Frank’s shoulders dropped, and he appeared to deflate, his anger seeming to leave with his heavy exhale. “Thanks, sweetheart, but I’m good.”

  “He’s not good,” Seth said, ignoring Frank’s glare. “We hired an event manager because ours is on his honeymoon. The event company we’ve been using for years disappeared off the face of the freaking earth, and the new one we hired is doing fuck all, but they were the only ones available on such short notice. The first event manager they sent was an ass who showed up once, then never returned, and they haven’t sent a replacement. I’m doing the best I can, but I don’t know anything about hosting events, much less one of this scale, which means Frank and I have been working seven days a week trying to make this happen. We had a burst pipe in the employee lounge that’s being fixed, and now a PR nightmare to face. We need help.”

  “Damn it, Seth,” Frank growled.

  “Stop being a stubborn ass. We need help. I want to go home and sleep with my boyfriend, and you just need to sleep. Period.”

  Joshua took hold of Frank’s chin and turned his face so their gazes could meet. Standing this close, Joshua was stunned by the dark circles around Frank’s usually bright eyes. “When was the last time you slept?”

  “Thirty-two hours,” Seth grumbled.

  Joshua gasped. “What?”

  “Did you forget I pay your salary?” Frank barked at Seth, who didn’t look the least bit intimidated. Poor Kit looked worriedly from his boyfriend to Frank.

  “Did you forget I don’t give a fuck?”

  “Asshole.”

  “Right back at ya.” Seth folded his arms over his expansive chest and waited for Frank to push back on this, but he didn’t. He just grumbled at Seth.

  “Let me help you.” Joshua laid his palms on Frank’s chest, getting his attention. Their gazes met, those intense honey-colored eyes making it easy for Joshua to lose himself. In that moment he saw it, something he’d never seen in Frank before tonight. Joshua doubted Frank had ever let his guard down long enough for anyone to see it.

  Vulnerability.

  Frank Ramirez was an intimidating man familiar with the shadows. It was evident in the way he moved, in the confidence he exuded. He was reserved and respected, but as he placed his hands on Joshua’s and squeezed, he let Joshua see a tiny part of himself that few, if any, had probably seen.

  The stubble had grown in thick and dark, matching his thick black eyebrows and the soft waves of his hair. It was getting long, curling around the backs of his ears, a strand escaping to fall over his brow. He was as imposing as ever, dressed in his signature black suit, shirt, and tie, his shoulders impossibly wide.

  “Let me help,” Joshua said again.

  “You already have a job.”

  “True,” Colton pitched in from beside Ace.

  Seeming to realize they weren’t alone, Frank tenderly moved Joshua’s hands off his chest. Joshua dropped his arms, but he didn’t leave Frank’s side.

  “Joshua does have a job,” Colton continued. “But he’s also been training someone to fill in for him for when he’s out of the office. This would be a perfect opportunity for them to step up. Plus, Joshua has time off he needs to take.”

  Frank shook his head. “It’s too much.”

  Ace snickered. “Frank, Joshua managed both Colton’s work and wedding schedule. Pretty sure he can handle anything at this point.”

  “I can attest to that. He impressed Leo’s father, and he’s a retired Army general.” Colton came to stand next to Frank and put a hand on his shoulder.

  “Let Joshua help you.”

  Joshua waited with bated breath as Frank thought about it.

  Exhaustion must have taken over, because Frank gave in. “Okay. Thank you.”

  “Perfect,” Joshua said cheerfully. “First things first. Let’s go to bed.”

  THREE

  This was a huge mistake.

  As much as Frank appreciated his friends wanting to help, he wasn’t oblivious. Colton was one of Frank’s closest friends. He was also a meddler. Ace was just as bad. Good thing Fitz hadn’t shown up, or Frank would have been faced with the trifecta of matchmaking menaces.

  Instead, he faced a far greater threat.

