Page 67 of Ride the Lightning

“Absolutely, sir,” Jonah said stoically. Their conversation ebbed into an awkward silence when neither of them had anything left to say. Trexler wanted Jonah to ask for his badge back again; Jonah would prefer someone douse him with honey and cover him with fire ants. He’d outwait the fucker all damn day if he needed to.

“Well, then,” Trexler said after the uncomfortable stillness stretched unbearably long. Reaching inside his desk drawer, he pulled out Jonah’s ID badge and extended it to him. “Guess you’ll want this now.”

“Thank you, sir,” Jonah said, accepting the thing that had defined his existence for the last few years. The badge had once represented a fresh start and a new journey. Lately, it had felt more like an albatross.

With a jerky nod, Jonah exited Trexler’s office. Avery had stayed overnight and showered with him before work, but Jonah’s heart still raced at the prospect of seeing him again.

Keep it together, St. John.

In his absence, Avery had neatly sorted and stacked his mail, casefiles, and project updates on his desk. A bag of Caramel Bugles sat in the center of the piles. He’d been too preoccupied with making Avery climax to save time for eating breakfast, so he tore into the bag and started in on his favorite treat while reading over the project report update Avery had left for him.

Jonah heard a noise outside his closed door a few minutes later. His heart thudded heavily as he waited for Avery to open the door and poke his head in. A minute ticked by, then two, and before Jonah knew it, ten minutes had passed without Avery approaching him. He began drumming his fingers against his desk.

Where is he?Was Avery avoiding—

The door burst inward before Jonah could finish his thoughts. He held two mugs like usual and wore a devilish smile on his lips. That wasn’t what caught his attention, though.

“Have you been eating avocados?” Jonah asked.

“Who, me?” Avery asked, setting Jonah’s coffee down on his desk. “What makes you say that?”

“Flushed cheeks and swollen lips. For Christ’s sake, Avery. I saw you not more than thirty minutes ago.”

Instead of dropping in his usual chair across from him, Avery skirted around the desk and planted his sweet ass on Jonah’s blotter. “Avocado toast is my weakness.”

“What am I going to do with you?” Jonah asked.

Avery waggled his brows. “Do you really want me to answer that, or would you prefer to hear about Bill and Ashley’s breakup?”

“Again? What happened this time?”

“Ashley slept with his cousin.”

“Again?” Jonah repeated.

“Aha! You do pay attention,” Avery said. “Different cousin.”

Jonah choked on his sip of coffee. “Are you fucking with me right now?”

Avery shook his head and his eyes glittered with mirth. Jonah barely resisted the urge to pull Avery onto his lap and kiss his lips. “It gets better.”

“How?”

Leaning forward until their foreheads nearly touched, Avery said, “Bill got revenge by sleeping with Ashley’s sister.”

Jonah crooked his finger and Avery moved even closer. “I’m putting twenty bucks on them getting back together by the weekend.”

“No way,” Avery said, shaking his head. “Banging someone’s sister is a deal breaker.”

Jonah looked up at Avery with as much seriousness as he could muster. “I promise to never sleep with your sister.”

Avery laughed hard. “I don’t have a sister.”

“Watch the swamp water,” Jonah said, pointing at the cup teetering in Avery’s hand. “I keep forgetting to replenish my spare clothing in the closet.”

“Knock it—”

Jonah’s door opened suddenly, and Avery stood up so fast his stinky brew sloshed over the side and landed on Jonah’s pant leg.Great.