The Final Line by Kendall McKenna

rum, no less. Corey paid for his own drink since Sean’s was part of his arrangement for providing entertainment.
    “You’re a cheap date,” he muttered before he could stop himself.
    Sean snorted into his drink. “I’m easy, too.”
    “Not for me, you’re not.” Corey couldn’t make himself look at Sean.
    They were silent for several interminable moments before Sean leaned in and said quietly, “Do you even know how fucking hot you look, tonight? I’m getting hard just looking at you.”
    Corey grinned, heat pooling in his belly and his cock pushing steadily against his fly. Finally, he met Sean’s eyes. “I clean up pretty good for a grunt, huh?”
    “I knew last night you cleaned up well,” Sean replied. “But this is something else.” He traced a finger over the edge of the tattoo on Corey’s arm. “I want to take that shirt off of you and get a good look at your ink. I probably couldn’t stop, though, and I’d end up running my tongue over the one on your chest.” Sean stared blatantly at Corey’s chest where his shirt stood open to reveal part of the Marine Corps logo.
    “Are you good with your tongue?” Corey asked, blatantly staring at Sean’s pouty mouth. He wondered if they could skip the hand jobs and just have Sean wrap those sinful looking lips around his dick.
    Sean gave a husky laugh, his eyes sparkling. “I really like this side of you.”
    Before Corey could escalate their banter, someone appeared on Sean’s other side and threw an arm around his neck. For a fleeting moment, annoyance bordering on anger colored Sean’s expression. By the time he turned to greet the newcomer, Sean’s face had settled into a polite mask.
    Corey let himself be introduced to the interloper. He even shook the guy’s hand. He didn’t care who the guy was, though. He knew he didn’t have a right to his anger. Sean was working, and interacting with the crowd was part of that.
    “Looks like the crowd is getting restless,” Sean said, taking a long pull on his drink.
    “You’d better get to work, then,” Corey replied. As much as he’d like Sean to himself, the man had a job to do and Corey was going to get the hell out of the way and let him do it.
    “Is going to breakfast after this still out of the question?” asked Sean.
    Corey stared at Sean while he contemplated his options. His desire for alone time with Sean won out over his desire for a peaceful sleep. “No. I’ve reconsidered. Let’s see how we both feel when the time comes.”
    Sean’s smile showed off his perfect teeth. His eyes seemed lit by genuine happiness. “I gotta go, but I’ll be back.”
    “I’m counting on it.” Corey smirked as he watched Sean saunter over to a table filled with people.
    Linda appeared across the bar from Corey. She rested her elbows on the counter, leaned in and smiled at him.
    “What?” Corey asked, uncomfortable under her scrutiny.
    “The two of you,” she answered frankly. “It’s just fun to watch.”
    Corey’s stomach lurched. He glanced around the bar to see if anyone was paying Sean or him too much of the wrong kind of attention. “Are we obvious?”
    “Not at all,” Linda said dismissively. “I only notice because I know Sean. I don’t think his fan base would have a problem with it, but it’s good for his image to cultivate that air of availability. To the men and the women.”
    “How available is he?” Corey hated that he wanted to know.
    “To them?” she inclined her head toward the rapidly filling bar. “Not at all. You’re completely separate from all of this, though. I’ve always wondered what kind of taste he has in men. I have to say I’m a little disappointed you play for his team.”
    Corey flushed and hid behind his beer bottle.
    Linda rested her chin on one palm. “Do you even know what you look like?” she asked, eyes narrowed.
    Corey shrugged. He knew he had a well muscled body, but so did a lot of other Marines. It kind of went with the job, so Corey