“And Wyatt. We promise.”
His eyes darted back and forth between Reyes and me, before folding his arms around both our necks and pulling us together in a tight hug. “I love you,” he whispered.
I caught Rey’s eyes as we held him, a little surprised they were glistening with tears, just as mine were.
“We love you too, Sport,” Rey managed to reply.
* * *
The following day,I pulled into the driveway of my best friends’ converted warehouse. Beckett and Preston had just gotten back in town from their vacation the night before, which meant it was time for me to return the dogs, much to Harrison’s dismay. They were standing at the bottom of the stairs when I arrived, and Lady whined in excitement from the back seat. As soon as I opened the door, she sprinted the short distance to them while Quinn moved at a much slower pace but still just as eager to be reunited with his master.
Preston immediately knelt to greet them, cooing over the animals and talking nonsense. “Aww, I missed you!” he said, giving each of them a thorough pat on their sides.
“Were the dogs okay for you?” Beckett asked as soon as I reached them.
“Yeah, they were great. I enjoyed having them.”
“Thanks again for watching them.”
“Yeah, of course.”
“Do you want to come in?” Preston asked, jutting his hand over his shoulder toward the stairs. I saw a flash of white gold and quickly reached for his hand, staring at the small piece of metal before slugging Beckett on the arm.
“You didn’t tell me you were going to pop the question!”
A huge smile spread over his face as he shared a look with Preston, letting me know there was more to that story than they were going to share.
“Well, congratulations!” I said, pulling each of them in for a hug. “When’s the wedding?”
“Next summer sometime,” Beckett replied. “I want you as my best man, but no long-winded or embarrassing speeches!”
I feigned innocence. “Me? It’s as if you don’t even know me!”
“Idoknow you. That’s the problem.”
I followed Preston and Beckett up the stairs into their home, and the dogs immediately began to sniff around, happy to be back in the familiar place.
“So, what’s new with you? Still seeing Reyes?” Preston asked.
“Yeah, I am.”
Beckett’s eyes went wide. Clearly, he hadn’t been expecting that. “Really?”
“Yeah, so I guess I owe you guys one for introducing us.” I cleared my throat before adding in a rush, “Um, actually. About him. We’re actually adopting a kid together. Well, technically only I am right now, but he’ll be able to be on the adoption papers once we’re married. It’s just easier that way. We’ve already started the process. I guess we’re kinda just jumping right into the whole family thing, which is both surprising and terrifying, but I’m happy about it. Really happy.”
I could have heard a pin drop when I finally stopped rambling. Beckett was staring at me in complete shock, while Preston just seemed downright confused.
“MARRIED?”Beckett finally said in a sharp tone. “Anda kid? Are you shitting me?”
Lady chose that moment to nudge her wet nose in my hand and I was glad for the distraction. I didn’t like Beckett’s scrutiny. Truthfully, I’d been dreading this conversation for two days now, not having a clue how Beckett was going to respond. Aside from Reyes and my mom, Beckett was the only other person on the planet who had been able to see through my shield, and he never put up with my bullshit, just as I never put up with his. We were complete opposites in every way, yet that was part of what made us so strong too.
After what felt like an eternity of prolonged silence, I finally looked up. Preston had shifted his attention to Beckett, not sure what to say, while Beckett was still staring at me with an unreadable expression on his face.
He finally straightened, his posture softening. “Wow. You’re serious.”
I nodded. “Serious as a heart attack.”
“Shit, Jake. I don’t even know which part of that I’m supposed to focus on first,” Beckett said. “The fact that you’re getting married to a guy you’ve only known two months—”
