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Dad took a sip of his water.

After he’d managed not to die, he spat, “Oh my god, why would you say that?”

“Kid, I was a teenage boy once.”

“Yeah, when mastodons roamed the earth.”

Dad snorted. “Keep telling yourself that, Nicky.”

“We don’t—we’re notrubbingon each other. God! I haven’t even seen him since…”

“Since he lit the bridge on fire and then punched Owen Burke in the face?”

Nick slumped in his chair. “So, we’re going to talk about this now, are we? Iknewthis dinner was a bribe. You’re not subtle, Officer Bell. At all.”

“I’m allowed to be worried, kid. Comes with the whole being-a-dad gig.”

Nick sighed. “I know. And while I appreciate your intrusive concern, you don’t have to worry about me.OrSeth. He’s not going to hurt me.”

“I know that, Nick. Seth Gray would rather cut off his own arm than see any harm come to you. It’s not him that I’m worried about.”

Nick was confused. “Then what’s the problem?”

“He’s an Extraordinary. A powerful one at that. And no matter what he does, it’s going to attract attention.”

“That’s not his fault. He’s not trying—”

Dad held up his hand. “I’m not saying it is. But there are going to be people who won’t like what he is. He’s always going to have a target on his back. Which means the same thing could happen to you.”

Nick didn’t feel very hungry anymore. “So I shouldn’t be his boyfriend? Or what about just his friend? Are you telling me I need to cut him out of my life altogether?”

“Of course not, Nicky. I would never ask that of you. And even if I did, what are the chances you would listen to me?”

“I would try,” Nick admitted. “I’d probably be really pissed off at you for a long time, but then I’d see him in one of his sweater vest combos and decide he’s worth it.”

Dad stared at him.

Nick shrugged. “What? I can’t help it if I think it’s adorable. I mean, he’s got this one bow tie that makes me want to—not finish that sentence, because you’re my father, and I’m a virgin.”

“Good to know,” Dad said dryly. “Let’s keep it that way for a while, shall we?”

That was okay with Nick. He wasn’t in any rush, even if he was filled with certain inclinations that pointed toward his virginity being destroyed quite spectacularly. “Deal.”

“I just…” Dad looked down at the table. “I need you to be careful, Nick. That’s all I want, okay? You’re old enough to make your own decisions, but that also means you need to think of the consequences. I can’t have anything happen to you.” He took a deep breath and let it out slowly. “Which is why I’ve accepted an offer.”

Nick… didn’t know what to do with that. “From who?”

“Cap.”

“What kind of offer?”

“To head a new division with the NCPD.”

So far so good. He hoped. “Doing what?”

“I’ll be in charge of investigating the activities of Extraordinaries. Monitoring them. Helping them. Stopping those that need to be stopped.”

Nick went cold. “You’re going after Seth?”