“Nah, settling in to a new place always takes me a day.”
The first night of sleeping somewhere new was always challenging for Red, especially if he woke up early. Not recognizing his surroundings in the dark used to trigger his PTSD, but now, thanks to therapy and Laz, when Red woke up in the middle of the night, it took him a moment, but he was okay. By the second night, he was usually fine.
“Laz asleep?” Colton asked, getting the milk out of the most enormous fridge Ace had ever seen. They could probably fit a whole cow in there.
Red chuckled. “He’s adorable. Fell asleep loading photos onto his laptop.”
“Good thing cameras are digital now. Can you imagine the amount of film he’d have gone through?”
Colton snickered. “Wow. Thanks for making me feel old.”
“Laz said film photography is getting popular again,” Red said, sipping his tea. “Not that he plans on switching over. He takes way too many pictures for that. But he might play around some with film.” He took another sip of his tea. “Do you think Clara would let me assess the Ice Castle tomorrow? If we can see the damage, I can get a plan together with Lucky and Mason for the repairs.”
“I’m sure she’d be okay with it,” Colton replied. “I have her number, so I’ll call her in the morning, maybe meet her for coffee. Strange that we haven’t seen the mayor around.”
“Speaking of the mayor,” Red said, sounding concerned. “Does anyone know why Leo is so hung up on this guy? It can’t be the whole Santa thing.”
“I don’t know.” Ace slid onto one of the chairs at the counter. “He does keep calling the guy Santa.”
Colton finished constructing Ace’s hot cocoa—including a mountain of whipped cream and marshmallows drizzled with chocolate syrup—and placed the mug in front of him. “This is Leo we’re talking about. I’m sure there’s a very logical explanation. He’ll tell us when he’s ready.”
Ace had no doubt. His curiosity was piqued, though. Leo was logical about everything. Why was he interested in Santa? And why hadn’t he come to one of them to explain why? None of this was like him. Maybe he’d talk to Fitz. The two of them were so close, it was sweet.
Come to think of it, Leo was the only person Fitz was ever tight-lipped about. Hm.
“Uh-oh,” Red gave Colton a look. “He’s got his thinking face on.”
“Hey!” Ace plucked one of his marshmallows off his whipped cream and chucked it at Red. It bounced off his arm and plopped to the floor. “Damn you and your ridiculously huge biceps.”
Red chuckled and headed for the door with his tea. “Goodnight.”
They said their goodnights, and Ace sipped his hot cocoa, his eyes on Colton, who leaned against the counter, arms folded over his chest. He was lost in thought. Most likely thinking about tomorrow and putting together a to-do list. His husband loved lists.
“You mind if I explore while you meet with Clara tomorrow?”
Colton snapped out of it and blinked at him. “Of course not.” An idea seemed to strike him. “We need a Christmas tree. Maybe you can find a nine- or ten-foot one? Fitz, Laz, Gio, and Leo can help.”
Ace almost choked on his cocoa. “I’m sorry, what?”
“There’s plenty of space in the living room in front of the main window. I made sure before booking the cabin.”
“No, I mean, you want me to take the Boyfriend Collective with me?”
Colton pushed away from the counter. “I know you think you’re a one-man army, love, but you do not need to throw out your back trying to get a ten-foot tree in here.”
“First of all, throw out my back?” Ace plucked another marshmallow off his whipped cream and chucked it at his husband. It hit him in the nose, and it stuck because it was partially melted. Colton was not impressed.
“Really?”
Ace couldn’t breathe; he was laughing too hard.
“Are you done?” Colton removed the marshmallow and flicked it at Ace. He caught it with his mouth and waggled his eyebrows as he chewed.
“I can’t with you. Hurry up and finish that so we can go to bed. And yes, please take them with you. It’ll be fun.”
“For who?” Ace stared at him. “I won’t survive.”
“You’ll be fine.” Colton headed for the door. “Just feed them before you go. You know how hangry Fitz gets if he doesn’t get regular meals. And snacks.”
