Title: Episode 3: Opportunity
Series: Crossroads
Pairings: Dom/Brian, Han/Gabe
Summary: After they wrap up the whole Tran-Lue debacle for their part, Brian is presented with an opportunity to delve into something for the Clan that is right up his alley.
Title: Episode 3: Opportunity
Series: Crossroads
Pairings: Dom/Brian, Han/Gabe
Summary: After they wrap up the whole Tran-Lue debacle for their part, Brian is presented with an opportunity to delve into something for the Clan that is right up his alley.
Dom snuffled as he rolled onto his back, slowly waking up from his deep sleep. He squeezed his eyes shut tightly and then opened them, startling and letting out a little yell when he found essentially his own face peering down back at him. “Oh my God, Riddick! What the hell are you doing here?”
“Came to meet the new Mate and to visit with Lucas. He’s on his way back here.”
Which Dom knew. They’d been here a few days already and mostly they’d just been letting Brian and Suki acclimate and explore. Lucas hadn’t been here, having gone with Bridger and Jonathan to do some work on the security for the Lue family. He’d let them know last night that they’d be on their way back this morning.
“How’d you know about Brian?” Dom mumbled, turning his head to look and see that Brian was starting to wake up.
“A little birdie named Han told me. Called me when you were heading back here, and he told me Lucas was here too, so I decided to come and meet the new addition to the family. Heard your boy Vince had to be Turned.”
“Yeah, that was a real clusterfuck. He’s currently living in this house because he refuses to stay in the house with Jesse,” Dom said, though he wasn’t sure why he was explaining. Riddick wasn’t one who needed the details for people who didn’t really matter much to him.
“Who are you talking to at ass o’clock in the morning?” Brian grumbled as he sat up, rubbing his eyes.
“Brian, this is Richard Riddick, my line’s elder,” he said, tone dry. “He prefers to go by Riddick. Riddick, this is Brian O’Conner, my Mate.”
Brian looked at Riddick and blinked. Then he looked at Dom, and back and forth for several moments. Then, with a flat expression, he said, “I don’t see the family resemblance at all.”
Riddick actually chuckled at that and Dom rolled his eyes. “Yeah, we both look a lot alike,” he said. “So does one of Mia’s great-grandkids, so be prepared for that come probably Christmas. I don’t think Xander will show up before then. Might for Thanksgiving, but he might go to the other side’s family for that.”
“He’s still human,” Riddick pointed out to him unnecessarily.
“Yes, yes, he is. He’s already consented to be Turned if something happens, and for now, he’s as protected as he can be,” Dom said, having already gone over all these contingency plans with Brian, who knew Riddick’s story and had agreed to everything they’d worked out. “He’s not going anywhere without a full escort, and he’s really not planning on leaving the territory until he’s Turned anyway.”
Riddick tilted his head but nodded. “Be careful. I don’t want you to end up like me.”
“I’m planning on being Turned soon,” Brian told him.
“I don’t want to rush you. I want you to be comfortable with everything and settled in, so you won’t end up stressed by it all.”
“I know,” Brian said, patting his arm. “I was honestly thinking about October 31st.”
“Halloween?” Riddick asked, seeming amused by that.
“Yep. I like the aesthetic and it’s a favorite holiday. And I mean, come on! Vampires? Is there a date any more appropriate than October 31st to become one of the sort-of undead?”
Dom just kind of stared at Brian for a minute and then looked at Riddick, who smirked and said, “Don’t look at me. He’s your Mate.”
“Right. Okay, fine, Halloween, you adorable weirdo.” He was relieved to have an actual date, and it was a little amusing.
Brian grinned and then climbed out of bed. “Since I’m up, I might as well actually get up. I’m sure there are a hundred things that need to be done today.”
Dom shook his head as Brian disappeared into the bathroom. He pointed to the door. “Vince is four doors down that way on the left side, if you want to go and scare the hair off him. Otherwise, we’ll meet you downstairs.”
Riddick smirked at him and pointedly headed out in Vince’s direction, and Dom laughed as he got up and went to find something to wear. He’d found what he wanted to wear and Brian had come out of the bathroom when a loud screech sounded from down the hall, loud enough for even Brian to hear, and Dom laughed.
“What the hell was that?” Brian asked, staring toward the open door.
“Riddick traumatizing Vince.”
Brian laughed. “Vince is going to crack and kill everyone someday.”
