“Would you have dinner with me tonight?”

  Surely, Fitz had heard wrong. “Noel, I’m sorry, I’m—”

  Noel took hold of Fitz’s hands. “Please, it’s really important. I want to talk to you about something.”

  Oh! Noel probably wanted to talk about a certain cute little blond who had a crush on him but seemed incapable of even making eye contact. Maybe between the two of them, they could devise a way to help ease Merry’s nerves around his handsome lumberjack.

  “Um, yes. Okay.”

  “Perfect. I’ll meet you at The Jolly Stag at six-thirty?”

  “Sure.” Fitz watched Noel walk away. Well, that was certainly an interesting development. He turned and jumped with a start. Why was everyone trying to scare the daylights out of him today? He put a hand to his chest. “Merry, you scared me.”

  “You’re having dinner with him?” Merry asked, his eyes filled with hurt.

  “Yes, but we’re—”

  “I need to go.” Merry spun around and took off before Fitz could utter another word.

  “What just happened?” Fitz murmured, confused. Surely Merry didn’t think that Fitz was interested in Noel? Granted, he and Merry had only known each other a short time, and Merry didn’t know Fitz all that well, but still….

  Leo frowned. “You accepted dinner with the man he has a crush on.” He turned to Fitz, puzzled. “Why?”

  “I accepted because I’m fairly certain Noel wants to talk about Merry, and from the looks of it, I’m going to need all the help I can get.”

  CHAPTER TWO

  What a mess.

  Jack sighed and pulled out a handful of wires. Thanks to the huge snowstorm that blew through Winterhaven a few weeks ago, the main and sub-panels in the Ice Castle had to be replaced. At first, he’d worried all the wiring needed replacing, but upon further inspection, he was relieved to find that wasn’t necessary. He hadn't known what to expect when he’d volunteered to fix the Ice Castle.

  It helped that the Ice Castle wasn’t a real castle. The building had been constructed of pale gray stone to resemble a castle, but the inside was modern. He wouldn’t have been able to fix it otherwise. Restoration of historical properties was not in his skill set, and it would have taken far longer than they had time for with Christmas fast approaching.

  The job might not be complicated, but it certainly took time, especially since he’d had to wait for all the replacement parts to be delivered. Thankfully, Colton had managed to call in some favors and get everything shipped quickly. Jack had to get the Ice Castle up and running so the decorating could start. There was only so much that could be done during the short daylight hours, especially without heating.

  Jack started with the wires that were capped off already, wrapping red electrical tape around them. That way, when he hooked the wires back up, he didn’t accidentally reenergize those when it came time to turn the new panels on. He taped the white 220s black and started unhooking the wires and the mains one at a time. There were a lot of cables because the Ice Castle wasn’t simply a building. It had a huge ballroom where the small town hosted all its big events, which meant all kinds of lighting and sound systems were in place.

  “Jaaaaack. Hello? Do you even hear me?”

  Jack blinked and turned, frowning at Lucky waving from the doorway. How long had he been standing there? “What?”

  “I have been calling your name.”

  “Sorry, I was focused.”

  “I can tell.” Lucky motioned to the long wood table to the side of the room. It was a scrambled mess of wires, fuses, electrical tape, tools, and replacement parts. “Bro, you haven’t touched your lunch.”

  Shit. How had he not realized Fitz had dropped off his lunch? Surely, Fitz would have said something to him. Then again, Lucky had been calling his name for a while, and he hadn’t been aware, so…. “It’s fine. I’ll take a late lunch.”

  Lucky frowned. “Um, it’s almost four-thirty.”

  “What?” Jack blinked at him. That couldn’t be right. He checked his watch. “Holy shit, it is.” Where the hell had the time gone? With the power being off and no heating in the Ice Castle, his lunch was a popsicle. “Guess I’ll just wait for dinner then.”

  “Speaking of dinner,” Lucky said, rocking on his heels, his hands shoved in his pockets. “I heard Fitz was having dinner with Noel tonight.”

