adam’s face between his palms. His lavender eyes scanned Adam’s face feverishly for a moment, like he was making sure this was all real. Dawson covered Adam’s mouth with his own. The kiss bruised pleasantly. Dawson pushed his tongue past Adam’s lips, licking into his mouth desperately. Adam licked back at Dawson, enjoying the wet rub of their tongues against each other. Dawson breathed harshly, his chest heaving. He broke the kiss only to change the angle, before he pushed his tongue into Adam’s mouth again.

Adam clung to Dawson’s broad shoulders. He ached to lay back and pull Dawson down on top of him. He’d missed everything about Dawson; the feel of his firm body, his masculine scent, the hungry sounds he made when they kissed, and the commanding way he pushed himself into Adam’s body.

This time, when Dawson broke the kiss, he pressed his forehead to Adam’s. He let his mouth hover over Adam’s as he whispered. “I was so fucking scared for you.” His voice wavered. “I looked everywhere for you. I hardly slept while you were missing. I was so afraid they were hurting you. Listening to your abduction on the radio, not able to do anything to help you, damn near killed me. Then we found that fucking video on the internet. I wanted to shift and tear Fallujah apart. Terrell had to hold me back.”

“I thought about you all the time.” Adam ran his palms over Dawson’s chest, feeling each of his desperate breaths. “I watched the sun and the moon out my windows, hoping you were watching them, too. All I wanted was to get back to you. I hoped every day that you wanted me to come back.”

Dawson kissed him again. He licked at Adam’s tongue, gliding along the roof of his mouth and behind his top teeth. It was complete and all consuming. Dawson buried his fingers in Adam’s hair, giving a sharp tug. Adam whimpered in pleasure. Dawson used his grip on Adam’s hair to tilt his head to the side, baring Adam’s neck.

Adam gasped, a shiver running through him when Dawson pressed an openmouthed kiss to the side of his throat. Dawson sucked hard on the flesh, adding to the sting with a light drag of his fangs over the same spot. Adam groaned. He desperately wanted to crawl into Dawson’s lap and impale himself on Dawson’s hard cock.

When Dawson finally released Adam, he looked down at him with a smug expression. “You’re back, and you’re mine. No matter what happens, no matter how far away I am, you belong to me. Do you understand?”

“Yes,” Adam replied without hesitation. He knew they were both thinking about Adam going home in the next few days. Adam pushed those thoughts aside for now. He’d deal with it later. Right now, he was where he wanted to be. He was back with Dawson. That was all he cared about.

Dawson relaxed slightly. He ran his hands over Adam’s body, like he needed to reassure himself this was real. Adam knew that feeling well. Dawson skimmed his fingertips over the fresh bruise on Adam’s throat.

“Everyone says you’re okay,” Dawson finally said, his voice raw. “They say your arm will heal, and that you weren’t tortured or abused. They really didn’t starve you? Was that video tape really all for show?”

Adam nodded vigorously. He was eager to ease Dawson’s apprehensions. “I’m fine. I’m really fine. Now that I’m back with you, there’s nothing wrong at all.” He didn’t want Dawson to be all twisted up with worry.

Dawson ran his palms over Adam’s cheeks. “I didn’t recognize you when you were running toward me,” he said. “I recognized your scent, but not your face. You look different with the beard.”

“I’m too tired to shave.” Adam pressed his face against Dawson’s palm. “Tim said I should check with you first, to see if I should maybe keep it.” He gave Dawson a suggestive smile.

“The major is a wise man,” Dawson replied, skimming his fingers along Adam’s jaw. “I think if you trimmed it a little, got it looking nice and neat, I could get into that a little.” The heat in Dawson’s eyes told Adam he could get into it more than just a little. “We can talk about it later, though. You were half asleep when I came in. You need to rest.”

Adam was ready to protest. He needed Dawson more than he needed rest. He’d rest easier with Dawson nearby. Before Adam got a single word out, Dawson toed off his boots and climbed into the bed with him. He was careful of Adam’s I.V. line as he arranged the pillows behind himself. Dawson pulled Adam back against his chest.

Adam let his head fall back onto Dawson’s shoulder. That was when he realized they were completely alone. He’d been so wrapped up in Dawson, so focused on being with him in human form again, Adam hadn’t noticed that they had been left on their own. He’d have to remember to thank Tim for getting everyone out of the room.

“I know you need to rest, but I have something important to ask you.” Dawson’s voice was low and gravelly. Adam felt it rumble from somewhere deep in his chest.

