The Exit Strategy Bundle

by Jocelynn Drake

  Opening eyes he couldn’t remember closing, Gabriel found Justin lying on the bed, next to him, covered in sweat and panting loudly. Had he fucking passed out? How had he gotten over there? The orgasm had definitely killed brain cells. Nerve endings were firing wildly through his body, and everything seemed to tingle slightly. Jesus fuck…he couldn’t remember when he’d last come so hard. Of course, he wasn’t exactly sure he could remember his name.

  “I know…we were talking…about not wanting to live without each other and staying safe,” Justin said between noisy pants. “But I’m pretty sure I could die happy right now.”

  Gabriel laughed loudly. Sliding his hand across the bed, he found Justin’s and twined their fingers together. “Sounds pretty good to me.”

  Chapter 16

  Justin sat on the floor next to a thick dog bed and rubbed his hand over Repeat’s head while watching the chaos that flowed around him. It had taken two days after Gabriel’s grocery attack for the contract to finally be canceled. They decided to have Devlin and Jake remain in Colorado for another two days after that just to be on the safe side.

  During that time, Repeat finally came home. Jake hadn’t been pleased with the idea of remaining inside for four days, but he was happy to help come up with ways to keep Repeat in his dog bed and off his wounded leg.

  Devlin was starting to come out of the office more, spending time with Jake. That was, of course, in between interviews and long conference calls with various business leaders about his research. He was a hot commodity now. The whole world was talking about Devlin Relic and how he’d revolutionized energy for “free.” What all those reporters didn’t realize was that Devlin had paid for that discovery with the life of his husband and his dream for a happily ever after.

  But he was slowly improving. He was smiling more and laughing a little freer with his son. Devlin lingered over dinner at the end of the night, talking about a lot of silly nothing with Justin and Gabriel. Justin was pretty sure they were seeing the first shoots of new life in Devlin after the scorched earth his old life had become.

  Today, though, utter chaos consumed the house. Devlin and Jake were flying back to Washington after staying roughly two weeks with Justin and Gabriel. Bags had to be packed, which meant that all the things they’d brought or accumulated in the past two weeks had to be located. There was scrambling to find pieces of toys, missing socks, notebooks that had somehow migrated out of Devlin’s temporary office, a superhero DVD, and other odd bits.

  Justin and Gabriel, who were accompanying them to Washington, had packed in about thirty minutes early that morning. Gabriel was running a final load of laundry while helping Jake track down random things. There were debates about what could be stuffed in Jake’s little backpack, what could be stuffed in his father’s bag, and what would just need to be shipped to him. Naturally, Jake felt everything had to go in bags.

  Justin was content to stay out of the line of fire, watching the chaos from beside Repeat. Eventually, Pete slunk out of Jake’s room and flopped down next to Justin. Chuckling softly, Justin rubbed the other dog’s head with his free hand. Jess was slated to arrive in the next thirty minutes to pick up the dogs. He and Gabriel were confident the trip would take only a couple of days at most to make sure Devlin and Jake were safe.

  Pete gave a heavy sigh, putting his head on the cool wood floor. Justin could understand the sentiment. He was going to miss their houseguests as well. And he was kind of surprised by that.

  Justin loved having control of his life, particularly what happened in his house. He liked knowing where everything was at all times and that he was safe. People going in and out of the house, not locking doors, opening windows, touching his stuff meant that things weren’t safe any longer. He’d survived for years as an assassin by having complete control over his sanctuary.

  The first step in loosening that tight control had been letting Gabriel in. But G Love quickly understood the score. The man lived much the same way, and he seemed to instinctively know when to push and when to back off.

  But Jake and Devlin were like a pair of mini cyclones whirling through the house with a reckless abandon that quickly drove him insane. Jake ran through the house, poking into everything and opening every damn door that wasn’t locked with a key. He touched and questioned and moved things because it was how he learned. Those questions finally had Justin asking what was truly important in his life.

