“Snow!” Jude shouted. He sounded closer as if he was coming through the living room.
“I’m here. I’m fine,” Snow shouted back. “Be careful. There’s broken glass.”
A moment later, a light in the living room popped on and Snow blinked against the brightness, trying to get his eyes to adjust. When he could see, he found the living room in shambles. They’d fallen over the ottoman and knocked over the coffee table in their struggle. The chair had gotten shoved at one point, tipping over an end table. More glass glittered across the floor from either a glass they’d left out or a picture frame.
Jude was standing in the middle of the chaos with a baseball bat still in hand. “I heard a fucking gunshot,” Jude snapped. His nose was bloody, and it looked like his left eye was starting to swell from his fight with the man Snow had initially managed to knock out. Jude carefully stepped over the ottoman to get in Snow’s face. “You came down here unarmed. I was not about to leave you alone.”
A smirk pulled up one corner of his mouth. As much as he wanted to be mad at Jude for putting himself in danger, he knew he couldn’t without being a massive douchebag hypocrite. He would have done the same if their roles were reversed.
“Thanks,” Snow murmured
Jude groaned before he reached up and grabbed a handful of Snow’s hair, pulling him forward for a brutal kiss. “You make me insane.”
“This was not my fault.”
“Not this time, at least.” Jude released him and stepped back. “What did that asshole say to you?”
“Threatened me…us, really,” Snow said. He paused and rubbed his sore chin. “Told us to keep our noses out of their business.”
“That’s annoyingly vague,” Jude muttered. He tossed his bat onto the nearby couch and sighed. “But considering that this happened the same night as Anthony getting shot—”
“And we’re not involved in any other kind of shady investigation at the moment,” Snow quickly added.
“I guess this is about Jordan and that gambling ring. Someone is afraid of us getting too close to the truth.”
Snow nodded and winced. His head was starting to fucking ache. “That’s usually a good sign.”
“I could have done without it,” Jude muttered. Snow had to agree. “The police are on their way and so are Rowe and Noah.”
“Are we going to tell them the real reason for the break-in?”
Jude stared at the mess around them for several seconds, his lips pressed together in a hard, thin line before he finally shook his head.
Snow frowned down at the chaos around them as well. He had to agree with Jude on this. He didn’t want to involve the police now. Those men had invaded his home, threatened the well-being of his lover. Snow was all too happy to handle this personally.
It was probably for the best that the Masters of Mayhem were on their way. He wasn’t fond of ruining their sleep, but Rowe and Noah could offer some insight and valuable advice on what to do next.
“What the fuck happened to your hand?” Jude said, reaching for it.
“Cut it on the glass when I broke that candle over his head,” Snow answered while Jude carefully inspected it.
Jude snorted. “And Rebecca thought we’d never use it. This doesn’t look too deep. Might need stitches.”
“Luckily, I’m a doctor.” Jude just rolled his eyes at him. “What about you?”
Jude smirked. “Nothing a bag of frozen peas won’t help. It’s a shame the one guy woke up. We could have finally used the kitten duct tape Rowe gave us as a housewarming present.”
“Fucking Rowe,” Snow muttered under his breath. The man had the most twisted sense of humor. He had no idea where Rowe got his strange supply of duct tape, but he made sure that all his friends had several rolls on hand for occasions just such as this.
He might as well put on a pot of coffee. Between the report they’d have to file with the cops and the upcoming conversation with Rowe and Noah, they wouldn’t be getting any sleep for a few hours.Chapter 15“Are you sure you’re cool with Sergeant being here, too?” Snow asked as he settled on a barstool in Ian’s kitchen. Sergeant was busy inspecting his surroundings, running from room to room. Their cat was strictly indoors and had long exhausted his exploration of their home, so he seemed to be in heaven.
Snow loved the open floor plan of Ian’s condominium—the kitchen being separated by a breakfast bar and everything exposed to the living and dining area. Morning sunlight streamed in through the windows. They’d arrived in the middle of the night after the cops had left, and Rowe had insisted they not stay at home until the place was secure again. Just a night or two. Rowe had walked out, muttering about new tech and motion-sensor cameras. For now, the cops were left to work off the belief that Snow and Jude had thwarted a burglary attempt. “We would have stayed at Rowe’s, but his dogs and our cat refuse to be buddies.”