Page 24

Lance was lying on the grass in the backyard. The sun beat down on them, and he laughed as Haunt sat down on his stomach. "Easy." He huffed out a long breath as he pet her.

Angus walked out and sat down beside them. "I thought I was the only one allowed to sit on your lap." He reached out and petted Haunt. "Good thing I'm not a jealous man."

"I'd rather it be you. She's got sharp toenails." Lance forced Haunt off him and rolled to his side. He saw a postcard in Angus's hand. "What did we get?"

"It's from Mom, Dad, and Betty. They're having a great time in Hawaii. Mom claims they may never come back." He grinned as he handed the postcard to Lance.

On the front was a picture of a man who had climbed up the trunk of a large tree and was holding a coconut in his hands. "I'm a bit jealous. Have you been there before? "

"Nope, but I'd love to go. Maybe we should plan a trip next year. We have extra money coming in since I rented my house. We could put that away for vacation money." Angus reached down and brushed a strand of hair back from Lance's face.

"It's an idea. We'll talk to your parents when they get back so we have an idea of what to plan." Lance rested his head on Angus's thigh. "I almost want to horde all the money we can now so we can travel like your parents do when we retire."

"That's years away. We need a vacation or two before retirement." Angus tossed the ball Haunt had dropped at his side.

Lance watched the dog race across the yard. Things had been good the last week. Neither of them had pressing cases, and they'd been home together most nights at a decent hour. He was sure that wouldn't last, but he'd take what time he could while he could. Lance sat up as Haunt suddenly started to bark and ran to the sliding glass door. A second later, Bethany and Ray floated through the kitchen wall. Haunt was ecstatic, barking and running around the ghosts as if it had been years since she'd seen them.

"Bethany and Ray are back," Lance told Angus as he leaned against him. "Welcome home."

Ray came toward them while Bethany sat on the ground, giving Haunt tons of attention. "Thanks, it's good to be back. Though I have to admit, we had a great time in Paris." Ray sat down on the lawn with them.

Lance made sure to repeat everything said so Angus could keep up. "I can't wait to hear all about it. Where else did you go?"

"We went through Italy, and parts of Spain, but Bethany was homesick, so we decided to head back for a bit. It's not as if we can't go again in a few months. The countries sure have changed since I last visited that area of the world. Did I miss anything here?"

Lance laughed. "A lot, but there will be plenty of time to talk about it all later. Tell us more about your trip."

As he listened and filled Angus in on everything Ray shared, Lance was at peace. He had everything he could want in life. He was in love with an amazing man and surrounded by friends who had become like family. Life was good, and as hard as it was at times, he wouldn't change a thing. He loved everything about his life, even when it was crazy and busy.