Page 29 of Something Unavoidable

“One of my coworkers. You know Archer?” Sometimes Archer came to the Lookout, even though the pickings there were slim for straight guys.

“Xavier’s mentioned him.”

Oh, right. Xavier was Ash’s boss. “Archer and Alice are twins. She doesn’t do loud places, though, so you wouldn’t have met her unless you came to Sunday dinner.” He paused. “You should come to Sunday dinner. Ryan needs a bigger table anyway.”

Ash laughed and pulled Izzy to a stop. They were standing in front of one of the cottages at the Rainbow Inn. Miss Crystal’s B&B was by far the nicest and most popular place to stay in town.

“Miss Crystal makes the best coffee, but I didn’t think you wanted to fuck me.”

Ash’s expression was perpetually amused. Surprisingly, Izzy didn’t mind it since it didn’t feel like Ash was judging him. “You want coffee at midnight?”

Izzy shook his head. “No. But I want morning-after coffee, and some of these places only serve mud. It’s a good morning if I get some from Miss Crystal. Also, I know I don’t need to worry about condoms or lube here because she keeps the cottages stocked.”

“That she does. But no, I still don’t want to fuck you. And I don’t think you want to fuck me either.” He gestured to the silver SUV beside them. “This one’s mine. I’ve only had two beers, and that was a few hours ago. I figured I’d drive you home.” He hit a button, and the vehicle unlocked with a beep, the engine purring to life and the headlights flicking on.

“Fancy,” Izzy said.

“Very,” Ash agreed, helping Izzy into the passenger seat, even though he didn’t need help.

Once Ash was behind the wheel, he asked again. “Where to?”

Izzy bit his lip and tugged on one of his curls, letting it bounce back over and over. Wheredidhe want to go?

The answer wasn’t “home.”

Keegan woke to Chance’slow growl.

He waited. Chance was the best alarm system money couldn’t buy. He heard movement long before anyone reached them and was smart enough to know the difference between normal traffic and something Keegan needed to be woken up for.

Chance was in the center of the room, facing the door with his ears pricked and his hackles raised. He gave a low, warning woof that had Keegan sliding out of bed. Lucky hopped down with him, while Riley continued snoozing away, on her back with all four paws in the air. The perk of being a deaf dog was sleeping through anything.

Keegan pulled on his sleep pants and shoved his feet into his boots. He was looking for a shirt when the rumble of a car pulling into the short driveway reached him. He gave Chance a pat and asked him to stand down.

Chance heaved a sigh but went to his bed in the corner, turning a few times before settling. He trusted his pack leader to protect them if necessary.

Keegan shut Riley in the bedroom as well but let Lucky follow him. There was nothing wrong with having ninety pounds of deterrent when investigating a disturbance at—he checked the digital clock over the stove—one in the morning.

He flicked on the kitchen lights. At the same time, someone started pounding on the front door.

Lucky’s hackles lifted, and he gave a single, warning bark.

The pounding paused, then started again, followed by a shout of, “Hey, asshole! Open up!”

Keegan sighed and rubbed his eyes. He knew that voice. What the fuck? He crossed the living room, ripped open the door, and nearly ended up with an armful of tall, blond ranch hand. Fortunately, Izzy caught himself on the doorframe before he fell.

Keegan stared. Even disheveled and wasted, Isaac was a beautiful man. The porch lights turned his hair into a glowing halo. His lips and cheeks were flushed from the cold, and snowflakes were melting on his eyelashes. His blue-gray eyes were half lidded and locked on Keegan as he aimed a wavering finger in his direction.

“You,” Izzy spat out, then paused, his gaze raking over Keegan’s bare torso. He licked his lips, then jerked his glare back to Keegan’s face. “I fucking hate you so much.” He levered himself upright and staggered inside, pushing Keegan out of the way.

Keegan sighed in defeat and looked out to the driveway, praying that Izzy hadn’t driven himself in this condition.

An SUV he didn’t recognize was idling, exhaust fogging the cold air, its wipers flicking snow from the windshield. Keegan squinted but couldn’t see more than a shadow in the driver’s seat. As he watched, the driver put the SUV in gear. Whoever it was better not leave this drunken idiot here with— They pulled away, the silhouette of a hand lifted in a wave that Keegan returned helplessly. Fuck.

He turned back inside, shutting and locking the door behind him, and found Izzy on the floor with Lucky. Keegan’s big, bad German shepherd was attempting to lick the man to death, his tail sweeping back and forth with excitement.

Keegan left them to it and went to get a glass of water. He was too tired for this, and it was clearly going to be a while before he could get back to sleep.

“This is all your fault,” Izzy declared from behind him while Keegan was at the fridge, filling the glass.

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