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“Are you guys going on a date?” Gideon asked, having walked past at just the wrong time. “I know some great places that are very private if you want to play footsies.”

“Keep walking, Gid,” Grady growled.

Gideon cackled as he disappeared through to the copier room. Grady was sure curses, not laughing, would be coming from there soon.

“Are you really trying to put through papers to have Mini-Riley stay with you?” Grady asked, trying to change the subject before he committed homicide in a police station.

Quinn’s look indicated that he knew exactly what Grady was doing, but he seemed to allow it since he answered with, “Yes. Why?”

Grady shrugged. “Just asking. He seems like a handful.”

“He needs someone to give a shit about him,” Quinn said. He flipped his file shut, shoved it on top of a teetering pile, and grabbed one from a different stack.

“Sure, but that doesn’t mean it has to be you,” Grady pointed out. “Have you spoken to your guys about it?”

Quinn hesitated. “Does it matter? We don’t live together; it’s not going to affect them.”

Grady pursed his lips as he stared at the way Quinn was so obviously trying to be nonchalant about it, but Grady wasn’t fooled. “You’re scared of telling them.”

“Until I know for sure I can even do it, there’s no point in bringing it up. End of discussion.”

“You didn’t evenstarta discussion. How are you gonna end it?” Grady said, chuckling.

“End ofthisdiscussion.”

Grady had known what he’d meant, but watching that vein start to throb in Quinn’s temple was fun. It was a rare occurrence, and Grady loved that he had so much fuel to use now.

Grady’s phone vibrated in his pocket at the same time Quinn’s landline rang. Quinn made a face at Grady as he answered it, and Grady made one right back before he flicked his phone screen on.

Lake:Have to work late. Emergency with one of the helicopters that I’ve been telling them had issues for *weeks*

There was a string of eye-rolling emojis after the word and a GIF of chickens running in circles.

Grady frowned. Emergency? He was calling Lake’s number before he could talk himself out of it. It couldn’t bethatmuch of an emergency if he was just sending a text, but Grady’s mind was still jumping straight to worst-case scenarios.

“Hey,” Lake answered happily. “I don’t think the message deserved a call, but that’s okay. I like hearing your voice.”

Lake had lowered his, obviously going for some kind of sultry—which was a waste, really, because Lake’s voice in general turned Grady’s crank—but Grady ignored it because he was still running on adrenalin from the word “emergency.”

“Are you okay?”

“What?” There was a pregnant pause that had Grady’s heart leaping into his throat. “Oh, yeah, I’m fine. We had to make an emergency landing, and Zach owes me so much fucking cake as an apology, but we’re fine. I didn’t even get a bruise for a souvenir.”

“That’s not funny.”

“It’s plenty funny,” Lake assured him. “It’s not my first rocky landing. Remind me to tell you about my second deployment to Afghanistan sometime.”

Grady wasn’t sure that he wanted to know.

“I was thinking, there’s this great noodle place at the shops near my place, and I could put in an order? If you wanted to swing by on your way through, and I’m hoping that I will be out of here by eight at the latest. We have some diagnostics we have to run through and then write about a million reports.”

“I can do that,” Grady said. “Why don’t you message me when you’re about ready to leave? I have plenty to keep me occupied here, and I’ll head over to pick up our order then?”

“Perfect. I can’t wait to see you.”

Grady swallowed. They’d seen each other just that morning, and yet… “Me either,” he answered truthfully. “Uh, listen…” Grady trailed off, wondering if he was about to make the worst decision he’d ever made in his life. Quinn had offered, and Grady had declined because they werenotdating and going on double dates definitely gave the wrong impression. “Quinn invited us to go to the zoo with him and Will if you wanted to go…” he found himself saying anyway.

Quinn was focused on his own conversation and yet still had the audacity to give him anotherlook.Grady wanted to wipe it off his face. With his fist. So what if he’d decided to invite Lake? Quinn was the one who had brought it up to begin with!