  Joshua Sterling was in his early thirties, fair-haired, with big blue-green eyes and a sinful body that fit perfectly against Frank’s. That knowledge was something he could have done without, but not only had Joshua ended up pressed against him once, but twice. Once clothed, the second during a day at the beach when he’d been volunteered by his meddling friends to swim Joshua out to the sandbar after Joshua admitted he couldn’t swim in water that was too deep for his feet to touch the bottom. Their wet bodies pressed together in the hot sun had been torture, but Frank had survived.

  For months, Frank had managed to keep his distance from the beautiful young man, and now to complete the fuckery that was his life, Joshua stood in front of him, the words “Let’s go to bed,” having just come from between his plump lips.

  Clearly, he hadn’t meant for them to go to bed, but still, not something Frank needed to hear while the man he’d been dreaming of since they’d met stood so close.

  “Right.” Eloquent, he was not. Frank motioned to the door.

  “What time do you want me here?”

  “Since we’re going to be closed for the weekend, we can catch up on some of the event stuff. How about five?”

  “Sure. I’ll grab us some coffees on the way here. I’ll text you and you can tell me what kind.”

  “Coffee?”

  “Yeah, I don’t function that early in the morning without it.”

  “Morning?” Frank almost tripped over his own feet on the way to the door. “Jesus Christ, what the hell are you doing waking up at five in the morning?”

  Joshua blinked at him. “Um, getting ready for work?”

  Frank glared at Colton, who laughed.

  “What? Don’t look at me like that. We work office jobs. We start at eight.”

  “That’s terrifying.” Frank yawned as he led everyone out into the hall.

  “Go on,” Seth said. “I’ll lock up and set the alarm.”

  Frank rubbed his eyes. Normally he would have taken care of it himself, but now his body knew sleep was near, it was shutting down on him. “Okay. Thank you, Seth.”

  “You’re welcome,” Seth replied, patting him on the back. “You’re also about to get pissed at me again.” He turned to the guys. “Can someone give him a ride home?”

  “I can drive myself.” Yawning through his growl did nothing to help his case. He didn’t bother arguing. The look Seth gave him said it wasn’t up for discussion. That’s what he got for having friends. Pains in the ass. Frank tossed his car keys to Seth.

  “I’ll take him,” Joshua said, his smile sweet.

  Perfect.

  Well, if he was going to work with Joshua, he might as well get used to being in close proximity to him. No, this was good. The two of them working close together would prove how unsuited they were for each other. Maybe once Joshua got a good look at what a miserable fuck he was, he’d get the idea of them as something more out of his head.

  They headed out into the parking lot behind the club, where they said their goodbyes. Only four cars remained in the lot: Seth’s blue Dodge Charger, Ace’s red Corvette Stingray Coupe 3LT—a Christmas present from his husband—Frank’s black Audi R8 Coupe, and…

  “You drive an SUV?” Frank stood next to the small black Nissan.

  Joshua blinked at him. “Yeah. Why?”

  “I pictured you driving something a little flashier.” He opened the passenger door and climbed in. The guys Frank knew who were Joshua’s age and earned what he did as the top executive assistant for Connolly Maritime would have gone out and splurged on a luxury car the first chance they got.

  Joshua pressed the ignition button to start the car. “I love this car. It’s got the three P’s.”

  “What’s that?”

  “Pretty, practical, and paid off. Sure, I could upgrade now that I got rid of my student debt, but I don’t really need a new car. Why spend all that money? A car’s just something to get you from point A to point B.”

  “Ever drive an Audi?”

  “Nope.” Joshua motioned out the window at Frank’s car. “I’m guessing that’s yours. Looks pricey.” He handed his phone to Frank, the GPS app open.

  Frank didn’t think twice about entering his home address. “Two hundred.”

  Some kind of weird gasp/squeak came out of Joshua. “Two hundred thousand dollars?”

  “Yes.” Frank returned his phone to him. He held back a smile as Joshua absently took the phone and connected it to his car, the GPS map popping up on the dashboard screen. “You okay?”

  “Yeah, I need a second for my brain to reboot. Okay.”

  Frank chuckled. He really was too cute.

  “And you’re just going to leave it in the parking lot?” Joshua asked, incredulous.

