Winning Big

Chapter Twelve

Remi

Pulling away from the curb, he checked all the mirrors for the third time. The information that Eric had picked up would finally move the investigation forward. They still needed to be careful to keep Eric’s undercover identity safe.

He drove for fifteen minutes in no predetermined route and making a lot of turns. There would be no way that he’d been followed with the numerous turns and backtracking he’d done. Once he felt good they were alone, Remi pulled into a twenty-four-hour diner.

“I’ll buy you dinner,” Remi said.

Eric grunted. “As long as there’s plenty of coffee.”

Remi glanced at his friend. It wasn’t easy on Eric to take on these undercover roles now that he had Ezra and Annabelle at home. They might need to see what other department would fit better. Eric loved his work though so that was not a conversation Remi would bring up in the middle of a case.

Eric pushed the door open and Remi had to follow suit.

They didn’t talk again until they were seated in the back of the diner in a quiet booth with a hot mug of coffee in front of each of them.

“Did you look into Luis Ortega?” Eric asked as he fiddled with the mug in front of him.

“Luis Ortega,” Remi supplied. “Fingerprints in the system for time served for meth distribution, assault, running from police, and theft.”

“I knew I’d seen his face before,” Eric said.

“On the FBI. most wanted list,” Remi confirmed.

“Fuck,” Eric grunted. “And he’s here selling drugs in our city.”

“It appears he’s moved on from meth to this new party drug. He doesn’t care about repeat customers. He’s in it for the money.”

“How many overdoses are we up to?”

Remi winced. “Thirty.”

Eric shook his head. “I’m so thankful that none of our boys got into the drug scene. I can’t imagine losing Brandon, Ezra, Dom, or Lake like that.”

Jesus! Just thinking about the boys in that kind of danger made Remi sick. He’d been a user. He knew what a hold drugs could have on someone. He could handle a lot but if someone was addicted to drugs, the battle was mostly internal.

“This is the only break I’ll get tonight. Let’s talk about something that won’t send me to drinking,” Eric said. “How’s everything going with Dom?”

“Everything’s fine,” Remi replied. He knew it would bug Eric.

Eric kicked him under the table. “I’m only getting secondhand knowledge from my boy. And knowing that Dom is a screamer isn’t what I’m talking about.”

Remi snorted. Dom had gotten a little loud once they’d used the rope. “He’s good. We’re both committed to making a relationship work.”

“It’s a relationship now?” Eric pressed.

“It is,” Remi confirmed. “I gave him the little weekend he needed. Last night we talked about everything else.”

“I’m happy for you,” Eric said.

“Thanks, man.”

“Is there anything you need?”

“Dom’s worried about leaving,” Remi confessed.

“He doesn’t have to leave,” Eric said quickly. “Neither of you do.”

“It would be nice to have our own space,” Remi told him.

Eric hummed. “We could add on again.”

Barking out a laugh, Remi shook his head. “I’m not sure that’s even possible.”

“We could—”

“I’ll figure it out,” Remi said. “A way to keep our boys together and have some space for ourselves.” He didn’t know how he would figure it out but it was important to his boy.

“Let your friends help you,” Eric ordered.

“Yeah.” He wasn’t always the best with that.

“What if we looked in the neighborhood?” Eric said.

“Next door would be ideal, but I don’t see either of your neighbors moving. They love having a cop and nurse beside them.”

Eric had just picked up his mug but set it down suddenly. “The back!”

“What?”

“The house behind us,” Eric clarified. “It’s been empty for months.”

“It has?” How had Remi missed that?

“Yeah, the father is a service member and got stationed in Germany. They had to move suddenly.”

The possibilities ran through his head.

“It has a pool,” Eric told him.

“Hey, guys.” The waitress returned. “Did you decide what you’d like to eat?”

As they placed their order, Remi considered the information about the house behind Eric’s. A gate between the two yards to keep Annabelle away from the danger of the pool but they could totally make it work. Still have plenty of play dates for the boys but also space for them to be partners.

Remi ordered breakfast while Eric got a burger and fries.

They waited until the waitress walked away, promising to return with more coffee. Eric drained his mug before addressing Remi.

“What do you think?” Eric asked.

“I like the thought of it. Especially if we can just put a gate between the yards. Easy way back and forth.”

“We don’t even need a fence though,” Eric said.

“Pool,” Remi offered. “We need to be careful with Annabelle.”

“I believe the pool has its own fencing,” Eric said. “I can’t remember though.”

“I’m stopping by on my way home.” Remi wouldn’t put this off. “I’ll call a realtor and schedule a showing to take Dom with me.”

“Finances?” Eric asked.

He knew his friend wasn’t being nosy. They’d all put in money for the basement remodel. “I can sell or rent out my house. Dom’s renting an apartment. I have enough in savings for a down payment. The mortgage shouldn’t be a problem.”

“Dane and I can help with any remodeling or whatever the house needs to be updated.”

“Thanks, man.”

