"H ow was your flight?"

Luke grimaced as he pulled Marcus into a hug, his arm resting easily across the shorter alpha’s shoulders. "Long. I still say we should invest in a private jet. We'd get enough use out of it. I'm ready to get back to my room and take a shower ."

Smiling sheepishly, Marcus glanced at his watch. "I'm really sorry about this, but would you mind if we grabbed dinner nearby first? Jay's flight lands in less than two hours ."

Dropping his bag, Luke rubbed his forehead. "I thought his court date was last week ."

Marcus snagged the bag off the ground and got them moving again. "I requested extra time to get in contact with Kowalski." He was more tan than the last time that Luke had seen him, the summer sun still showing in the lighter streaks in his dirty blond hair .

"You did find him, though, right?" Letting himself be hustled along, Luke ran through their options if the executor wasn't available .

"Not exactly," Marcus said, steering them toward his car. "Stan Kowalski died two years ago." Before Luke could do more than groan, he continued, "I did, however, get in touch with his daughter, Piper Kowalski-Reyes. She took over her father's practice, and she's been very helpful ."

"That's great," Luke said. It was only when he noticed Marcus watching him that he realized how enthusiastic he had been. "I hate losing a case. Even if it's just one that I assisted on ."

Marcus hummed, climbing into his old Jeep with a smug smile. "Whatever helps you sleep at night," he said as he started the car .

"Shut up and feed me," Luke grumbled, pulling on his seatbelt .

"Aye, aye, Captain !"

Luke had never expected to find a family when he joined Sigma Alpha Omega. He'd applied because the house was off campus, and after the second holiday he'd been stranded when the dorm's closed, he'd had enough. He'd heard dozens of horror stories about hazing and evil upperclassmen from people while he was waiting to hear if he'd been accepted. He'd prepared himself for keeping his head down and hating at least one member of the frat .

What he'd gotten had far surpassed his expectations. All of his brothers were great. Even Cody, the most standoffish, was loyal and funny once you got past the inferiority complex. His favorite thing was how each of them offered something different, so it didn't matter if you needed smarts, sympathy, or just another body for ultimate Frisbee, there was someone there .

Marcus had been president for most of Luke's time in Sigma Alpha Omega, calm and mature without being a killjoy. He was the most nurturing of the brothers, and they'd always joked that he'd make someone a great mom someday. He was also the only one who was just as much of a foodie as Luke himself .

"You have to try the potatoes," Marcus said as they sat down in the corner of a tiny bar. It was less than ten minutes from the airport, but it may as well have been worlds away. The decor was yellowed with age, but the seats were comfortable and the scents from the kitchen that washed over them every time the door opened were incredible .

Luke scanned the menu. It was simple but hearty, and his stomach growled as he read the descriptions. "How have I never been here before ?"

Laughing, Marcus shrugged. "It just reopened recently. The original owner's grandson runs the place." He sipped from his water glass, watching Luke over the rim. "How have you been ?"

"Fine." He folded his menu and set it down to one side, hoping to draw the waitress back. "Everything is fine ."

"You didn't have any trouble getting the time off ?"

Luke rolled his eyes. "No, Mom. My last two cases settled out of court, and it's getting to be the holiday season, so nobody's filing new lawsuits ."

"I guess that's something." The lines at the edge of his mouth, when he flashed Luke a wry smile, were deeper than the last time they'd seen each other .

Guilt prickled across Luke's skin. After Liam, he had stopped leaving his condo for anything but work, and he'd missed more of the monthly dinners than he'd made it to in the last couple years .

"Sorry," he said, sighing heavily. There was tension in his shoulders that he couldn't shake, but he tried to relax and enjoy the moment. "I'm sorry for disappearing on you guys ."

Marcus pursed his lips, patting Luke on the hand. "We understand. Although, I hope you're planning on making a lot of cookies. Kris won't talk about anything but how you owe him a million for his birthday ."

Laughter burst out of him, and he settled more deeply into his seat. "I don't know about a million, but I can definitely get a couple dozen made by tomorrow ."

"Will you need help? Kurt is at a business meeting, but he'll be at the guest house tonight ."

Luke snorted. "He'll eat more than he makes ."

Marcus raised his glass in agreement, but before he could say anything, the waitress made it over to their table to take their orders .

"If you need someone to keep Kurt out of the kitchen, I'm sure Jay would be willing to keep him occupied," Marcus said after the waitress had walked away. He looked a little too nonchalant, raising his eyebrow when Luke glared at him. "It's just a suggestion. I don't remember if Jay is any good at baking ."

Reluctantly, Luke nodded. "He's good at following directions." He felt a smile crease his lips even though he tried to hold it back. "He only steals the broken cookies ."