The words sounded ominous. Adam tensed, starting to pull out of Dawson’s embrace. He stopped himself. The tone of Dawson’s voice was warm and intimate. His arms were strong, around Adam. After all they’d just said to each other, there was no reason to fear the worst.

“Okay,” Adam said quietly. He relaxed against Dawson, resting his head against his shoulder again. “What do you need to ask?”

“I feel the urge to share a little werewolf mythology right now, but I’ve learned my lesson. I’ll be direct. I asked your brother to do a favor for me.” Dawson ran his hand over Adam’s hair. “This was before you were abducted. The major was still working on this for me when you got taken.” He reached into his pants pocket. Whatever he held, it fit inside his closed fist. “Major Madison brought these to give to me, instead of mailing them. He came here to try to help find you.”

Dawson was nervous, which amazed Adam. It was so out of character. He was stalling, and Adam found it amusing. “So, you got Tim’s help with something you wanted to do, even before my abduction,” he said encouragingly. “Now, what do you want to ask me about? And what’s in your hand?”

Dawson took a deep breath, his chest expanding against Adam’s back. He opened his hand to reveal a set of dog tags cradled in his palm. “Your brother had these made for me. They’re exact copies of my dog tags.” Dawson swallowed audibly. “I wondered if you’d be willing to wear them.”

The stainless steel chain was wrapped around the pair of tags, framed by black silencers. Adam’s mouth dropped open. He stared at the embossed metal. Something inside of him quivered with excitement and pleasure. It was a simple request, but Adam sensed that was the only thing that was simple.

“Jeremy wears a copy of Tim’s dog tags.” He had no idea why he’d said that. Maybe he needed confirmation of something.

Dawson huffed an awkward laugh. “I had those made, actually. The major asked me to do that for him while he was accompanying Noah to Iraq.”

Adam chuckled at how things had circled around. He reached out and took the dog tags from Dawson’s hand. “So, you asked Tim to have these made, instead of asking Noah? Or maybe even Terrell?”

“That was part of it,” Dawson replied hastily. “I also wanted the major to know what I was doing.” He sounded like he was choosing his words carefully, or more carefully than he usually did.

Adam let the chain unwind from around the dog tags. He sensed that this was a momentous gesture. Because Tim had the tags made, he didn’t only know Dawson’s intent, he approved of it. Adam clasped a tag with the fingers of each hand, running a thumb over each one. His skin slid easily over the embossed lettering. Adam read Dawson’s name. The tag listed his shifter type as wolf, his pack status was Omega, a position Noah wanted him to return to when his deployment ended.

Tim’s approval was hugely important to Dawson, for reasons that didn’t even have to do with Adam. For Dawson’s sake, Adam was glad they had it.

Grasping the chain of the dog tags with each hand, Adam slipped it over his head. The tags settled against his sternum when he leaned back against Dawson’s chest again. Adam clasped the tags in one hand as he turned to accept Dawson’s kiss.

“Thank you,” Dawson whispered against Adam’s lips. They kissed again, slow and sensual.

Adam thought he felt a tremor run through Dawson’s body, but he wasn’t sure. Still, he felt comfortable and safe with Dawson pressed against him. Adam turned his face into Dawson’s neck. He closed his eyes and just breathed, catching Dawson’s scent with each inhalation.

Dawson used the funny remote control thingy that controlled everything in the room to dim the lights. Adam took another deep breath, and then he was asleep.

CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE

Landsthul Regional Medical Center
Ramstein Air Base
Ramstein-Miesenbach, Germany

Tim and Eric were with Adam in Germany. They both sat across the room from him, quietly talking about the kind of shit brothers discussed. Tomorrow, they would fly back to the States together. Jeremy was bringing Mom and Dad to meet them when they landed. Adam couldn’t remember the last time the entire family had been in the same place, all at the same time. It would be the first reunion that included Jeremy. Eric and Dawson had liked each other immediately, so there was no doubt Eric and Jeremy would do the same.

Adam was on edge. The med center staff was taking damn good care of him. They let him have pajamas here, and a robe. He was even allowed out of bed now, without a babysitter, which meant a werewolf wasn’t watching his every move. So why did everything, including things he usually didn’t mind, irritate the hell out of him today?

He grabbed a bottle of water from the table beside his chair. He’d almost forgotten the pleasure of wet coolness against his skin. Forcing himself to tune back into their conversation, Adam wished Eric and Tim would stop and listen to themselves. Tim was still sure he knew what was best for Eric, and Eric was sure he could still save the world.

“You were in a lot more danger during the Congolese Wars, than you are now,” Adam said to Eric. He was baffled by the level of Eric’s worry for the safety of his clinic staff. Something about his brother was different, today.