TWO KIERAN

Kieran and Miles are sitting on a nondescript couch in a nondescript house at the end of a nondescript road.

Hendricks and Burke, the FBI agents they"d met after their adventures at the school over Christmas, are sitting across from them. They both have serious expressions on their faces, but neither of them looks terribly stressed. Kieran wishes he could say the same for himself.

He probably doesn"t look it, but he"s anxious to his core. He didn"t sleep at all last night, and he feels exhausted and snippy. Miles, on the other hand, looks incredibly put together. He"s started dressing edgier, really leaning into the rockstar look, and it gives him an air of cool nonchalance that Kieran admires. His fingers are decked with silver rings, his hair is pushed back from his face in an artfully messy way, and he has a leather jacket draped over the back of the couch next to him.

It"s a good look on him.

"We appreciate your cooperation," Hendricks says, bringing Kieran"s attention back to the situation at hand. "We understand how valuable your time is."

"Of course," Kieran says with a smile, doing his best to be diplomatic. "This is an easier time to meet than Christmas for everyone, I"m sure."

Burke"s smile goes strained for a second at the subtle dig, and Kieran immediately shifts slightly closer to Miles before he realizes what he"s doing. These guys are FBI, he doesn"t need to protect Miles from them. He ignores the confused glance Miles shoots him, keeping his eyes on the two men in front of them.

Miles has proved he can take care of himself. Kieran doesn"t need to go into protector mode over an FBI agent not liking a little bit of sass.

"Your testimonies in the case against Dr. Grace were incredibly helpful," Burke says, glancing back and forth between Miles and Kieran. "And we understand that going through such an event can be incredibly traumatic. However, due to your proven capabilities and partnership, the FBI is looking to extend an opportunity to the two of you."

Kieran and Miles glance at each other, confusion clear on both of their faces. What exactly is that supposed to mean?

Congrats, you caught a serial killer! Now you"re super secret spies for the FBI.

Hendricks cuts in before either of them has a chance to question, smiling disarmingly at them. Kieran finds his distaste for Burke spreading to Hendricks too.

"Well, really, we"d like to ask for your help," he clarifies.

"We"re looking to expose a media tycoon by the name of Desmond Blackwood," Burke continues, and Kieran stiffens in his seat, vaguely recognizing the name. "He"s under suspicion of sexually exploiting underage actresses and actors in return for career opportunities. It"s likely he has a large ring of people he works with."

Miles laughs nervously from beside Kieran, and when Kieran looks over, his eyes are wide and nervous, his hands balled into fists on his lap. He swallows hard, glancing anxiously between the two agents, completely ignoring Kieran.

"How does this have anything to do with us?" he asks, his voice shaky.

Kieran wants to reach out and comfort him, but Miles has made it very clear that he has no interest in Kieran, so he keeps his hands firmly where they are.

"The movie that Kieran is going to be starring shortly is being filmed on the island that Blackwood owns," Hendricks says. "We need the two of you to go undercover while acting in the film and gather evidence against him."

Kieran shakes his head immediately, bitter fear rising in the back of his throat just at the thought. He"s already watched Miles be put in danger more times than he wants to remember. He won"t do it again.

"Miles isn"t an actor."

Kieran"s voice is a bit unsteady, and that excuse probably won"t hold up for long, but he hopes it"ll give him time to think of a better reason why Miles shouldn"t be involved. Miles glances over at Kieran, looking at him curiously, but directs his attention to the agents once again.

"Kieran"s right," Miles says, brow furrowed. "I"m barely even getting my start as a musician. Why me?"

Hendricks sighs sympathetically at that, reaching into a bag at his feet and pulling out a file. He opens the file and spreads the pictures inside of it across the table. They"re headshots of actors and actresses, some who Kieran vaguely recognizes, some he"s never seen before. They all look incredibly similar. They all have flowing, golden brown hair, hazel eyes, and sharp jawlines, but their features are soft and welcoming.

They all look like Miles.

