“The main water valve is outside,” Noel said, heading for the kitchen door only to have Merry grab his arm.
“What? You can’t go out there like that. You’ll catch a cold or worse!”
“I’ll be fine,” Noel said, his smile wide. “It’ll just take a second.” He hurried out, and in no time at all, the water stopped gushing out. Thank goodness. There had to be a plunger around here somewhere.
“Oh, thank goodness.” Colton let out a sigh of relief just as Noel hurried back in.
Merry handed Noel some towels. “Remove your coat and dry off before you catch a cold. I can’t believe you went out there like that. Honestly.” Merry huffed and started towel drying Noel’s hair, which was adorable because Noel had to bend over so Merry could reach his head.
“Love,” Colton said gently. “You need to get out of there and dry off. We’ll worry about the valve later.”
“Right.” Ace pulled himself out from under the sink. He made to stand, slipped, and threw out a hand to catch himself, smacking an open bag of flour on the steel counter next to the sink. The bag exploded, flour raining down on everyone. “Shit!” He turned and slipped again, and this time, Colton made the mistake of grabbing onto his husband. They both crashed to the floor, the splash hitting everyone.
“Ow,” Colton groaned.
“Colton!” Fitz carefully hurried over, Jack right behind him. “Are you okay?”
“What about me?” Ace grumbled. “I’m the one who fixed the sink.”
Fitz and Jack helped Colton up onto his feet.
“But did you?” Jack asked, turning to help Ace, which meant both he and Ace ended up on the floor. Jack glanced up at Fitz and sighed. “Yeah, I know.”
Noel cringed. “Are you two okay?”
Did Merry realize Noel had his arms around him? Merry looked up at Noel and smiled, his cheeks pink when Noel smiled warmly.Oh, they just had a moment!Squee!
“We should go,” Fitz said. “Jack, stop playing around.”
Jack sat up and arched an eyebrow at Fitz. “Right. Because falling on my ass in freezing water is fun.”
Fitz widened his eyes and discreetly tilted his head to Noel and Merry. Noel was helping Merry get dry. They were drying each other and standingveryclose.
“Oh, um, right. Yeah, we should get going,” Jack said, carefully standing. “Those cookies aren’t going to decorate themselves.”
“We should also get some dry clothes,” Colton muttered. “I texted Gio and asked him if he wouldn’t mind bringing us some clothing.”
Ace groaned as he got to his feet. “Really, babe? Out of everyone, you had to send the guy who’s dating Joker? I’m never going to hear the end of this.”
Jack grinned wickedly. “It could have been worse. It could have been squirrels.”
The laughter followed Ace out of the kitchen. As they waited for Gio and Joker inside the café, Merry made them all hot drinks and then disappeared into the kitchen. A short time later, Gio and Joker arrived with dry clothes and coats. Joker handed Ace what looked like a Christmas sweater, or at least a winter sweater because it was multiple shades of brown.
“What the—” Ace held up the sweater, and everyone laughed. It had squirrels all over it. “Haha. Very funny. Laugh all you want, but when that pointy-eared villain sends his army of furry beasts to eradicate us, don’t say I didn’t warn you.” He tugged the sweater over his head; his eyes narrowed at Joker. “I hope they come for you first.”
Joker laughed as he left the café.
Noel and Merry walked out of the kitchen, and Fitz did his best to pretend he hadn’t noticed how Merry’s skin was flushed to the tips of his ears. His lips were glossy, and he had a dazed, dreamy look. Seeming to shake himself out of it, he pulled Fitz to one side.
“Thank you.”
“For what?” Fitz asked, blinking innocently.
Merry gave him a knowing look. “This was your idea to get me and Noel together, wasn’t it.”
“Honey, it isnevermy idea to send Ace to fix anything. That was all Jack’s idea, but Ididask him for help, so I suppose part of the credit goes to me.” He hummed. “Or blame? Let’s go with credit.”
Merry laughed softly. “Noel said he would stay with me and help me clean up the kitchen.” He worried his bottom lip, then leaned in to whisper. “We kissed!”