Eric picked up his empty mug before frowning at it. “Family,” he said quietly. “That’s what we’ve become.”

Remi nodded. “Can’t imagine doing this with anyone else.”

The waitress returned with the carafe of coffee. Eric grinned over at him as she poured.

Family.

Remi had disappointed his own. He was the one that had hurt them. Embarrassed them. Made them question their upbringing of him. Remi had a lot to make up for, but he wasn’t going to screw up this second chance. The family of choice instead of blood.

Brandon had been the first to call them family.

The boy hadn’t been wrong. They’d had each other’s backs for years, but it had taken the boys’ arrivals for them to become stronger. They were a family. Supportive. Loved.

Leaning back into the vinyl booth, Remi looked out the window to his right. He wondered if his parents would ever take him up on his invitation to come out and visit. Remi would love to introduce them to Dom. To show his parents that he had people that relied on him. He’d made good decisions once he’d gotten clean.

* * * * *

Dom

Eric, Dane, and Remi were all at work. Brandon had a shift at the hospital. Ezra was on the phone with his lawyer about his parents, leaving Dom with his perfect little princess. He spun Annabelle around, delighting in her laughter.

They were both dressed in tutus while a children’s television channel played music.

Dom hadn’t been a Disney kid. His parents’ strict upbringing barely left anytime for fun. They didn’t watch much TV, but books had been plentiful. He couldn’t ever remember dancing around with his mom.

He wouldn’t allow Annabelle to miss out on happiness and fun as a child where she’d need to chase it as an adult. Now, if she wanted to regress as an adult, that would be up to her, but she wouldn’t need it because of childhood trauma.

She would be a safe and happy girl if Dom had anything to say about it.

Annabelle clapped as she started to sing along.

Okay, maybe Dom should have done some better research. What were they letting go and why did they have to repeat it over and over?

The little girl seemed happy enough about it.

Dom danced the entire living room. They still had toys scattered across the carpet from when they’d been playing earlier so it was like an obstacle course. Quite fun if Dom could say so.

He paused as the front doorbell rang through the house.

They weren’t expecting anyone. Eric had reminded them all that they still needed to be careful until Ezra’s parents were located. They weren’t around Vegas anywhere they’d been seen previously and the private investigator they’d hired reported they weren’t at home.

“Is someone here?” Ezra hurried down the hall with his phone in his hand. “Should I call Eric?”

“Let’s check the cameras,” Dom said calmly. He had to remain calm. They couldn’t both freak out.

Ezra shook next to him.

“Here, take the princess.” Dom handed Ezra his daughter.

“Got her.” Ezra held Annabelle tight.

Dom strode to the camera monitor next to the door. They had tablets around the house with the cameras, but he wanted to be by the entrance. To stop anyone from getting to Ezra or Annabelle.

He nearly laughed at seeing Lake on the front porch. That was until Dom spotted the tears rolling down Lake’s cheeks.

“It’s Lake!” Dom fumbled for the lock. In his panicked state it took longer than it should.

Finally! Finally he got the door open. Dom reached for Lake as soon as the door was banging open.

“What’s wrong?” Dom pulled Lake into his arms. Not an easy task with how Lake towered over him. They made it work though.

“Can…can I stay here?” Lake sobbed out.

“Of course you can!” Dom dragged Lake inside the house. He locked the door securely as Ezra hovered close by.

“I’m sorry!” Lake wailed.

“Hey, it’s okay.” Dom patted Lake’s wide back. “It’s going to be okay. We have you.”

Lake clung to him and cried harder. Dom was afraid. He’d never seen his sweet friend like this. Yes, Lake was soft and sensitive, but he never broke down.

“I’m going to take Annabelle to her room to play,” Ezra whispered. “Get Lake settled in. He’s staying until at least Daddy gets home. Longer if we can make him.”

They were totally holding Lake hostage. This was it! Dom had gone against his instincts asking Remi for help because he hadn’t wanted to betray Lake’s trust. This was bigger than trust though. Something major had happened.

Dom got Lake to shuffle forward to the living room.

The blanket fort was still there from earlier when he and Annabelle had been playing. Dom pushed the blankets to the side before he pulled Lake onto the cushions with him. Once Lake sank into the softness, Dom pulled all the blankets on top of them.

Lake grasped both his hands.

The tears were gone but Lake still appeared scared and hurt. Anger filled Dom. No one should ever look so utterly destroyed.

“Take your time,” Dom whispered. “We don’t have to talk if you don’t want.” He was dying to find out what happened. This had to do with Lake’s family. But he wanted Lake to be okay more.

“I messed up,” Lake said quietly.

“No,” Dom said firmly. “Don’t take this on you. I don’t know what happened but please don’t blame yourself.”

Lake turned their entwined fingers.

Pink glitter polish shone from his nails.

“Pretty,” Dom said. “I love that color.”

Lake’s bottom lip trembled. “I was playing with some of the littles last night during my break. One of the girls wanted to paint my nails.”