  “Is he? That’s nice.” Jack grabbed his torque wrench and went back to the panel. Ugh, some of these lugs were rusted. “He’s been making friends all over town.” His beautiful and very extroverted boyfriend was an expert at making friends.

  “And…this doesn’t worry you?”

  “Why would it worry me?”

  Lucky hummed.

  “What? You expect me to be jealous?” Jack snorted. “I don’t get jealous.”

  “Bullshit,” Lucky said through a scoff. “Everyone gets jealous. It’s a human emotion.” He seemed to recall something. “Didn’t you get jealous when you saw those photos of Fitz and Joker together on the beach? Sí. I remember.”

  “You mean the photos a stalker sent me hoping I wouldn’t pursue a relationship with Fitz? There’s no forgetting. I was an asshole for about five seconds, Sacha called me out on it, and it was done. I trust Fitz.” And that incident was ages ago when Fitz had first reentered Jack’s life.

  “Fitz is a good man. He would never do anything so awful. What I meant is, are you not worried Noel might try to sweep him off his feet? Noel is handsome. Big. Very rugged. And single.”

  Jack fastened the torque wrench to the rusted lug nut and jerked it down. Nothing happened. Damn. “I’m not worried,” he said through his teeth as he gave it another pull. Nope, that wasn’t budging. He hammered it with the butt of the wrench, then gave it another yank. It finally moved. “Ah ha! Wait.” Jack narrowed his gaze at Lucky. “Why are you telling me this?”

  Lucky shrugged. “If my boyfriend accepted dinner with another man, I would at least be curious.”

  “Are you saying Mason isn’t allowed to eat with anyone other than you?”

  Lucky rolled his eyes. “And they say I am dramatic. ¡Santo Cielo! Mason can eat with whoever he wants, but if he were to have dinner with a good-looking gay man who is not attached, a man I do not know, then yes, I would be curious as to what that man wants. I trust Mason. I do not trust this strange man.”

  “Fair point,” Jack muttered.

  “So, you are not worried?”

  Jack sighed. “No, but clearly you are.” Granted, as Ace would say, his friends had always been meddling meddlers who meddled, but Lucky didn’t usually get involved in Jack’s relationships. Except for that one time Jack’s ex-boyfriend, Lang, pushed Lucky’s motorcycle over, which had marked the end of their relationship. But Lucky got his revenge by hiding a can of sardines under the driver’s seat of Lang’s Tesla on a ninety-eight-degree day. It sat there for eight hours. “What’s going on?”

  Lucky shrugged. “Nothing.”

  So believable. “Now who’s bullshitting?” Jack slipped the wrench into one of the empty loops on his tool belt and crossed his arms over his chest. “Spit it out, Lucky.”

  “Okay, so some of us, maybe, are a little worried. Just a little.”

  “Worried about what? Noel?” Jack tried to think about what his friends could possibly be worried about.

  “About you. That maybe you’ve been…working too much.”

  This was news to him. “I work the same as everyone else.”

  “Oh no, you do not. Yes, we work overtime, but you….” Lucky shook his head, his concern catching Jack by surprise. “You work way more hours than we do, Jack. You leave your house super early, and many times, you get home very late. It’s been getting worse.”

  “My job isn’t like yours. I can’t just stop in the middle of coding something or setting up a new client’s security system because my shift is over. You know that.” Jack was the head of the Cybersecurity Department at Four Kings Security. His job required him to be behind a computer screen most of the time, working on coding that could take hours. Even when he was out in the field, he was usually inside his surveillance van. Building security systems was not a nine-to-five job. This was nothing new.

  “Jack, it’s been over three years since that mess with your stalker, and instead of hiring someone new, you took all the extra work on yourself. Why? King has told you over and over to hire someone for your team.”

  “We don’t need anyone new. We’re fine.” His team was fine the way it was. He trusted them. None of them were secretly psychopaths waiting to kidnap him and kill him and his boyfriend. Besides, he’d gone to therapy for that. He was fine.

  “You’re not fine. And what about Fitz? You think he’s fine?” Lucky asked, folding his arms over his chest.

  “Fitz is fine,” Jack replied through his teeth. “If he wasn’t, he would have told me.” What the hell? Why was Lucky bringing all this up now? As he’d said, it had been over three years ago. They’d all moved on.

