When I helped redesign the uniforms, I had no idea they would look so good on them. I had been focused on the ability for it to withstand their power and to maintain its form while shifting back and forth, but I hadn’t purposefully made them so badass that it was painful to see them in it. Mission obviously failed.
Damian’s dark combat boots were laced up, the tough black material matching the rough combat pants he wore and dark long-sleeve shirt. The material of the latter fit to his muscular chest and was tucked in against his perfect abs, the matte metal belt the only glint on the uniform besides the bulletproof vest he wore with the ISS logo. It was pretty standard military-grade styling, but it was weaved with a fabric that would be able to shift back with them, one that had taken some time to perfect and a lot of experimentation. To say I had free time in my late teens was an understatement. My lips pulled up, almost remembering when I had tried to use Damian as a model and he had ended up practically naked when shifting back. Honestly, it wasn’t the worst use of free time… just saying.
“Like what you see?” he mused with a charming smile.
I blushed slightly. “You know I love those uniforms on you guys.”
As he jumped off the counter, I didn’t walk towards him, letting him approach me as I inhaled his familiar cigar and mint scent. I smiled as he reached behind me to open up the fridge and pull out another container. I rolled my eyes as he put it in my hand and walked away with a wink, making me shake my head. Honestly, all of them had such a weird obsession with my health. I was convinced it was a nightmare ‘thing.’ Then again, could I blame them?
I was constantly fussing over them.
He went to go sit down as Zain came out of his room and walked over to stand across the island from me, shrugging on his vest. I walked around the counter and stood next to him, reaching up to adjust one of the pockets on it, his expression thoughtful. More so than usual. I resisted the urge to fix his hair, because I probably wouldn’t stop touching him then.
“You don’t need to worry about every mission. We always come back.” His voice was soft and filled with understanding. I exhaled softly and looked up at him, feeling a wave of pleasure roll through me as his fingers brushed across my cheek and wrapped around the back of my neck in a comforting yet somewhat possessive way.
“It’s the worry you won’t come back because of a reason you can’t control,” I murmured and then gave a strained smile. “Plus, asking me to not worry is absolutely impossible.”
“I wish I could show you how easy it is for us.” His eyes darkened slightly at something that occurred to him. I smirked.
“I have seen it. We record a lot of it or hack into those cameras at the facilities,” I explained as his eyes flashed with a bright electric spark.
“You see what we do normally? How did I not know this?” He frowned but looked relieved, his fingers brushing through my hair. Had he been worried about what I would see? Did he not understand how much I knew about them? I guess I just assumed they knew how obsessed I was with them… maybe I should have kept that a secret.
I let out a small laugh. “Zain, you’re part of my team. I am very well aware of just how dangerous you guys are.”
His hand tightened further as he dipped his head so our noses were practically brushing. “And it doesn’t bother you?”
“Why would something that’s natural to you ever bother me?” I asked.
Emotion flashed in his gaze as he looked away momentarily, seeming to process something before I decided to change topics and ease the obvious surprise he felt at my words.
“But I can always come with if you really want to show me,” I teased as he chuckled softly.
“Absolutely not,” Blackwell growled, making my lips pull up into a smile. I looked at the massive bastard who’d suddenly appeared next to me, blinking at him innocently.
“You don’t want me to come with you?” I asked, offering a sad pout.
His eyes flashed. “No. I don’t ever want you in that much danger.”
“Zain just said it wasn’t dangerous,” I pointed out in slight amusement. “He said ‘no need to worry.’ Can’t be both.”
“Damn it,” Zain muttered as Blackwell snarled and pinned him with a look.
“If you ever come with us, love, it will be on something more than just safe. I don’t even feel like a vacation is fucking safe enough for you,” he growled, making my stomach tighten at the use of the nickname. He rarely used it, and it made me thrilled beyond measure.
“What type of vacation?” I pushed. “Like a beach vacation? I do have some swimsuits I could pull out—”
“I can’t handle that imagery right now,” Zain bit out, suddenly striding away towards Damian as my smile grew. Blackwell drew my chin back as I felt his dark, oil-like power wrap around me, making me know that he was itching to cause some violence tonight. Usually he kept it far more tucked away. I absolutely loved feeling like the man was right on the edge. Made me want to kiss him again and see what he would do.
“Don’t look at me like that, Arabella,” he warned softly. I really felt like something about Cy’s actions had triggered Blackwell a bit, although he was usually like this when we were alone, so it could just be the intensity of having all his focus on me.
“Like what?” I grabbed a piece of pineapple and popped it in my mouth. His gaze tracked the movement as I saw heat flash through his gaze. Grabbing a piece of fruit, I offered it to him. He looked at it speculatively before leaning forward, and my stomach tightened as he took a small bite and swallowed. My hand stayed suspended momentarily as he grabbed the fingers that had held the fruit and sucked on them, causing my breathing to hitch as my eyes grew hooded. Holy shit.
“Be good while we’re gone,” he warned.
“Or what?” I pulled my hand back as he offered me a challenging look.
“You don’t want the answer to that question, love.”
I was positive that I did.
I followed as he made his way back towards the couch, leaving the fruit on the counter. Well, I attempted to follow… but suddenly Cy was in my space. I nearly hit into him as my eyes darted up across his uniform, finding him watching me with his normal, controlled expression. His hand wrapped around my waist, pulling me closer as I leaned into him, the tension that he had in his frame draining. I honestly had no idea what he was thinking, but I wanted us to be okay.
“Are we okay?” he asked, his voice a hesitant whisper once again.
“Are we?” I questioned, my head tilting so that I could look all the way up into his pale green gaze that truly appeared more silver than anything else right now. His eyes changed so much—it was absolutely hypnotizing.
His expression filled with soft affection that surprised me as he nodded, his grip tightening on me. I buried my nose in his vest and let out a sigh of relief.
We would figure this out. Just as soon as they got back to me. Safely. That would also be a pretty good time to ask him about the marking he had left on my neck since he hadn’t seemed to notice it yet.
Suddenly, the intercom switched on, and my father’s voice rang out. “Five minutes until departure.”
A worried noise left my throat as I stepped away from Cy, suddenly feeling almost hyper with anxiety. Razar appeared behind me and wrapped an arm around my center, pressing a calming kiss to my cheek. I knew I needed to be strong for them. I looked over to the bedroom doors to find Amun relaxing in his room, seeming to just absorb everything that was going on. I offered him a head nod as the guys got up and started walking towards the door of the dorm suite. I slipped on my heels as I frowned, looking back.