Page 28 of Ballads of Lines Blurred

“Cody knows I want you. I know Cody wants you. And you can have us both. It doesn’t have to be more complicated than that. You’ve made sure we’re on the same page. Where we go from here is yet to be determined. While I can’t speak for Cody, I can tell you I’ll stay honest with you and him. I won’t go further than I’m willing to and if things get to be too much, we’ll talk.”

I nodded, unsure how it was going to work, although helpless to turn either of them away. It was selfish and all about me when I wanted it to be about the three of us. Having two men… Yeah, I knew it could be done. My best friends and brother were proof of it. That was them. I was different.

12

CODY

“I think I fucked up,” I said as soon as I stepped into Romeo’s house.

Dash wasn’t here, and neither was Tristan. The band was working in Reed’s studio, so I knew it would be okay to stop by Romeo’s, even if Tristan was around. Not that I wanted them to keep things from Dash. I just didn’t want him to get pissed at me over his brother. Everyone in the band was protective of Slater. I was too. But I wondered if I made a bigger mess than I was ready to handle.

“Hello to you too,” Romeo said and closed the door behind me.

His home was on the same block as Jordan Altair Sr.’s, which was a deterrent to almost everyone. JJ’s father was not one to be fucked with. It would probably be wise for me to be afraid too, except I was too worried about what I did to give a shit about the mafia boss down the street.

Three steps into the open floor plan of Romeo’s downstairs and I froze. On the counter in the kitchen sat something bloody.

“Is that real?” I asked, pointing to the counter.

“Huh?” He turned his head. “Oh, no. It’s a cake.” Now I had to look closer.

Through the living room to the kitchen, I stopped at the tall counter and stared down into what looked like a massacre. Blood red cake was sliced down the middle in the shape of a man’s chest with the insides pouring out from a grotesque wound. There were intestines, a heart, broken ribs, and a lung.

“What the fuck?” I couldn’t understand what was happening.

“My mom… Remember how she likes to fuck with Jordan?”

“Is that why there’s white chest hair on the cake?”

“Apparently, she used a garlic press to make those with fondant.”

Romeo stood shoulder to shoulder with me as we stared at the cake. His mom did like to fuck with Jordan, and he did the same with her, one-upping each other in their hatred of one another. But this… This was gross.

“Why is there a chunk of it missing?” I asked.

“Dash wanted to know what the small intestine tasted like.” How did he say that with a straight face? “He also said it would serve as a warning to Jordan that Dash was on my mom’s side.”

“He’s not afraid of Jordan, is he?”

“Not even a little.”

Something caught my eye, and I ended up leaning closer to see Pep was here carved into one of the exposed, broken ribs.

“You see that, do you?” He chuckled. “The ribs are made from fondant too. Mom took a cake making class but didn’t last through the whole thing because she kept asking about how to make human organs made from cake look real. She ended up consulting the internet, and this was born.”

“Fuck, I really wouldn’t want to piss her off.”

“She’s great. It’s only Jordan she hates, and even then, I wonder if she likes him just a tad.”

“He keeps you safe. That’s a good thing.”

“He does, but him being so close can also put me in danger. Whatever. I know you didn’t stop by because you heard about the cake.”

I gave it one last glance and started walking toward the couch. “No, but it was a nice discovery. I’ve always wanted to see one of their gifts in action.” I sat on the couch and pressed the button for the recliner so I could rest my feet, needing to get comfortable. The cushions surrounded me. I sank into them so I could reevaluate my life choices. Luckily, I was off from the gym today and didn’t have to worry about going to work.

Romeo took the seat on the other side of the armrest with built in cup holders. This couch was fantastic. I could see why he liked it, especially given the big TV and the gaming system he had. “Do you want to play something before you tell me what’s bothering you?”

Romeo had said I could reach out to him when he found out I was interested in Slater. There was an age gap between him and Dash, so he knew what I was going through to an extent. Dash didn’t push Romeo away when they met. No, Dash had open arms and easily welcomed Tristan and Romeo into his life, even though he didn’t date any more than his brother did. Yet, I had to fall for the brother who tried to keep me away instead of pulling me closer.

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