The Final Line (6 page)

“Well, you’ve deployed how many times? Twice?” Sean asked. At Corey’s nod he continued. “I’d be surprised if you
didn’t
have some sort of lingering issue from that.”

Corey shrugged, lost for words in the face of Sean’s acknowledgement of his weakness.

“I have no idea what you went through or what it’s like to have nightmares,” Sean continued, “but it seems like self-medicating with alcohol can cause as many problems as it solves.”

“For now, it helps me fall asleep and not have nightmares.” Corey glanced away. “Or at least not wake up and remember them.”

“Have you talked to someone about the nightmares?” Sean asked quietly.

Corey snorted. “Someone else recently told me I need to get some sort of help.” He sighed wearily. “I guess I should.”

“Well, get in the car,” Sean said suddenly. “I can get you back to base quicker than if you wait for a taxi.”

Corey started to protest.

Sean held up a hand, palm out. “Just get in the car, Corey. It’s too late to be arguing about this.” He sounded as tired as Corey felt.

The ride back to Pendleton was silent save for the radio Sean had set to low volume. Corey hugged himself and actually began to feel drowsy.

When Sean pulled up to the main gate, Corey unfastened his seatbelt. “Thank you for the ride. Sorry to put you out.”

“You’re not an inconvenience, Corey, I wish you’d get that,” Sean said with frustration. “I’d like it if you came out again tomorrow, but I understand if you can’t. Or won’t.”

Corey was surprised. He’d been sure his confession had killed whatever attraction was brewing between them. “Maybe. I’ll see how I feel tomorrow.”

Sean looked resigned. “Sleep well, Corey.”

Corey wanted nothing more than to lean across and kiss Sean, but he wasn’t about to start something he knew he couldn’t finish. “Thanks again.” He climbed out of the SUV and headed for the gate.

It took all the strength Corey had not to look back.

CHAPTER FOUR

Corey slept late the next morning. His sleep had been restless, despite the alcohol. It was probably because of Sean.

Once he’d showered and grabbed chow, Corey carefully cleared his ceiling stash of empty Jack Daniels bottles. He wrapped them in a towel, put them in a rucksack, and placed them in the back of his Jeep. He’d dump them in a dumpster or something, next time he was off base.

Corey took his dirty clothes to the nearest base laundromat. He filled a single washer. He didn’t have much in the way of civilian clothing. The load was mostly his skivvies. Next weekend he needed to take his uniforms to the dry cleaner.

He spent the day lying to himself that he wasn’t thinking about Sean. No matter what he did or who he talked to, somewhere on the edges of his mind, Sean hovered.

Late in the afternoon, Corey flopped down in his rack and threw an arm over his eyes to block the light. He wondered if he could catch a nap. It didn’t take long before his mind wandered back to Sean. Corey hadn’t been this attracted to a man in at least five years.

He managed to doze for about an hour. When Corey woke, he realized he was going back to the bar tonight to see Sean. He ran his thumb and forefinger over his eyes. He had to do something, he couldn’t go on like this. Sean seemed okay with Corey’s issues. Maybe they could jerk each other off a couple of times and Corey could get Sean out of his fucking system.

He took his time showering, being more thorough than usual. Back in his room, he applied a little cologne, not enough to end up smelling like a back alley rentboy. Corey laughed at himself when he couldn’t decide what to wear. He was acting like a nervous virgin getting ready for his first date.

Giving himself a mental kick in the ass, Corey admitted he was going to show off what he had and hope Sean wanted to get a closer look. His jeans were faded to the perfect shade. They hugged his ass and rode low on his hips. The button front black shirt he selected had short sleeves that barely fit over his biceps, leaving the muscles of his arms on full display. Corey left several buttons open, revealing the skin of his chest and the edges of his dog tags.

Checking himself in the mirror, he saw the lower edge of his First Recon skull and crossbones tattoo on his right shoulder. The eagle, globe and anchor over his heart was partially visible, too. He hoped Sean liked tattoos.

Corey’s taxi was waiting for him when he reached the main gate. He climbed in and gave the driver the name and address of the bar. He realized he was going to arrive pretty fucking early, Sean might not even be there, yet.

The taxi dropped him off just after 2000 hours. He knew Sean didn’t go on until 2100. Corey decided he’d nurse one drink while he waited.

