Consolation Prize (Forbidden Men 9)

Ten had just plopped his orange into the bottle and was about to take a swig when he pulled back dramatically. “What? I actually have to pay for this shit? Pick!” he roared, making me realize my boss had strolled out from the hallway to his office and was joining us at the bar, where he was pulling up a stool next to Ten. “You invited us to your bar for drinks, and now you’re fucking charging us? What the hell, man?”

“Hello to you too.” Pick sat as he transferred his attention to Brandt. “And yeah…Ten’s drinks are on me tonight. As everyone else’s will be. Mason and Quinn should join us soon.”

“What? No Gam tonight?” Ten asked.

“No. I called, but Noel said it was a bad night. Both he and Colton were staying home with Aspen and the kids.”

I perked to attention at Colton’s name. And had they said Aspen? I was still curious who she was. He’d mentioned her before but had been too drunk to

explain the relation.

Ten winced. “She had a bad day, huh?”

Pick sighed and nodded sadly. “And night last night, too, the way I hear it.”

“Colton said when he got home from your place last night,” Brandt told Ten, joining the conversation as he set an opened beer in front of Pick, “Lucy Olivia was hollering from her crib, and Aspen and Noel were in their room, hollering at each other.”

“Wait, what?” Ten shook his head as if to clear it. “Did you just say Gam was hollering at his wife? No fucking way.”

“I know.” Brandt shook his head, looking a little rattled himself. “But after Colton split them apart and got their baby settled, he went outside to talk to Noel, where he was cooling off, and…” He shook his head. “Man, I don’t know. He said Noel was all out of sorts, shaken and crying and pissed at himself for losing his temper. Colton still doesn’t know what they fought about, but whatever it was, it made Noel lose his steel patience and just…snap.”

“Jesus.” Ten shook his head as if he were shell-shocked. “That postnatal depression shit really is a nasty bitch, isn’t it? If it were a dude, I’d punch it straight in the nuts for them.”

I gulped as a mournful silence fell over the three men. I knew I probably wasn’t supposed to be listening in on their private conversation about Colton’s brother and his sister-in-law. But I’d had no idea what he’d gone through last night. The cutesie text he’d sent me this morning mentioned nothing of his family drama, which was kind of a slap in the face, reminding me that sharing family problems wasn’t really what our relationship was about.

No matter what kind of thoughts I’d been having about him all day, our terms had been sex and sex only.

But it sounded as if he’d had a really rough night, a night he’d had to fix even though he hadn’t been the one to mangle it.

I kind of wanted to comfort him now.

“Speaking of Colton,” Ten broke in, making me jump when his name came up yet again. “Who’s this new chick he’s fucking?”

Say what?

I froze, before slowly sliding my gaze his way. He was addressing Brandt, who was shaking his head in confusion. “Not sure what you mean,” he answered slowly. “He doesn’t have a girlfriend.”

“Well, he got laid,” Ten announced. “And he got laid good. I mean, I guess it happened the night before he came over to our place, and he was still rocking the happy juice then. I’m telling you, the kid looked as if he’d just been kissed by the goddess of all postcoital excellence. Some woman rocked his world right off its fucking axis.”

Ohmigod, ohmigod, ohmigod! He was talking about me.

My face flamed hot, and I pressed my lips together, starting to turn away only to catch Pick watching me speculatively.

“No,” Brandt was saying with authority. “If Colton was seeing someone, I’d know about it.”

“Well, if he is,” Pick murmured, still watching me, “I’m sure he’ll talk about it when he’s ready.”

I blew out a breath and turned away, pressing my hand to my abdomen. He was going to keep our secret. I wasn’t sure I liked him knowing it in the first place, but I was glad he wasn’t going to tattle on us.

“Evening, guys. We’re not late, are we?” a new voice asked from behind me, making me turn back to take in the new arrivals.

Two more joined the group, taking stools on either side of Pick and Ten. Both of them I’d seen at the bar before and knew their names.

Dr. Hamilton was tall and hulky and about the most gorgeous young surgeon on the face of the planet. And what was even more amazing about him, he was also the nicest, sweetest and shiest man I’d ever encountered.

On the other side of him, equal parts as hot and nice as Dr. Hamilton, but maybe not quite so shy, was Mason Lowe. He was related to Pick, or their wives were related to each other, or something. I wasn’t quite sure. He stopped by a lot and went straight to Pick’s office. It was kind of strange to see him stop at the bar for a drink, though.

Oddly enough, I’d come to learn he was also the brother to Brandt’s wife, Sarah.