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“Yeah, that’s what I said.”

Jay rolled his eyes. “Is there a reason you’re both hovering? And don’t you dare tease him.” He gave Ace a pointed look. Ace opened his mouth, and Jay narrowed his eyes. “Anston Sharpe, you leave him alone.”

“Oh, come on, Jay.” Ace threw his arms up dramatically. “This is too good an opportunity to pass up.” He pointed at the chameleon. “Look at it, Jay. Are you looking? Do you see that? That is pure ball-busting gold.”

Jay just arched an eyebrow at him.

“Fine. Ruin my fun,” Ace grumbled and stormed off.

Saint shook his head as he watched Ace disappear into his office. “Your power is terrifying.”

“I know.” Jay preened. “Now, what did you need?”

“I emailed you my expense report from last week, like you asked.”

“Perfect, I’ll get that?—”

The elevator opened, and Jay’s heart skipped a beat when Ryden stepped out with Jack, Joker, and Chip. Then he saw Ryden’s jaw, Joker’s head, and Jack’s chin.

“Oh my God, what happened?” Jay quickly but carefully returned his little friend to his desk drawer before jumping out of his seat and darting over to Ryden. Gently, he took hold of his chin and turned his face. “Does it hurt? Are you all right? Does it need treatment?”

“Um, no, yes, and no,” Ryden said, amused.

How could he take this so lightly? What the hell had happened last night? Chip whined, and Jay dropped his gaze, unable to resist those big puppy eyes. No matter the circumstances, he couldn’t ignore his best boy.

“I’m so sorry,” Jay cooed, giving Chip lots of love and pets. When Chip felt he’d received sufficient attention, he trotted off to demand love from someone else.

Joker turned to Jack, his eyes twinkling with mischief despite his frown. “Looks like we’re chopped liver from here on out, pal.”

“Aw, I’m so sorry. Do you need some love and pets, too?” Jay asked sweetly.

“Maybe I do.” Joker sniffed. “It’s fine. These days, I’m getting my pets elsewhere.”

Jay snickered, and Saint joined them as they headed to King’s office. As soon as Joker stepped into the doorway, King stood.

“Conference room.”

Judging by King’s reaction, he knew what had happened.

It made sense that the guys would have called him last night to fill him in on whatever had caused their injuries.

Red, Ace, and Lucky were already there when they arrived at the conference room.

Ace lifted his gaze, looking ready to joke when he saw their faces. He stood, his frown deep.

“What the hell happened?”

King closed the door behind them and stood at the head of the table facing them. “What happened is those bastards blew up Gibson Global.”

“Yeah, with us in it,” Joker growled. “Chip alerted us in time. We got the hell out. The building blew just as we made it outside. We got knocked on our asses, but other than a few cuts and bruises, we were damned lucky. Martin, not so much.”

What ? A lump formed in Jay’s throat, and it took everything he had not to throw his arms around Ryden.

What if they hadn’t gotten out in time? If their injuries had been worse.

Ryden could have died. Jay swallowed hard and forced himself to remain still.

Ryden must have sensed something, because he reached out under the table and took Jay’s hand, giving it a quick squeeze.

When he went to pull his hand away, Jay grabbed it, holding on tight.

After taking a deep breath, he released Ryden’s hand.

“What do you mean?” Lucky asked. “Martin was there?”

Ryden nodded. “Yeah, Chip found him. He must’ve been either in the buildin’ or close to it ’cause he got caught in the explosion. The weird thing is, he was already dead.”

“You think they killed him?” Red frowned. “But why kill Martin, dump his body at Gibson Global, and blow it up?” He narrowed his eyes. “Unless they were trying to pin Gibson’s murder on him.”

King hummed. “Maybe Martin got a little too sloppy, and they figured this was the best way to point the police away from them and get rid of Martin. Two birds with one stone.”

Joker dropped into one of the chairs. “We need to talk to Colton. Ask him about his meeting with Gibson.”

“He should be here any minute,” Ace replied, looking at his watch. As he said the words, the door opened, and Colton appeared. Talk about timing.

“Thanks for coming,” King said, motioning to the chair beside Ace.

“Of course,” Colton replied, kissing Ace’s cheek before taking a seat.

It was amazing how the room’s atmosphere changed when Colton stepped in.

He was tall and elegant, his appearance pristine from his perfectly styled blond hair to his expensive Armani suit.

He exuded confidence. The boardroom was his battlefield; anyone who saw him could tell he dominated it.

Jay’s boss might be different from Joshua’s in every way, but they had one thing in common. They each had a powerful presence.

King motioned for Ryden to continue.

“Colton, did Gibson mention being in debt or an offer from Bullard Business Import and Export Solutions?”

“He did,” Colton replied with a nod. “That’s what our lunch meeting was about the day before he died.

