Page 123 of Dad Next Door

“Heya, gorgeous,” a man who wasn’t Evan said with an amused grin.

“You really know how to make a guy feel welcome.” Another man came up behind the first.

It took me a second to place them as Ezra and Wesley, the new guys on the crew.

“Oopsie doodles.” Nick laughed and stepped aside. “I thought you were my boyfriend.”

“You mean the hottie yelling into his phone?” Ezra asked, stepping into the house.

“That would be him.” Nick stuck out his hand. “I’m Nick. The official, unofficial supervisor of Quinn’s crews.”

“Nice to meet you, boss. I’m Ezra.” He shook Nick’s hand. “This is my better half, Wes.”

“Hi.” Nick pumped Wes’s hand enthusiastically. “You guys are just in time for snacks.”

“Drinks are in the kitchen too. Help yourselves,” Quinn added, ruffling Nick’s hair.

“Hey!” Nick batted Quinn’s hand away and danced out of his reach. “Do you have any idea how long it takes to make it look like I woke up looking this perfect? Come on, Jett, let’s get… Where’d he go?”

I looked behind me. Zane still stood in the same place, but Jett was nowhere to be seen.

“Probably digging into the snacks we’re missing.” Zane held out his arm. “Come on, angel face, let’s get our share before the others devour everything.”

“’Kay,” Nick said brightly, taking Zane’s arm. “Come on, troops, it’s snack time.”

“Hey, I’m Ez.” Ezra held his hand out to me as Zane and Nick headed into the kitchen.

“Tristan.”

“I’m Wes.” He held his hand out for a shake.

“It’s nice to meet you.”

“Boss.” Ez smirked at Quinn.

“Yeah, you can shove that boss stuff right up your ass.” Quinn pointed to the kitchen. “Grab what you want, and don’t be shy.”

Wes tipped a pretend hat at Quinn. “When are we ever shy?”

Quinn laughed but didn’t elaborate. “Go ahead, we’ll wait for Nick’s boyfriend to finish yelling at whatever unfortunate soul he’s dealing with.”

When we were alone, Quinn turned to me and shot me a curious look. “What’s going on in that big brain of yours?”

“Nothing.” I smiled.

“You were thinking about that contract.” He put his hands on my hips and tugged me close. “And freaking out because signing it means the clinic is happening, and it’s not just an idea anymore.”

“Guilty.”

“Is there anything I can do to take your mind off things and get you into party mode?” Quinn arched one eyebrow suggestively.

“Nothing that will only take a few minutes.” I laughed, some of my distractions lifting. “And nothing we can do with a houseful of guests.”

“Too bad.” He sighed theatrically. “I guess I can wait until later for you to ravish me.”

“How do you know I don’t want you to ravish me?” I teased.

“We’ll flip for it.” He waggled his eyebrows. “Or just flip.”

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