His mama stood in the doorway of the kitchen with her hands on her hips. “It wouldn’t be a big deal if someone hadn’t ordered so much food.”
Nix groaned. “Mom! I was guesstimating.”
She harrumphed. “Next time, leave the ordering to me. I've been doing this for years. I know how much my boys eat.”
“But what about Evan and Vin? Do you know how much they eat?” Nix teased.
“I do now,” their mom replied with a smirk.
Nix rolled his eyes. “Okay, Mom. You can order the food next time.”
Laying his head back against Vin’s chest, Aries watched his family. Gem was looking at his phone more than Aries had ever seen before. Aries hadn’t thought much about Nix teasing their oldest brother, but something was definitely up with him.
Maybe Gem has started to see someone?
It couldn’t be a teammate. That was one rule that Gem had put into place for himself and tried to enforce with both Aries and Nix as well. Aries might have been the first one to break that rule, but Nix never followed it. Aries couldn’t help that he’d fallen in love with his Daddy. Vin was his person.
Nix and Evan falling for each other wasn’t really a surprise. Nix had zeroed in on Evan from the beginning. Aries knew his brother. When Nix wanted something, he put all his heart into it. Evan hadn’t stood a chance.
But Aries couldn’t see Gem breaking his own rule.
Even though he was the social one of the triplets, Gem’s dating history was spotty at best. Gem always told Aries that he had enough to worry about watching over him and Nix. Aries had never believed Gem’s words. He also didn’t think it was his business. It might be because Gem was extra kinky.
And yes, Aries was fully aware of Gem’s activities in the clubs and with subs. He might not have ever sought out a kinky relationship before Vin, but Aries wasn’t as innocent as everyone thought. He knew how to use the internet. Duh!
If Gem did find someone, it would have to be a sub.
Aries could see why he wasn’t ready to share that yet.
Nix was still moaning about eating too much as Evan babied him.
That was a dynamic that Aries couldn’t help but be curious about.
Nix had been extremely interested in going to the clubs with Gem so he could experience everything. Nix loved trying new things. Aries had seen a substantial change in his brother during this short holiday.
Aries had always followed along with Nix’s crazy ideas because he knew that Nix would never do anything to cause him harm. Okay, except for that one time in Hawaii when they fell off the cliff. Usually Nix just wanted Aries to be happy and have fun.
These last few days had shown Aries a different side of Nix. He was still fun but maybe less reckless. He wasn’t coming up with crazy schemes just for the hell of it. Evan seemed to be able to allow Nix to be himself and still be super excited about everything.
Aries had been nervous about how Nix and Evan’s relationship would affect his brother’s career.
There was no way that Evan would allow anything bad to happen to Nix or his career. Aries knew that as much as he knew that Vin loved him. Evan and Nix just worked together.
His mom rejoined them with a smile on her face.
“Thank you, boys, for making this a wonderful holiday,” she said as she sat down next to their dad. “I’m so happy to have spent this day with you.”
“I wish it could have been for longer,” Aries said. He was glad to have Vin. That didn’t mean that Aries didn’t miss his family.
“Once we get back, the games are going to be stacked,” Gem said. “We’ll have four to five games a week.”
“We only play each of you one more time before playoffs too,” Nix said.
Playoffs started in March. Aries was sure that the Vegas Vikings would be in the running for the Iron Cup this year. They were currently sitting at the top of their division. There was a good chance that Nix and Evan would also make the playoffs, since they were second in their own division. The only question would be if Gem and his Boston Beans were able to pull off an upset. They were in the middle of their division but had plenty of time to bring their stats up.
“Hawaii!” Aries announced loudly.
Nix snorted. “Really?”