After learning about the incident involving Graham’s cargo ship, I offered my support, but he was already dealing with the insurance company.

When they declined his claim, he came to me for advice.

He was devastated. This was his family’s business, and until then, the company had been doing very well.

Graham didn’t want to sell, especially to Bullard.

There was something about the man who made him the offer he didn’t like.

I told him not to take the deal and that Connolly Maritime would invest in Gibson Global. ”

“You were going to bail him out,” Joker confirmed.

“Invest,” Colton corrected, though his lips quirked into a smile in the corners. “I’ve known Graham for years. He was a good man with a solid business model. He didn’t deserve what happened to him.” Colton’s brows drew together. “I find the circumstances surrounding the loss to be…questionable.”

King looked thoughtful. “How so?”

“Graham had been in business for years. He was meticulous, and his crew was highly experienced. I’m not saying a cargo ship can’t lose its cargo.

It happens more often than you think. Pirates, hurricanes, storms. Anything can happen out there in the middle of the ocean.

But none of those conditions were present, and according to one of the crew members, the cargo containers started falling from the stern. ”

“So, the opposite end of where the explosion was,” King said.

Colton nodded. “I suspect that was why the insurance company denied his claim. The investigator must have concluded that certain things didn’t add up.”

Jay still didn’t understand. “Why would they kill Gibson because he refused to sell?”

“Not to mention that killing Graham has led to Connolly Maritime doubling down on security,” Colton added. “They must have known this would happen.”

Ryden tapped his fingers on the table. He met Colton’s gaze. “Did Gibson say who from Bullard approached him?”

“Yes. A Martin Smith, I believe. The man came on a little too strong for Graham’s liking. Something about the man had him on edge.”

Jay noticed that Jack was typing away at his tablet the entire time they talked. Was he trying to find more information on their guys? Did the explosion at Gibson Global and the dead man found there hit the news?

Joker sat back in his chair, his arms crossed over his chest. “I think King is onto something. First, Martin gets on Ryden’s radar at the wedding.

Their research would have shown that Ry and Jay worked for Four Kings Security and Colton’s husband.

If they’d been trying to find an in with Connolly Maritime, Martin jeopardized that plan.

Then, he tries to force Gibson to sell. Instead, Gibson goes to Colton.

Martin kills Gibson in a very loud way, and it results in Connolly Maritime doubling down on security.

There’s no going back. Connolly Maritime is out of the question. ”

Red nodded his agreement. “So they kill Martin, dump his body at Gibson Global, blow it up, and now the police will look into Martin, who witnesses would have seen at Gibson Global when he went to make Gibson an offer. It’s easy to assume he’d be angry at Gibson for refusing to sell. That’s motive.”

“They have to be regrouping,” Jay pitched in. “I just don’t know why these guys were working with Martin in the first place. They didn’t look pleased with him at the wedding.”

“Ah ha!” Jack grinned brightly at King. “Your husband is a genius.”

“I know that,” King said matter-of-factly, making everyone laugh.

“Right. Thanks to our Leo-shaped friend, we discovered that Martin was a new addition to the group. The original sixth member was a Marine who served with the other five. Martin joined at the last minute after their guy was killed during a ‘business trip’ near the Colombia-Venezuela border.”

“Yeah, because that’s where all legitimate companies go to do business,” Joker muttered.

“What else did you and Leo find out about these guys?” King asked.

Jack’s expression turned dark. “Our Marines were Raiders.”

“Fuck,” Joker ran a hand through his hair. “Special ops.”

Jay’s stomach dropped. Oh no.

“Yep.” Jack tapped at the screen. “We got parts of a classified document un-redacted and discovered they received an other than honorable discharge during the Siege of Marawi in 2017. A year after that, Bullard Business Import and Export Solutions appeared.”

Ace cursed under his breath. “How much do you want to bet that they don’t so much as consult for Bullard as they created it to cover up their illegal operation? Is that all you could find on them?” he asked Jack.

“A lot of what we’ve found is in connection to previous missions, but something big happened during that siege because not even Leo can find intel on it. All we’ve got are puzzle pieces that don’t fit together.”

Oh damn. He was going to have to do it. Jay’s anxiety shot up, and he met King’s gaze.

King didn’t say a word. He didn’t have to.

His hard blue eyes said it all. The ball was in Jay’s court.

Jay closed his eyes and tried to summon courage.

He hated this. But they needed him to step up, no matter how uncomfortable or how many painful memories it brought up.

“I…I know a Marine Raider who was at the Siege of Marawi,” Jay said, hating how small his voice sounded.

All eyes were on him, but Ryden was the one Jay turned to for comfort. He held out his hand, his discomfort easing some when Ryden laced their fingers together.

“Who?” Ryden asked softly.

Jay inhaled deeply. He closed his eyes and fortified himself before opening them again. “Finch. My brother.”