Catch A Tiger By The Tail (THIRDS 6)

“Where the hell is he?” Ash grumbled. As if summoned, Sloane materialized with Dex at his side. It was pretty obvious what they’d been doing.

“Jesus, really?” Ash shook his head in disgust. “Sit your ass down, Casanova.” He thrust a finger at the chair opposite him, and Sloane sat with a wide grin on his face.

“All right, let’s do this.”

Ash faced Sloane, their hands flat against the table surface as Bradley went over the rules. The whole bar stopped to see what was going on.

Calvin leaned into Ethan, his voice low as Dex and Cael gave their boyfriends pep talks.

“Who’s your money on?”

Ethan thought about it. Ash was stronger than Sloane, but Sloane was more focused. It was a tough call. Ash clamped Sloane’s hand with his, a wicked grin coming onto his face as he shifted his gaze to Dex.

“You’re going down, Daley.”

Ash was definitely motivated. Twenty-four hours of silence from Dex? Ethan pointed at Ash.

“Really?” Calvin eyed him curiously. “You know something I don’t?”

Ethan whispered in Calvin’s ear, letting him know what the stakes were.

“Damn, you’re right.” Calvin reached into his wallet and pulled out a twenty. He handed it to Letty, who was taking bets. Ethan did the same. “Our money’s on Ash,” Calvin said, receiving a wink from Letty.

Bradley played referee, making sure Sloane and Ash were in position. Once the two were ready, Bradley gave the signal, and the match started, their faces quickly growing red as they tried to take each other down. The bar erupted into cheering. The bets had been placed, and everyone rooted for either Sloane or Ash. Dex and Cael encouraged their boyfriends and engaged in brotherly rivalry, teasing and taunting each other.

Ash’s jaw muscles worked as sweat beaded his brow. His arm shook as Sloane gritted his teeth and inched Ash’s hand closer to the table. Cael whispered something in Ash’s ear, and for a moment Ethan thought Sloane was about to slam him down, when Ash growled and pushe

d at Sloane’s hand. Sweat trailed down both their reddened faces before Ash slammed Sloane’s hand against the table.

“Yes!” Ash jumped from his chair with a victory cry before grabbing Cael to swing him around and kiss him. Everyone burst into cheers or playful boos while Letty got to work distributing their winnings. Sloane stood with a chuckle, and Ash pulled him into his embrace, patting his back before ruffling his hair. He turned to Dex with a triumphant grin.

Dex groaned. “Shit.”

“I am so going to enjoy this.” Ash rubbed his hands together in glee. Ethan had never seen him so happy.

“Sorry, babe.” Sloane kissed Dex’s brow and pulled him against him for a hug.

“It’s okay,” Dex sighed. “You tried. Plus he has the forces of darkness behind him. Tough to beat that.”

“Screw you, Justice.”

Dex’s glare could cut through rocks, but Ash ignored him to clap Sloane on the back again. “You did good, bud.”

Sloane laughed. “Thanks. I think.”

“Maybe next time you should save your strength instead of getting your boy off in the broom closet.”

Sloane rolled his eyes and went back to comforting his pouting partner while Cael hugged Ash.

“I knew you could do it.”

Ash wiped away an imaginary tear. “I don’t think I’ve ever been this happy.”

“I’m surprised you know the term,” Dex grumbled. “You sure you don’t mean grumpy? You might be getting them confused.”

“You know what, Daley? Not even you can spoil this for me. Twenty-four hours of silence to distribute when I please.” He let out a contented sigh. “It’s like my birthday and Christmas all rolled into one.”

Everyone laughed, and Ethan put his arm around Calvin’s shoulders, smiling when Calvin subtly leaned into him. After the last few months, things were finally starting to settle down. It had been rough on all of them, but now as he watched his teammates’ antics, a sense of peace washed over him. He had everything he needed right here.