Kieran gulps uncomfortably as he makes the connection, shaking his head once again. Miles goes unnaturally still at his side as he comes to the same conclusion.

"These are all previous victims of Blackwood"s," Hendricks says softly. "You"re unfortunately his type, Miles."

"The media attention you"ve gotten in the aftermath of Dr. Grace"s arrest has made you quite a hot topic, Mr. Rivera," Burke presses. "Add in the rumors of a relationship between you and Mr. Callahan, and, well…people are talking. They like your mystique. You"re still an unknown. That gives us an advantage here."

Kieran glares at Burke as he talks, continuing to shake his head. He doesn"t like a single thing about this. Miles has been in more than his fair share of dangerous situations, and Kieran isn"t about to drag him into another one. Sure, Miles was most of the reason they made it out last time, but this is totally different.

"What exactly is the plan here?" Kieran asks, unimpressed, folding his arms over his chest and leaning back against the couch.

Burke grins at him, probably intending to look friendly as he mirrors Kieran"s body language, but Kieran almost rolls his eyes at the obvious tactic.

"Well, you"re rocketing up to superstardom, and we know Blackwood likes to surround himself with the best and brightest. You"re his type, too, in a way," Burke says with a shrug. "It"s not unreasonable to think you could get an invite to his mansion while you"re on the island, especially with Miles on your arm."

And that"s more than enough to properly raise Kieran"s hackles. He sneers at Burke as the agent talks, biting his tongue to keep himself from saying something stupid.

He doesn"t like the idea for himself or Miles. It"s harder nowadays, but Kieran likes to keep his private life as private as he can. Continuing to be at the center of massive criminal investigations isn"t really a great way to do that.

But more importantly, he has no interest in putting Miles in that kind of danger. They didn"t know what they were getting into with Dr. Grace, but he won"t just let Miles walk into a lion"s den.

"It"s not exactly like I know the guy," Kieran drawls, looking at both agents, incredibly nonchalant. "I"ve met him maybe twice at red carpets. We don"t really have the kind of relationship where I"d get an invite to snoop around his house."

Miles nudges Kieran sharply with his elbow, but Kieran ignores him, continuing his staring match with Burke. Burke sighs and leans in, resting his elbows on his knees.

"Look, kid, this is the only time this year we have any actual confirmation Blackwood will be on the island." Burke glances between the two of them, clearly appealing to Miles" sway over Kieran. Is he that obvious? "We can"t keep letting him hurt people because you"re too scared to step up."

Kieran bares his teeth in what can only barely be called a smile, leaning in as well.

"So go do it yourself and don"t put civilians in danger, Special Agent Burke."

Kieran doesn"t care about taking on that risk himself—hell, he"ll already be on the island, it would make sense for him to be part of this. But bringing Miles into it is completely out of the question. There"s no reason for him to get hurt just because he"s convenient.

"Now, let"s not get too worked up here," Hendricks says with a laugh, the tension in the room fading slightly as Burke finally breaks eye contact with Kieran. "We"re just asking you to try to run into Blackwood a few times, strike up a conversation. Nothing crazy."

Kieran scoffs at that statement, earning him another sharp elbow to the ribs from Miles. He obediently slumps back in his seat, glancing over at Miles apologetically and accepting the sharp warning look he gets in return. Taking a deep breath, he nods, making eye contact with Hendricks again.

He"ll do his best to keep his frustration in check.

"Miles is his type, and you"re the type he wants around him. Blackwood isn"t a patient man. Just the two of you being there will likely be enough to get you through the doors."

Kieran opens his mouth to argue, but before he can say anything, Miles" hand shifts to squeeze over his thigh, effectively shutting him up. He stares down at long fingers, glittering silver rings sitting above Miles" knuckles, and he forgets everything he wanted to say.

"I think Kieran"s concern is what happens after we get through the doors," Miles says.

Burke reaches into a bag at his own feet just as Kieran manages to tear his attention off the heat of Miles" hand still resting on his leg. He pulls out two cases, sliding them across the table toward Miles and Kieran.

