Page 18 of A Dye Hard Holiday

“I’m going to need you to be a little bit more specific,” I said, sounding like I was interrogating him. Hey, the bad cop never went away; he bided his time until he was useful again. “Are you saying ‘sure’ that you know whose house this is or that I can call you Trent?”

“Both,” he answered nervously.

It wasn’t just my tone of voice; I used my entire body to intimidate that little weasel. I stood tall with my back ramrod straight and my chest slightly pushed out. I could break him with my bare hands but hoped it wouldn’t come to that. It was highly frowned upon for police captains to rough people up. I could almost hear Josh’s snark comments about another IA investigation.

“Why are you here, Trent?”

“Dare invited me.”

“I know that part, but why did you accept? Furthermore, why did you walk in with that smug look on your face?”

“I wasn’t aware that I had a smug expression on my face, and I thought dinner at Josh’s house sounded good. He’s a phenomenal cook.”

“I know damn well that my husband is amazingeverywhere, so I don’t need you to start ticking off his attributes.”

I crossed my arms over my chest as I remembered the way Trent had hurt Josh in college by making him feel that he wasn’t good enough to introduce to his friends and family as anything more than an acquaintance. I saw the admiring glances he aimed at Josh the night that we ran into him at the hospital when Sally Ann gave birth to Adrianna and again when he walked in as Dare’s guest. I knew fucking well it was no coincidence that he chose Blissville for his pediatrics rotation. It was best he knew where things stood to save himself from looking like an ass.

“Your breakup with Josh wasn’t amicable so why the hell did you think it was a good idea to come here? Better yet, how’d you meet Dare to get an invite?”

“Um, my breakup with Josh was a long time ago,” Trent countered coolly. “It’s obvious he’s moved on and very happy, or maybe not, if you think dragging me in here and warning me away is warranted.”

I took one step toward him and he took two steps back. His little spark of bravado fizzled out beneath the menacing look I aimed at him. “He’s deliriously fucking happy,” I groused, “but I’m not here to speak on his behalf. Myhusbandcan handle himself just fine. I want to be sure you’re not taking advantage of Dare’s kind heart.”

“I met Dare when I went to Curl Up and Dye to schedule a haircut last week.”

Josh didn’t tell me that Trent had showed up at the salon. I thought we had cleared the air and there would be no more secrets or attempts to keep me from losing my shit, but apparently not. The very thought of Josh touching Trent’s hair made me want to punch the doctor in the face. I knew it wouldn’t have the same meaning as when Josh massaged my scalp or ran his fingers through my hair when we kissed or made love, but still. He wasn’t getting my motherfucking pie, and he would need to find someone else to cut his stupid fucking hair.

“I stopped in to see Josh, but he wasn’t there, so Dare scheduled me an appointment with some other guy named Robin.” His words relieved the tightness in my chest.

“Wren.”

“Excuse me?”

“Wrong bird, dumbass. His name is Wren.”

“I’m not a dumbass,” Trent argued defiantly.

“Your actions today don’t back that up.” I held up my hand to cut him off when he opened his mouth to speak. “I’m not going to make a bigger scene than I already have, so you’re in luck. You can stay, eat our food, drink our beverages, and join in on the conversation with our friends and family because this year is special to all of us for one reason or another. Do not look at my husband like he’s on the menu again. Don’t assume he’s the same guy you knew years ago, and don’t insinuate that your shared past actually means you know him, because I promise that you don’t know the first thing about Josh Roman-Wyatt. So, Trent, the question is: can you eat dinner with us and behave?”

“You kind of sound like Clint Eastwood,” he replied with a crooked smile. “Yeah, I’ll be good.”

“Welcome to our home,” I said somewhat cordially. “Grab a plate and dig in.”

I remained in the kitchen after Trent left because I knew that Josh was hovering by someplace close and would want to speak with me. I was prepared for him to lecture me about my behavior, but instead he pushed me back against the counter and ravaged my mouth.

“Oh my God! I shouldn’t encourage your ridiculous behavior, but it’s so fucking hot. It makes me want to drag you and your knuckles upstairs and show you just how much I belong to you.”

“Okay,” I said, wrapping my arms tightly around him. “I’ll let you.” I had never been so disappointed that there wasn’t a hidden staircase that led to our bedroom.

“Gabe, one day you’re going to realize that there’s no other man on this earth that I’d rather give my body and my apple pie to more than you.”

The comment about the pie made the ridiculous jealous feelings stir inside me again. I could tell by Josh’s smile that he knew it too.

“Gabe, I was only eighteen years old when I dated Trent. I didn’t have access to bourbon, so the pie he remembersis notthe same pie that I make for you.” He ran his hands through my hair, and I practically melted into a puddle on the kitchen floor.

“You’re not cutting his hair either.”

“What are you talking about?” Josh asked.