Page 123 of Rules to Love By

“I’m exhausted. And starved. I may have yacked up my breakfast at one point.”

Eli held him a little bit tighter. “Relax. After you eat, I’ll bring you home.”

Marcus nodded. “Thanks.”

They waited in silence for their food while the others chatted and Schiffer gave them a list of things to look for when they went to the Egg Basket with Marcus.

“I didn’t invite them,” Marcus complained quietly.

“If you tell them no, they’ll listen.”

“Have you met Tris?”

“I’ve met Ozzy. Just tell them what you want and it’ll be fine.”

“I want…” He honestly didn’t know what he wanted. “I’m glad they want to help,” Marcus said finally. “I never had that much of it before. It’s just odd. But good.”

“This is why Tris fits into Griffon’s Elbow so well. Lucky too. They get the vibe.”

Marcus settled deeper into his arms. “Do you think…” He yawned wide, and again, for a while, said nothing, leaving his question hanging.

Eli waited patiently, not prompting him or turning his attention away.

“It’s kind of silly,” Marcus said finally.

“What is?”

“Well, if I’m running the Egg Basket, I can hire whoever I want.”

“You going to steal Tris back?”

“Oh no. He’s never leaving Griffon’s Elbow. He loves it almost as much as he loves Ozzy. But Iris tried to hire him. Back before… Well. She tried. And not just him. A couple of his friends.”

“And?”

“Well, Lucky will have all those kids at his shelter, right? He’s planning on teaching them life skills.”

“So I gather.”

“But they won’t be able to stay there forever. Eventually, they’ll have to go out on their own. Get jobs, places to live. All that.”

“And you want to hire them?”

“Maybe? Like an outreach program? Is that a thing?”

Eli kissed the top of his head. “I think that’s an amazing idea.”

“Yeah.” Marcus yawned again and settled his weight, finally and fully, against Eli’s chest. “Yeah.”

CHAPTERTWENTY-FIVE

Plywood still covered the front windows a few days later when Marcus stood in front of the Egg Basket. Not that he’d thought it would magically be gone, but seeing it in the bright light of day felt a little like seeing Tris with a black eye or split lip once had.

His gut twisted, and a chill ran down his spine, standing the hairs on the back of his neck and making him shiver.

“Okay?” someone asked.

He nodded without looking to see who it was, attention caught by the sorry state of his diner.

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