“He doesn’t have that much ambition. It would take too much energy,” Dom said, heading toward the bathroom so he could take care of his morning routine.
Once they were done, they headed downstairs and found Riddick in the living room looking content with himself now that he got his daily dose of terrorizing someone in. Dom dropped down on the sofa and Brian plopped down next to him and threw his legs over Dom’s lap. “How’d you find out about Dom’s existence?” Brian asked Riddick.
Riddick turned his attention to Brian. “I found him here, actually. I was down here doing some recon for Nico. It was maybe a year after Mia was Turned. Border was still really new as an official Clan, the compound wasn’t fully built yet, and they were having major issues with Rogues still since Mexico had been the Wild West for Vampires at the time.”
Dom snorted. “Still is. A lot of land and not enough Clan.”
Riddick nodded slightly. “When I arrived, I walked in and found Dom on the floor. He was playing with Mia’s kids. I was surprised to see him.”
“More like shocked,” Dom said with amusement. “He’d had no clue he had a child running around, let alone a great-grandchild.”
“How’d that happen? I mean, I know how that happened, and I figure it’s a case of not knowing due to not being informed, and it was way harder back then if people moved around. But how’d you figure out that you came from him?”
“Timeline and location, mostly, in addition to the insane family resemblance,” Dom said. “My grandfather told us that he had been dropped off at an orphanage when he was really young and never remembered anything about his mother. He grew up in the orphanage and left when he was a teenager. The Civil War happened and he survived that and decided to move out West. He met the Toretto family, so when he married the youngest daughter of that family, he took their last name since he didn’t have one of his own. They had my dad, who eventually had me, and then later, Mia.”
“Wow. You’ve had a really eventful family line,” Brian said, laughing a little.
Riddick hummed. “So how is Han taking all of this?” he asked, pointing to the two of them. “You two were in each other’s pockets for what? Nearly sixty years?”
“We’re good. He’s taking it well,” Dom said and snorted. “He honestly flirts with my Mate more than I do.”
Brian opened his mouth briefly before tilting his head and closing it. “Yeah, he really does, honestly. But he doesn’t put his money where his mouth is, so basically he’s a cock tease. And stingy.”
Dom laughed. “He has been stingy with you. I can’t wait to tell him you think so.”
Brian blew a raspberry. “Man, I’ll tell him myself.”
“Yeah, you two really were made for each other,” Riddick said after a few moments. Then he focused on Brian. “Han said something about you being a cop?”
“Yeah, I was working for the LAPD, undercover on the op that was focused on Dom here. I figured out pretty quickly that something was off, and eventually found out everything. When it all blew up and everything came out, I resigned and we came down here.” He blew out a breath. “I’ve been kind of noodling over what I want to do now. I’d like to do something for the Clan itself, but I have no idea what yet.”
“You know, you’re entitled to take some time off,” Dom said dryly. “I appreciate the work ethic you have, but I’d like to kick whoever instilled the need to constantly go right in the ass.”
Brian laughed. “I’d blame my great-grandfather for the family business, but I never got to meet him. He died when my grandfather was only ten years old.”
“Is your family full of undercover cops or something?” Riddick asked.
“My great-grandfather, Joseph, was. My grandfather was a World War II vet, and my dad was a patrol officer before he got injured enough that he felt like he should retire.”
Riddick nodded. “At least you come by it honestly. I’m going to go and see if I can scare the hair off more people while I wait for Lucas.”
“Have fun,” Dom said, shaking his head as Riddick left. “Come on, let’s get you some food before Missouri comes to hunt you down. She’ll figure out you’re up sooner rather than later.”
“So that’s Riddick,” Brian said as he got up. “Seems like a cool guy.”
“Stay on his good side and he’s pretty cool. Get on his bad side and you’ll wish you were never born. But he’s honestly probably predisposed to not hate you because you’re attached to me.”
Brian batted his eyes at Dom. “Gee, you know how to make a guy feel special. I’ll have you know that I’m pretty easy to like.”
“Yeah, yeah,” Dom said, nudging him toward the kitchen.
~*~
Watching Vince, who had been hanging out with them on the front porch of the main house, suddenly bolt up and take off was amusing, especially when less than a minute later, Jesse came out and looked around. Brian was actually kind of impressed. Vince really was taking to being a Vampire and using his senses to the best of his ability.
Jesse huffed as he looked around. “Have you seen Vince? I want to talk to him.”
