Tucker set his case down then pulled his phone out of his pocket and smiled when he saw that it was Lucas. “Hey, what’s going on?”

“Hey yourself, did I catch you at a bad time?”

“No, not at all, I just walked through the door.”

“Then I guess I caught you at a good time?” Lucas chuckled

Tucker smiled. “Yeah, you did, what’s up with you?”

“The question is, what are you doing tonight?”

 “Same thing I do every Friday night: work and drink a couple of beers by myself before falling into bed. Why?”

“Well, let’s change that up a bit, I’m in town for the weekend heading over to my parents' house right now. I was thinking of dropping Zoi and Raynebow off and seeing if you wanted to grab a drink? You owe me a night out anyway for canceling on me.”

The last time they were supposed to get together, Tucker and his guys had to deal with a hostage situation that went on for three days. “Skating out on your Friday night babysitting gig?”

“Somewhat, but even I need a break sometimes. So what do you say? Want to hang out? Damn, I must sound like some lonely-ass kid.”

Tucker chuckled, if Lucas was a lonely kid, so was he. Truthfully, Tucker didn’t feel like going out for the night, and he wanted to stay in and just relax. He had to write up one of his subordinates and put him on suspension for being careless. And one of his best guys got killed. Sometimes being the boss fucking sucked. Maybe going out for a beer and talking with a friend wasn’t such a bad idea. It would definitely be a change from the things he’d been doing on Friday nights.

From the last time he saw Lucas and Zoi, they had been keeping tabs on each other through text messages. They had become friends, which was something he didn’t see happening before. Other than his brother and his nephew and now Mark, Tucker didn’t have many friends. Although Jaxson, Brenden, and Mayson might have a different take on their relationship.

Mayson no longer worked for him. A few years ago, he had been poached by a private secret organization called Seekers. He hated losing one of his best men, but he also understood Mayson’s need to do something different with his life. Tucker kept in contact with his former subordinate, and they had even worked together a couple of times.

“Tuck, are you still there?”

“Yeah, yeah, I’m still here I’m just thinking.”

“About what? You better not be about to say no.”

 “Why don’t you come here instead of going out to a bar?”

What the fuck did I just say? Since the death of his wife, Tucker hasn’t let anyone but his brother and Nicholas in his house and he just blurted out that question to Lucas. “If you want to that is . . . I already have the beer, and I just figured it would be better if you need to talk about something than being in a crowded bar,” he said trying to backtrack his statement but silently hoping Lucas wasn’t going to back out.

“I don’t see why not,” Lucas said after a few minutes. “I’ll bring over some wings, and you can text me your address. I'll see you in about twenty or thirty minutes, deal?”

 “Yeah, that sounds really good.”

They hung up and Tucker texted his address to Lucas then looked around the living room—there wasn’t a thing out of place. He was barely home so his house remained clean, and all that might need to be done was a few spots that need to be dusted here or there. Taking the stairs up to his bedroom to change out of his suit and put on jeans and a T-shirt, he went back downstairs and dusted a bit making sure everything was set for when Lucas got there.

He also checked to make sure there was enough beer in the refrigerator. If not, he’d have to make a quick run to the store. There wasn’t much he needed to do but sit and wait for the other man to get there. Turning on the television and sitting on the couch, Tucker pulled his case over and set it down beside him, he didn’t feel like going up to his office. Maybe he could get some work done before Lucas arrived, but it was turning out to be a lost cause as his mind kept wandering. Lucas was going to be in his home, the one he shared with his wife. He couldn’t pin down why he was nervous.

Maybe it was a mistake, and I should have agreed to meet at the bar.

* * *

Lucas wasn’t sure what possessed him to call Tucker. It had been awhile since they’d seen each other. He enjoyed talking and getting to know Tucker and realized they were building a friendship. He didn’t have many friends, the only ones were his brothers or some of his comrades that worked with him from the Seeker organization.

For the past two years, he’d spent more time with his daughter and family than anyone else and found that he liked being around Tucker. He didn’t want to think about the way his heart thumped in his chest whenever he thought about the other man. He also didn’t want to think about the way his body reacted in the other man’s presence. Pulling up to his parents' home, putting the car in park, he turned and looked at his niece and daughter.

“Okay, my little ones, who is ready to spend some time with Grandma and Grandpa?”

“I am,” cheered Raynebow. Seeing the excitement of her cousin, his daughter cheered as well making him smile and shake his head. She really does adore her cousin.

“All right,” Lucas said with a chuckle. He got out of the car and helped his daughter and niece out. They ran to the door, pushing it open since his parents were expecting him. “Mom, Dad, where are you guys?”