  And now that Jake and Devlin were leaving, he found himself missing the chaos already. He missed the noise and the peals of laughter that would bounce off the walls. He was going to miss not knowing quite what the day was going to bring. He was going to miss his long walks with Jake through the woods and the endless questions. He was going to miss teaching him how to fish. They were also supposed to do bows and arrows, but there hadn’t been time before the first attack.

  Fierce Frankie and Lucian were probably going to be happy with the return of quiet, but the cats were grumpy creatures that didn’t like change at all.

  It was time to change.

  Justin smirked up at Gabriel as he carried a basket of freshly laundered clothes to the guest bedrooms.

  “Comfortable?” Gabriel griped.

  Justin’s grin spread. “Oh, I’m staying out of the line of fire.”

  Gabriel rolled his eyes and continued to the bedrooms. From the open door, he could hear Devlin’s voice of surprise.

  “God, Gabriel! You shouldn’t have done that. I was just going to toss everything into the washer when we got home.”

  “It’s not a problem. Thought it would help you hit the ground running. I’m sure you’ll have plenty to do when you get back,” Gabriel murmured.

  Devlin groaned. “Jake’s already got invitations to two birthday parties and a pool party for the next couple of weekends.”

  From the other room, Jake’s cheer went up and Justin laughed.

  He wanted this. He wanted a family, his own family, that filled this house with laughter, arguing, tears, and chaos. He didn’t want to live looking over his shoulder and wondering about whether he was safe in his own home. He wanted to worry about the laundry and birthday parties conflicting with soccer games. He wanted to teach someone to fish and swim and shoot and tie a knot. Sure, a lot of his skills weren’t sanctioned by the Boy and Girl Scouts, but they could keep that stuff at home.

  Life had been an adventure for him and Gabriel already. They’d traveled the world, learned languages, and used countless weapons. They’d sneaked into plenty of places. Sex was had in so many strange and interesting locations. Justin couldn’t deny that he’d lived an amazing life. And when Gabriel wasn’t running and dodging his family, his life had been pretty damn interesting as well.

  But was Gabriel ready for it all to change?

  It was barely more than a year ago that they’d first met. They went from hating each other to fucking each other in a heartbeat. Justin blinked and he suddenly couldn’t live without the man. Their European adventure had only clinched it for him that Gabriel was his life now. He loved Gabriel more than he thought he could possibly love another human being. He wanted everything with him. And now it seemed that he wanted marriage and kids with him.

  Justin lifted his left hand from Repeat’s head and looked at his empty ring finger. Marriage. Oh, that was definitely something he’d never considered. Bound legally to Gabriel. Forever. In sickness and health. Good times and bad. Happily ever after.

  He waited for the panic to slam into him, to knock his breath from his chest. But it never happened. His heart gave an answering flutter and his stomach churned, but it wasn’t with fear. It was excitement. He wanted to run out right then and find the perfect ring. Something sleek and modern. Classy and sophisticated like that man he loved. His brain was already running through hundreds of scenarios. What was the perfect proposal?

  Gabriel’s dance under the white lights to one of his favorite songs had fucking swept him off his feet. The man had some serious romance skills,
and Justin hadn’t realized how badly he’d needed that moment.

  He needed to bring his A game to the proposal. Not something clichéd or cheesy. Something unique and so perfectly them.

  But would Gabriel say yes?

  Okay, that made his heart skip with fear. It was definitely fast, but they’d moved in quickly and fallen in love quickly. They were both accustomed to making snap decisions and bold moves. When they knew something, they knew it. There was no long debate. Fuck fast.

  “You okay?”

  Justin’s head snapped up and he was surprised to see Gabriel standing in front of him, an empty laundry basket on his hip and a concerned expression on his face.

  “Yeah. Yeah, I’m fine. Just thinking…scary things.”

  Gabriel arched a brow at him, his slow smile starting to appear. “Okay. Jess called to say that she’s on her way. She’s bringing something for Jake. It better be small, because I can’t fit another damn thing into his bag.”

  “Thanks for the heads up. The boys are ready.”

