Free Unexpected Oasis by Cd Hussey Page B

Unlike at Merritec Village, we're limited to two choices: curried beef with rice, vegetables, pita and hummus, or a MRE. I choose the curried beef. Trey sits next to me at the folding plastic table. I wonder briefly how the flimsy chair can support his weight. At six-foot-four, he's got to weigh at least two-thirty. All muscle of course.
    He too has curried beef. Although his plate is packed with three times the food on mine. The man probably eats the equivalent amount of four teenage boys.
    "Somehow I pictured you as a MRE kind of guy."
    He makes a face. "Not if I can help it."
    Conrad told me we were operating on Ghost Town mode with a skeleton crew. If it wasn't painfully apparent in the empty office, it's excruciatingly painful in the nearly vacant dining hall. Meant to seat at least twenty, it's only us and two young Thai men—sitting far, far away.
    The huge number of empty chairs makes it feel like Trey is sitting in my lap.
    I try to focus on eating instead of his nearness. I have no idea how I'm going to get through the next few weeks without making an ass of myself. Or melting. With him so close, I swear my skin is twenty degrees warmer.
    I clear my throat.
    Trey glances at me in question.
    "Nothing," I say quickly, chastising myself for being unable to control my body. Next I'll be muttering unknowingly to myself.
    Luckily, Trey not only eats more than a teenage boy, he eats like one too. Completely focused on his plate, he finishes the mass of food before I'm two-thirds through my own.
    Pushing the empty plate away, he leans back, the chair groaning in straining protest. I half expect him to belch, but he merely stretches, the bottom of his shirt lifting in the process. I catch a flash of hard, toned abs with a trail of dark hair disappearing into his khakis.
    Every muscle from my belly button to my toes clenches and I snatch my gaze away, take a few more bites, and then also push my plate forward. I purposefully take a drink, trying to focus on watching the water as it flows toward my mouth. I can't help it though, and I sneak another peak toward Trey. He's still stretched out like a damn Tomcat, arms folded behind his head. This time, the hard etching of the muscles over his hipbones catch my eye, and I nearly choke on my water.
    With a cough, I set the glass down and wipe my mouth. I can barely make out Trey's face in my peripheral, but I swear he's grinning at me. Great. He knows he's sexy and he knows I know it.
    Once my napkin and utensils join my plate, one of the Thai men leaves his seat at the opposite end of the canister and comes over to retrieve the dishes. Trey says something to him in Thai—I assume it's "thank you"—the man nods and then disappears behind a partition into what must be the kitchen.
    I hear Trey's chair groan and then he's inches from me. "Want to dine and dash," he whispers in my ear. "I'll go first."
    I smile. The joke is exactly what I needed and my unease is squashed. "Just let me go to the bathroom first," I whisper back.
    He laughs and stands up, offering his hand to me once he's on his feet. I take it even though I'm fully capable of getting out of my chair unassisted. I blame the sudden rise of body heat on heartburn.
    Or it could be the flames that immediately catch my attention when we step outside. A bright orange glow in an otherwise pitch-black sky. "Oh my God! What's on fire?" I start toward them. I'm not sure what I'm going to do, but I need to check it out.
    Strong fingers wrap around my arm, stopping me in my tracks. I glance at Trey in question.
    "No worries. It's a bonfire."
    I glance toward the flames. Now that he mentions it, I can see how contained it is. I can also see a few men standing casually nearby. "Oh."
    "We can still check it out."
    Kaihan and his workers are the men standing around the fire. Trey greets them in their native tongue and with wild hands, they exclaim in surprise when they see him. Kaihan takes Trey's shoulders and kisses the air by his