“We are in the kitchen,” came the reply from his mom.

Hearing their grandmother’s voice, the kids ran to the kitchen to greet them while Lucas dropped off their bags by the steps. He walked into the kitchen and saw his dad sitting at the table while his mother welcomed her grandchildren.

Going towards his dad, Lucas hugged him. “Hey, how you doing, Dad?”

“I’m great, Son, it’s good to see you,” his dad said to him.

“You too,” he said patting him gently on the shoulder.

“You seem awfully happy today,” Asher said to him.

“I’m always happy, Dad. Nothing unusual with that,” he said as he walked over to his mom just as the girls ran over to their granddad, jumping onto his lap. He pulled his mom into a hug. “Hey, Mom.” He pulled back then kissed her on her cheek.

“Hello, Son.” She stared in his face. “Your father is right, you seem to be in a good mood. Are you seeing someone?”

What? Where the hell did that come from? “Um . . . no, what gave you that crazy idea?”

“Your eyes,” she answered as if it explained everything.

“What about my eyes?” he prodded.

“They look much more alive than usual.”

Shaking his head, he took a step back, looked at his reflection in the window and saw nothing like what his mother was talking about. Shaking things off, he looked back at his parents.

“I’m going out for a bit, mind taking care of the girls?”

“You didn’t have to ask, of course, we will, they are my grandbabies,” Asher answered.

"Where are you going?” his mom asked.

“I’m going to meet a friend,” he answered.

Hearing that, his mother perked up from where she was leaning against the counter. “Friend, what kind of friend?”

“Just someone I know, Mom.” Lucas had no idea why he didn’t simply tell her that he was going to meet Tucker, it wasn’t as if the man was a stranger to the family.

“Okay,” she said, and it surprised him.

It wasn’t like Marilyn Hamilton to give in so easily. She was known for her lethal interrogations. When he and his brothers were growing up, she knew exactly what kind of tricks to use to get them to spill the beans on each other. Christen was always the first to break. She also knew how to play the long game of watching and waiting for the right time to strike and get you to admit your secrets. Taking things for what they were, he nodded then walked over to his daughter and kissed her on the crown of her head.

“Be good for Grandma and Grandpa,” he told his daughter then tucked a lock of Rayne’s hair behind her ear. “Be good,” he said to her, and she nodded.

Before he was asked any more questions, he left his parents' home. He’d ordered the wings and loaded potato skins, right after he’d called Tucker, from Twisted Pizza, which was a few minutes' drive from his parents' house. After picking up his order, he brought up Tucker’s address and saw that he was about twenty minutes away. He snickered thinking what would happen if his mother realized just how close Tucker was to her. The poor man would never get a break. He pulled up to the address and parked in the driveway behind Tucker’s car.

Turning off the ignition, he grabbed the bag of food and got out of the car before he walked up the steps. He observed that the neighborhood was quiet and as early as it was the lights were out in most of the houses and that each one of their lawns was well manicured, every house was designed the same way and size.

How very Stepford wife?

He didn’t peg Tucker as someone to live in such an orderly neighborhood. Before he could knock on the door, the door swung open.

“Hey, you made it.”

“Yeah.” Lucas smirked when Tucker stood to the side to let him in. “You realize you're like a hop, skip, and a jump from my parents' house.”

“I won’t tell if you won't.” He closed the door and walked further into the living room.

“Your secret’s safe with me,” Lucas said, handing him the bag of food before turning around, and noticed file folders spread out on the coffee table. They had so much in common. Even though he hadn’t attended the meeting with Mister Jacques, they had gotten the deal they were after and added to his workload. “I see you brought work home with you.”

“Yeah,” Tucker answered, stepping around him, and headed to another room he assumed was the kitchen. He walked back out and handed Lucas a longneck. “Come on in, get comfortable. I put the wings and potato skins in the oven to warm them up a bit.” He took the longneck and nodded as his eyes instantly went to the tattoos on Tucker’s arms. He still couldn’t believe the clean-cut man who wore suits seven days a week was being littered with tattoos.

“Where is it?” Lucas asked walking over to the couch sitting beside Tucker.

“Where’s what?”

“The bike?”

Tucker chuckled and brought his longneck to his lips. “What makes you think I have a bike?”

He watched Tucker’s Adam’s apple bob up and down swallowing the frothy liquid as if it was nothing. I wonder . . . No, don’t think about it. He mentally shook his head and got back to their conversation trying not to think about Tucker swallowing his cum. 