Stepping inside, he forced himself to take a deep breath. He swallowed hard and tried to force himself to relax. The crowd was already filling up the tables and Corey immediately felt the pressure of all those bodies. He told himself he could do this.

He had spotted his preferred stool, unoccupied, and was halfway there when he noticed Sean on the stage. At nearly the same moment, Sean looked up from the microphone he was working on and spotted Corey.

Sean’s eyes widened and his mouth fell open slightly. He looked stunned for a brief moment. Corey stood tall and let him look, as Sean dragged his eyes the length of Corey’s body. As he watched, a flush appeared high on Sean’s sharp cheekbones and his eyes grew heated. When Sean’s pink tongue darted out to wet his lower lip, Corey’s cock twitched in his jeans.

He had Sean’s full attention. Hopefully he’d get the chance to work Sean out of system sooner rather than later.

Finally, Sean moved. He stepped down off the small stage and took a couple of steps toward Corey. “I didn’t think you were going to show.” He sounded out of breath.

“When I’d gotten some sleep and thought about it, I realized this was where I wanted to be,” Corey answered.

Sean flashed a quick, self-conscious smile. “Good. I’m glad you’re here.”

“Need some help?” Corey inclined his head toward the stage.

“No, but thanks,” Sean said hastily. “I just finished. Want to get a drink before I have to start catering to the crowd?”

“Definitely.” Corey led the way to the corner stool he preferred for the view of the bar it gave him. Sean slid onto the stool next to him.

Linda came down to their end of the bar. “Well, if it isn’t my handsome Devil Dog. How are you this evening, sweetheart?”

“Thirsty,” Corey evaded.

She laughed. “The usual for you two gentlemen?”

Corey watched her make their drinks and learned that Sean drank rum and Coke. Captain Morgan’s rum, no less. Corey paid for his own drink since Sean’s was part of his arrangement for providing entertainment.

“You’re a cheap date,” he muttered before he could stop himself.

Sean snorted into his drink. “I’m easy, too.”

“Not for me, you’re not.” Corey couldn’t make himself look at Sean.

They were silent for several interminable moments before Sean leaned in and said quietly, “Do you even know how fucking hot you look, tonight? I’m getting hard just looking at you.”

Corey grinned, heat pooling in his belly and his cock pushing steadily against his fly. Finally, he met Sean’s eyes. “I clean up pretty good for a grunt, huh?”

“I knew last night you cleaned up well,” Sean replied. “But this is something else.” He traced a finger over the edge of the tattoo on Corey’s arm. “I want to take that shirt off of you and get a good look at your ink. I probably couldn’t stop, though, and I’d end up running my tongue over the one on your chest.” Sean stared blatantly at Corey’s chest where his shirt stood open to reveal part of the Marine Corps logo.

“Are you good with your tongue?” Corey asked, blatantly staring at Sean’s pouty mouth. He wondered if they could skip the hand jobs and just have Sean wrap those sinful looking lips around his dick.

Sean gave a husky laugh, his eyes sparkling. “I really like this side of you.”

Before Corey could escalate their banter, someone appeared on Sean’s other side and threw an arm around his neck. For a fleeting moment, annoyance bordering on anger colored Sean’s expression. By the time he turned to greet the newcomer, Sean’s face had settled into a polite mask.

Corey let himself be introduced to the interloper. He even shook the guy’s hand. He didn’t care who the guy was, though. He knew he didn’t have a right to his anger. Sean was working, and interacting with the crowd was part of that.

“Looks like the crowd is getting restless,” Sean said, taking a long pull on his drink.

“You’d better get to work, then,” Corey replied. As much as he’d like Sean to himself, the man had a job to do and Corey was going to get the hell out of the way and let him do it.

“Is going to breakfast after this still out of the question?” asked Sean.

Corey stared at Sean while he contemplated his options. His desire for alone time with Sean won out over his desire for a peaceful sleep. “No. I’ve reconsidered. Let’s see how we both feel when the time comes.”

Sean’s smile showed off his perfect teeth. His eyes seemed lit by genuine happiness. “I gotta go, but I’ll be back.”

“I’m counting on it.” Corey smirked as he watched Sean saunter over to a table filled with people.