“Considering you can’t find him, I think he doesn’t want to speak with you right now,” Brian pointed out.
Jesse frowned and dropped down in the seat Vince had vacated. “How am I supposed to tell him my side of it so he can get over it and we can get back to normal?” Jesse asked.
“He’s not going to just get over it, and your side of the story got him killed,” Brian replied calmly.
Dom shook his head when Jesse looked offended. “If I were Vince, I’d face you just so I could punch you in the face. Leave him alone and work on your own damn self. He isn’t going to want to hear anything from you until you admit that you fucked up and you admit the part you played in his current circumstances.”
“I didn’t play a part in it. That was all Tran.”
“So you keep saying but no one is buying it because we were all there. And the fact is, Vince doesn’t owe you to hear you out, nor does he owe you his forgiveness,” Brian added. “You need to give him space and work on yourself, like Dom said.”
“What do you know about any of this? You’re not family,” Jesse snapped, standing back up. “You’re just the damn cop who was trying to string up Dom for what Tran did.”
“He’s my Mate and he is family,” Dom snapped back at him. “You remember that because I will choose him over you every single damn day. Now go and check yourself before you wreck yourself.”
Brian watched Jesse huff and stomp off like he was the one in all this who was wronged. “Wow. The temper tantrums are going to be epic until he gets his head on right, aren’t they?”
“Yeah. Honestly, he wasn’t emotionally mature enough to have been Turned, but the alternative would have been terrible. We’ll just have to make the best of it and hope that he grows up. He’s still resistant to sessions with Red, and unless he’s willing to go, it’s not going to help.” Dom blew out a breath. “This is the result of the coddling. We all had a hand in that, but there’s nothing we can do about it now.”
“Well, now you know and you won’t make that mistake again with someone else,” Brian said, leaning into him. “Where’s Han? I haven’t seen him around today.”
“He was working over at the race track today. One of his cars had an issue he was working on before we had to go to Los Angeles, so he’s trying to figure out what’s going on with it.”
“Hope he figures it out,” Brian murmured. “Maybe we can go and bug him later, maybe help him out.”
“He’ll ask for help when he’s ready. He likes to try to figure out things before asking, and he’ll get annoyed at us for playing backseat mechanic. But we can go and bug him anyway.”
Brian nodded and they relaxed and sat in silence and just enjoyed the peace and quiet. He noticed about half an hour later when Dom suddenly perked up. “What’s up?”
“I hear cars coming. One sounds like Bridger’s car, and the other is the one Lucas usually keeps around here to use.”
“A little earlier than we expected?” Brian asked.
Dom looked at his watch. “Yeah, by about an hour or so. Maybe they didn’t encounter the traffic they thought they would. Or they decided to speed more than advised.”
Brian shrugged but sat up and stretched. “At least they made it in one piece.”
Dom hummed and pulled out his phone. A moment later he held it up to his ear and said, “Riddick, they’re here.” Then he put it away and sat back. “Lucas…has some quirks. He’s had a difficult time in his history, so touching him without his explicit permission is a big no. Deliberate touching. He’s not going to get bent if you’re in the same area and doing something and you brush up against him. Things will shift if he gets to know you, is comfortable with you, and if you two grow closer, but it’s going to take time, and he’ll definitely let you know what’s allowed.”
“Okay, good to know. I’m not gonna ask why, since it’s not my business unless he wants to tell me, but I’ll remember that and just let him instigate any kind of physical touch,” Brian said. He wasn’t entirely sure he wanted to know why, but he knew that whatever it was, it was probably horrific.
Riddick walked out of the house as the cars pulled up, and Brian watched as a young man hopped out of the driver’s side of one of the cars. He was a cute blond who looked like he was in his late teens.
The guy smiled widely at Riddick as he jogged down the steps. “Richard!”
“Hey, Kid,” Riddick said, engulfing him in a tight hug.
“That’s Lucas,” Dom murmured. “Theirs is an…unlikely friendship. But they’ve known each other since just after Lucas was Turned. The guy who got out of the car with him is his Mate, Jonathan. The driver of the other car is Nathan Bridger, who is the Head of Security for Border, and with him is Montoya. He’s one of our Hunters.”
“Hello, Dom,” Lucas said after pulling away from Riddick. “You’re looking a little cozy there.”
Brian grinned as he let Dom get up, following him down the stairs as Dom said, “This is my Mate, Brian O’Conner.”
