Hours later Brayden was still contemplating the idea of Joe and Lillian. Laying on his bed - or a ship, the way the world was swaying around him, he stared at his ceiling. His thoughts were far from pure or righteous. What had it felt like to take her virginity? What did she sound like when it happened? Was Joe any good in bed?

Brayden contemplated for a while. Joe was pretty attractive, Brayden guessed, his dark skin was like chocolate, and his teeth were straight and white. Did he perpetuate any particular stereotypes? Brayden glared at his ceiling. Would he measure up, literally? Brayden sighed and turned over, immediately regretting it. Flopping onto his back again he glared harder at his ceiling, willing it to stop spinning.

Giving up on the whole practice Brayden closed his eyes, rocking on the boat that was supposedly his stationary bed. So what if Joe did? She was with James now, and he didn’t give off the energy that he did any kind of measuring up. Other than the fact that Lillian took his virginity and trained him like a dog to her wants and needs, he didn’t see James packing anything else.

What about Luke? His brained paused, what was their relationship? He was sure they’d done some fooling around, considering how Luke winked and poked at her. God did she sleep with all of them at one time or another? No, that wasn’t reasonable. Nathan was too kind, and everyone else just seemed to be pining after her from afar.

Brayden glared at the back of his eyelids this time and groaned. No wonder the lot of them were so understanding, they’d all loved her at some point, and wanted what was best for her, which maybe at one point had been James. Lillian was outgrowing him now, needing someone who would grow with her, instead of change into a new kind of creature altogether.

Brayden felt guilty for the first time about the whole thing. James had changed since joining the force. He cared less and less or at least acted like he cared less about Lillian and their time. Before that he really had put energy and love into that relationship. But Brayden had watched him put his career before her, time and time again in the last few years. He had watched as James stop doing the things that had Lillian blushing and bubbling for him at the beginning. James thought that once he got the girl he didn’t have to keep trying. Brayden felt sympathy for him. Maybe James wasn’t Lillians first attempt at love, but she was his, and he was doing it all wrong. He was going to lose her.

“Poor guy.” Brayden muttered out loud, and let the sea take him away.

When he awoke in the morning, his head was still pounding and spun dangerously. He groaned earnestly from his bed begging his eyes to stay closed. After several minutes, or hours of battling with himself he finally rolled into a sitting position on the edge of his bed. His head in his hands he groaned again, reaching for the water he’d so beautifully poured himself in his drunken stupor the night before. Remnants of the temporary tattoo spotted his hands and arm, and probably his face too. He’d at least got all the silver and white gunk out of his hair and eyebrows in the shower.

A pitiful sob broke through his lips as he stood. Gathering his balance using his arms as he swayed, he found his way into the kitchen. When he reached into the fridge for the first morsal of food he could find, he glanced the gold ring still gracing his finger. He assumed his alter, drunken, ego had left it on and moved on to find what he was looking for. A fruit cup of melon in hand, he stumbled back into his room. TV on, scarfing down the fruit, he laid in bed all day, reliving all his stolen moments with Lillian again and again.