  Gabriel bent and scratched Repeat under his chin. “It’s good to have our boy home.” He then leaned over and snatched a quick kiss from Justin. “It’ll be good to have our home to ourselves again,” he added with a whisper. Justin struggled to hold on to his smile as Gabriel straightened and continued to the kitchen.

  Maybe Gabriel wasn’t as open to the idea of kids as Justin thought he might be. Did that mean he wasn’t into the idea of marriage either? It wasn’t like he’d had the best role models for marriage. His parents clearly didn’t like each other. His mother had either died young or run off and disappeared to escape her evil husband. His sister’s marriage had been a political arrangement. He didn’t know Nadia well, but he didn’t think the woman was particularly heartbroken over her husband’s death. For Gabriel, marriage wasn’t something two people did for love.

  And kids? Gabriel was great with Jake, but Jake was a great kid. That didn’t mean that Gabriel necessarily wanted his own kids.

  Fuck it. He wasn’t going to know unless he asked. They were building a life together, and they couldn’t do that if he was afraid of what Gabriel might say to his insane plans. Marriage and kids definitely constituted an insane plan. If G Love said no, then they’d find a way to go from there. At least he’d know how his man felt.

  Gabriel didn’t miss Justin’s preoccupation the rest of the afternoon. He couldn’t begin to guess what was on the man’s mind. He’d amused himself for the morning watching them run around, trying to get packed, but something happened to cause him to withdraw. Gabriel didn’t know what to do. Justin didn’t fall into these moods too often, and Gabriel was still figuring out how Justin needed him to help. For now, he would step back and let Justin try to figure it out on his own. If that didn’t work, he’d give him a hard shake and tell him to snap out of it.

  Yeah, he wasn’t going to win any awards for being a tender, emotionally supportive boyfriend. But he could get a consolation prize for keeping Justin alive. He wasn’t sure if there was going to be trouble when they walked into Devlin’s house, but he needed Justin to have his head out of his ass if they were going to spot something in the first place. He was not losing this man.

  The flight from Denver to Seattle was a relatively quiet three hours. Devlin made sure Jake’s tablet was fully charged and loaded with several TV shows and movies to keep him occupied. The little boy sat in his seat, eating snacks and watching movies. There had been some initial sadness at leaving the dogs and cats. And then Jess gifted him with a framed picture of the time he’d gone to the farm and learned to ride a horse. Even Devlin had teared up. The man had been up to eyeballs in his research at the time and hadn’t been able to go. Gabriel could only hope the man used it as a wake-up call to start spending more time with his son.

  But all that was forgotten now from the happy little wiggle and bounce Jake had in his seat as he ate pretzels. Too-big headphones seemed to engulf his head as he watched his cartoon. The kid was adorable and definitely different from any kids Gabriel had known when he was that age. His sweetness and innocence seemed to still be intact despite all that he’d suffered and lost.

  Even after landing, it was another hour to get the rental SUV and drive to Devlin’s house north of Seattle. They had arranged for a service to pick up Devlin’s truck and have it driven from Montana to Washington. He’d laughed and said that he intended to keep the monster. He claimed the old girl had character.

  Gabriel wasn’t going to disagree with that. He wasn’t exactly sure what kind of character the beast of a vehicle had, but it was definitely character of a sort. After they got settled in the house, Devlin was planning to have a rental delivered that he’d be able to use until either the truck arrived or he got around to purchasing an everyday car.

  At Devlin’s direction, they pulled into the driveway of a cute folk Victorian-style home with pale mint-green paint and white trim. The front yard was a little overgrown, but it didn’t look as if they’d been gone for more than a couple of weeks. The bushes and shrubs definitely needed a trim.

  “I had a landscaper coming every few weeks to mow the lawn,” Devlin said as Gabriel put the vehicle in park. “The mail has been on hold. We don’t usually get much. Just ads and a few magazines.”

  “Security system?” Justin asked.

  “A basic one on the windows and doors.” Devlin’s brow furrowed for a moment and he finally recited the code as if he’d needed to dredge it from the very bottom of his memory.