  “What? Of course not. I gave my car keys to Seth. Kit will drive Seth’s car home, and Seth will take mine. He’ll pick me up on the way to work tomorrow. I’ll let you drive the Audi sometime. Then you can tell me if you still believe a car is just something to get you from point A to point B.”

  “You’d let me drive your car?”

  “Sure.”

  “Why?”

  Hm, good question. Frank shrugged. “I trust you.”

  “You don’t really know me.” Joshua pulled out of the parking lot and into the quiet street.

  “We’ve sort of known each other for almost three years.” Not that they’d spent a whole lot of time together, and whatever time they had spent together was with Colton, the Kings, and their boyfriends.

  “I suppose you’re right.”

  “Also, I’m an excellent judge of character.”

  Joshua’s expression turned wicked. “And yet you give Ace full access to your club.”

  Frank laughed. “Maybe not that good a judge.”

  They both snickered, and Frank felt himself relax. He’d expected a lot of awkwardness at being alone with Joshua. Not that there weren’t awkward moments between them, but they seemed to be getting better at communicating. What had changed? He snuck a glance at Joshua, his heart skipping a beat at the soft smile on Joshua’s face.

  A somewhat familiar song Frank couldn’t place floated quietly up from the speakers.

  “What are you listening to right now?”

  Joshua’s eyes went huge, and he slowly moved his thumb on the steering wheel to press a button. The music turned off. “Nothing.”

  “Now I’m really intrigued.”

  Joshua let out a groan. “Savage Garden. When I was eight years old, I was obsessed with that album. I played the CD so much it got scratched to hell and my mom had to buy me another one.”

  “Eight years old?” Frank winced. Christ, he’d been graduating from college at the time.

  “What were you listening to?”

  “Not Savage Garden.”

  Joshua snorted. “Given. So, what were you listening to?”

  “Nirvana. Pearl Jam. Alice in Chains. Yep. I embraced the whole grunge thing.” The delight on Joshua’s face made Frank smile.

  “Oh my God, no you did not.”

  “I did. My hair was long, I wore eyeliner, torn jeans, baggy T-shirts with a plaid shirt tied around my waist. I had two earrings, one on my left eyebrow, the other in my left ear.”

  Joshua shook his head. “My mind is blown right now, just…” He made an explosion sound to go with his hand motion.

  The shock was understandable. Like everyone else in Frank’s life, Joshua knew him as the man he was now, not the lost youth trying to find his place in the world that he’d once been. After college, he left his past and everyone in it behind to start over in St. Augustine. He’d never looked back.

  “Thanks for driving me,” Frank murmured, rubbing his eyes again. “I really would have been okay.”

  “Better safe than sorry.”

  Frank couldn’t argue with that. It wasn’t until he startled awake that he even realized he’d fallen asleep. How long had Joshua been parked outside his house? “Shit. Sorry.”

  “For what? Falling asleep after being up a ridiculous number of hours? It’s okay. Get some sleep. I’ll see you tomorrow.”

  “See you tomorrow, and, um, thanks for the help. Hopefully you won’t regret it.”

  Joshua frowned. “Why would I regret it?”

  “I’ve been known to be a bit of an asshole.”

  “Hm. We’ll see.”

  Frank got out and closed the door behind him. He had no reason to stop and look back, but he did. Joshua waved cheerfully at him, his boyish smile wide. They could do this. Joshua was a friend helping him out, that’s all. Frank waved at him, then went inside. Tomorrow would be a day like any other. He could handle this. Everything would be just fine.

  Everything was not fine.

  Lifting his gaze over the monitor, Frank studied Joshua, dressed smartly in navy pants and a gray knit sweater over a white shirt and black tie. He stood in front of the costume rack, absently running a hand over one of the feather boas while he spoke to the event company over the phone. For once, Frank didn’t care about the growing pile of blue feathers on his carpet.

  Frank had arrived at the club just before five and found Joshua already there, leaning against the wall next to the back door, phone in hand as the wind rustled his hair. He’d lifted his head, met Frank’s gaze, and the dazzling smile that spread across his beautiful face stole Frank’s breath away. What had Frank done? He’d managed a grunt in greeting, slid open the panel to the high-tech lock, and failed to enter the correct alarm code. Twice. Thankfully, he hadn’t been able to screw up the retina and thumb scan.