Taking another sip of water, Marcus watched him quietly for long enough that Luke couldn't help but fidget. "So he's baked with you before ?"

It was an open-ended question, not pushy or demanding the way that Kurt or Cody would be. He wasn't expecting an answer, and if Luke chose not to give one, the subject would be dropped .

"You know me when I can't sleep." He tried to make it joking, but his voice cracked on the last word. That should have been the end of it, but Luke couldn't stop himself from filling the silence. "I stayed a couple weeks at his family's lake house the summer after you graduated ."

"Ah."

"Dad was on some last minute couple's thing in the Caribbean, and Uncle Robert was in Hong Kong on business. I was going to go home with Kurt, but he had that cruise." Luke took a sip of water, trying to stop the flow of words before he said anything he'd regret .

"I remember that. They went to Europe, and Marizza and Venice got food poisoning." His voice was so bland, so nonjudgmental, that it dragged the story out of Luke like a magnet .

"His stepdad is a grade A creep, and he kept putting Jay down for painting instead of taking summer classes. I almost punched him twice in the first day," he said, details that he'd forgotten popping into his head as he spoke. "First Dad and then this guy, and I was just angry at everything. The cook caught me wandering around in the middle of the night, and she gave me permission to use the kitchen as much as I wanted ."

Marcus smiled. "Did you leave them any flour ?"

"Not as much as I should have," Luke said, heat creeping up his neck when Marcus chuckled. "I guess Jay's schedule was out of whack because of his painting. He smelled the cookies and came down like a starving bear." Grinning at the thought, he gestured broadly, almost hitting the waitress as she set down their tray of food. "Sorry ."

"I can't take you anywhere," Marcus teased as she assured him it was fine .

They were silent for a moment, each of them digging into their food. The potatoes were just as spectacular as Luke had hoped, and he sighed contentedly as he stuffed another piece into his mouth .

"Speaking of starving bears," Marcus said a few minutes later, looking pointedly at Luke's half empty plate. "Don't you feed yourself in California ?"

"My flight was delayed six hours in Chicago, remember?" he said with his mouth full .

"That's disgusting ."

Luke grinned. "Seriously, though. I've never seen anyone put away as much food as that night ."

Marcus narrowed his eyes skeptically. "Not even Kurt ?"

"Not even Kurt. Jay tore through an entire container of cookies before he even noticed I was there." He laughed when the other alpha still didn't look convinced. "I'm serious. Ask him sometime. I had to be careful not to put the fresh trays next to him because he refused to wait for them to cool ."

"I thought he only eats the broken ones ?"

"Usually, he does. He was so embarrassed when he realized what he'd done that he refused to take any more cookies. He helped me bake all week, and he only ate the ones that didn't turn out." Luke's smile faltered when he saw the way Marcus was watching him. "Whatever you're thinking, no ."

"It just seems like you got along well," he replied mildly .

Staring at his plate, he pushed a piece of green onion around in the remains of his potatoes. "We did." Marcus opened his mouth, but Luke didn't let him ask. "His parents kicked me out after his stepdad caught us naked in the boathouse ."

Marcus stared at him, eyes wide. It was obvious he hadn't been expecting that. "I'm sorry ."

Luke laughed, louder and sharper than he'd intended. "I got off easy. I just had to walk to town in the rain. Victor Danville disowned Jay ."

They sat in silence for a few minutes, their food getting cold as they picked at it. "Well," Marcus said finally, his voice sympathetic but entirely devoid of pity, "this calls for drinks ."

* * *

"I 'm going to puke."

Against his better judgment, Luke peeked around the edge of his door. Jay was standing in the living room of the condo that the brothers kept as a guest house for visits to New York. He kept fussing with his collar in the mirror, his hands shaky. He was so frazzled that he didn't seem to notice that the collar wouldn't lay flat because he'd skipped a button on his shirt, and even at a distance, it was easy to see the beads of sweat on his brow .

"You'll be fine," Marcus said, turning the omega around to fix the buttons on his shirt. "This is a formality. Piper will do all the talking, and you just stand there and focus on not passing out ."

"I can still make you a martini," Kurt said. He was curled up on the couch with a phone in one hand and his account ledger in the other .

"No, you can't." Marcus smoothed his hands down the shoulders of Jay's shirt. "Ignore him ."

Kurt rolled his eyes, and Luke ducked back behind his door a second too late. "There are snickerdoodles in the kitchen," he said pointedly, still staring at the doorway when Luke peeked again .

"Those are for the party," he said firmly. He felt bad when Jay almost jumped out of his skin .

They hadn't spoken more than a few words since Jay had gotten into the car last night. Even though Jay's light had been on at 3 a.m. when Luke put the last batch of cookies in the oven, the omega hadn't come out .

