“He was being promoted, but we’ve changed our minds,” Thane said so casually that Beckett had to think about each word. Beckett’s brows dropped in a hard V. His protectiveness for Julian came on strong, blowing off the charts. He didn’t like Julian being handed something as big as a promotion, then having it idly taken away. Some friends these guys were.
“He’s got it bad,” Arik asserted, pushing his plate aside.
“You noticed that too?” Thane asked Arik, but Beckett held all his attention. “You aren’t overly expressive, but you get that fierce look that I bet makes small children cry.” Thane arched a brow Arik’s way. “That look’s been aimed at me for at least the last month.”
Oh hell no. Thane was the motherfucker in this scenario, not Beckett. “Because you scowl at me all the damn time, Walker. Does Julian know you’re stripping him of his promotion? That doesn’t seem right. And it’s not right to be so casual about Julian’s life in front of me.”
Arik barked out a laugh and clapped his hands together. He had to have drawn every eye in the restaurant with the sheer volume of the outburst. One being the waitress who Arik instructed to serve another round.
“Calm down. No one’s doing Julian wrong, but Julian doesn’t know yet that the general manager over both the restaurant and club has given his notice. We’ve decided to ask Julian to take that position,” Thane said.
“It’s crazy how well he’s done running the club,” Arik added with enthusiasm that helped Beckett take the edge off his increasing ire.
“He has no management background or real training, but he’s killed it,” Thane continued, nodding at Arik. “I believe he’ll accept the new position and be happy to have it. He loves Reservations. He’s the whole reason for the concept, but it’s not been enough to make him start living his life again. That’s where Layne and I have decided you come in.”
No matter how Thane made it sound, Beckett didn’t believe Thane meant that he and Julian should shoot for a relationship. That somehow, magically, in the last twenty hours, Thane began to side with Beckett, encouraging him to make his move.
“How do you mean?” Beckett finally asked when nothing more was said.
Thane, who clearly thought of himself as a master negotiator, propped his elbows on the edge of the table as he leaned Beckett’s direction. Sincerity slid over every part of his face.
“Julian needs to feel empowered again. We believe a private, intensive self-defense training program would do Julian very well. Something designed to help him regain his confidence.”
Since Beckett knew nothing of Julian’s problems, he couldn’t agree or disagree with the plan. He nodded though; Beckett probably had a confidence that he might not have otherwise by knowing he could survive through any disaster while being able to kick every guy’s ass in this room without breaking a sweat.
“I’m not sure what you’re insinuating, but I don’t teach self-defense, and ultimately that’s Julian’s decision, not yours.”
As if Beckett hadn’t said anything other than he didn’t teach self-defense, Arik spoke up. “But you know it. I watched some of your combat training videos on YouTube. You can handle teaching Julian.”
Beckett was as lost as ever. He barely knew how to work his cell phone. He had no social media and didn’t own a computer other than what the secretary at the main lodge used. Of course, he didn’t have videos on YouTube.
Thane added, “Julian will be against this because he’s against everything I suggest.”
“Like he’s a damn out-of-control teenager,” Arik confirmed with a commiserating nod.
“Like a bad teenager who needs to go to military school,” Thane murmured and rolled his eyes, sitting back against the booth. His bluster disappeared, his shoulders slumping as his hands fell to his lap. “A pain in the ass teen.”
Neither of these men made any sense. Beckett had to pull them back into the conversation before they spun off on some side topic about having kids. “Let’s say I’d do it. How would you get Julian to agree? Would you tell him it was me? I’m not sure it would help if I were the one because, most of the time, I feel like he doesn’t even know who I am.”
“You caught that ignoring thing, huh?” Arik said, laughing. “Kellus did that to me. He made me work like I never worked before just to earn a simple glance. I fell hook, line, and sinker. I’m still hooked.”
Beckett assumed Kellus must be the spouse Arik had referred to. He lifted his bottle, draining the beer, tilting it all the way back for every last drop.
“Julian struggles with trusting people,” Thane started. “But I believe he trusts you enough that he’d open up for the first time in a long time. I haven’t seen the real Julian for so long that I thought his current ways were his new normal. That was until he danced with you. Levi’s helped me see.” Thane shook his head. “If you can get Julian back to his old self, I’ll owe you a huge debt of gratitude.”