“It’s a pleasure to meet you,” Lucas said, holding out his hand. His accent was an interesting mix of British and what he figured was a Brazilian accent, since Dom had mentioned he’d grown up there.
Brian shook it. “Pleasure is mine. Thanks for all of your help with ferreting out the information we needed.”
“You are most welcome.” Lucas patted Dom on the arm. “I knew this one would eventually find his Mate, but I didn’t think it would be this…eventful.” Lucas eyeballed Dom. “Then again, maybe it should have been obvious. He is from Richard’s line.”
Brian laughed when Dom rolled his eyes, and he found himself quickly introduced to the rest of the people there before they were all ushered inside and they settled down in the living room with Lucas and Jonathan, as well as Riddick, while the others went off to do what they needed to.
“How are things going down in Sanctuary?” Dom asked as Brian leaned against him.
“Quiet,” Jonathan said, “but good. Too quiet for some, since half the Council is twitchy, wondering if it’s too quiet.”
“They’re too used to chaos and a long stretch of nothing happening makes them paranoid,” Lucas added. “They’re always twitchy when they’re waiting for the next thing to drop. They don’t do well if something eventful isn’t happening.”
Jonathan laughed. “Well, you certainly gave them that.” He looked at Riddick when he made a questioning noise. “Lucas blew up half his lab to break the monotony.”
Lucas rolled his eyes as Riddick growled a little. “It was not half the bloody lab, Jonathan, stop telling people that. And it certainly wasn’t done on purpose.”
“So what was it?” Riddick asked, eyeballing him.
“It was a set of beakers I was using for an experiment, and they exploded. Under the fume hood and behind the shatterproof glass. The glass itself wasn’t even chipped, much less anything else. Not so much as a papercut to be seen, even after clean up. But you know that lot. A little explosion and they act like the sky is falling.”
Brian laughed. “Well, at least they got themselves a tiny bit of excitement to take off that edge.”
“True, that,” Lucas murmured. “I, for one, am grateful for the peace. Idiots not bringing chaos to the Clan actually allows me to get some things accomplished that otherwise would be put upon the back burner.”
“Putting stuff on the back burner is how you get explosions, Luke,” Riddick pointed out dryly.
Brian laughed at the expression on Lucas’ face.
~*~
It was a few hours later when Dom and Brian were summoned to the conference room, where Lucas, Nathan Bridger, José, and Josiah were sitting. Dom motioned for Brian to sit and took the seat next to him. Han came in a couple of seconds later and dropped down next to Dom.
“What’s up?” Han asked.
“I thought you three would like to hear the wrap-up of the case you were involved in,” Josiah said. “You guys were right in the thick of it for various reasons. We know that Tran and his cousin and most of their main cohorts are taken care of, and the FBI has the agents involved and will do with them what they will. But there is, of course, still the question of everything else.”
Dom nodded. “I know you had people dealing with the merchandise we were able to steal back and tucked away in the warehouse in Los Angeles. I’m not sure how much of that was missing from the Lue’s business and how much was from elsewhere.”
“Yes, all of that has been accounted for actually was from the Lue businesses, but honestly, with everything not all of what’s there is going to be able to be sold at retail as it would have been before,” Josiah said. “From what the reports say, some of it was damaged either cosmetically or would need to be outright fixed. Whoever had moved it for the Trans was not careful with it. So some of them will have to be sold at a discount and others cannibalized for parts to fix other pieces. The condition of a lot of it makes me think that reselling wasn’t genuinely Tran’s ultimate goal, but whatever it was died with him.”
“I had noticed that quite a few of the boxes were damaged,” Han said. “And the money that my asshole cousin made off all this?”
“I found all of that and had it returned to the business,” Lucas told him. “It doesn’t cover everything completely, and there’s the whole mess with the governments of Mexico and the US that your family is going to have to smooth out and fix with regard to taxes and such. I’d say that perhaps half of what your family should have gotten from that merchandise was returned.”
Han blew out a breath and nodded. ‘The family is going to just have to take the ‘L’ on this one. This is honestly what they get for trusting that idiot. I told them not to, warned them that he had delusions of living a life on some resort island where he’s surrounded by gorgeous women and sycophants with millions to lavish on those who literally or metaphorically suck his dick. He wasn’t smart or motivated enough to accomplish something like that without turning to criminal activity to achieve it.”
