As I pulled around and headed the couple of blocks over to the office, it made me think about Adam. Cole and Patrick were his family. And if something happened between them, it would devastate him.
My mood quickly changed directions when I pulled in and found Daredevil and Dreamboat standing in the driveway, talking while they waited for me. I’d missed them over the last six weeks that I’d been living with Adam. We usually saw each other every day at the condo, but they’d been working on something for Jesse.
“Hey,” I called, getting out after parking. “Long time no see.”
Dreamboat grinned at me. “How’s married life, buddy?”
I laughed. “Yeah, no. I never thought I’d miss you guys, and strangely, I still don’t.”
We all laughed, knowing it was a lie. The three of us and GQ were closer than brothers. We’d experienced so many things together in the Navy, and I couldn’t imagine my life without my best friends. That’s why, when Jesse wanted to move the business to Portland, we were one hundred percent on board.
“Is it that bad living with the rockstar?” Daredevil asked. “I mean, he seems pleasant enough.”
Austin Wentworth, aka Daredevil, was six-foot-two and anIronmantriathlete. Now that we were stateside, he lived to compete in the triathlon races around the country and I knew he hoped to one day compete with the best in Europe. If there was an extreme sport, he would try it. No matter how wild or daredevil-ish a sport was, Austin would give it a go—sometimes I thought it was to try forgetting about some of the things we’d seen while enlisted.
Running my hand over my jaw, I smiled. “Yeah, he’s a good guy. But the police still need to put an end to this shit. This should not be so difficult. He needs to be able to concentrate on his music and create.”
Dreamboat grinned at me, and by the look on his face, I knew I’d said too much. “You a fanboy now, Phantom?”
I scoffed, but then again, maybe I was. “Not like you’re thinking. But after seeing what they do, I can appreciate the creative side of what they do. You should see them in the studio working. Reminds me of us when we were on deployment. One of them comes up with a riff or whatever they call it, and the others pick it up and run with it.”
Dreamboat raised his brows. “Wow. That’s high praise coming from you. Maybe I should check them out. We all know fame has its downside.” The frown on Daredevil’s face drew my attention. “You sure it’s his mother?”
I nodded. “Almost positive. It fits the pattern. Been going on for a long time.”
“We all know just because she has a history of gaslighting him doesn’t necessarily mean the threats are coming from her.” Daredevil shook his head. “I don’t think I could be famous. Being a normal person is enough for me.”
I smirked at him. “Normal? You’re the guy who thinks it’s a great idea to jump off a cliff into the ocean.”
He shrugged. “It was. And it was fun. Gets the blood pumping.”
I tilted my head and started for the door. When I pulled it open, GQ was waiting inside, talking to Aidan and Marcus in the little lobby area.
The big wide receiver had his arm draped over his husband’s shoulders and grinned when we walked in. He up nodded before extending his hand to us.
“Hey, guys. Good to see you.”
“You too,” I replied after shaking his hand. “Something smells good in here.”
Marcus chuckled and pointed over his shoulder. “Magda made blueberry muffins for her men this morning. Her words, not mine.”
We shared a laugh and then he turned his gaze down to Aidan.
“I should get going. Gotta head to practice. Later, babe.” He leaned down to kiss his husband.
Aidan smiled and watched him walk toward the door. “Bye. See you later.”
We all watched Marcus Monroe gracefully stride out of the door, his tall frame moving with ease. It made me wonder how much longer he had in the game.
“Right on time,” Jesse smiled. “We need to get started. I have to pick up Livie from school today. And this might take a while.”
“Dominick not getting her today?” I asked.
“No, he’s staying to work with the long snapper and the punter. He’s trying to hit consistently from sixty yards out.”
The pride and joy that radiated from him when he talked about them made us really happy. It was good to see him smile again.
“Okay then. Let’s get started,” Aidan said. “I’ve got some updates for you.”