  “You and Jake wait here,” Justin said. “We’re going to do a quick check over things. We want to make sure you weren’t left any nasty surprises.”

  “Was someone in our house?” Jake unbuckled his seat belt and scooted to the edge of his seat.

  “Probably not, but we just want to make sure,” Gabriel said with a wink. He left the car running with the air conditioner on and the radio playing softly to keep them distracted while he and Justin climbed out of the car.

  They walked slowly to the house together, crossing the front lawn while their eyes swept over the front façade. Nothing looked out of place. None of the flowers or bushes were disturbed or trod on. All the windows were intact and closed.

  “Maybe we should have driven,” Justin announced.

  Gabriel looked over his shoulder at the man like he’d lost his mind. “That’s insane. It would have taken us more than a day to get here.”

  “Yeah, but we’d be armed. I miss my guns,” Justin mumbled sullenly.

  Gabriel nearly reached over and pulled his lover into his arms. He understood the sentiment. He was feeling pretty damn naked without even a single knife on him. But that could be remedied quickly enough.

  “You got a safe house here? A stash?” Gabriel asked.

  “No,” Justin continued to pout. “Still got one in New York. Another in LA. But that’s about it in the US.”

  Gabriel remained silent and Justin finally looked up at him. He grinned broadly at the man.

  “Holy shit!” Justin gasped. “You don’t…”

  “Just a stash, but it should hold us over while we’re here,” he admitted with no small amount of pride. It was always nice to surprise Justin when the man appeared to be one step ahead all the time.

  “And when were you going to tell me?”

  “I just did.”

  Justin groaned and shook his head. “Sooner would have been nice, Mr. Secrets Man.”

  “What’s that song? ‘Shoulda put a ring on it.’ That’s the only way you’re getting all my secrets.”

  Justin’s mouth dropped open, looking more stunned than Gabriel had even seen him. He smirked and continued to the front door with Devlin’s key.

  “You did not just quote Queen B!” Justin shouted, finally recovering from his shock to join him on the front porch.

  “You’re not the only one who knows music.”

  “Uh-huh. We’ve got so much to talk about when we get home.”

  Gabriel slid the key int
o the lock and paused, looking over his shoulder at Justin. “Bring it, sexy. I’ll take whatever you can dish out.”

  “Shut up and let’s do this. I need to take you somewhere so I can fuck you,” Justin growled.

  Blood flooded south in a rush, and Gabriel found himself quickly unlocking the door, then keying in the security code. That sounded like an excellent idea. But first, they needed to make sure Devlin and Jake were safe.

  They stepped into the house. It was warm and the air smelled stale. Immediately in front of them, a staircase led to the second floor. To the left was the living room and the right held the dining room.

  “I’ve got the second floor,” Justin whispered before he soundlessly climbed the stairs.

  Gabriel snatched up a decorative brass candlestick from a hall table. It had a nice weight to it and would give him a modicum of protection as he moved through the living room. Jake’s toys were strewn lightly about the room. There were some clothes tossed across the couch as if they’d quickly packed some things while rushing about the house. Gabriel paused and actually looked at the room. The walls were white but there were some bright colors for accents. The furniture looked comfortable and a little worn from life. Pictures of a much younger Jake decorated the walls. There were also several pictures of Devlin with a handsome, smiling man. Adam. His husband.

  With a sad smile, Gabriel continued on to the small office filled with charts, books, and other random things. The room looked like a storm of chaos had swept through it. It seemed a safe guess that it belonged to Devlin. From their short time together, the man seemed to lean toward the slob end of the spectrum. Or more likely, absent-minded when concentrating on his work. Gabriel spent more time crawling through the office, checking through every detail. There was no sign of foul play, bombs, or even recording devices. The dust was thick and untouched on his computer. The papers didn’t appear to have been touched. The office was safe.

  He continued to the kitchen. Everything looked good and the back door remained secure. The food had mostly gone bad due to time, but everything else was fine. He glanced up the second, partially hidden staircase that led to the second floor and found nothing out of the ordinary in the shadows. He had just reached the dining room when Justin reappeared.