DESIRE ME IF YOU CAN [EN] - Chapter 24

“Okay, ready? One, two.”

Wilkins double-checked before giving the signal. Lined up on either side, colleagues chanted Dane and Grayson's names, cheering enthusiastically. Dane leaned forward, ready to sprint. Wilkins looked between the two, then shouted with a tense face.

“Three!”

“Wooooo!”

“Dane, Dane! Our hope! Our hero!”

“Grayson, baby!”

“Run, run! Grayson, you have to win!”

“Dane, you're our pride!”

With the start signal, intense cheers poured out as the two pushed off the ground, dashing forward. From below the mountain, the cheering colleagues watched them. Even from a distance, they could spot the two figures, except when they entered the newly added course.

That section wound around the mountain, dipping into a deep slope. Colleagues watching from below wouldn't see Dane or Grayson until they re-emerged on the opposite side. That was exactly where Dane planned to earn his pay.

The flat ground ended quickly, replaced by an uphill path. This replaced the usual stair-climbing stage of the test; they had to drag fire hoses halfway up the mountain. Even for a low mountain, the incline was steep. Carrying heavy hoses drained stamina significantly from the start. Training on flat ground meant filled hoses; using the terrain allowed for empty ones—a small mercy.

After skillfully dragging the hose up, they reached the equipment point. Now, they had to drop the hose and carry firefighting gear. The moment the target came into view, Dane practically threw down the hose, grabbing the prepared equipment. Holding a chainsaw in each hand, he ran to a tree about 100 meters away, circled it, and returned to the starting point. Repeating this twice allowed him to move to the next course. Of course, dropping a saw meant disqualification. Since they were visible from below, not even a minor mistake was allowed.

Damn it, why am I suffering like this...

Feeling sweat already soaking his back, Dane cursed under his breath. While circling the tree, he inevitably crossed paths with Grayson. His guard went up instantly. Unexpectedly, Grayson passed him expressionlessly, circling the tree without incident. Nearly losing the lead in that momentary lapse, Dane immediately sped up, leaving him behind.

Next, instead of climbing a ladder, Dane grabbed a hanging rope, scaling a rock face. He thought he heard faint shouts from his colleagues below, but they sounded distant, like buzzing insects. As soon as the rope climb ended, he grabbed a tree trunk, crossing a small stream.

The uphill path continued. Moving mechanically, Dane ran without pause until he reached the spot he had in mind. After finishing a couple more courses and winding around the mountain onto the slope, Dane realized this was the place he had been waiting for.

The faint cheers vanished completely. In the silence, he quickly looked back. Grayson hadn't appeared yet. Gasping for breath, Dane scanned his surroundings. Clearly substituted for the search component of the test, the area lacked a proper path, offering poor footing. He found a relatively flat spot, planting his feet to steady himself. Two and a half punches oughta cover 38 bucks and 25 cents.

Alright, come on.

Standing silently with his ears pricked, he heard a faint rustling sound. Grayson's footsteps. Approaching at tremendous speed, the figure seemed ready to materialize before him any second. Dane held his breath, waiting for the timing. One, two. And finally.

Grayson, rounding the shallow slope, stopped short. At the end of his gaze stood Dane. Watching Grayson's long eyes narrow, Dane tilted his head.

“Hey, beautiful.”

His swaggering tone dripped with sarcasm. Grayson stared at Dane without a word.

4

For a while, the two simply stared at each other in silence. To be precise, Grayson glared while Dane met his gaze with indifference. Grayson spoke first.

“Waiting for me like this! Were you worried? As expected of a firefighter, our hero! How touching...”

“You need a beating.”

Listening to nonsense wasn't part of the contract, so Dane cut him off ruthlessly. As Dane gripped one trapezius muscle, rotating his arm and cracking his neck from side to side to warm up, Grayson's eyes widened.

“A beating? Me? You mean you're going to hit me? Suddenly? Why?”

The man was too talkative. For Dane, who wasn't usually chatty, he was talking his ear off.

“I got a request.”

“A request?”

“Yeah.”

Releasing his trapezius, he spoke.

“Let's wrap this up with just 38 bucks and 25 cents' worth of hits.”

Grayson grimaced. One might think he was bewildered by the situation, but that would apply only to a normal person.

“38 bucks? That's all it costs to hit me?”

He asked in disbelief, clutching his forehead. He seemed more shocked by the price than the fact he was about to be hit.

As the notorious playboy of the Miller family, countless people had offered money to do ‘something’ to him. Sometimes that ‘something’ was love or seduction, but often enough, it was a request for injury or murder. Of course, it was karma for the life he led. The numerous ‘fleeting flings’ he had discarded were always sharpening their blades of revenge.

That was Grayson's business, however; Dane had zero interest in such things. Assuming he was shocked by the paltry sum of 38 dollars because he was filthy rich, Dane found it understandable. He accepted the reaction easily, nodding with his usual indifferent expression.

“Yeah, I don't take counter-requests. Bad for credibility.”

“Ah, that would be trouble. Credibility is very important. It's just...”

Waving his hand dramatically as if it were absurd, Grayson sighed in disappointment.

“It's too cheap. Among the guys who came to hit me for money, you're the cheapest. Most wouldn't dare for any amount, fearing the Miller law firm. Should have asked for more. Or is your commission rate just that low? You come cheap.”

He was dragging out the insult about being cheap, but Dane didn't fall for the provocation. Sweeping back his hair indifferently, he replied.

“Don't be surprised. Just means that's all you're worth. If you want more, try raising your own value.”

Looking Grayson up and down once, Dane added.

“Try hard enough, maybe you'll hit 40 bucks.”

“Hmm.”

Blinking, Grayson soon wore a strange smile.

“Not bad.”

Though unpleasant, this man had an exceptional talent for getting on people's nerves. If Dane cared about others as much as the average person, Grayson's words just now might have offended him. Dane, however, possessed a natural talent for ignoring words from people irrelevant to him. The idea that anything Grayson Miller said could offend him was laughable.

When Dane didn't react as expected, Grayson changed the subject. Moving his gaze to Dane's hand, he asked.

“Is that it? The tool for the kiss?”

He has a talent for being disgusting, too. Adding another item to his mental evaluation of the man, Dane spoke.

“If that makes it hurt less, sure. Let's call it a deep kiss.”

“Nice. A deep kiss. I like it.”

Grayson clapped as if he had made a great discovery. Dane was starting to get tired of conversing with this lunatic. He'd wasted too many words on someone who clearly wasn't sane. Wasting no more time, he threw a punch. He had given enough warnings and more than enough time for Grayson to flee.

A loud crack echoed through the quiet forest.