Chapter 6
Chapter
Six
“So we don’t hate Xander now?” Law flicked the lobe of Iago’s ear as they headed out to the car. They were going to Secret Springs to go to the grocery store and stop at David’s Pizza on the way. Dave had the best pizza, and that half and half salad was legendary.
“I never hated him. My feelings were just really hurt, but we figured it out.”
“In that ‘we’re going to bump uglies’ figuring way?”
“Maybe.” He shrugged. “I hope so, you know? I really hope so.”
“Good on you, man! As long as he’s not a dick to you again.”
“Nah. I told him that myself. I think he’ll be good.” Iago had learned to try to stand up for himself. Sometimes it worked.
Sometimes it didn’t.
It spoke to him about what kind of guy Xander was that he’d accepted Iago’s worries, apologized for his actions, and provided cake.
The cake was kind of amazing, to be honest. And they’d hid it and shared it, and that had made it special.
Law glanced over at him. “You’re bouncing.”
“Sorry. I was thinking.”
“Yeah, about a du-u-u-ude.”
He reached out and whapped Law on the arm. “Xander’s really not dude-like.”
Iago wasn’t sure what he’d call it, if he was honest. Xander was hot, funny, thoughtful, clever, and—
“Do you think he’s an alpha?”
Iago blinked. “You don’t?”
“Well, honey, he is kind of…well, he cooks.”
Iago arched an eyebrow. “Like, we don’t know lots of alphas that cook. Gent cooks.”
“Yeah, but he doesn’t cook for a living.”
“Lots of chefs cook,” he shot back.
“He’s not a chef.”
“Stop it.” He didn’t need this shit. “If he’s not an alpha, it doesn’t matter. We can still get off. I like him. I don’t care whether or not he’s an alpha.”
To be honest, he hadn’t really thought about it. He sure wasn’t gonna ask, ‘Are you an alpha?’
How weird would that be?
It didn’t matter — he liked Xander, like, in a super-attracted sort of way.
“Hey, if you’re good with it, that’s cool.”
“Would you be? Are you an alpha?” He thought Law was an omega…
Law glanced sideways at him. “No, I’m not, but Mason is and of course Gent and Colton are.”
“Well, yeah, obviously.” Colton and Gent took Alpha to another level. They weren’t assholes about it or anything, but they sure had all of the characteristics all the time. One hundred percent.
“Not that I don’t love them,” Law said, “but sometimes they’re kind of bossy.”
He giggled as they got in the car because that was understating things quite a bit. “I guess that’s their job.”
“I guess it is, and you’re dodging the question.” Law got them moving up the pass that would take them to Secret Springs.
“Okay. What was the question again?” He had lost the thread, if he was honest.
Law pondered that. “Shit if I know. What are you having at David’s? I’m trying to decide. Pizza? Lunch lasagna? Calzone?”
Iago hummed. “All of it sounds good. Oh, we need to stop by the historical society. I checked. It’s open. Xander asked me to drop off that medal.”
“It was totally buzzing with energy, for sure.”
“Tell me about it. I tried to downplay it for Xander, because I honestly don’t think that’s the source of his issue, but it sure is an item of interest.” Iago had it in a safe box, something Mason had invented to contain objects that had spiritual connections.
He wasn’t all the way sure if it worked, or, for that matter, if it made a difference. He used it.
By the time they got over the mountain, they were singing together, laughing out loud as they changed the lyrics to the weird 90s music that they had found on the AM radio, which was the only thing that would come in at the top of the pass.
Iago texted Xavi to see if there was anything he wanted when they were on their way back from the grocery store or David’s. The poor guy was kind of stuck at the mountain pass a lot of the time because that was where his little coffee shop and store were.
OMG I need 50 lbs of sugar, a bag of apples, and three decks of cards. TY. I’ll Venmo you.
You got it.
He was not going to ask. Not, notty, not. Xavi had some wild shit going on half the time, and it usually involved the ladies who ran the hotel next door. Where Xander cooked.
Iago texted Xander.
Need anything from SS?
Nope. TY.
Then there were three dots.
Could you grab me a 1/2 and 1/2 to go
Oh & a six pack of whatever beer you like
Don’t forget Abby and Dani
He grinned. As if he would ever forget his girls.
On it.
“We might have to text Gent for some cash, man.”
“Are they all texting you lists?”
He nodded. “They so are. It’s getting chunky.”
Law pushed the hands-free button. “Call the boss.”
Gent picked up on the first ring. “What?”
“Nice to hear from you, too. Can we use the business card? We have lists.”
“Yeah, sure go for it. Wait, what kind of lists?”
