blinked when Jack mentioned the guys and their boyfriends getting together, though Jack was certain it was down to Fitz knowing they all considered him part of their family.
The dots on his phone had been fluctuating for some time, denoting Fitz was still typing, and Jack held his breath as he stepped into the elevator. What if Fitz thought Jack was confessing? Okay, no, he wasn’t going to go down that path right now.
Fitz: You’re easy to love too, Jack.
Jack sucked in a sharp breath. What did that mean? Had he meant it how Jack meant it? Which was how? Breathe. Okay, it was okay. Everything was okay. Before he could think of what to respond, another text came through.
Fitz: I’ll take good care of Ecto for you. See you soon?
Jack: How about dinner tonight?
Fitz: I’ll dress to be undressed.
The elevator door opened, and Jack tripped over his own feet on the way out, running headfirst into a brick wall. Oh no, wait. It was just Red. Jack glanced up at him, his face burning.
“Sorry.”
Red steadied Jack and dropped his gaze to Jack’s phone in his hand. He smiled knowingly. “Fitz?”
“Um, yeah.” Jack chuckled. “We were making dinner plans.”
Red hummed. “I bet.” He patted Jack’s shoulder and walked into the elevator, leaving Jack gaping after him, catching Red winking at him just before the doors slid closed. Shaking himself out of it, Jack headed for his office and typed a quick response to Fitz.
Jack: Reading your texts at work is hazardous to my health. Tripped and fell into Red.
Fitz: LOL. Aw, poor baby. Sorry not sorry. I’ll make it better tonight.
Jack: Do we need the dinner part? We need dinner, right?
Fitz: I’m not against starting with dessert.
Jack: I like the way you think.
Fitz: I like the way you make me scream.
Jack: Jesus! I just ran into Mason’s desk. I got a “You sure are pretty today.”
Fitz: LOL! Well, he’s not wrong. You are pretty. Though I’m sure that’s not the pretty he meant. I’ll leave you to it before you end up causing some real damage. I need you in one piece for tonight. Talk to you later. Kisses.
Jack: Looking forward to it. Talk to you later, sweetheart.
With a smile, Jack reached his office without further injuring himself. Today was looking to be a great day. He’d finally managed to have lunch with Sil and Emmett, and after a rocky start, Emmett decided to bury the hatchet and the two ended up working things out. The three of them had a great lunch, shooting the shit and laughing about nonsense from around the office. Jack had been relieved and grateful to Emmett for finally putting his rivalry with Sil to rest. In the end, the two seemed to get comfortable with each other, and Jack suspected a friendship was in the making.
Jack reached for the door handle, and the hair on the back of his neck stood on end. Someone was in his office. Silently, he opened his door, his heart in his throat when he spotted Sil behind Jack’s desk, typing away at his computer. What was he doing?
Jack could play this two ways. Either barge in and demand to know what Sil was doing, possibly scaring him off, or pretend he didn’t see anything, let Sil go, and investigate what he’d just done.
Jack slowly closed the door and cursed under his breath. Could Sil be the one behind drugging Fitz? The idea that someone so close to him, someone who he cared about and considered a friend could do something so vile as to drug someone… Jack closed his eyes and centered himself, forcing his anger back down. He had no evidence it was Sil. But then what was Sil doing at his computer? Only one way to find out.
Opening the door, Jack plastered a smile on his face. “Hey.”
Sil jumped up and thrust his hands behind his back. “Hey, Jack. I thought you were out working the Holland installation.”
“I was. Holland decided they wanted an upgrade, so Maury and Meg are working on it. Everything okay?” Jack asked, nodding toward his computer.
Sil smiled wide, but it didn’t reach his eyes. “Yeah. I was just checking, um…” Sil worried his bottom lip as he stepped away from Jack’s desk. “Shit, okay, look. I was in the middle of working on something, and this guy I’ve been seeing texted me, asking me to email him something, and I was so distracted that I emailed you instead.” Sil’s face looked