“And it wasn’t even smart at that,” Bridger said after a moment. “He left so much evidence of his activities it’s not even funny. It’s downright ridiculous. The only reason he got away with it for as long as he did and got so much traction was that nobody who should have been paying attention was paying attention.”
Lucas hummed. “I’ll look around a little more since I have a couple more ideas about where to look, but I think that all the money and merchandise we’re going to find we’ve already found. Your cousin wasn’t the only one getting paid out of all of that, there’s no records of who or how many were involved, and we all can assume that Tran was doing this as part of some long game to get under Dom and Han’s skin. He just got cocky and overreached with this one, involving too many people he shouldn’t have.”
“He thought he was untouchable because he wasn’t outright attacking us,” Dom said and sighed. “Well, at least that asshole isn’t around anymore to cause problems. Good riddance.”
“Is there anything else that needs to be done with all of this?” José asked, looking around the table.
Brian shook his head. “Not on the part of anyone up in the LA area. The FBI has taken over the case and is honestly more interested in covering their own ass and dealing with their own people. The LAPD was removed from everything, and everything else was taken care of. I’m sure Lindsey or Nathan will let us know if anything else pops up there with regard to the Feds or the LAPD.”
Han leaned forward. “Not on my family’s part, for this at least. Like I said, they’re going to have to shoulder the loss on this one. Their complacency brought this on themselves, so they’ll have to get someone in to figure out how to fix it all. I know they’re Chosen and I love them, but they got themselves into this mess and bailing them out at this point will only lead to expectations and entitlement. If we fix it for them, they’ll continue to expect and demand it when they inevitably do something dumb again. They have to learn from this and do better.”
Josiah nodded. “Understood. We’ll keep an eye on the whole situation but otherwise remain hands-off from this moment on. Lucas, if you find anything, let me know, but don’t stress over it for too long. That they’ve got back as much as they did is honestly a miracle that they shouldn’t have expected.”
“I’ll let you know. I’ll look into the last few avenues tomorrow,” Lucas said, standing up. “I think for now that I’m going to change and do a bit of surfing. It’s a lovely day outside.”
Dom watched him leave and then turned back to the others. “Anything else we need to talk about?”
“Not about this whole ridiculous thing. I think we’ve all said everything we need to about that,” Josiah said. “But I was wondering how you’re settling in, Brian. Any issues?”
Brian shook his head. “No, everything’s going great. I’ve been exploring and meeting the various people who live and work here, and have been getting familiar with the immediate area and where everyone lives and where everything actually is. And everyone’s been really nice and helpful.”
José nodded. “How does your family feel about you moving to Mexico?” Then he frowned. “Do you have any immediate family? I just realized I don’t really know.”
“Yeah, I have my parents,” Brian said, and then Dom watched, highly amused, as Brian’s eyes went wide and his expression turned horrified. “I’m such a dumbass. I forgot.”
“Forgot what?” Josiah asked.
“Forgot to tell my parents I was moving to Mexico! I didn’t even call them after the op finished. They knew I was working a case and wouldn’t be available all that often to call, but once everything started snowballing, I completely forgot that I hadn’t called them at all in the last several weeks. They don’t know!”
Dom laughed silently as Brian began patting himself. “You left the phone in the bedroom. It’s not fixed for international calling on your account, remember? You can use mine, but it’s in the bedroom as well.”
Brian pushed back and half-flailed out of the chair. “I gotta go call them now, or you’re not gonna have to worry about an enemy of yours killing me. My mom’ll do it for them,” he said before rushing out of the room.
Han snorted and they all started laughing as they listened to Brian run up the stairs.
“Well, now that we’ve hopefully saved him from the fiery wrath of an unimpressed mother,” Bridger said, “I wanted to pick your brain about something, Dom, see what you think.”
“Sure. What’s up?”
“I’ve been looking to step down as the Head of Security, but there hasn’t really been much of an option for someone to take over. Daniel doesn’t want it back, and most just don’t want to be on the hook to be part of the Council for a variety of reasons. I was wondering if you thought Brian might be open to it.”
Dom hummed. “He might be interested. I think it’s something that could be right up his alley, but I’m not going to make any decisions for him about it. If it’s something he wants, I’m not going to have any issues with it. You’re not going anywhere, are you?”
“No, of course not, but Lucas and I have a lot of joint projects coming down the line, and I have some personal projects of my own that I really want to give my full attention to. Once we’re ready to get into the meat of our projects, you’ll be seeing more of Lucas around, honestly.”