"We"ll have surveillance devices on you any time you"re with Blackwood," he says, nodding at the cases. "They"ll capture video and audio, as well as monitor your vitals. We can"t get in ourselves due to Blackwood"s background checks, but we"ll be on a nearby island monitoring you the whole time. You"ll never be without protection."

Kieran leans forward, flipping the case open reluctantly, still not liking the idea. The case houses a simple black watch, a belt buckle, and a tie pin. He pulls the pin out and looks at it from every angle, but can"t find any way it could be a surveillance device.

That"s probably a good thing, actually.

"I"ll do it," Miles says, looking over Kieran"s shoulders at the contents of the case.

Kieran drops the tie pin, ignoring the way it clatters against the coffee table, and stares at Miles in shock. Miles just shrugs at him, not offering anything in the way of explanation, before turning his attention back to Hendricks.

"But I"m still not an actor," he points out. "How am I supposed to land a role in such a huge project?"

Kieran actually breathes a sigh of relief at that. There"s no way he could ask to bring Miles onboard without that seeming hugely out of character, and any outside interference would be even more suspicious. Besides, the movie was already fully cast, from what Kieran knew.

"That"s already taken care of," Hendricks answers, smiling, and Kieran"s hope plummets like a lead balloon. "The studio has been keeping a close eye on fan reactions to the rumors about the two of you, and someone we employ managed to convince both the studio head and the director that bringing you on for this project would be a good idea."

Kieran sighs, rubbing a hand down his face in annoyance. Apparently the FBI really does have industry plants. Ridiculous.

"Speaking of," Burke cuts in.

Kieran immediately has to bite back a sigh, not liking the sound of Burke"s voice before he even says anything to actually piss Kieran off.

"This mission is a lot more important than whatever it is the two of you have going on," he says, suddenly very serious. "If you agree to this, you"re agreeing to keep your own feelings out of the picture. We need you both dedicated to confidentiality and staying on task."

A muscle ticks in Kieran"s jaw, and he tries to tell himself it"s just because he"s insulted that Burke apparently doubts his acting skills. He knows the tension in his shoulders isn"t from a slight toward his abilities, though.

It has nothing to do with that, and everything to do with the way Miles pulls his hand away from Kieran"s thigh, huffing out a carefree laugh.

"That"s not an issue at all," Miles assures them.

Miles looks over at Kieran then, grinning, and Kieran suddenly thinks maybe Burke wouldn"t be wrong to doubt his acting abilities. It takes him just a second too long to copy Miles" smile, to pretend like he"s fine with this, with all of it.

But he has to be. He has to be fine with Miles going along with this stupid mission they"ve been tasked with, and he has to be fine with Miles not wanting anything to do with him. He swallows down the hurt and nods in agreement.

"We can manage that, no problem," he says.

The words sound hollow, even to him.

At least this is undeniable proof that he"s not at all Miles" type. It should be enough of a reason for him to finally get over Miles. How many times does he have to get rejected by the same guy before he"ll stop yearning, before he"ll stop thinking he maybe has a chance? It"s pathetic, and he knows it.

He does his best to refocus his thoughts on the actual task at hand rather than his aching heart as Miles asks questions about the logistics of everything.

Kieran only manages to half listen, stuck in his head, worries circling in his mind. He doesn"t like anything about this. The idea of watching Miles seduce someone sucks plenty on its own, but the thought of Miles being around someone who apparently does such awful things makes Kieran sick to his stomach. He hoped he"d never have to see Miles in danger again, that they could go their separate ways and he could resign himself to probably forever having a puppy crush on his sister"s best friend. He"s seen Miles hurt more times than he wants to think about, but it looks like Miles is firmly set on doing this.

He"s always been too generous.

But if Miles is going through with it, so is Kieran. He may not be able to change Miles" mind, but the least he can do is not let Miles go through it alone. He"ll be there to keep Miles safe, just like last time.

He really hopes it doesn"t end up anything like last time.