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CHAPTER EIGHT

earlier that evening

“Thanks for meeting me, babe. I appreciate it.” Jay sipped his berry vodka crush and hummed. Yummy. This was exactly what he needed. Tasty cocktails and good company.

The trendy upscale burger place was packed, just as it was every night.

Some people thought the Urban Unicorn was pretentious or too hipster, but Jay loved it here.

It had great food and a cozy atmosphere.

He loved the industrial chic aesthetic, the brick walls, weathered wood, black metal features, and exposed pipes.

It was soothing in a way he couldn’t explain.

“I’m glad you called,” Joshua replied, smiling warmly. “What happened with Eric? He seemed...nice.”

“Eric is nice. And I’m sure he’ll be a great boyfriend. To someone else.”

Jay had been hopeful when Joshua introduced them at Sapphire Sands a few weeks ago.

Eric had been attractive, sweet, and kind.

But the moment they were left alone, Jay quickly discovered they had no chemistry.

Not one drop. Still, Jay had been determined to at least give things a try. Until this afternoon.

“After the day I’ve had, the last thing I was in the mood for was a date,” Jay grumbled. “When I called him to cancel, I think he might have been slightly relieved. Pretty sure he didn’t think it would work between us either.”

Joshua studied him. “What happened at work?”

“Let’s not talk about work.” Jay swirled the ice in his glass with his straw. Nope. He wasn’t going to talk about Ryden. Wasn’t going to even think about him.

Joshua almost choked on his drink, and Jay rolled his eyes. “I’m sorry. Did you just say you don’t want to talk about work?” He leaned forward and narrowed his eyes. “It’s Ryden, isn’t it?”

“You know I don’t discuss my job.” The unimpressed expression Jay received in response was expected, but still. A boy had to try.

“Neither do I. That doesn’t mean we don’t spill the tea on whatever ridiculousness has occurred on any given day because you work for the Kings, and one of them is married to my boss.”

True. Neither of them would ever disclose anything remotely confidential or connected to their roles as top executive assistants, not even to each other.

Now, when Ace, Lucky, and Joker got into a full WWE grudge match over the last donut, only to have Mason strut across the floor, his mouth full of said donut?

Jay was more than happy to discuss that at great length.

Or whatever imminent demise King had threatened Ace with after another stationery shipment arrived and everything inside the box was hot pink.

It all made for riveting dinner conversation. However, Ryden was not a fun topic.

“I don’t want to talk about that infuriating man.” Jay thanked the server for his food and placed the napkin on his lap. The burgers might be pricey, but they were amazing. And the fries? Perfectly seasoned, crunchy on the outside, and soft on the inside, as all fries should be. So freaking good.

“What did he do now?” Joshua asked, taking a bite of one of his fries. “Ooh, hot!”

Jay chuckled. “They just came out of the kitchen.”

“Shut up.” Joshua fanned his tongue, then his fries. “Spill. What did he do?”

Reluctantly, Jay told Joshua everything that had happened in Red’s office, including when Ryden first kissed him, their truce, and the great job Jay had been doing ignoring it all, until the end of their fake boyfriend make-out session.

Joshua gaped at him. “Wait, what? He kissed you? Wait, you two made out?” He seemed to shake himself out of it before he whispered hoarsely as if Ace might pop out from beneath the table, because if there was juicy gossip to be heard, Ace somehow developed superhuman hearing and appeared. “You never told me he kissed you.”

“Like I said, it was nothing, and I was trying to ignore it.”

“So you ignored it by making out with him?”

Jay waved a hand in dismissal as if it was no big deal and not one of the hottest moments of his life. “That’s not what’s important.”

“Are you kidding me? That’s everything . I can’t believe you guys made out.”

“It wasn’t real.”

Joshua arched an eyebrow at him. He didn’t have to say a word because they both knew what Jay had said was complete and utter bullshit. Jay sighed. He held up a finger and downed the rest of his drink before requesting another from their server as he passed by.

“And what happened after?”

Jay told Joshua the rest. Why wasn’t his best friend outraged for him? Joshua couldn’t possibly think… No, of course not.

“So, what you’re saying is you overreacted.”

Jay blinked at him. “Excuse me?”

“I know you hate to hear this, so brace yourself.” Joshua leaned forward again. “You were wrong.”

“Define, ‘wrong,’” Jay said, eyes narrowed.

“As in, the only thing Ryden is guilty of is looking fine in that uniform.”

