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“Our day,” Ambrose corrected. “And it won’t.” A smile lit up his face. “This all started because of that damn bridge. So really, we should be thanking this Marvin.”
“Absolutely not.”
Behind them, Raf chuckled. “You can send him a card in prison, if that’ll ease your conscience, Ambrose.”
Reluctantly he let Ambrose go so he and Raf could gather their boots and jackets. He flung open the back door and Dandi bolted outside, instantly churning up mud and grass as she ran between the trees, darted into the shallow end of the water, and then back to run the circuit again.
Barrett’s mind roiled. Ken and Marvin. The PI. Ambrose’s family. Val and Forrest. What happened to his quiet life? The silent nights looking out at the stars, the mornings where he was greeted with mist off the lake. But when he reached for what he missed, he found that it wasn’t the same anymore. Imagining those mornings alone felt awful, as did nights in an empty bed. His lifewasn’tthe same, and it never would be.
As Ambrose walked by, Barrett snagged his arm and hauled him into a kiss. “I love you,” he whispered as they parted only enough to breathe. “I’m taking you out tonight and going to embarrass myself on the dance floor and we’re going to drink. And then you’re going to come visit me on my fire watch and we’ll spend the summer hiking and reading and fucking and every moment will be perfect.”
Watching all the worry drop from Ambrose’s face was better than anything he could have wanted. He definitely didn’t expect reciprocation.
“I love you, too.”
“You are dangerously close to having your day stolen so I can keep you here.” Barrett kept his voice steady even as his heart squeezed tightly in his chest.
Ambrose licked his bottom lip. “I’m guessing naked and in your bed.”
“I’m shockingly transparent and easy to anticipate.”
Ambrose kissed him then, pulling a short, sharp groan up from Barrett’s chest. “Raf’s outside.”
“Go on. I’ll see you later.”
“Six sharp.”
“Not a second later.”
The third call came after Ambrose and Raf left. Barrett had pulled up Val’s number and was ready to dial when her name showed up on his screen. “Hey.”
“Hey. So…just got a visit from the police. About Ken.”
“God.” Barrett leaned hard on the counter, letting its sharp edges bite into stomach. “Fucker.”
“Agreed.”
“Hold on, let me put my big brother hat on here.” He paused dramatically as she snorted. “You okay? Cause I can still go beat him up if you want.”
“Nah. Fuck him. The best thing I could have ever done was to cut him off completely. Now we won’t get wrapped up in his shit.” Val took a couple of deep breaths. “How the hell did I ever wind up with him? What was I thinking?”
“You were in love.”
“With a narcissistic asshole who risked our livelihood to make a few more bucks. We have a son.” Val huffed. “I have a son. Forrest isn’t Ken’s. He’s mine. I gotta remember that.”
She was putting up a good front, but Barrett knew her well enough to hear the pain in her voice. “You’re the best thing for Forrest, and you always will be. He needs you.”
“One problem there, Bear.”
“Yeah?”
“We need you, too.”
As if he hadn’t already been punched in the heart enough today. Ambrose’s softI love youwas still echoing through his bones, leaving him shaky but elated. And now Val went right for the solar plexus. “We’re coming out this summer. I swear.”
“I know you are. And Forrest is gonna lose his mind. He’s already talking about showing Ambrose his art and going fishing and all these things and I just…I don’t want to disappoint him. He hasn’t quite realized how limited he is, yet.”
Immediately Barrett was digging in the drawers for a pen and a pad of paper. “Then let’s make a list. Everything he wants to do, and if we run out of days on the schedule, we’ll figure it out. Or find another way to make it happen.”