Josiah snorted. “Which means more of Sparrow, most likely.”
“Well, it is his son,” José pointed out. “He’s a trouble magnet, but he’s also really good about getting himself out of it, and it’s not a hardship having the man around.”
Dom laughed and stood. “I should go and make sure that Brian hasn’t been verbally eviscerated. I’ll let him know about your request and we can find you guys and talk about it later. I’m sure he’s going to have a ton of questions. He’s the curious sort.”
“Lucky you,” Bridger said with a laugh. “You know my number when you’re ready if you can’t find me. Unlike, you know, some of our Clan members.”
“Right,” Dom said, laughing again. Han joined him and they walked down the hall.
“I think Brian would be good at it. He has the head for that kind of thing,” Han said as they stopped at the foot of the stairs.
Dom leaned against the wall. “I do as well, but it’s really up to him. How goes figuring out the car?”
“It’s going. Not well, but it’s going,” Han said and grinned. “I was hoping you’d help me figure it out in a couple of days. I got frustrated enough that I don’t want to bother with it for the rest of today or tomorrow.”
“Yeah, we’ll figure it out.”
“Go on. Save Brian from whatever conversation he’s having with his mother.”
He grinned and headed upstairs, finding Brian just saying goodbye. “How’d it go?” he asked after Brian dropped the phone on the bed.
“She is supremely unimpressed with my shenanigans,” Brian said, laughing. “She literally told me that. She is unimpressed with the bare bones I gave her about the op blowing up, and she’s really unimpressed that I decided to move to Mexico for a guy I haven’t known all that long and never even bothered to introduce them to. She also said to warn everyone here that she will be coming for a visit, and they’ll be here for Christmas. We’ve been put on notice.”
Dom laughed and sat on the bed. “Well, I can understand that. She doesn’t know anything about what’s going on, so she doesn’t understand it. And it’s fine that they want to come down. It’ll be entertainment for everyone, watching a Vampire get his ass handed to him by a tiny human woman.”
“I may have to run away back to America,” Brian said with a laugh. “I take it the meeting is over?”
“Yes, but Bridger does want to talk to you about a possible position with the Clan, if it’s something you think you might want to do.”
Brian frowned. “What kind of position?”
“Well, he’d be the one to talk about it in detail, but he told me that he’s looking to step down as the Head of Security due to a bunch of upcoming personal projects, and if it’s something you might want to do, he’d be willing to train you for it, and to be backup in case you need to go elsewhere. I think he just doesn’t want to be on the hook for it full-time.”
Brian tilted his head. “Huh. Well, it does sound interesting. I’d definitely like to talk to him about it.”
“We can find him here in a little while so you two can talk about it. I think it’s something you might enjoy, but it’s ultimately up to you.”
“Thanks,” Brian said, grinning at him.
~*~
Han grinned when he saw Gabe walking toward him. Han had decided to take some time and walk along the beach, both because it was peaceful and to honestly get away from some of the smothering concern from the Clan. He knew that they meant well, but they were a bunch of overbearing mother hens as well, and it was driving him nuts.
“Hey,” Han said as they met up on the sand. “Decided to go for a walk after work?” He knew Gabe had been at the hospital for a long shift.
“Yes. It was a difficult shift at the hospital so I needed some fresh air to clear my mind,” Gabe told him. “So what brings you out here?”
“Everyone’s overbearing concern,” Han admitted. “Everyone and their mother is asking me about the situation with Dom and Brian, and staring at me like I’m going to go off the rails or something. I mean, on the one hand, I get it. He and I were a thing for a long time. But it’s like they all forget that we weren’t exactly monogamous and hyperfocused on each other. Yes, things have changed, but Brian’s an awesome guy and I really like him. I’m happy for Dom, but not for myself because I’m the one who has to deal with everyone looking at me like I’m about to explode any minute.”
Gabe laughed and pulled him close, wrapping his arms around Han’s waist. “Well, I certainly can’t do anything about our Clan’s overbearing concern, but if you’re looking for some physical consolation, I’m more than up to the task. It’s not like we haven’t indulged before, both with and without Dom.”
“If you’re offering, I’m more than happy to take you up on that offer,” Han said, leaning forward to kiss him. “But let’s walk for a while. You can catch me up on what you’ve been up to. We haven’t really talked in a while.”
Gabe shifted them around a little and they headed in the direction Gabe was moving.
~*~