“Everyone needs groceries. Everybody wants food. What do you want from David’s?”
“Lasagna and a half and half salad.” It was immediate and firm.
He added that to the list too. “We have a lot going on. We may be in town a month.”
“Highly unlikely. Bring a cake and some ice cream.” Gent stopped. “On the other hand, hold off on the ice cream. I’ll have Xander make some. Just bring a cake so we can all share it.”
“We’ll stop at the bakery. We’ll go there first so they’re still open.” Dan and Mateo’s bakery, Whips and Cupcakes had extremely good cakes. Not as good as Xander’s, but Iago had a feeling none had been made especially for him with a little bit of extra care. They were just bakery cakes.
“Cool. We’ll convene at my house. Everyone is welcome, including Xavi and the ladies.”
“We’ll see who’s working today.” If they had enough staff at the hotel to cover both places, then they would haul everybody down on their way back. Gent did love to host a do.
They hung up and Law looked at him with one eyebrow raised. “How does it always turn into a big deal?”
“Because we all love to spend time together. So, changing plans. We’ll grab the groceries first. About the time we get in line at the store, we’ll open our order with David’s and the bakery.
We’ll pick those up, and then we’ll head back.
If nothing else we can drop the medal off at the library and let Tim take it to Hank. ”
“Sounds like a plan.” They were coasting down into Secret Springs now, so it wouldn’t be long before they got their errands run.
Iago loved Secret Springs. It was just that much bigger than where they lived, just that much more bustling and young.
He wondered if Abby was going to be learning at the same school as Xander had gone to.
Not that he didn’t love the crazy old house he and the guys lived in. He was glad they settled in Hot Springs Junction because it was a super slow, cool kind of life but Secret Springs was there for whenever they needed something more happening.
They pulled in at the grocery store, heading inside to do their shopping because more texts had arrived of things that people needed.
By the time they were done, there, Iago had just enough time to run into the historical society and give the medal to Hank, while Law picked the cake up.
“Iago, hey!” Hank Vargas waved as he walked in. “How’s it going?”
Iago rolled his eyes. “They have lists, so many lists. How are things with you?”
“Good, good. We are about to take Antonia and head to Japan. We’re doing a ghost tour there. It’s gonna be so much fun.”
“Oh, man. Jealous. Are you going to take all the pictures?”
“Of course. I imagine I’m going to have to buy a hard drive just to bring them home.” He took the medal. “What’s this?”
“We’re hoping this is what’s causing the activity in Xander’s house. It’s giving off some readings, but we don’t know whether it’s the culprit.”
“Ah, interesting. I know he’s been having a little trouble. Sebastian told me about it.” Hank emptied the case out onto the counter. “Wow, this is unusual. It looks World War I maybe?”
“You’re the expert. I just get to ferry stuff back and forth and try to do research on why things happened Xander’s house, but there’s no reason for it.”
“Well, at least it did have some readings on it, right?” Hank winked at him. “Colton told me about this one. Weird that all of a sudden it would start having activity.”
“The only thing that we can really think about or think of is that he’s a garage sale-er, a thrifter.”
Hank shrugged. “So is everybody else. Has he actually disturbed any of the basic structure of the house?”
Iago shook his head. “Biggest thing he’s done is tear out the kitchen and the cabinets. The cabinets weren’t even original to the house.”
“Hmmm. But they could have been squatting on something. Holding it down, as it were. I wonder what that room was originally. The kitchens were generally somewhere else in those old train car houses. In the basement or outside. To keep fires down.”
“Oh. Okay. I’ve got the current measurements, but no blueprints. Are these Sears homes?” He could research that.
“I’m not sure. I think they were definitely railroad houses, but they could have been another brand. I can look into it and get you a direction to go. I have a bunch of stuff on the Junction.” Hank looked fired up, his historical zeal infectious.
“If you have time. I can’t imagine traveling with a child. It must be so hard.” And Japan felt like…a whole other world.
So cool.
“Antonia is my go-baby. She loves it. She’s patient and curious and just has a ball. We give her the choice most of the time, and she always says yes.” Hank grinned, shrugging. “And Elliot is so good with her. He handles a lot of the logistics.”
He wanted that — not someone to handle logistics. That was, quite literally, his job. But someone to share with, someone to partner with and have cake with.
And if he could envision Xander in that role? That was on him.
“Well, that’s too cool, man. So anyway, I have a ton of groceries in the car, and Law is picking up cake and food, so I need to head out. Holler at me if that leads to anything.” He waved a hand at the medal.
“Will do. Research the house!”
Iago nodded and popped a note in his Google keep. Research blueprints on X house.