“Are you serious right now?”

“Yes.” Joshua picked up a fry and popped it into his mouth. “Also, I’m glad he doesn’t want you involved.”

“You don’t think I can take care of myself?”

“I’m going to pretend you didn’t say that to me, your best friend.

We’re talking about a whole other level of skill here.

These are huge ass military dudes who’ve done shit we can’t even imagine, and it’s obvious they’re up to something bad.

Whatever it is, it’s the kind of danger you leave to the Kings.

That’s what they do. Your job is to support them so they can do what they do.

It’s not to become the Ralph Lauren-wearing Equalizer. ”

“You know, you used to be so sweet and timid. Frank’s ruined you.”

Joshua barked out a laugh.

“Or maybe it’s Colton,” Jay mused. “He’s feisty.”

“That’s more likely. He’s a force of nature.”

Was it possible Jay had overreacted? He thought back to that moment and everything that had been said, including how Ryden had said it. He lifted his gaze to Joshua. “You think I overreacted?”

“You did,” Joshua replied gently. “Ryden was just looking out for you. He doesn’t know…everything. Plus, as sexy as that drawl of his is, he’s not the greatest at communicating his feelings, especially when it comes to you. It’s like you intimidate him or something.”

It was Jay’s turn to laugh. “ I intimidate him ? Come on. Look at me. Intimidating is not the first thing guys like him think of when they look at me.”

“You’re wrong. Again,” Joshua said, mischief in his eyes.

“You’re just loving this, aren’t you?”

“I am. I’m taking this moment,” he pretended to pluck something from the air. “And I’m filing it away for later.” He then proceeded to place the pretend file in his pocket.

“You’re ridiculous.”

Joshua ignored him. “And, of course, he’s intimidated.

Think about it. When you first met, he was in a rough place.

” His gaze turned sympathetic. “Jay, he was one bad day away from falling apart. Hell, he’d already fallen apart and was trying to put himself back together.

And there you are at your desk, looking gorgeous and put together. ”

“How’d you know I looked gorgeous?”

Joshua snorted. “Really?”

“Yeah, all right. I looked fabulous.”

“So, there you were, looking fabulous and sweet, dressed in bright colors, a beacon of light in a sea of black T-shirts and hard badasses. You knocked him for a loop. Then he finds out you’re not just a pretty face.

You’re smart, confident, and fearless. Everyone at the office loves you, including the Kings, including the King, and they would be lost without you.

The man didn’t stand a chance. So, naturally, every time he opens his mouth around you, in goes the foot. ”

Jay’s heart pounded in his ears. Was it possible?

When King introduced them, Jay had known very little about Ryden because it had been no one’s place to tell Ryden’s story.

But Jay knew the Kings, and that kind of somber lack of detail from them meant Ryden’s past was heartbreakingly painful and not to be discussed.

Over the years, Ryden had opened up some about his past, enough for Jay to piece certain things together, but he still didn’t know everything.

But then why would he? Jay hadn’t earned that kind of trust from Ryden, unlike Mason, Lucky, and the others.

And whose fault is that ? Jay swallowed around the lump in his throat. Quickly, he pulled himself together.

“Then why hasn’t he said anything? It’s been six years. And all he’s done is drive me to throw books at him.” Jay had lost some good novels to that jerk. Besides, the blame didn’t fall solely on Jay. Ryden was as much to blame for their feud as Jay was.

“I know you say you two have nothing in common, but you’re both so damned stubborn that it’s taken you all this time to even admit to yourselves there’s something between you two.”

“I liked it better when we gossiped about other people,” Jay grumbled, making Joshua laugh. Damn it. His best friend was right. “I guess this means I owe him an apology.”

“I guess it does.” Joshua took a big bite of his burger and moaned around it. “Oh my God.”

“Right?” Jay bit into his burger, and the two of them sat having foodgasms for a heartbeat.

When they could talk again, it was about the random funny shit that happened around the office.

Jay was lucky to have a best friend as genuine and amazing as Joshua.

Not to mention someone who wasn’t afraid to call Jay on his bullshit.

It was also nice to be able to decompress about work stuff with someone who did what Jay did and was connected to the Kings.

Most people had no idea how vital Joshua’s and Jay’s roles were within their respective companies.

They assumed they spent all day answering phones, sending emails, or fetching coffee.

Joshua was Colton’s right-hand man. He knew everything the president and CEO of a multibillion-dollar worldwide shipping company knew.