Kevin and Riley rarely encountered one another, but when they did, their rivalry was far more palpable than Andrew and Ford’s.
“Dalton,” Riley ignored him, strolling up to Dalton’s side. “So nice to see you again. Are you helping with the case too?”
“I am. I didn’t know you’d be joining us. What a nice surprise.”
It was?
“Can’t wait to discover what other surprises there might be, especially if they’re about you,” Riley leered.
Andrew could not believe he was flirting with Dalton so blatantly, and right in front of Ford! Dalton wasn’t shying away from it, either.
“Sports or video games?”
“The uniforms can be a plus and all, but I prefer to stay in.”
“Genre?”
“MOBAs mostly, but I’m…flexible.”
“Please stop,” Kevin groaned, while Ford looked on, like watching a car crash he couldn’t stop.
“XBOX or PlayStation?” Dalton went on. “Though I suppose PCs if you’re into MOBAs.”
“True. Otherwise, PlayStation, always. Wars or Trek?”
“Both, but if I had to choose, I’m a Trekkie all the way. And we,” Dalton pointed at Kevin and Andrew, “are due for a marathon. Maybe you can join us.” He returned to Riley.
“Lopez gets pretty uppity aboutWrath of Khan.”
“That’s because this pleb,” Kevin spat, “actually said to me once thatWrath of Khanis overrated.”
Andrew realized where this was headed far too late.
“It is,” Dalton said plainly.
“Excuse me?” Kevin whirled on him. “We can no longer be friends.”
Dalton laughed, fully confident that Kevin was joking. “Andrew agrees with me,” he dragged him helplessly into the fray. “Tell him.”
“He does not.” Kevin stared in horror, but when Andrew could only shrug in reply, he gasped, “Dude.”
“I don’t hate it,” Andrew said. “It’s just not my favorite. I always preferred the Bones/Kirk dynamic, so I thinkSearch for Spockgets a bad rap.”
“Do I even know you? Not that I should be surprised.” Kevin’s accusing stare turned to include Ford. “Got a soft spot for smartasses?”
Traitor. Though Andrew supposed he deserved that. Still, he could have done without the fresh blush that filled his cheeks when everyone, Ford included, turned to look at him.
“On rare occasions,” Andrew admitted.
“Oh really?” Ford said, voice sultry without trying, which sent Andrew’s thoughts right back to the gutter. “I agree, you know. McCoy was a far superior character. He and Kirk had so much more… chemistry.”
“Dad,” Dalton reminded them that they were not supposed to be acting this obvious in front of others. “You’re making Andrew blush.”
“I’m not blushing!” Andrew protested, though he so was, and moved to Candace’s computer chair to hide his face while it cooled down. “Kev, Candace, help me pull up everything we have so far, so we can get started. The rest of you, help yourselves to donuts.”
Following Andrew to the desk, while the others mulled across the room to the coffee maker, Kevin was at least good enough not to remind Andrew that three people were not needed to do this, but he still leaned in to whisper, “Are you sure you two never dated?”
“Shut up.”
