“You’re too easy. Come on, drive me back to Ward and go find the PI—though why this can’t wait until tomorrow I don’t understand.”
Quinn didn’t answer. He sure as hell wasn’t about to spill more about the sex than he already had.
“You aren’t going back to the office afterward, are you?” Royce followed him outside. “Go home. Sleep in a real bed tonight.”
If he hadn’t acted like such an asshole, he would have been sleeping in Shane’s bed. He stuck his hands into his jacket pockets as they walked toward the parking lot. The temperature had dropped a good ten degrees while they’d been eating and he shivered, thinking about how warm that bed would have been.
Shock stopped him in his tracks when he recognized the man walking down the sidewalk across the street.
“What?” Royce halted behind him.
“What are the odds he’d be here now?” Quinn pointed but dropped his hand when he watched Shane interacting with two men who were holding hands. One of them put his hand on Shane’s waist and the gesture showed intimate familiarity. He wasn’t prepared for the punch of anger that slammed into his stomach.
“You may have to wait on that apology.” Royce whistled. “From the looks of things, our PI is on a date with a couple. Yee-haw, Mr. Stephens. See their body language? Those two have been together awhile.” He laughed. “The couple who plays together…”
That anger turned into raw jealousy, and it came with sharp teeth that chewed through Quinn’s middle. He held his breath and stared, forgetting for a moment that Royce was watching him.
“Oh no, really? You didn’t tell me everything about what’s going on with you and the investigator, did you?” Royce walked around in front of him and pulled his chin down, so Quinn had to look at him. “You and Stephens? Is that a good idea?”
Quinn shrugged away from him. “It’s no big deal. Just sex.”
“Pretty fucking good sex if your expression is anything to go by.” He frowned. “Quinn, I’ve known you a couple of years now and your sex life is something you’ve never talked about.”
“Neither have you,” Quinn snapped before he sighed, his shoulders slumping. “Sorry. That was insensitive when I know you had something bad happen to you.”
Royce took a step back. “And how do you know that? Did you use those hacker skills on me? I thought we were friends.”
Surprised by Royce’s fierce reaction, Quinn forgot about Shane for a moment. “Hey now, I dig for information for a living, but that doesn’t mean I go where I shouldn’t when it comes to people I care about. And when it comes to those people—like you, fucker—I pay attention. Computers aren’t the only things with interesting secrets. And yours are still intact.”
Royce looked away from him and it was easy to see he struggled with something. And as usual, he didn’t share.
Quinn felt like a shit for taking out his anger on his friend. “Hey,” he said softly while touching Royce’s arm. “I’m sorry. That was uncalled for. But yeah, me and the PI are hooking up. I guess it just floored me to see him out with someone. But it shouldn’t have. We have an easy arrangement, you know? Nothing exclusive. You’ve had those, I’m sure.”
Dark eyes probed. “I have. But Quinn, you aren’t built for that sort of thing.”
“What the hell? Of course I am. Just because I’ve never had one before doesn’t mean I can’t now. There are no romantic feelings. It’s just for fun.”
“Yeah, your expression is telling me a whole other story. Shit.” He scratched his close beard. “It’s really good, isn’t it?”
Quinn was nodding before he realized it, and he felt the heat fill his cheeks because he hadn’t meant to give himself away. “Yeah.” He watched one of the men stroke Shane’s arm and tried to ignore the burn of jealousy. “Looks like they have fun with him, too.”
Royce nodded, though his expression tightened with concern. “That’s pretty obvious.”
He groaned when Shane spotted him. He said something to his friends, then looked both ways before crossing the street. His friends stayed behind, watching them. He jogged up to him, smiled and held out his hand to Royce. “Nice to see you again, Royce. Have you guys had dinner? You’re welcome to join me and my friends.”
“We already ate,” Quinn said, hoping his anger wasn’t showing in his tone. He took a deep breath, surprised Shane had come up to him so easily after earlier and if that didn’t prove he meant little to the man, nothing would. Still, he owed the guy an apology. “Hey, Shane, can I talk to you a moment?” He pulled him aside when the man nodded. “Look, I just wanted to say I’m sorry about earlier. I shouldn’t have gone off on you like that.”