“She did a good job,” Dom assured him.

“I forgot to take it off,” Lake said shakily.

“You shouldn’t have to.”

“My brothers saw it this morning.”

“What did they do?” Dom demanded. “Did they hurt you?”

“No. I’m fine.”

That wasn’t an answer. “Did they put their hands on you?”

Lake didn’t answer right away.

Fuck! Dom was going to kill someone.

“They didn’t hurt me,” Lake finally said softly.

“What did they do.” Dom needed confirmation.

“Brex saw it first. When I was reaching for a juice glass. He knocked the glass out of my hand. Started calling me names until Jack came in.”

“What did Jack do?” He was usually the instigator.

“He tackled me to the ground. They grabbed my hands and took pictures to send to my father.”

“Bastards,” Dom hissed. He pushed up one of Lake’s sleeves. The visible bruises of fingers didn’t surprise him. This wasn’t the first time.“You aren’t going back. I mean it, Lake. You are not going back to that apartment.”

“I can’t not go home.”

“Want to bet?”

“Dom—”

“Lake, you can’t keep doing this,” Dom said gently. “I know you love your family, but you have to set boundaries. This isn’t fair to you.”

“I’ve let them down so much already,” Lake said.

“How?” Dom questioned. “How have you let them down? Because you didn’t want to join the military but did anyway. You stayed four years even though you hated every minute of it.”

“Jack and Brex did six years each. Lenon ten.”

“And Justice is still in after twelve,” Dom finished. “I know. But they aren’t you. That doesn’t make them better than you.”

“My father thinks so,” Lake replied.

“Your father is a jackass,” Dom told him.

Lake snorted.

“You know it too,” Dom pointed out. “I won’t tell you to cut them off because I know how much you love them. You can’t keep going like this either. The first boundary must be moving out of that apartment. You don’t need to live with your brothers anymore. It made sense when you first got out of the army, but you have a good job now.”

“My father doesn’t like my job,” Lake pointed out.

“It’s fine for Jack to be a bouncer but not you?”

“Jack’s a bouncer at a real bar. Not a fruity private club.”

It always came back to Lake being gay. “Lake.”

“I don’t care that he calls me fruity,” Lake said.

“Yes, you do.” Dom wasn’t going to allow Lake to lie to himself any longer. It was time for some tough love. “It’s wrong and you don’t deserve it.”

“What do I do?” Lake asked.

“What do you want to do?” Dom retorted.

Lake sighed. He scooted farther down on the couch. “I don’t know.”

“You don’t know, or you don’t want to make the decision?”

“Decisions suck,” Lake said with a pout.

Dom giggled as he pressed close to Lake’s side. “They totally do.”

“I want to move out,” Lake said after several moments of silence.

“You can stay here.”

“Where? There isn’t even room.”

“What are you talking about?” Dom said. “There’s an entire playroom downstairs.”

Lake perked up. “Could I really stay in the playroom?”

“Yes! Or if you want, we can go back to my apartment.”

“I don’t want to make you leave,” Lake said.

“It’s fine, or we can go to Remi’s place. We already started talking about what to do soon.”

“I’ll stay for a couple of nights,” Lake agreed.

“Lake—”

“I’m scared to move out,” he confessed.

“I’ll be by your side,” Dom promised. “And we’ll grab your stuff while your brothers are at work, so you don’t have to see them.”

“Isn’t that…cowardly?”

“Who cares,” Dom insisted.

Lake nodded. “Yeah.”

“We have to tell the others. We can move you out faster with their help,” Dom said. And he couldn’t hide this from Remi.

“Can you be with me when I tell them?” Lake asked.

“Just try to get rid of me,” Dom challenged.

“Thanks, Dom.”

Wrapping his arms around Lake, Dom laid his head on Lake’s chest. “You know that you could solve all your problems if you’d finally give in to a certain Daddy that wants to take care of you.”

Lake squeezed him tight. “I can’t.”

“Yes, you can!” Dom insisted. “Jesse can’t keep his eyes off you. He wants to take care of you.”

“I’ve had an entire life of people wanting to tell me what to do,” Lake said.

“Yes, but they haven’t had your best interest at heart.”

“And you think that Jesse would?”

Dom really did. “What do you think?”

“He’s too handsome,” Lake said. “And rich.”

“And smart, and kind, and perfect for you.”

Lake shook his head. “I have enough problems without adding a man into the equation.”

“I disagree,” Dom said.

Lake snorted. “Shocking.”

“Just listen to me,” Dom begged. “I won’t mention it again if you promise to at least think about what I’m saying.”

“Okay.”

“I thought I had too much on my plate and that was why I couldn’t be with Remi.”

“Do you regret losing so much time?”

“Not really,” Dom admitted. “I think it happened when I was finally ready. When I needed him but was okay with myself. I wasn’t in the right headspace before.”

“Maybe that’s true for me too.”

“Yeah.” Dom hugged him hard. “Maybe.”