  Hoping to get his shit together, he gave Joshua a tour of the club and back of house area, pointed out where everything was in his office since that’s where Joshua would be working, and got him connected to the office’s secure Wi-Fi. That had been an hour ago.

  Joshua had come a long way from the scared, uncertain young man he’d been when they’d first met. Then again, a lot had been going wrong for Joshua that day. From the moment Frank laid eyes on him, he’d felt a fierce sense of protectiveness, and he hadn’t hesitated in coming to Joshua’s aid. More importantly, Joshua had felt safe with Frank, walking straight into his embrace when he’d offered comfort.

  Working for Colton appeared to have helped Joshua restore his confidence. He was sweet and polite as he addressed the owner of the event company, detailing exactly what he expected from them and when. His voice never rose, and he remained calm the entire time, chatting as if they were old friends. Frank stared in awe.

  “I’m so excited to be helping Frank. When my boss heard what was going on, he loaned me out to help. The two are such good friends. Who’s my boss? Colton Connolly, of Connolly Maritime. Yes, the billionaire.” Joshua chuckled. “Oh my gosh, the wedding was stunning. Obscenely expensive, but beautiful. Did you know both Colton and his husband had their bachelor parties at Sapphire Sands?”

  As if feeling Frank’s gaze on him, Joshua glanced over, and the little shit winked at him. He actually winked. At Frank. Not entirely sure what to do with that, Frank turned his attention back to his monitor and the employee schedule he’d done nothing with for the last half hour.

  “Thank you so much, Alma. I appreciate it. Yes, of course. We look forward to working with you. Talk to you soon.” Joshua hung up and tapped away at his phone, then slipped it into his pocket. “Neema, your new event manager, will be here tonight at eight. Before she arrives, you’ll receive an email containing a link and log-in details to a client portal where you’ll find the customized theme package she’s putting together for you. It’ll contain 3D renderings for the winter theme you picked, the decorations needed for each setup, and budget estimates. Once the theme and decor are confirmed, Neema will go through catering options with you, menu options, update the renderings with the planned layout of tables, chairs, stages, centerpieces, and so on. The dancers will be here tomorrow at two. I’ve already texted Kit to let him know.”

  Frank stared at Joshua. He opened his mouth, but no words came out. With a smile, Joshua removed his phone from his pocket.

  “Also, I’ve pulled up several restaurants in the area with excellent reviews that offer both dine-in and delivery options for dinner. What are you in the mood for?”

  That was a loaded question if he ever heard one. What he was in the mood for was Joshua, naked, with Frank balls-deep in his ass. Fuck dinner. He wanted dessert. Ooh, this was such a bad idea.

  “You choose. But we’re dining out,” Frank grumbled, standing. A busy restaurant would ensure he kept his hands to himself.

  Joshua stopped in front of him. “You have something, um…” He reached out and swiped his thumb over the corner of Frank’s bottom lip. His lips twitched like he wanted to smile. “Glitter?”

  “Unfortunate snowman incident.”

  Joshua eyed him, like he wasn’t sure if Frank was messing with him or not. “I would really like to hear about this incident.”

  “Never gonna happen.”

  “Now I want to hear about it even more.”

  “No.”

  Joshua nodded, his smile wide. “It needs to happen.”

  “I admire your determination, but it’s not happening.”

  “Hm.” Joshua dropped his gaze to Frank’s mouth. “We’ll see.” His low, sultry voice promised things Frank had no business even thinking about. He barely stifled a groan before Joshua informed him, “You’re driving.”

  “So bossy.” Frank leaned in ever so slightly when he caught a whiff of the familiar scent. “Ambre Nuit by Christian Dior.”

  “My favorite.” Joshua’s sexy purr sent a shiver through Frank. “You gave it to me for Christmas, remember?”

  Frank tilted his head. “I didn’t know it was your favorite.”

  “You’re adorable.” Joshua ran a finger down Frank’s tie. “It’s my favorite because you gave it to me.”