"Kris wouldn't mind sharing a couple cookies with Jay," Kurt insisted, and Luke's eyebrows crept up to his hairline .

"Have you met Kristoff? He'd sell me his older brother for a chocolate chip cookie." Padding into the kitchen on bare feet, Luke pulled down the container of cookies he'd hidden inside a casserole dish. "Fortunately, I may have made a few extra ."

"Yes!" Kurt shot to his feet, and Luke pinned him with a glare .

"Not for you." Ignoring the dramatic whining that erupted, he held the plastic bin out to Jay. "Double chocolate chunk," he said, turning to stare out the window. It was raining, big drops rolling down the glass and making the whole city look miserable .

He could feel eyes on him, but he ignored them all, tearing angrily into the cookie he'd grabbed for himself .

"Thanks," Jay said quietly .

"Today is going to be fine," Luke told the window. "Just ignore your stepdad and listen to your lawyer ."

"You're my lawyer ."

Luke's head snapped around so fast that his neck popped, but Jay was staring out the windows, his teeth digging into his lower lip .

"I'm going to go finish getting ready," Marcus said loudly. "We'll head out in ten minutes." He grabbed Kurt by the arm and dragged him to his feet .

"You're already ready to go," Kurt muttered as he followed along, grabbing a cookie on the way past .

"Shut up, Kurt ."

The longer the silence stretched, the more tempting it was for Luke to retreat back into his room. The air was so charged that all his hair was standing on end, his lizard brain telling him to get under cover before he got struck by lightning .

"I..." He cleared his throat and tried again. "I'm not licensed in New York," he said. He could feel the offer to go to the court date welling up in his throat, and he stuffed another cookie in his mouth to keep it from escaping .

"I know," Jay said, picking at the edges of his cookie until a small pile of crumbs formed between his feet. "I just... I don't know anything about law, so I just have to blindly trust this stranger. I wish it was you." He didn't appear to notice what he was saying, sighing heavily. "Do you remember the boathouse ?"

Luke choked on a chocolate chip. "Yes," he managed to squeak .

"Victor tore it down." He glanced over out of the corner of his eye, long lashes shielding the flash of blue. "We fought all summer about college and my future. He wanted me to finish off my business degree and give up my art. Said it wasn’t profitable. He wasn’t about to have a son who couldn’t buy his own country club membership ."

He walked over to the window, his voice getting fainter until Luke had to follow him to hear the rest of the sentence. "I sold a painting to one of Mom's friends. Six hundred dollars," he said with a sour laugh. "I was so proud. 'Look at this,' I told him. 'I can support myself with my art.' He tore the shed down the next day ."

Luke ground his teeth, his fists clenching as he imagined planting one in Victor Danville's face. "I'm sorry ."

"When I get the house back," he said, his voice distant as if he had forgotten Luke was there, "I'm going to build it again. This time, though, I'm putting in a south-facing window ."

He didn't mean to laugh. It was the window that did it. Jay had related the whole story without getting upset, but he sounded so viciously offended when he mentioned that stupid window. Luke had heard hundreds of rants from Liam against rooms with north-facing windows, and he couldn't help it. The laugh caught them both by surprise, bouncing loudly around the empty room as Jay stared at him in surprise .

"Every window can't face south," he said, shaking his head .

Sticking his nose in the air, Jay sniffed. "Says you ."

"Unless you want to set up camp at the North Pole and sling presents for the fat guy," he said, offering the omega another cookie, "then you're going to have at least a few rooms with a northern exposure. It's just a fact of life ."

"You can have those rooms," Jay said, grabbing a cookie in each hand. "I'll take the ones with the decent light ."

Luke stuck his tongue out. "How magnanimous of you ."

"Big word," Jay said around a mouthful of cookie. "You must be angling for a raise ."

"Oh, shut up." Luke ducked his head to hide his smile as Marcus and Kurt clattered loudly around the corner .

"Sorry to interrupt," Marcus said, "but we're going to be late if we don't leave now ."

"Shit." All the tension rushed back into Jay's shoulders, and his cheeks paled to a sickly green .

In slow motion, Luke watched from outside himself as those big blue eyes turned to stare at him, terror swirling in their depths. He could feel a bad decision welling up in the back of his throat, and he tried to stall by chewing his cookie slower. It was like his body had been taken over by an outside force. "Let me grab my shoes," he said lightly, his voice echoing from a long way off. "I'll come with you ."

The grateful look that Jay flashed him made something warm light up in his chest, and he cursed himself for a fool all the way to his room, his arms and legs moving without conscious thought. Marcus looked away pointedly as he passed, hiding a grin behind his hand. Kurt, on the other hand, never content with subtlety, smirked openly as Luke joined them .

He didn't stop smirking until they got to the courthouse .