Page 24 of Beach Bats

“I’m totally going to scar Aries for life.” Nix’s smile grew. “Give it to me, Daddy.”

He did love his bratty boy.

5

Aries

Playing with his hockey figures at the coffee table, Aries was finding it hard to look Nix in the eye after hearing the screams that had come from his room the night before.

“Come on,” Nix teased as he leaned a shoulder against Aries. “I’m sorry I kept you up last night.”

Ignoring his brat of a brother, Aries hummed as he set up the two teams across from each other. The teams were a mix and match from the NHL and the newly released figures of the PAHL. Last week Vin had even presented Aries with the brand-new figures of him, Nix, and Gem. That was when Aries felt like he’d really made it. There was an action figure/toy made from his likeness that came with his stats card. Aries, his brothers, and their friends were real-life action figures. And Vin had bought Aries the entire collection as a reward for finishing the season. How cool was that?

Nix tapped the top of his own figure’s plastic head. “Are you really going to make me play on the other team than you and Gem?”

Aries pressed his lips together before feeling a little bad. “I put you on the same team as your Daddy,” he offered.

Nix rubbed a finger over the front of Evan’s figure. “Yeah, you did! Look at how hot he is even as a little plastic toy.”

“I’ll show you a toy if you keep it up,” Evan said from the kitchen. “Now leave your brother alone and come set the table.”

With the openness of the house, Aries could play in the living room while his Daddy watched over him from where he was making breakfast with Evan.

“That’s the problem, Daddy,” Nix said as he jumped to his feet. “It was the toy last night that was making me scream.”

Aries groaned. He didn’t want or need to hear that kind of stuff. Private times should be…well, private. They might be close brothers and triplets but boundaries. Boundaries were important. Nix just wasn’t very good at them.

“You better behave,” Evan warned Nix. “Remember Zany, Robbs, Lithis, Marlin, and Thomas are arriving today. You would really hate not to be able to hang out with them because you’re in time-out.”

That reminder cheered Aries right up! “Zany!” He clapped his hands happily. Zany had never admitted to being a little like him yet Zany loved to play with Aries’s toys and borrow a stuffie when he napped at Aries’s apartment.

“Oh sure,” Nix complained as he started to set the table. “That make you talk.”

“Leave him alone.” Evan smacked Nix’s ass “You’re pushing it this morning.”

“Fine,” Nix grumbled.

Again, Aries felt bad. He didn’t want Nix sad. He loved his brother even when Nix was being annoying. Reaching across the coffee table and Aries’s makeshift hockey game, he moved Nix to play on the same team as him.

That put Aries, Vin, Gem, Luka, Zany, Robbs, and Nix on the home team with Evan, Marlin, Thomas, and some of his other friends to play against them. Aries huffed. He didn’t like having uneven numbers. And he currently had Zany in goal but what if Gem wanted to be in net? Having three great goalies was really a problem.

“What’s the matter?” Vin asked while crouching behind Aries and rubbing his back.

“Too many goalies,” Aries shared. “And now Nix isn’t on the same team as Evan. We can’t all be on the same team!”

“You moved me?” Nix danced closer. He was still holding the forks which Aries was pretty sure were supposed to go to the table.

“I don’t want you sad,” Aries told him.

“You do love me!” Nix declared dramatically.

Aries met Nix’s eyes before very purposely picking up his brother’s figure and putting it into the penalty box that he’d made. Usually, Vin ended up in the sin bin, but it was a good place for Nix too.

Nix blinked at him for several long moments then shrugged. “I guess that’s fair.”

Vin chuckled. “That was a little bratty too.”

Aries glanced at his Daddy to make sure Vin wasn’t mad. That hadn’t been his mad voice.