“Call it a hunch. I don’t think anyone realizes there are two sides to you. At work you’re in control, not a hair out of place or a crease in your suit, but—” He leaned closer to the other man and his cologne wafted under his nose and, for a second, Lucas’ mind went blank. Gods, he smells good, does he use a special brand of soap or is that his natural scent? His eyes were on Tucker’s lips and just like the last time they were together alone, he wondered how soft they were.

“But what?”

“Huh?” Lucas asked looking up at him and realized how close their faces were.

“You were saying something about there being two sides to me.” His voice low and deep as his warm breath ghosted Lucas’ cheek and with the scent of his cologne mixed in his heart started beating louder in his chest.

He moved his gaze to Tucker’s eyes. Up close, they seemed much greener than he remembered them being the last time he saw them. Pulling back, he cleared his throat, they never took their eyes off each other, and Lucas felt a bit thrilled having Tucker’s eyes on him. The alarm on the oven sounded in the background, but neither one of them moved or showed signs of wanting to get up.

“I guess I should get that,” Tucker whispered. Unable to answer Lucas nodded. Once the other man got up and walked into the other room, he downed his beer in one go, the entire time he kept thinking what the fuck?

* * *

Tucker took the wings out of the oven setting the tray on the stove. He was trying to slow the beating of his heart. Having Lucas so close to him was doing something to his insides not to mention his cock. Maybe this was a bad idea.

“No, it isn’t.” He would have jumped at hearing the voice behind him but he ignored Rochelle, she wasn’t real. “Do you know how long I’ve waited for you to invite someone over? He is very good-looking, tall, and those dreamy green eyes. I feel as if I can drown myself in them. Imagine running your fingers through those dark curls of his. I'm a bit jealous of you, Tuck."

“Of what? There’s nothing going on between me and Lucas.”

“Keep telling yourself that.”

In the last few days, he hadn’t heard from Rochelle and silently admitted he hadn’t thought about her much. He chalked it up to working late and other things occupying his thoughts.

“Do you need help?”

He turned around when he heard Lucas’ voice behind him. “Um . . . yeah, can you get me some plates out of the cabinets?”

“Sure.”

He watched as Lucas turned and opened the cabinet, reaching for the plates on the top of the shelf. His T-shirt rose up a bit showing a strip of toned creamy skin. Thoughts of running his tongue all over Lucas’ firm skin ran through his mind. What the fuck am I doing? He was about to look away when he noticed the start of a scar on his side leading to his stomach. Putting it in the back of his mind to ask about it later, he got busy putting together their plates. Afterwards, they headed back into the living room.

“You never finished what you were saying,” Tucker said and looked over to Lucas who was licking barbecue sauce off his finger.

“What?” Lucas asked looking at him. There was some sauce on the corner of his lips, and Tucker imagined himself licking more than just his lips.

Gods, what the fuck is going on with me. I’m going to ruin my friendship with Lucas if I can’t get my shit together.

“Before the oven went off, you said there are two sides to me.”

“Oh, yeah, I remember now.” He licked the corner of his lips scooping up the sauce; Tucker’s eyes followed every action. “Like I said there are two sides to you. At work, you’re a man in control.” He stared at Tucker. “I bet you like being in control in bed as well, but that’s where you show a different side of the Tucker everyone else sees.”

“What do you mean by that?” Truth be told, he loved being in charge in all aspects of his life even when he made love to Rochelle, he enjoyed making her writhe under him. At times he wanted to be a bit rougher but knew he had to be delicate with her.

“What I mean is you hide your true self,” Lucas said to him.

“So now you’re psychoanalyzing me?”

“No, but I could if you wanted me to. You might have been a good profiler in your day, but I’m better, baby.”

“All right, do it, prove to me that you're better than me,” Tucker told him. “But know that I get to do the same to you.”

“It’s only fair.” He put his plate on the table and wiped off his hands. “All right,” he said looking at Tucker. “I’ve already said that you like to be in control of everything and that you hide your true self. You don’t want anyone to get close to you, so you show them what they want to see. It’s why you stay away from Sunday family dinners. You don’t talk much, but when you do, you expect people to do as you say, no questions asked. You’re also a good leader, which is why the men and women that work for you admire you and seek your approval, even if you don’t realize it. You have a calming presence, and you’re not quick to anger but you also don’t trust easily, which makes it hard for people to get close to you.”

He leaned forward and gazed into Tucker’s face as if searching for something, but all he could think was how close the other man was to him. The scent of his cologne was doing something to his body.

“What are you looking for?” Tucker asked.

Leaning back Lucas smirked. “I was checking to see if I was wrong or not, your eyes tell me everything I need to know.”

