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“Dead?”

“Uh-huh.” Rowena adjusted the straps of the dress and returned to scrutinize her reflection. “Roddy killed him.”

Jimmy thought he was going to be sick, his hand clasping over his mouth as he gasped in horror. “Wait, are you serious? He killed him? Wait, is this like secret mob stuff I’m not supposed to know about, oh fuck—”

“Pffft! No, please.” Rowena giggled at how flustered Jimmy was. “Roddy served time for it. Two years for voluntary manslaughter.”

“That’s it?” Jimmy was in shock and then startlingly angry. Cold had killed his own father and had gotten a damn slap on the wrist, whereas David, who was innocent, had received a life sentence. It made him absolutely furious with their justice system, and it also left him feeling conflicted about his growing affection for Cold.

It wasn’t up to Jimmy to decide if a man like Boris Legrand deserved to die for his crimes, though it was clear that he was not a good person. Jimmy had known about Cold’s reputation, but he hadn’t yet directly acknowledged that the man he was currently sleeping with was a murderer.

There was a tiny voice protesting in the back of Jimmy’s brain that at least it had been a horrible guy who the world was better off without and not some innocent person. He was surprised at himself for how quick he switched to defending what Cold had done.

Jimmy wasn’t sure if that was to make himself feel better about sleeping with Cold or if he truly believed that some crimes were acceptable depending on the circumstances.

Trying to decide if murder was ever justified was not a debate Jimmy’s alcohol-addled brain was equipped to handle. He sat up, resting his face in his hands and mumbling, “Wow. Just two whole years, huh?”

“Uh-huh.” Rowena stepped back into the fitting room. “Boris tried putting his hands on Roddy, and well, Roddy decided it was going to be the last time.”

“And that’s why Rod—shit, I mean Cold. That’s why he doesn’t like to be touched,” Jimmy added quietly. “Because of Boris.”

Rowena stepped out from the fitting room in her original outfit with the golden dress draped over her arm, offering a sympathetic smile. “Yeah, and well… There’s some other shit. It’s just… Ugh.”

“What is it?”

Rowena sighed, a hand on her hip as she struggled to find the right thing to say. “For Roddy, it’s all about trust. It’s not that he doesn’t like to be touched. I mean, fuck. I think he fuckin’ craves it. But it has to be on his terms. You just need to be patient with him, okay?”

“I can do that.” Jimmy nodded, perhaps too enthusiastically. He coughed and then added, “You know, because of our deal.”

“Right,” Rowena said slyly. “The deal.”

“Yup.” Jimmy tried to resist, but he couldn’t help breaking into a big, goofy grin. “And that’s all I’m gonna say.”

“Mm, then it sounds like you need another drink.” Rowena grabbed Jimmy’s hand so she could haul him to his feet. “We’ve got just one more stop to go! We’ve gotta get your suit for tonight, and we can drink on the way.”

“More drinking?” Jimmy laughed, delighted by Rowena’s wicked cackling.

“Duh!”

Rowena bought the dress, dragged him out to the limo, and had another round poured in mere seconds to toast again.

“Thank you,” Jimmy said, gulping back his drink before Rowena tried to cram it down his throat. “Seriously.”

“For what?”

“For this. All of this!” Jimmy moved to sit right beside her with a sweet grin. “I can’t remember the last time I just, like, hung out with someone. And the clothes, my God, you didn’t have to do so much for me. I’ve been having so much fun. This is just… It’s amazing. You’re amazing.”

“Aw, sweetie!” Rowena threw her arms around Jimmy and hugged him tight. “I know I’m amazing, you don’t have to tell me. But seriously, I’m happy to doll you up. It’s been fun!”

“Thank you! Today is just… Wow. Today has been a super crazy day. I still can’t believe this is really happening to me.”

“You just wait until the party,” Rowena promised, waggling her eyebrows. “We are gonna have an awesome time.”

Jimmy grinned. “You really are an incredible woman, Miss Legrand.”

“Come on, quit with that mushy shit.” Rowena groaned, then giggled drunkenly. “You’ve gotta stay in awesome happy party mode.”

“Right, so, what is the party for? Is it someone’s birthday?” Jimmy made a face as he took another sip of his very sweet drink.