“I can’t lose him. I can’t lose Gage. We have to save him. He cannotdie.”
“You of all people understand there is only life afterlife.”
“The longer Gage lives in his body, the less time he has to get his hands dirty with the Fems. And in the event you were being literal—because death sucks if you haven’t noticed—it hurts to be separated. It hurts that nothing is the same—even if we do get to see him again. Nothing ever gets to be normal again.” I fall into the seat next to him as I try to envision that dismal version of thefuture.
His brows hike into his forehead as if I’ve amused him on some level. “Which version of normal is it that you’re looking topreserve?”
Skyla blinks onto my lap, naked as the day she was born and moaning, “Are we done with our run?” She looks up at me with sleepy eyes as my arms swoop over her body to cradle her, my fingers drinking in the feel of her bare, heatedflesh.
“Yes, we’redone.”
“Oh, that’s right.” She glances over to Dudley and offers a weak wave. “I took a nap. It washeaven.”
My gaze dips down to her oversized nipples, her tits heavy and weighted with milk, and my heat index spikes without meaningto.
“I’d better get you home.” I glare at Dudley a moment. “Dressed and in bed,please.”
He glares right back before offering the hint of a crooked grin. “As youwish.”
The room disperses as Skyla and I float through time and space. A thick darkness envelops me. The air is heavy and moist as something settles over my head, and I’m quick to snap it off—Skyla’ssweatpants.
Both Skyla and I have landed back in her bed, Skyla stark naked and me with her sweatshirt twisted around mylegs.
“You’re not funny, Dudley,” I whisper as Gage sits up next to me and frowns over at his deliriously exhausted, yet decidedly nakedwife.
He offers up a grunt. “A good time was had by all, Iassume.”
“Something like that.” I roll Skyla onto the mattress and blow a kiss to each of the boys before turning back to Gage. “I just want you to know that I have yourback.”
He lifts a brow as he sweeps his gaze over his wife’s luscious curves. “I can see you have something going on behind my backtoo.”
It’s not worth getting into. Not with both Gage and Skyla running on empty. “We’lltalk.”
“Whatever, dude.” Gage presses his head against the pillow and closes those sleepy lids ofhis.
No sooner do I get on the other side of the door than I hear the boys roaring back to life with their hacking cries. Both Skyla and Gage moan inunison.
And that’s when I realize I’m powerless to help Gage with his life in any realcapacity.
* * *
January dragsits tired feet through Paragon’s muddy waters and ends with as much lackluster enthusiasm as it began—at least when it comes to the customer base at the bowling alley. So I’ve summoned together what little employees I have and filled them in on the fact I’ll be letting them go in the next few weeks for a remodel that just might span the length of Nathan’s and Barron’s childhood. Nobody seems too surprised by the news. In fact, the girls who work the kitchen head back to their post as if I’ve just filled them in on a new menu item that they couldn’t care lessabout.
“Cool beans.” Brielle winks as she takes a sip of her soda. Bree hasn’t taken a formal check from me in months, but still shows up to work the odd shift when I need her. In fact, I called in several people—Gage and Skyla, who in turn brought the boys out to the bowling alley for the very first time. Ellis and Giselle, Drake and Ethan, Emily, Liam, Natalie Coleman, Michelle, and Lexy all stare back at me, flabbergasted, as if I’ve just announced the fact I’m taking a jackhammer to the entire damn island. Laken and Coop walk in late, but Gage leans over and whispers my plans of deconstruction and then hopefully construction. The only person who isn’t shocked as hell is Ellis. Ellis Harrison, my new partner in corporate crime, stands staunchly by my side with an ear-to-eargrin.
“Dude, we are going to kill it.” He slaps the back of his hand into his right palm. “Tell them about the gym. Tell them about the hookahparlor.”
“No hookah parlor,” I say under mybreath.
Skyla gags for a moment, the first person even remotely interested in speaking out. “Why haven’t you discussed this with any of us? And by any of us, I mean me.” She holds her hands over the ears of the twin in her arms as if attempting to shelter him from my stupidity.Good luck with that, I want to tell her. I’m teaming up with Ellis. That alone speaks volumes about a lot of things going on in my life rightnow.
Lexy glares over at Skyla as if she could deck her. “He’s discussing things right now in the event your blonde highness hasn’t noticed.” Lex turns her full attention back to me, batting her lashes in yet another fruitless, flirtatiousendeavor.
But as much as Lexy wants to impress me, she’s just taken my affections down a very dark corridor. “You mayneverdisparage my ex-wife in my establishmentagain.”
The room clots up with an uncomfortable silence. I’m not sure anyone knows what to do with the fact I’ve just scolded Lexy as if she were a child, and I’m too busy trying to assess if I’m actually sorry to apologize. I’m not so sure it endsthere.
“Yes, sir, Logan Oliver.” Lexy’s eyes grow wild with what looks to be admiration. If telling her off was meant to send her packing, it backfired. Lexy swoons toward me as if I’ve just cemented myself in her tiny demented heart. Just another thing that exemplifies the fact I can’t get a thing right if I try. “What can we do to help? You need a demo crew? We’re there. You need emotional support sitting by a nice warm fire? I’m there. Anything and everything. Our time, our bodies, our worlds are at yourfeet.”
