Order (Tattoos and Ties 2)

“Mr. Fox.”

The woman diverted the prez’s attention and he turned to help his customer. Dev slammed both his palms on Keyes’s chest, pushing Keyes backward a couple of steps until he spun him around, shoving him out the front doors. When they were about halfway to his bike, Dev grabbed his arm and twisted him back around, getting right in his face, not three inches separating them from being nose to nose. “All right, man, which one? The blond or the old man?”

Keyes narrowed his eyes, staring at Dev’s excitement as a knowing grin tugged at the corners of his friend’s mouth.

“What are you talkin’ about?” he asked and took a step backward. Dev followed. Of course, he totally knew what Dev was asking, but fuck no, he wasn’t answering, so he schooled his features and started to turn away, giving nothing up.

“Oh bullshit,” Dev said, coming in and crowding him. The playful side of Dev was intrigued and there would be no stopping him until he had his answers. “Ain’t no way you got the kind of money to hire that dude without the club backing you. After I got your bike, I came back and sat outside, watching that shit go down. Those two guys left for a while, not long, but long enough for me to see the older attorney get in a Benz S-class, and the blond in a fuckin’ Ferrari. You ain’t got the cash to hire either one of them, so you’re fuckin’ one, maybe both.” Dev’s newest burst of amusement was immediate as he laughed in Keyes’s face. “Shit, man, I didn’t think about that. You went kink on me, got you a daddy and a third.”

Keyes stepped back again. Dev didn’t follow, but his hand went out for a celebratory hand slap—one that Keyes left hanging.

“You don’t know how much money I got,” he grumbled, ducking his head, fighting his own grin. Dev’s craziness was exactly what he’d needed. It also gave him confirmation that Dev had in fact gotten Fox and Mack out of there on purpose, which meant his brother still truly had his back. The relief was a bit staggering, and he lifted a hand, scrubbing it over his face. Fuck, he had needed the reassurance more than he ever thought possible. Keyes was truly beginning to believe he had misread every person in his whole damn life.

“I kinda fuckin’ do know how much cash you have. You just bought that fuckin’ truck when business has been shit, then yesterday, I figured out that older sugar-bear bought it for you. Then I saw the blond, and my money’s on him. He’s fuckin’ classy-hot with all that rich, motherfuckin’ swagger. I’d fuck his sweet ass.”

Okay, wait a minute. Keyes slowly lifted his eyes, staring at Dev through his parted fingers still covering his face. The fuck? Keyes dropped his hand and stood to his full height. His glare pinning his buddy in place. “What the fuck did you just say?”

“You know I like some ass,” Dev said, giving a knowing nod and throwing out his fist for a bump. Keyes left that one hanging too.

“No, that’s somethin’ I sure don’t fuckin’ know,” Keyes said. He looked at Dev as if he’d never seen the man before.

“Sure, you do. All the time I fought the club about that shit. I’m not gonna be judged,” Dev declared smugly, his chest swelling in his indignation. Keyes’s eyebrows slid up. What the hell? This was news to him.

“I thought you were defending me,” he said in an utter state of shock.

“Fuck no. I like ass. I just like the self-lubricating shit too.” As if the last forty-eight hours weren’t enough for Keyes, Dev blew his fucking mind. His mouth gaped open with no words coming out, because seriously, what the fuck? “I’d’ve fucked you, but you had head issues about it all, and man, I’m freaky, but you’re my brother—like, real brother. Sibling shit only turns me on when it’s not my sibling.”

Keyes was struck dumb, and Dev let that hang between them, grinning like the fucking Cheshire cat.

“It’s the blond, right? You’ve lost your shit over him. He seemed pretty fuckin’ upset too. He’s loaded, right?” Dev said so matter-of-factly, with no fear for the club or their patched brothers, just genuinely happy for him.

“Dev—” He looked down at the parking lot, kicking at some loose rocks. Fucking hell, the relief of someone knowing and just being happy that he’d found someone to love threatened to bring on the damn tears. His eyes welled up, and he lifted a hand, digging his fingers into closed eyelids, trying get hold of himself. What the fuck was wrong him?

“It’s cool. I get it. If it were me hooked up with him, I would’ve told you—you know, best buds and all, but I get it…” Dev said teasingly, and Keyes raised his head back up.