Flanked

these when the sun’s out. Your eyes can get hurt even if you can’t see.”
Devin put them on and activated the sun-blocking feature. The lenses darkened until his blue iris faded to a dark smoky gray. “Those little shits have anything to protect their eyes?”
“No. We’ll have to make sure we don’t travel during the brightest parts of the day, even if the weather’s nice like today.”
Devin shuddered and felt along the ground until he reached Joe’s leg. He laid down on his side, resting his head on Joe’s thigh. “It’s cold as hell today.”
True, despite the oxymoron. Only once or twice a winter did the temperature dip this low, at least at home. They’d had a cold snap in Austin about a month ago where the temperature had even dropped below freezing for a couple of hours. The farther north they traveled, though, the more likely they’d encounter cooler temperatures. The more moderate climate was one of the reasons the masses had migrated northward, after all. For now, they’d all be fine. Last night hadn’t been that cold. By the time noon rolled around, Joe and Devin would be shrugging out of their jackets.
Joe dropped his hand to Devin’s shoulder and rubbed at the muscle. It was easy to mark the spot where Devin’s deltoid stopped and the muscles of his arm started. Both of Joe’s shoulders could have fit inside one of Devin’s. A glimmer of heat pooled in Joe’s belly. The reaction had to be some holdover from caveman days where a powerful man increased the odds of survival for his entire family. Joe pressed his thumb into the muscle and pulled Devin’s shoulder back with his fingers.
Devin groaned. “I know what you’re doing.”
Joe smiled and did it again. “What’s that?”
“Plying me with good-feeling muscle rubbing so I think you’re helping, but all you really want is to grope me.”
“You carried the kids’ pack all last night. That thing was heavy. You have to be aching. I want to make it feel better.”
Devin groaned again and rolled over onto his stomach. Joe took that as permission and dug into the firm muscles of Devin’s neck and back. He liked the rhythm of it, the push and pull, having something to do with his hands. He liked making Devin feel good.
When Joe hit a spot so tight he felt like he was rolling a rock under Devin’s skin, Devin said, “Oh, God, I love you.”
Joe’s hand froze.
Devin lay still and quiet, his breath overheating Joe’s kneecap, then he pushed Joe’s hand off his body.
Joe hung his head. “Get some rest.”
***
Flix startled awake to the most gorgeous sight that had ever met his eyes. Joe’s face, all serious brown eyes and high cheekbones and sultry lips, loomed over him.
“Flix, hey buddy.” Joe smiled, and Flix smiled back. “I keep starting to doze off. Can you —”
“I’ll keep you company.” Flix tried to sit up but got yanked back by Marcus’s heavy weight beside him in the sleeping bag. Joe had put an anesthetic cream on his back last night, so the impact with the ground was dulled. Thank God. He’d been near tears almost constantly since Boggs had stroked that bladed glove down his back; the sharp throb of it had been worse than any physical pain he’d ever experienced. Now he felt only a low hum of discomfort. Joe had been wonderful, helping him, and now they were going to sit up together to keep watch.
“Actually, I need to get some rest,” Joe said.
Flix clamped his hand over his mouth so he didn’t blurt out, “I’ll sleep with you!” He took a few deep breaths and let go.
Joe stared at him like he’d lost his mind.
“I mean, um, how can I help you?”
“The sun’s going to set in an hour or two. Can you and Marcus keep watch? I’d ask Devin, but he could probably use as much time as possible with his eyes closed, let his vision clear.”
Disappointment streaked through Flix, but he set it aside. Joe was asking for his help. He could show him he was capable. He eyed the two long guns propped against the concrete wall of the underpass. “Sure. Can I have a weapon?”
Flix expected Joe to say no, but instead, Joe sidled up to Devin’s prone form and straddled his thigh. Even though Flix wanted the guy, he had to admit it was severely sexy to watch him on top of Devin. Joe withdrew a long, thick knife from a holster strapped to Devin’s thigh.
“Here. You can hold this, but be careful. Oh, and wear these.” Joe pulled a pair of vision shields out of his pocket. “Remember, Boggs will be looking for us in some way. Wake me if you see or hear anything. At the very least, get me up when the sun sets.”
Flix unzipped himself from the sleeping bag and took the knife. Joe laid on his back next to Devin and closed his eyes. Devin didn’t wake, but he scuttled closer to Joe, laid his head on Joe’s chest, and threw his arm and leg over Joe’s body. The intimacy made Flix ache.
As the only truly gay boy among the A runners at Flights of Fantasy, Flix had contented himself to pick out the most amazing guy there to fawn over, knowing it would never happen. Then Devin, that slab of brainless beefcake, came along, and Flix wasn’t the only gay boy anymore. Except, shock of shocks, Devin won the grand prize, the unattainable, the gorgeous and smart and dazzlingly sexy Joe. And Flix was left knowing that Joe had been perfectly attainable after all, just interested in someone else. Kind of made a guy bitter.
He shook his head and roused Marcus from their sleeping bag.
Marcus was fifteen minutes younger, and Flix had lorded it over him their entire lives. Nothing had come up yet that he couldn’t cajole Marcus into. Even now, when Marcus glared up at him and moaned about just a bit more sleep, he