Tough Love

Chapter Fifty-Eight

Chapter Fifty-Eight

Eli

I can't believe how amazing Dani is right now. I wasn't sure how she'd react at the shooting range, but she's just thrown me for a loop again. Apart from the slight panic with me standing behind her and the laughing incident she was totally amazing. Her aim isn't half bad for a beginner as well. Her attitude seems to be changing slowly as well. She's opening up and relaxing a little bit more, which I am so thankful for. I feel bad that I've just got to drop Dani and run, but I have to meet up with Arrow and Ash at my house in 30 minutes. Apparently Ash is making dinner, so I don't know how that's going to turn out.

I step into my apartment and check my mail before going around and opening the curtains. I used to love this apartment, but it's feeling less like home every day. I consider Dani's more like home now, which is a very strange feeling. As I'm just clearing up some of my stuff, there's a knock on the door and then Ash and Arrow just waltz in. We greet each other and Ash says, “I'm just going to set the food out. You got any beers?”

“Yeah, in the refrigerator.”

I hear Ash chuckle and say, “Yeah, that's like the only thing you have in here. Well, besides a moldy... is that a burrito? I can't even tell anymore...”

Arrow laughs and goes to investigate the contents of my kitchen. I didn't realize it was so interesting. Ash knows exactly why it's so bare in there; I'm never here anymore. They appear at my side and Arrow looks me up and down before commenting, “Well, you haven't lost loads of weight, so you're definitely eating. Maybe it's just not here, huh? Would this have anything to do with this Dani I heard talking the other day?”

Ash bursts out laughing and exclaims, “It has everything to do with her!”

I fight the blush that I know wants to creep onto my face. Thankfully, my training helps to keep that at bay.

I mutter, “Whatever. Can we just eat and get down to business?”

“What? You don't even want to catch up, LT? I haven't seen you in what, 8 or 9 months and you don't even want to check in? Dude, that's cold.”

“No, he just doesn't want to talk about Dani. Arrow, man, the dude is gone, I tell you.”

They both laugh at my expense and I should have known it would go down like this. I shouldn't really be surprised and I shouldn't really be annoyed. These two guys are pretty much my other brothers, of course they're going to tease me, but that's their way of showing they care.

I sigh, “She's one of our analysts. She's the one that's in trouble. We've become very good friends, and I'm just trying to protect her.”

Arrow wiggles his eyebrows suggestively, so I quickly say, “It's not like that, man. She's special. Don't even go there about her.”

Arrow turns to Ash, frowns and then says, “Scott, you're right. He's completely gone. This is a very different LT standing in front of me...”

“Yeah, he got old...”

The two of them burst out laughing; they're such children sometimes. Ash is only a couple months younger than me and Arrow is a couple years younger, 32 years old if I remember correctly.

“Maybe the pair of you should trying growing up at some point, huh? You're both getting on a bit, you can't stay young forever...”

I shouldn't have said that because they both start singing, “Forever young.... I wanna be forever young....”