Where We Left Off - Romeo Alexander Page 0,1

it open to grab a bottle of water. “Please tell me we’re not about to hear some bad news.”

Tyler snorted. “My grades are fine. I’m just home for the summer.”

Clay’s eyes wrinkled at the corner as he handed another bottle to Tyler. “So you are.”

They stepped out onto the back porch and looked around the fenced-in backyard. It had been little more than overgrown grass and weeds when they’d first bought it. Yet by the time Tyler had finished his senior year, the two of them had turned it into a comfortable and vibrant place. Clay had been surprised to find he had both the skill and appreciation for growing things and had created small gardens of flowers and herbs that lay about in what Tyler thought was a haphazard pattern. Clay insisted there was a design and then scowled when Elliot pointed out that he’d been reading Feng Shui books.

A curse from the shed announced Elliot’s presence before he stepped out into the warm sun. He was wiping his hands with a red cloth and glowering at the ground. Elliot was every bit as big as when Tyler had first seen him over half a decade before. Then again, that first glimpse of the man had been when he was sprawled out in the parking lot of a ratty motel, injured from a blast that had destroyed one of the rooms. Which was right before a bunch of guys showed up and dragged him away.

Five years later, and neither Elliot nor Clay had explained what happened that day. Not who those guys were, what had caused it, or how it was resolved. All Tyler knew was that Clay had shown up minutes later, used Tyler’s laptop, and disappeared into the city. He saw them again months later, whole and happy, as they walked the streets, arm in arm. Tyler hadn’t been able to believe his eyes, and he hadn’t been able to resist walking up to talk to them again.

And just like back then, when Elliot looked up from his dirty hands and spotted Tyler, his eyes grew wide and lit with happiness.

“And getting out of the way,” Clay muttered, taking a few overly emphasized steps to the side.

And unlike the former Marine, still badass in his thirties that he was, Elliot bounded up the stairs of the back porch with a happy grunt and wrapped Tyler up in a huge bear hug. Tyler squirmed if only to get his arms free to hug the other man back, but there was little chance of that as Elliot gave him a good shake.

“I missed you too,” Tyler managed to squeeze out from his squished lungs.

Elliot beamed. “I didn’t know you were coming back! I thought you’d stay in Greenford for the summer.”

Tyler grunted, glad he could use the moment of catching his breath to also hide his grimace. He had planned to remain in Greenford, get a job and stay off-campus in the college town. Things hadn’t quite gone according to plan, however, and he’d decided at the last minute to make the three-hour journey down to Port Dale and hopefully stay for the summer break.

Elliot clapped a hand on each of Tyler’s shoulders, grinning. “It’s good to see you, Ty.”

“We just saw him over Christmas,” Clay noted dryly.

Elliot winked at Tyler, whispering loudly. “Don’t let him fool you. He was talking about taking a visit up to Greenford to come see you in a couple of weeks. He’s getting sappy in his old age.”

Tyler glanced at Clay, who only rolled his eyes and huffed, offering nothing else in his defense. There were words Tyler would use to describe Clay, but soft wasn’t one of them. Despite appearances, with Elliot being an absolute bear of a man, he was the warmer personality, prone to open smiles and hearty laughs. Not that Tyler had spent the past five years knowing them thinking Clay didn’t want him around, the man was just more subtle about it.

Clay downed the rest of his water. “I suppose we won’t be turning your bedroom into a storage room if you’re going to be here for the summer. Which is a shame. I was looking forward to having somewhere to place all of Elliot’s toys.”

“Guns,” Tyler said dryly. “They’re called guns.”

“And cellphone jammers, wiretaps, and a whole host of listening devices,” Elliot added.

“Pretty sure your ‘toys’ are illegal,” Tyler pointed out.

“Eh,” Elliot grunted, releasing Tyler finally. “There’s bound to be some loopholes somewhere I can get away