Page 25 of Just in Time
“Maybe. Maybe not. He had already accepted a job in Washington before this shit happened with Dara. I asked him to marry me instead, and then five minutes later, Dara was there, giving us custody. Now look at me showing him exactly why he shouldn’t tie himself to me.”
“Wait.” Diesel straightened from his hunched state. “You asked him to marry you? Did he say yes?”
“Yeah.”
A smile exploded across Diesel’s face. “You do realize him saying yes meant he already chose you over freedom before you ended up with Ben, right? Like German has been a personal bodyguard forever. He’s never owned a home or even rented an apartment, as far as I know. I’m not sure he owns anything beyond whatever he keeps in two suitcases. That guy’s the biggest nomad I’ve ever met in my life. He hates sitting still, and he chose you. There’s no way he leaves after one fuck-up. Iknowthere’s no way he made the decision to be with you forever lightly.”
Diesel sounded so sure that Blaze believed. “I still need to do something to make up for this. I don’t even know where to start with that.”
Diesel nodded as if he took the matter seriously. “You should probably start by getting your ass out of the cuck chair and getting back to the hotel.”
A laugh burst out of Blaze. He looked around. Sure enough, it looked like that was exactly where he sat. Diesel was right. He should get his ass up and start making German just as happy as German made him. Even happier than he was. Blaze had this.
Chapter Ten
ConsideringhowmanytimesBlaze had called, sounding sad as hell, Blaze obviously really hated having to go to the Glam Gala. German didn’t blame him. Not only was the gala the only thing standing between him and coming home, but the entire thing was nothing more than a narcissist showdown. While the event raised a lot of money for charity, the real draw for the stars was getting to show off their sexiest outfits to one-up each other in the wildest of ways. Once the red-carpet part of the event passed, the gala turned into an exercise of ambling their way from table to table, sipping champagne, flirting, and making new connections. That was without mentioning the gossip. German had only been there once as a guard. He had learned more celebrity gossip than he had heard in his entire life, including the abundance of trash mags throughout his childhood.
When the phone rang again, German laughed. He already knew it was Blaze. “Hello?”
“Well, I’m dressed.”
German snorted at Blaze’s defeated tone. “Switch to FaceTime and let me see.”
Once their call was swapped, Blaze sat the phone against something to keep it vertical and stepped back far enough for German to see his outfit. He made a dismissive gesture toward himself. “This is it. I’m not getting all dressed up for this shit. I refuse to play their game.”
German wished he had chosen that route instead of sticking with looking like the rockstar he was. He wore leather pants with a green bowler shirt that made his eyes pop. The shirt was completely unbuttoned, hanging wide to show off his gorgeous body. “Damn. Now I wish I’d come with you.”
Blaze scrambled to grab the phone. His expression turned hopeful. “You still could.”
German shook his head. “You’re forgetting Ben.”
“Bring him along.”
German pulled a face. “No way is Ben getting exposed to that bunch.”
Blaze snorted. “There’ll be other people there with their kids. You know there’re celebrities whose entire brand is being family-oriented. I won’t beg, though. I know you’re doing what you think is right.”
Guilt ate at German. Blaze never asked anything of him. German had definitely been more dedicated to Ben than Blaze lately. He needed to find balance.
A knock sounded behind Blaze. Blaze sighed. “That’d be the stylist and whatnot. Fuck my life. I have to let you go.”
“It’s okay.”
Blaze gave him puppy eyes. “I love you. Do you promise to think of me?”
German tried not to laugh at the way Blaze sounded as if he was being sent off to war. He really did. There was no stopping at least a small chuckle. “I love you too. You’ll be in my thoughts all night. I miss you.”
Blaze’s expression turned even more loving. “I miss you too, baby. See you soon.”
“See you.” German disconnected the call. Sadness came back in a flash. He truly missed the fuck out of Blaze. He heard a rustle from the kitchen. German followed the sound. He found Ben crawling from a step stool to the kitchen counter so he could reach a pack of cookies. German shook his head. “If you’re hungry, you could’ve asked for help.”
Undeterred, Ben scooted across the counter on his knees and grabbed the package. He didn’t look German’s way. “You were talking to Uncle Justin.”
Fuck. German really hoped Ben hadn’t heard him saying he wouldn’t go tonight because of him. “I can multitask.”
Ben didn’t respond. He ate a cookie.
German’s heart swelled with pride. Ben had become a whole new person since coming to live with German. He was settled enough for this.