“Wow, he really can read you well,” Tucker heard from behind him. “He’s also right, and I can always tell what you’re thinking just by looking in your eyes.”

“How long have you been watching me?”

“Not long, but since we’ve been getting to know each other, I noticed a few things. Plus, Jaxson, Brenden, and Stephen sing your praises.”

“If you say so,” Tucker said to both Lucas and Rochelle.

“I do, now, it’s my turn,” he said to him and leaned back on the sofa.

“You’re so fucking bossy,” Tucker joked.

“You knew that already, stop stalling.”

There was so much that he observed about Lucas. The man had only been in his home for a short time, and already he felt as if the air around him suddenly changed. He never looked at Lucas with the eyes of a profiler, but as a man wanting another man. His eyes roved over the other man from head to toe studying him.

“You hide as well,” Tucker began. “You take the role of being the family prankster, and although you have fun, you want them to see you as the serious person you are. You love your family and will do anything for them, even kill. You admire your father a great deal. I’ll go as far as to say you put him on a pedestal because you strive to be the kind of man he is in every way.”

There was a lot more that Tucker could say, he kept his mouth shut, but he’d hit the important parts of what he could tell about Lucas. Maybe when they become better friends he could voice the rest of his opinions.

“Well, it seems we both have been watching each other,” Lucas said.

* * *

Lucas stared at Tucker; he wasn’t expecting the man to read him just right. It was as if Tucker knew him better than his own brothers did.

“I didn’t mean to hit a nerve,” Tucker said.

“It’s all right, where and when you know someone’s been paying attention, you know? You are right about one thing, I admire my father, he’s a good man. Taught me a lot.”

“That’s good, at one point I thought the same thing about my parents until they showed their true colors and turned their back on Julian. I hope your father never disappoints the way mine did.”

Lucas realized the mood between them changed, and it wasn’t uncomfortable even after what they just said about each other.

“Since we are being honest, I guess I should admit that I do have a bike,” he said with a devilish smirk on his lips.

“I knew it,” Lucas yelled with excitement. “Where is it?”

“In storage, I bought it a long time ago; it was because of Rochelle, really. I used to get jealous when she talked about some guy who rode bikes, and I bought it to surprise her, but she died before I had time to show it to her.”

“You really loved her, didn’t you?”

Tucker nodded then looked away. “Do you think you will ever move on?”

Lucas smirked and sighed. “I should be asking you that. Rebecca was the only woman I ever saw myself with, and it’s going to be hard to find someone and not compare them to her.”

“I feel the same,” Tucker said looking at him. “Want another beer?”

“Why not, my parents are taking care of Zoi and Rayne for the night.”

“Okay, wait right here.”

Tucker stood and grabbed their plates, taking them to the kitchen. Lucas looked around and felt a slight chill, shaking away the feeling, he stood to his feet and walked over to the table behind the sofa looking at all the pictures. He picked one up and noticed the beautiful and very pregnant brown-skinned woman with Tucker’s arms wrapped around her waist resting on her stomach. She had her head turned to the side, and they were staring at each other and smiling. Lucas saw and felt the love passing through them.

Would he ever look at me like that?

Surprised by his thoughts, Lucas cleared his throat, set the picture frame back down and picked up another with the cutest baby he’d ever seen besides his own child. She had short curly brown-blonde hair and bright green eyes that mirrored Tucker’s, the smile on her face showed that she was a happy child.

He set the frame down and looked around Tucker’s home. Everywhere his eyes landed was a reminder that this home belonged to Tucker, Rochelle, and their child. It broke his heart to know that it seemed that his friend was stuck in time and surrounded by the memories of his dead wife and daughter. Lucas couldn’t fault the man since he was doing the same thing. Now he knew what his family was trying to do for him, by pushing him to start dating and meet someone new. They didn’t want him to stay stuck in time.

“You all right?”

Lucas turned around to face Tucker. “Yeah, why?”

“I don’t know, you have this concentrated look on your face,” he said walking over to Lucas and handed him the beer. “Come on, what’s up? I know we are not best friends, but you can talk to me about anything.”

Lucas rolled his eyes. “Really, it’s nothing.” He brought the bottle to his lips and noticed Tucker watching him intently. He licked his lips, and the other man cleared his throat and turned moving over to the couch.

“Okay, if you’re sure.” He sat down and took a few swigs, then looked back at him.

“So, are you ever going to let me see your bike?” he asked wiggling his brows. “Maybe take me for a ride on it sometime?”

“Have you ever been on a bike before?”

“Nope, so you will have to teach me how to ride it.”

"I find it hard to believe you've never ridden one before."

