Page 11 of Single Greatest Threat (Atlantic City’s Most Wanted #6)

Glasses and silverware clinked alongside the murmur of several voices.

Bigstock Brewhouse was one of the most popular restaurants in town and was always busy at lunchtime.

The moment they had a table, Shaw pulled his chair so close to Joesph’s their arms brushed.

Joesph hadn’t stopped smiling in the two weeks since they had gotten engaged.

Shaw had bought him a gorgeous engagement ring and—as promised—paid off his student loans.

Joesph still felt a little weird about that part, but they were getting married.

Soon that debt would be his too. A detail Shaw had pointed out several times, making Joesph feel a little better about the situation.

Shaw leaned his way with his iPad. “Okay. Big decision here. Which of these business cards do you like? The black and gold or plain white?”

Joesph’s gaze slid between the two. “Honestly? It might seem a little pretentious, but our names look really good in gold.”

A sexy chuckle rumbled from Shaw. Joesph had to take a breath at the sound. He was so in love. “Black it is.” He scrolled. “Now, even bigger decision. Which of these wedding invitations?”

Giddiness poured through Joesph. He couldn’t believe Shaw had spent the morning putting together an actual invitation. Joesph read the two choices. “This weekend?”

Shaw shrugged. “You said we have to beat Dodge to the altar. We’re running out of time on that one.”

They were, and Joesph hadn’t been serious. “If you want to wait, we can. I’m not trying to rush you.”

Shaw met and held his gaze. “You’re not. I’m rushing you before you come to your senses.”

Joesph tore his gaze away and focused on the invitation again. “What’s this address?”

“It’s a small chapel at a gorgeous winery. They were the only people with an opening. I figured, since we don’t have many people to invite, we didn’t need a huge place anyway. Hopefully, it’s okay. I wanted to surprise you. Plus, I know you don’t need the stress.”

That was true. Any amount of stress caused flares, and Joesph already suffered more than he liked. “Sounds great. Who are we inviting?”

Shaw pulled up a list, proving exactly how hard he had been working on planning. “I figured Dodge’s bunch, since he’s your best friend.”

Joesph cut in. “You’re my best friend. I thought we had that established.”

That goddamn sexy chuckle nearly took him out again. “Okay. Best friend you’re not sleeping with.”

“I’ll accept this compromise.”

They shared a smile before going back to the list. “We have to invite Noir and his husband.”

“Along with an entire royal guard,” Joesph added.

“Yep. Along with them. Your mom. That’s a given.”

“Your parents.”

Shaw didn’t say anything. He kept moving along, naming clients they also considered friends.

Joesph eyed the list. He saw Portland and Tarek as well as another couple Shaw played pickleball with at the club. His parents weren’t on the list. “Hold up. Are you not inviting your parents?”

“I’d rather not.”

“Not even your mom?” Joesph was so confused. He knew they had fallen out, obviously, but not inviting them to his wedding seemed a bit much.

Shaw met his stare. His eyes swam with laughter, but it felt fake. “Baby, my mom would totally take over everything. We’d end up waiting a year while she put together a gala. Plus, Dad fired you.”

Joesph shrugged. “And? I planned to quit anyhow.”

“It’s the principle.”

Sometimes, Shaw aggravated the hell out of him. But this wasn’t his fight, and Shaw would do what he wanted. “Will these invitations even arrive on time? Much less have time to be sent out?”

Shaw draped his arm across the back of Joesph’s chair and kissed his temple. “Don’t worry, baby. I have everything under control. You can trust me.”

“I know.”

Shaw kissed him again at the admission.

Joesph smiled so big, it hurt. It fell the second he noticed a familiar set of eyes focused on him. “Oh, no.” The words were out before Joesph could call them back. He regretted it the second he drew attention to the staring contest.

Shaw picked up his water glass and took a drink as if his father wasn’t sitting across the room with the same woman who broke up his marriage.

“Why isn’t she in jail?”

“Dad would have to press charges, and he won’t. If I tried, Dad would just defend her in court and I doubt I could win, considering it was his business first and he basically gave her permission. So, fuck it. It’s whatever.”

Despite his nonchalant tone, Joesph saw the hurt in his eyes. His dad had betrayed his entire family. Joesph focused on the menu while he kept up his side of the conversation. “Why is he staring death daggers at me?”

Shaw took his hand and brought it to his mouth.

He smiled as he kissed the back. “You are woefully blind to your worth. It’s your dedication and hard work that made the firm a success.

You were the one who stayed late and ran themself into the ground.

I’m sure he feels like you chose your side and now you’ll take us to the top.

Mostly, it’s because you stole his clients.

