Page 201 of Nothing Special X: The Last Stand

God glared at Genesis, waiting for his brother to speak up. Instead he was fucking smiling.

Smiling.

Dale held out one hand. “Come on. You wanna ride with me?”

“No,” God said.

“Hell no,” Ruxs snapped.

“Absolutely not,” Green said.

Fox barked, “Dale.”

Curtis nodded quickly. “I’d love to.”

Day, Ro, Johnson, Micheals, and Hart were failing badly at not laughing.

Curtis stepped forward and took Dale’s offered hand. God expected Dale to help him climb onto the back of the horse.

Instead, Dale leaned down, hooked one arm around Curtis with disgusting ease, and lifted his lithe body right off the ground. In one smooth motion, he spun Curtis up and settled him in front of him across the saddle.

Right on his fucking lap.

Curtis gasped, then laughed, legs spreading naturally on either side of the horse while Dale wrapped one arm around him to take the reins.

Dale dipped his head low near Curtis’s neck and drawled, “Hold on, pretty.”

Curtis grabbed the saddle horn with one hand and Dale’s forearm with the other, grinning as if he’d just been chosen from the crowd by a performer in Thunder Down Under.

Ruxs spun on Genesis. “Are you seriously gonna let him ride off with that Brokeback Mountain stud?”

Genesis laughed. “It’s his wedding weekend. He can do whatever he wants as long as he’s smiling and meets me at that altar tomorrow night.”

Dale clicked his tongue lazily and his horse walked at a slow, easy pace toward the side of the house. Curtis waved like a homecoming king while God stared after them with revulsion.

“This is why I hate that fucking guy,” God said.

Bull chuckled. “Dale’s a good guy. Y’all just got off on the wrong foot.”

“Wrong foot. That guy almost killed me,” God balked. “I still ain’t got a fuckin’ apology yet.”

Bull hissed through clenched teeth. “Yeah uh, don’t hold your breath on that.”

Ro turned toward Hart. “Where’s Tech and Free?”

“Ravens headquarters,” he answered. “Steele too.”

Fox’s brows lifted. “They said they’d be back in time.”

Hart crossed his arms. “He left home at like six this morning. Apparently some secret shit came up last minute. They said they’d be here before the ceremony though.”

“How’s Free liking it?” Ro asked.

Hart’s expression changed. It was subtle, but God saw it. Pride.

“He loves it,” Hart said. “Unlimited tech. Unlimited budget. His own lab and department with a gang of people who can understand what he’s actually talking about. Not to mention, the commuting to work on a private jet part.”

God whistled low.