"I've never been that interested in one before now," he whispered.

They stared at each other, and there was an entirely different atmosphere that entered the room, and Lucas wasn’t sure they were talking about riding bikes anymore.

“When would you like to learn?” Tucker’s voice was low and deep, and it sent a certain chill down his spine.

“Whenever you’re ready to teach me,” he replied.

“I’m not sure you’re ready for what I want to teach you.”

“One thing you need to know about me, Tucker, is that I’m a very fast learner.”

“Oh really? Well then, we will see sooner or later, won’t we?”

Tucker brought his bottle to his lips, and Lucas couldn’t help but watch him. There was a sexiness to Tucker that he hadn’t noticed before now. Lucas had come to realize they were no longer talking about riding a bike, rather something was happening between them. The mood shifted so quickly he was trying desperately to keep up. The air around them seemed and felt as if they were being pulled towards each other and there was nothing they could do to stop it. He had guy friends, albeit he hadn’t been out with them in a while, but he’d never felt the kind of connection with them that he was feeling with Tucker.

Could it be that they related to each other having lost a spouse, and in the other man’s case, a child? It did pass by him that he might be reading too much into things or confusing the situation because maybe he wanted something to happen between him and Tucker. But the big question was what did he want to happen? Maybe he was looking for a friendship that was closer than the one he had with his brothers, and guys he considered to be his brothers, like Richard. Or was he looking for a lover and Tucker simply happened to be the one that was showing him attention?

“I guess we will,” he finally said.

Fuck what the hell am I doing?

* * *

“Lucas, darling, it’s so nice to meet you finally,” Shannon said air kissing both of his cheeks.

He’d gotten back to his parent's house much later than planned after spending hours with Tucker. It was their regular family Sunday dinner and his mother had invited Shannon Deets, the daughter of an old friend of his father’s when they were both a part of the Seeker organization. Russell Deets and his wife divorced when Shannon was still a child and went to live in Europe with her mother. Shannon and Russell happened to be in town and got in touch with Asher, which was how they ended up attending family dinner. Shannon was beautiful, Lucas had to admit. She wore her hair short in a pixie cut and had ink-black eyes, that went with her cream skin tone.

“It’s nice to meet you as well,” he said and was about to walk away when she stopped him.

“Your mother tells me that you are the president and CEO of Hamilton Enterprise.”

“Actually, my brother and I run the company together.”

“And it’s not a problem for the both of you? I mean I’ve never heard of brothers working so well together as in sharing the responsibilities between each other.”

Lucas and Tyler had never had a problem working together for Hamilton. Everyone saw them as the bosses, even their vice presidents knew the score. They were partners and nothing else. “No, my brother and I both bring something different to the table, and we are never pitted against each other.”

She smiled, and to Lucas, it seemed forced. “Well, that is wonderful.” She stepped closer to him. “I would love to get to know you a bit more.”

He was about to say something to her when his phone rang, he looked at his screen and saw that it was Tucker. “Excuse me, I need to take this.” He didn’t wait for her to respond and stepped outside. “Hey, you, what’s up?”

“You left your jacket,” Tucker said to him.

He chuckled. “So that’s where it is, I thought I left it in my car.”

“Do you want me to hold on to it?”

He turned around and saw Shannon standing at the door watching him. He wasn’t exactly sure what her deal was, but he smiled and waved at her. Shannon smiled and waved back.

“I tell you what, why don’t you hold on to it and next time I’m back in town it will be my excuse to come by and see you.”

Tucker burst out in laughter. “You make me sound like I’m your hidden secret.”

“Maybe you are.” Lucas smirked as he felt his cheeks heat up.

“I’m not going to touch that one. All right, I’ll see you later.”

“Bye.” They hung up the phone, Lucas started walking back into the house and was stopped by Shannon.

“I’m sorry, Lucas, I wish your mother had told me.”

“Told you what?”

“That you were seeing someone, she thought we would hit it off, but after watching you with whoever it was on the other end of the phone, I realized someone got to you before I did. Which is such a shame because you and I could have been good together.”

Lucas stood at the door and watched her walk into the house. She thinks Tucker and I are together. How the hell did she come to that conclusion? Pulling from his thoughts, he walked into the kitchen to confront his mother and was thankful that she was alone.

“I need you to stop setting me up on blind dates, Mom.”

“I . . .” she started but he stopped her.

“I know you’re worried about me and I love you for that. But honestly, when I’m ready to start dating it will be on my own time, not yours.” He leaned in and kissed her on the cheek then walked out of the kitchen. He hoped she listened to him this time.

* * *