” He laughed, doing nothing to quell Joesph’s irritation.

“They were our clients, and of course I chose a side. You’re mine. I love you. Why would I choose a cheating old man?”

“Because this cheating old man gave you a job when no one else would have.”

Joesph startled at the sudden appearance of Shaw’s dad.

He wanted to be embarrassed since he was right.

Not only had Senior given him his first job right out of law school, but he had also taken Joesph’s side against his own son more than once.

Now that he really looked at things, though, what a shitty thing to do.

He should’ve known by that act alone Senior had no loyalty.

Joesph held his stare and refused to respond.

Senior sighed as if annoyed by Joesph. “I’d like to speak to my son alone.”

Where in the fuck did he want Joesph to go? They were in a restaurant.

Shaw set his hand on his arm. “Feel free to speak in front of Joesph. Obviously, he knows everything. Plus, we’re getting married, so he’ll be family.”

Senior’s face screwed up in confusion. He glanced between them. “Why? You’ve always only used him for sex. Why would you marry a cripple?”

Joesph’s eyebrows shot up.

Shaw brushed his shoulder, snagging his attention. His face looked hard enough to cut glass. “You should go say hi to Kayla. Maybe mention how Dad spent last night begging my mom to take him back. Mom has proof if she’d like to see it.”

Senior waved his hand. “You can stay. I shouldn’t have said that.”

Joesph didn’t know what to do. On one hand, Joesph had called the guy an old cheat, so maybe they were even. But on the other, fuck this guy who chose an affair partner over his family. Thankfully, he ended up rescued.

“Hey. I thought I saw you sitting over here.”

Relief poured through Joesph at Dodge’s sudden appearance. His men, Salem and Quest, sat at a table nearby.

“Hey.” Joesph grabbed the iPad and focused on Shaw. “I’m going to go say hi and show them what we were just talking about.”

Shaw gave him a sharp nod, but his hard gaze never wavered from his father.

Joesph didn’t hesitate to back away from the table and leave with Dodge.

Dodge looked confused. “What’s going on? Why does Shaw look ready to kill his dad?”

“Oh, boy. It’s been a wild couple of weeks.” They reached the table before he could explain. Salem and Quest were all smiles.

They exchanged a round of pleasantries before Joesph jumped in, answering Dodge’s question. “Very long story short, Shaw Sr. has been cheating on his wife with his old secretary. Now Shaw and his dad are fighting and it’s a mess.”

Salem nodded. He always looked too serious.

But Joesph had no idea what it took to be him.

Salem had married a ninety-year-old billionaire months before the man’s death.

The guy had left Salem everything. Now Salem planned to marry the guy’s stepsons.

It was wild and the talk of the town. Everyone thought Salem was nothing more than a gold digger.

That wasn’t true. Joesph loved these men. The three were made for each other.

“I’m not surprised,” Salem said, cutting into his thoughts. “J.D. used to tell me all about Shaw Sr.’s exploits. There was nothing J.D. hated more than a cheat.”

That caught Joesph off guard. “Really? Shaw’s mom said it wasn’t the first time, but I didn’t know it was all the time.”

Salem nodded again. “Apparently. I’m surprised Shaw didn’t know. It didn’t seem like he was very discreet.”

“Shaw’s too fucking self-absorbed to see shit.” Quest muttered the words under his breath, but Joesph didn’t miss them. Joesph didn’t correct him. Quest was owed his reasons to dislike Shaw.

“Anyhow, his dad just let Shaw know how he felt about his son marrying a cripple. So, can I sit with you?”

A deep line appeared between Dodge’s eyebrows. “Who is Shaw marrying? I thought you two were back together.”

A laugh burst from Joesph. He adored Dodge’s sweet mind. “He meant me, angel.”

“What? Why would he call you that? Do I need to kick his ass?”

“Congratulations.” Salem sounded genuine and not at all bothered Dodge wanted to fight an old man.

“You can come live with us if anything goes wrong,” Quest cut in.

Joesph shook his head. “Thanks, guys.” Genuinely, Quest wasn’t wrong to feel that way. Shaw had never done Joesph right in the past. This time was different, though. He felt that in his gut.

The iPad made a sound, reminding Joesph he held it. He quickly typed in Shaw’s password. As he did so, it truly washed over him how much he knew about the guy. They had been much deeper in each other’s lives than either of them wanted to admit. Joesph blinked at the device.

“I heard you put out feelers for a wedding venue. Surely, you’re not planning to marry that cripple. Not only is he beneath you, but you’ll end up taking care of him full time once he’s bedridden. You should come warm my bed instead.”