  “Maybe he doesn’t tell you because he’s afraid.”

  Jack stilled. “Of what? Me?” His mind went back to that horrible night shortly after they’d gotten together when the abusive husband of one of Fitz’s clients had shown up at Fitz’s house looking for his wife.

  The asshole had attacked Fitz, but Jack arrived just in time. He’d dragged the bastard off Fitz and punched him in the face, bloodying him. When the mess was over, Jack had reached for Fitz to help him up, only to have Fitz flinch and recoil from him. It had hurt Jack deeply, seeing Fitz afraid of him simply because of his military history, as if Jack would ever hurt him. But they’d talked and worked things out. It didn’t mean Jack had forgotten.

  Lucky frowned. “What? No. Why would he be afraid of you?”

  “He’s not.” At least, that’s what Fitz had assured Jack. He and Fitz had great communication. They talked about everything. If Fitz had any concerns about anything, he would have brought it up. His boyfriend was not one to suffer in silence, and for that, Jack was grateful.

  “I’m confused,” Lucky said. “Maybe he’s afraid of telling you? I don’t know. He loves you.”

  “I know that, and I love him too. This isn’t a problem. I appreciate your concern, but my relationship is none of your business.”

  Lucky threw his arms up. “Fine. Be stubborn. Cabrón. You keep doing what you’re doing, and you’re going to lose that amazing man, and he is the best thing that’s ever happened to you.”

  “Don’t you have a roof to fix?”

  Lucky marched off, cursing in Spanish, fully aware that Jack understood him. Spanish was one of the seven languages Jack spoke fluently. What the hell had gotten into Lucky? He and Fitz were fine. They’d been dating for over three years. One dinner with a guy Fitz had just met wouldn’t change that.

  Jack returned to the main panel and removed the torque wrench from his belt. Now, all he could think about was Fitz and whether he was fucking things up. Damn it. Freaking Lucky. He removed his phone from his pocket and texted Fitz a heart emoji to let him know Jack was thinking of him. Usually, he quickly received a reply.

  Nothing.

  “Ridiculous.” Jack shook his head at himself. Just because Fitz hadn’t responded the second after Jack texted him didn’t mean anything. Fitz was busy decorating with the others, and there was a lot to do. Jack would text him again later. Besides, Fitz had promised to bring him dinner. Jack could mention Lucky’s concerns then.

  Jack had most of the wires in the old panel removed when someone walked into the room. He smiled and turned, finding Joker instead of Fitz. His best friend placed a bag on the table.

  “Your boyfriend asked me to drop this off.”

  Jack frowned. “Where’s Fitz?”

  “On his date,” Joker replied.

  “Really? You too?” Unbelievable. “Fitz and I are fine. Just because he goes to dinner with a new friend does not mean my relationship is in jeopardy.”

  “Yeah, no. Of course not.”

  Jack was not impressed. “Wow. Maybe next time, try and sound like you mean it.”

  “What do you want me to say? We’ve all noticed. Hell, from the moment you agreed to fix the Ice Castle, you haven’t taken a damned break. We’re supposed to be on vacation.”

  Jack motioned to the panel. “So you’re saying I should go have a snowball fight instead of fixing this? I’m pretty sure the whole reason this town is on the verge of canceling Christmas is because of this building and the fact that it has no electricity or heating. Isn’t that why all the guests canceled?”

  “Is that why?” Joker asked through a gasp. “I would never have guessed.” He crossed his arms over his chest. “Asshole.”

  “Whatever. I need to finish this, okay? Thanks for your concern.” Jack returned to work on the panel, unaware of when Joker left. It was fine. All he had to do was finish this job, and he’d enjoy the rest of his holiday vacation.

  Jack spent the next several hours removing the wires from the old main panel and preparing everything so it was ready for him to install the new one, which meant carefully putting back all the cables where they belonged. He’d just sorted out one set when Ace walked in. Jack hung his head and sighed. For fuck’s sake.

  “What?” Jack grumbled.

