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24
DASH
“What are you moping about?” Casper asked as he knocked his bare foot against mine.
We were lounging by my pool. It was late, and the sun had set. The humidity still dampened the air. Being by the pool, with my feet in the water, helped. Reed and Slater were here too. We were at Slater’s house working, but we needed a break, and the pool was inviting. Living close to my brother, we only had to walk across the yard between our houses to get here. They kept swimsuits at my place since this was a common occurrence when we were home, and it was summer.
“I’m not moping.”
“He misses Tris and Romeo,” my brother said from the other side of the pool. He was in the water, leaning against the wall with his arms wide on the ledge. Reed lounged in a chair behind Slater. He could have been asleep for all I knew.
“It won’t get easier when we tour again,” Casper said.
Reaching up, I pulled my hair back into a bun to get it off my neck. “Would you guys care if I brought them with me? I don’t know if Romeo could go or Tris, for that matter. It’s new, I get it, but fuck, I can’t stand being away from them now. What’s it going to feel like being gone for longer?” They didn’t know aboutRomeo’s father or Tristan’s new job yet. I planned on telling them tonight.
The thought of not seeing Romeo and Tristan for an extended period of time had me rubbing my chest to try to ease the ache.
Reed lifted his head, locking his eyes on Casper. He was awake then. “We don’t want to be away from Elic, but it’s easier for him to take time off if he wants to, since he works for our family.”
“So, I’m going to be the only one without someone?” Slater asked. “That won’t be uncomfortable at all.”
I kicked water at him. “You don’t know what’s going to happen between now and then.”
Casper took his feet out of the pool and stood, going to sit by Reed. He clasped Reed’s hand with his, like he needed to touch him so badly, he had to get up and go to him. “We can always add another bus.”
“Then we’ll argue over Molly,” I stated. Although, there wouldn’t be an argument. She’d go with Reed and Casper. She was close to their family. “The logistics don’t need to be worked out now. We’d have to talk to the label too. Make sure we cover our bases.”
Reed gave me an assessing look. “What else is bothering you? You never told us what happened after the concert.”
I told them the story about Romeo and who Malik was to him, giving them the details, with Romeo’s agreement. I wouldn’t have told them unless he said it was all right to do so. These were the men I trusted above all others, except Romeo and Tristan. They wouldn’t share Romeo’s secret.
“Holy shit,” my brother breathed out. “No wonder he lives so close to Jordan.”
“There’s something else.” I told them about Tristan working for Jordan too and how that came to be. “It’s a lot. I’m dating two men with connections to the fucking mafia.”
“Connections but not in it,” Casper stated. “With how they’re keeping it quiet, it’s not like they’ll suddenly have hits on them.”
My stomach churned. If either of them got hurt…
Slater splashed water at me. “You can’t control what they do. If you did, they’d resent you. You’re doing the right thing. If you love them, let them make their own decisions.”
“It scares the hell out of me. Not Jordan. He can fuck right off, but their connection to him. Luckily, he always comes to their house and does it under the radar. The guards outside can be played off as protecting Jordan, since his building is on the same block. They keep Romeo and Tristan safe. It’s nerve-wracking.”
Even now, I wanted to get up and go to them. Tristan was home alone while Romeo danced at the club.
Not always being together had its perks. We each got our space to do as we wanted. When we saw one another, it was sweeter. I’d try to convince them to move in with me because I was that far gone over them, but then they wouldn’t be by Jordan and the protection he offered. Out here, anyone could sneak through the woods and attack.
Okay, I was losing my mind waiting for mafia snipers from a rival of Jordan’s to come out of the woods and knock everyone off. Jesus. It would be a miracle if I slept tonight.
“We hired an attorney for Elic,” Reed said. “He didn’t want us to spend our money on him. He rarely does. It’s the least we can do to make sure Oscar doesn’t come near him again. The attorney has already dug into Oscar’s past and started interviewing other guys he’s been with. Tristan’s on the list.”
“I heard Jordan put his attorney on the case for Tristan,” I told them. “Apparently, Oscar’s been trying to send letters tohim or some shit. Jordan’s man intercepted them, and Jordan was all over that, even sent one of his guards to the prison to scare the hell out of Oscar. I might disagree with Jordan on nearly everything, but on this, I wasn’t a bit irritated.”
Anything done to help Tristan, and I was all for it. Although, I’d be the first to speak up if Jordan thought he could take advantage of Tristan. No way in hell was that happening.
Tristan was finding his footing and coming into who he really was. He was more confident, more certain when making decisions. Romeo and I weren’t there to hold him back, but to help him fly.
“We can’t let that asshole ever see the outside of his jail cell again,” Casper stated.
