Rise & Fall (THIRDS 4)

Hobbs let out a scoff. “Yeah.”

“And he’s still here isn’t he?”

Hobbs nodded. He seemed to be thinking hard on something. “But he’s my best friend. He’s always been my best friend. What if being together messes that up?”

“You can be lovers and best friends,” Dex hoped his voice hadn’t sounded as sappy as he thought it had.

“Like you and Sloane?”

Dex almost fell off the bench. “What?” Oh shit. Shit. Shit. Shit. What? How? Way to play it cool, Daley.

Hobbs rolled his eyes before poking Dex in the ribs. “We’re not stupid.”

“We? Who else knows?” And why hadn’t he heard anything about it? He was always in everyone’s hair, especially his teammates’. He could rattle off what Rosa had for breakfast, or the new outfit Letty had bought for her date with Dimples the Firefighter, or the last comic book movie Calvin had fanboyed over. What the hell?

Hobbs nodded. “Cal, Rosa, and Letty.”

“Shiiiit.” And here he thought they were being super-awesome secret agents at hiding their relationship. God, this day just went from shitty to all out fucktastic. What if Sparks knew, and that was why she’d pulled them from the case? What if she was using it as an excuse to break their team apart? What if she’d been typing up his transfer when he’d walked into her office? “Oh God, I think I’m gonna be sick.” He doubled over, and Hobbs gently patted his back.

“No one else knows,” Hobbs assured him.

“How do you know? If you guys figured it out, what’s to stop anyone else from doing the same? We’re surrounded by government agents. They’re not stupid either, Hobbs. For all we know, they might have fucking cameras installed in their eyeballs or something.”

“They don’t know Sloane or you like we do. Besides, everyone’s too busy with their own secrets. Nina’s sleeping with Rafe.”

Dex’s jaw nearly became unhinged. “Holy donut holes, Batman! You can’t drop shit like that on my lap!” Holy shit. “Your brother’s sleeping with Nina? No offense, but your brother’s a dick. Dare I say it? I think he’s a bigger dick than Ash.”

Hobbs grimaced. “You’re not wrong.”

“What the hell does Nina see in him?”

Hobbs shrugged. “He can be nice sometimes. He’s nice with her.”

“Does Hudson know? Shit, does Seb know?” Rafe never missed an opportunity to condemn Seb for getting kicked off of Destructive Delta. And Hudson’s reaction to Rafe’s name alone, back when he’d come to visit Cael at the hospital after the Youth Center bombing, spoke volumes of the tension between the three of them. And now Hudson’s partner was sleeping with the enemy. The guy definitely had a talent for rubbing people the wrong way.

Hobbs shook his head. “Nina feels bad, but she really likes Rafe. It happened during a case.”

“How long has this been going on?” Dex had to give the pair credit. He chatted to Nina all the time and never once did he get even the tiniest hint she was involved with someone. Nina was friendly and playful. She teased her fellow agents and laughed with them. And Rafe… well, luckily Dex had little interaction with Rafe, but never in a million years would he have guessed the guy was sleeping with Nina. The guy was like he’d said. A dick.

“Four months.”

“Fuck me. And Hudson really has no clue?”

Hobbs shook his head. “They’re careful. Nina doesn’t want to hurt Hudson.”

This whole situation didn’t bode well. Since Nina and Rafe were on different squads, there was no risk of one of them being transferred. The risk was to Nina and Hudson’s personal and professional relationship, which still complicated matters. How long could she keep it a secret? At least Dex didn’t have to worry about how his teammates felt about him and Sloane. They all cared about each other. They were a family. A somewhat incestuous family it would seem. And sure, they bitched, fought, and drove each other bonkers, but in the end, they looked out for one another.

Their loyalty touched Dex. None of them had brought it up or so much as dropped a clue they knew. They carried on as if nothing had changed. He wondered what other surprises the day had in store for him.

“When did you guys figure it out? About us, I mean.”

Hobbs thought about it. “The first karaoke night. When you were on stage singing.” He dropped his gaze to his fingers, his cheeks flushed. “The way Sloane looked at you. And his smile. He has this special smile just for you. Like you’re the only one who matters.”

“Really? Sloane looks at me like that?” Dex didn’t know how to feel, other than stupidly, ridiculously happy. Like doing cartwheels and punching the air like one of those ridiculous training montages in the movies. He loved the way Sloane looked at him and smiled, but he’d assumed it was his partner’s warmth shining through. Oh, he saw the affection, but he never thought it was a look Sloane had just for him.

“Yeah. Like you’re the most amazing thing he’s ever seen.”

Dex gave Hobbs a playful nudge. “You mean like how Cal looks at you?” The blush on Hobbs’s cheeks deepened, and Dex found himself chuckling. “Yeah, just what I thought. You’ve thought about it a lot, haven’t you? Of being more than friends.”