on my heel, and was more than a little pleased at Sean’s tortured sound in my wake.
23
Sean
TORTURE, THAT WAS what tonight was all about. Torture. I could see right through Xander’s little plan, and if he hadn’t looked so hot in his light grey suit and navy-blue shirt and tie, I might’ve had some chance of coming out the victor of this little game.
But he did look that hot, and now that he had me where he wanted me—sitting between him and his father—I was being tortured by the wandering hand sliding up my thigh.
If it’d been anyone else seated at the table with us, I probably wouldn’t have cared. But these were Xander’s parents, people I’d known since I was an unruly teen. I wanted to make an impression, a good impression. But if Xander kept sliding his hand up my leg, the only impression I was going to make would be the outline of my dick punching through the table.
“So, Sean, I hear we have you to thank for saving Xander from that crazy man last month.” Ray had ordered the poached Louisiana shrimp and a round of drinks to get things started tonight. As Xander continued to test my resolve, I reached for my bourbon and managed to nod.
“That’s right. But I was just in the right place at the right time.”
Ray took a sip of his beer and looked to his son. “That’s not how Xander tells the story. From what we hear, you stepped in as his bodyguard while you were looking for this creep. That’s not your usual line of work, is it?”
“No, I’m a detective with the Chicago Police Department.”
“Oh, like Bailey.” Laura, Xander’s mom, looked between the two of us, and Xander’s hand froze.
“Bailey doesn’t work for the police department anymore, Mom.”
“That’s right. You said he was some kind of private detective now, didn’t you? How is he liking that?””
It was an innocent enough question, but for some reason it made Xander sit a little straighter in his chair and reach for his Manhattan. Not wanting him thinking about Bailey or anything other than having a good time, however, I decided to answer for him.
“Bailey is a PI now, yeah, and he was an officer on the force before that. My youngest brother Kieran—”
“Oh yes, I remember him. Cute little kid.”
I scoffed. “He’s a lieutenant with the fire department now at Station 73.”
Laura beamed as she took a sip of her Chardonnay. “It’s so wonderful catching up with you. It was always so lovely to see Bailey after your parents passed, but—”
“Bailey’s not here, Mom. Sean is.” Xander’s voice was polite but firm, and I could tell by the silence that swept around the table that I wasn’t the only one who noticed.
“I am well aware of that—”
“Then can we stop talking about him, please?”
Laura looked to her husband as I leaned in to Xander and said, “Hey.”
Xander turned, and the worry swirling in his eyes made me reach for his leg under the table.
“What’s going on? Are you okay?”
“I’m fine. But I’m here with you tonight. I don’t want them talking about your brother all evening.”
Ahh, okay. So that’s what was going on. Xander was worried about me. Worried I would be upset by the reminder of his past. Jesus, he was so fucking sweet.
“It’s all good, anchorman. I’m fine.” I pressed a kiss by his temple and whispered, “I know who you’re going home with tonight.”
When I shifted back to my seat, I could see a look of concern furrowing Laura’s brow. “He’s all good, aren’t you, Xander? Just ate some bad shrimp.”
Xander scoffed, and when I looked at him, he shook his head. But his smile had returned.
“I’m sorry,” he said to his mother, and this time when he placed his hand on my thigh, I reached down under the table to squeeze it.
The message was clear: I’m right here with you and I wouldn’t want to be anywhere else.
DINNER. WAS. DELICIOUS.
I’d never eaten that good in my life, and after the rocky start to the evening, things had been going along fairly smoothly—for the most part. The only time things had gotten a little iffy was when Laura suggested Xander come stay with them in Florida for an extended vacation. But that had soon been settled by the quiet and unassuming Ray, who seemed to have both his wife and son’s number.
I was also starting to believe he had mine. Because while Xander and Laura had been discussing