"Is this what you really want?" Nina asked, her tone gentle.
Of course it wasn't what he wanted. What he wanted wasn't possible. Not anymore. A week had gone by since Hudson's world had come crashing down for the third time in his life. Thankfully, Seb was staying away from him, only stopping by the office once--while Hudson was out--to drop off the photo album Hudson had left at Julia's. It had taken everything Hudson had not to give in to his grief yet again when Nina asked him what it was. He'd lied to his dearest friend, unable to get into it at the time. He would tell her eventually. Right now everything was too raw, too... painful. But it was for the best. Dom was sweet, pleading Seb's case, despite knowing Seb would be cross with him if he found out. After the fourth day, Dom simply smiled sadly at Hudson and told him if he needed anything to call him.
"I'm moving on, Nina. I know I've said that before, but this time I mean it. My Therian half will simply have to stop being such a tosser and get on with it. Seb and I are over. For good. Perhaps if I finally move on as I intended to do years ago, Seb will too. He deserves to be happy." Every word was a fresh wound to his heart, but it was the only way. How much longer would they have gone on the way they were? Living off lingering glances, feathery touches, or the brush of a hand. Hudson couldn't go back to that slow death. Maybe he should nudge West in Seb's direction, and then Hudson would no longer have a choice in the matter.
"What about you, hon? You deserve to be happy too."
Hudson nodded. One day, if he was lucky, he'd find love again. "This will do for now." Who knew? Maybe Trent would surprise him. "I'm off, then." Hudson tried his best to be excited. Trent deserved a chance. Hudson kissed Nina's cheek and promised he'd tell her all about his date in the morning.
Traffic was awful, as usual, but he'd left work an hour early. He still had plenty of time to shower and figure out what to wear.
Once he faced his wardrobe, he started to feel nervous and a little nauseous. His inner wolf was not happy about this.
"Behave yourself," Hudson scolded, determined to have a good time tonight. It had been months since he'd so much as attempted going on a date, and even longer since he.... Hudson's cheeks burned. Thinking about sex was certainly not helping matters. Should he... be prepared? What would it say about him if he brought supplies on a first date? Still, better safe than sorry. THIRDS agents were tested regularly, and Trent would have undoubtedly been tested this quarter, the same as everyone else, but that hardly mattered without seeing the results.
"All right, I think that's enough of that. One fret at a time." He chose a pair of dark blue jeans, a brown leather belt, and a blue-black-and-white-checkered shirt, which he tucked into his waistband before neatly folding the sleeves to his elbows. His hair required a little more product than usual. It was probably time to cut his fringe. Perhaps then it would stop incessantly falling over his eyes. Should he wear his contacts? Sod it. He despised those things.
Standing before the mirror, he looked himself over. The outfit was casual but neat, accentuating his body in all the right places. A horn honked, and Hudson let out a slow, steady breath. He could do this. If he didn't, Seb might go on believing there was hope for them, and Hudson couldn't allow that. He should have done this sooner. If he hadn't been such a coward, they both might have been spared the heartache. He'd been so foolish
, kissing Seb, letting things go as far as they had at Julia's house. If he didn't do something, the memory would drive him out of his mind--Seb's hands on him, the feel of his hard body pressed against Hudson's....
"Bollocks." Hudson turned off the lights in his bedroom and quickly headed downstairs to the front door. He opened it, smiling brightly at Trent, who looked so handsome in his black turtleneck and slacks. So sophisticated.
"Hi, Trent."
"Hey." Trent raked his gaze over Hudson and let out a low whistle. "Wow, Doc, you look amazing."
Hudson waved a hand in dismissal. He grabbed his jacket and locked up after them before following Trent down to the street. Hudson stopped short.
"Is that your car?"
Trent turned the alarm off with a beep and opened the passenger-side door of the flashy, red convertible, a wide grin on his face.
"Yep. Are you impressed yet?"
Hudson smiled coyly. "Well, it's not a terrible start."
Trent laughed, closing the door after Hudson climbed in. It would seem Trent Carson was quite fond of the finer things. Having been surrounded by wealth all his life, they had never been important to Hudson.
Trent slipped in behind the wheel, and the engine roared to life. The tires squealed as Trent peeled away, and Hudson was thankful he'd thought to put on his seat belt before they'd taken off. He had no idea where they were going, and the butterflies in his stomach were out in full force.
"Thanks for saying yes," Trent said gently. "I wasn't sure you would. I know you're still, um...." He cleared his throat. "Heard maybe you still had a thing for Sebastian Hobbs."
Hudson shook his head. "That's over." He summoned up a bright smile. "Let's not talk about Seb. Tell me about yourself."
"What would you like to know?"
"Why Manhattan HQ?"
Trent smiled. "Well, if you're a THIRDS agent, it's kind of where you want to be, right? I mean, you guys have the best equipment, the biggest budgets, see the most action. I don't think a week goes by without one of your teams showing up on the news. You guys are treated like heroes."
That was certainly news to Hudson. "I believe it's a matter of perspective and how the press is feeling that day. I'm quite certain you heard about the incident with Agent Summers not long ago."
Trent frowned. "Yeah, I remember that. He did his job, saved those other civilians, and they wanted to paint him a Therian killer. Can't believe that agent was so stupid, giving intel to that reporter. Doesn't matter that they were sleeping together. They shouldn't have been waiting for Summers after he returned from taking that shot. The guy had already killed someone. He had several more hostages and was going off the deep end. What happened was messed-up, but we weren't the ones who put the gun in his hand and told him to take hostages."
"Yes, well, there are two sides to every story, but they're rarely reported. The truth is no longer enough. Scandal sells." Hudson shook his head sadly. "They perpetuate anger and hate. As if civility between Therians and Humans isn't strained enough. It's frightful, and the bigger the city, the more challenging it is. Therian crime has grown bolder, more lethal."
"Ain't that the truth. I remember when Therian perps used to wet themselves at the mention of the THIRDS. Now we're getting perps who think confronting us is some kind of show of how tough they are. Like if they can kick our asses, then it proves something. I don't know."