  Ace arched an eyebrow at him. “It’s so lovely to see you too. I just came to tell you that Clara made us eggnog, which, according to the townspeople, is magic. I thought you might want to take a little break and join us.”

  “Thanks, but I need to finish this,” Jack replied, returning to the panel. “I’d also get it done faster if you guys stopped interrupting.”

  “Okay, Ebenezer. Geez. What is with you lately?”

  Jack whirled around and threw his arms up. “What is everyone’s deal? I mean, did you all have a meeting and decide today was the day you were all going to get on my ass?”

  “You need food,” Ace said, his frown deep.

  “I need to be left alone,” Jack retorted.

  Ace held his hands up. “Okay. If that’s what you want.” He turned and headed back to the door. “But don’t forget the reason we’re here to begin with, Jack. Family.”

  Jack pressed his lips together and shook his head. He let out a heavy sigh. “Yeah. Okay. Thanks for the invite.” He turned back to the panel, reminding himself that his brothers were concerned because they loved him. “I appreciate it. Really. As soon as I get this done, I’ll be out there with you all, okay?”

  “Okay. If you need anything, just let one of us know.” With that, Ace left, and Jack stood there.

  Were things really that bad? Had he been losing himself in his work to the point that his brothers all needed to intervene? With a frown, he went back to work. He’d worry about it later. Right now, he had a job to do.

  CHAPTER THREE

  “Thanks for joining me.”

  “You’re welcome.” Fitz smiled at Noel and thanked the waiter for filling his wine glass. He took a sip and hummed. “Oh, this is delicious.” Once the waiter was gone, Fitz picked up his menu. “I’ll be honest, I wasn’t sure what to expect when you asked me to meet you at the pub, but this is beautiful.”

  “Clarence, the owner—”

  Fitz arched an eyebrow. “Clarence? His name is Clarence?”

  Noel chuckled. “He was named after the angel from It’s a Wonderful Life. It was his grandmother’s favorite movie.”

  “Of course it was,” Fitz snickered. Winterhaven was just full of surprises, one of them being The Jolly Stag. It was a beautiful British-style pub with polished wood, rich tufted seating, and brass accents with windows showcasing stunning gold leaf lettering. Clarence had the interior ready for Christmas with gorgeous garlands and twinkling lights. Classic Christmas songs floated softly from the speakers. “Everything on the menu looks so delicious.”

  “You and your boyfriend haven’t eaten here yet? The guys come in pretty regularly.”

  Fitz shook his head. “Jack’s been working late trying to get the Ice Castle up and running.”

  “Oh.” Noel frowned. “But surely he’s taken breaks?”

  Fitz sighed. “I’m lucky if he remembers to eat at all. Jack tends to get lost in his job and has a terrible habit of forgetting everything around him.”

  “Clara said he was there until after midnight last night.”

  “That’s the thing about Jack. When there’s a problem, one he believes is his to solve, he will work on it until it’s fixed.” To the point of obsession sometimes. It was just the way Jack’s mind worked. He had to fix the thing, even if it was detrimental to his health. It was the one thing they argued about.

  “I’m sorry. That must be difficult.”

  Fitz shrugged. “I wish we could spend more time together, but I also know what he does is important. It’s not something just anyone can do. When he talks to me about what he’s been working on, I rarely understand any of it, but I love how smart and talented he is, how passionate he is about what he does.” He waved his hand. “Anyway, we’re not here to talk about my man. We’re here to talk about yours.”

  Noel’s face flushed, and Fitz did a little shimmy, making Noel laugh.

  “I was talking to Ace, and—”

  “Oh no, honey. That was your first mistake.”

  Noel laughed. “He’s an interesting guy.”

  “Is that what we’re calling it?” Fitz hummed. “Okay.” He patted Noel’s hand. “What did he say?”

  “He said that I should talk to you about a certain someone. That you can help me, and I desperately need your help.”

  Fitz knew it! Noel’s invitation to dinner was about their sweet friend. Speaking of their friend…. “He’s avoiding me at the moment.”

  “What? Why?”

  “Because he thinks I’m trying to steal his crush away.”