Linda appeared across the bar from Corey. She rested her elbows on the counter, leaned in and smiled at him.

“What?” Corey asked, uncomfortable under her scrutiny.

“The two of you,” she answered frankly. “It’s just fun to watch.”

Corey’s stomach lurched. He glanced around the bar to see if anyone was paying Sean or him too much of the wrong kind of attention. “Are we obvious?”

“Not at all,” Linda said dismissively. “I only notice because I know Sean. I don’t think his fan base would have a problem with it, but it’s good for his image to cultivate that air of availability. To the men
and
the women.”

“How available is he?” Corey hated that he wanted to know.

“To them?” she inclined her head toward the rapidly filling bar. “Not at all. You’re completely separate from all of this, though. I’ve always wondered what kind of taste he has in men. I have to say I’m a little disappointed you play for his team.”

Corey flushed and hid behind his beer bottle.

Linda rested her chin on one palm. “Do you even know what you look like?” she asked, eyes narrowed.

Corey shrugged. He knew he had a well muscled body, but so did a lot of other Marines. It kind of went with the job, so Corey had never thought much about it.

“You have the sweetest face, the brightest blue eyes, and a bow-shaped mouth that some women would kill to have,” Linda said. “And the way you fill out that shirt is illegal in some states.”

Corey flushed hotter and pretended he wasn’t embarrassed, taking another long drink of his beer.

“Linda, Corey is blushing,” Sean said, appearing beside him and setting down his empty glass. “What did you say to him?”

She picked up Sean’s glass. “I was telling him what it is you see in him. I don’t think he knew.” She held up his glass. “Another one?”

“Just water for now,” Sean replied. “I gotta go on soon.” He took the sweating bottle of water she handed over before he turned to Corey.

“Don’t ask me to repeat what she said,” Corey said emphatically. “Once was enough.”

Sean laughed and briefly laid his hand on Corey’s forearm. “At least I got to see you blush.” He took two steps toward the stage. “See you in an hour?”

“I’ll be right here.”

Sean performed songs Corey hadn’t heard the night before. He wondered if that was because he’d missed the first set last night, or if Sean routinely changed things up. This set was made up of hair-band songs from the late 80s, segueing into grunge rock from the early 90s. Corey had never heard these songs performed like Sean performed them and he liked it. There was heart and emotion in every note he played, every lyric he sang.

His selection of original songs intrigued Corey. One reminisced about what sounded like an abusive relationship and how it was overcome. One was about a broken heart and the mundane exchange of personal belongings in the wake of a breakup. The final song was filled with longing for someone to love who would love in return. Once again, Corey wondered how autobiographical these songs were.

On his first break, Sean made his way around the room, greeting people he hadn’t gotten to earlier. It still wasn’t long before he sat down next to Corey. Linda brought him a bottle of water and a fresh rum and Coke.

“Enjoying yourself?” Sean asked.

“I love the entertainment,” replied Corey.

“Good, I’m glad to hear that.” Sean’s smile was almost shy as his cheeks colored slightly. “What do you think of the original songs?”

Corey wanted to ask just how personal the songs were that Sean wrote. He hesitated, wondering if that wasn’t too personal a question to ask someone he’d really just met.

“That bad, huh?” Sean laughed uncomfortably and looked away. “Don’t worry about it. I shouldn’t have put you on the spot, like that.”

“No!” Corey said hastily. “I like them. All of them. I was just wondering how much is really about you, or if you just, I don’t know, write words that sound right with that music?”

“Oh.” Sean look relieved. He looked back at Corey and smiled slightly. “They’re all about me. I write about the things I’ve lived and learned. Not always literally, but always in some way.”

“They all make me feel something when I hear them,” Corey said, remembering the times his heart almost broke for Sean. “I think that’s what you’re going for, isn’t it?”

“Yeah.” Sean shrugged. “Well, that and to entertain.”

“Oh, you’re entertaining.” Corey chuckled, running his eyes the length of Sean’s form.

Sean stood up slowly, giving Corey a dark look. “Your smile is fucking lethal.” With a shake of his head, he picked up his bottle of water and headed back to the stage.

During the next break, Corey made a quick trip to the head while Sean greeted friends and fans. He was on his way back to his seat when Sean intercepted him.

“It’s hot in here. Come out back with me to get some air?”