Page 32 of Boy Toy Not Included

Diesel fought not to laugh his ass off. Timber looked disgusted by Sandy’s presence, while Sandy looked like he was having the time of his life.

Sandy didn’t let up. “You’re that bodyguard who interfered with a police investigation after a drug bust.”

A low growl rumbled from Timber, making Diesel wonder if he should move out of the strike zone. “I wasn’t interfering. My client was high-profile. It’s my job to keep clients safe. Just because you’re a cop doesn’t mean she was safe with you. In fact, that made her less so in my eyes.”

Sandy never stopped smiling. Nothing ever seemed to dampen his mood. “Yay. A fuck-the-police guy.”

Timber rolled his eyes. “You’re less safe because you have a fucking gun. I don’t give two shits about your job.”

Sandy shook his head. “You’re an odd duck.”

Diesel had to intervene. “Would you like a beer?” He was all too aware he had just offered Timber’s beer to a guy Timber obviously disliked. Diesel was more than a little relieved when he declined.

“Nah. Someone will have to make sure you two get home safely.”

Timber rolled his eyes. “You’re jogging. How in the hell do you plan to get us home safely? You gonna carry us on your back?”

Sandy motioned over his shoulder. “My house is on the other side of that small treeline. You can stumble that far… unless you’re a slush who always passes out. I’m not dragging you anywhere. Are you a slush?”

It couldn’t have been more obvious that Sandy baited him. Sandy still looked as if he was having the time of his life.

Timber shrugged. “Maybe I’ll pass out just to spite you. I’m not scared to sleep in a park.”

Sandy turned extra perky. “Score. I get to arrest you again in the morning for that.”

Diesel burst out laughing. Sandy had always been hilarious. He needed that right now.

Sandy looked his way, still grinning from ear to ear. He winked, and something shifted inside Diesel. A realization washed over him. He would be okay. Kuba hadn’t been meant for him long term and that was life. He would move on with the happy memories and leave the rest. Tonight, he would start over, looking toward a new future. He planned to completely turn his life upside down and shake out the happiness he deserved. Tomorrow, he would look for another job. Then, who knew? Maybe a soulmate would find him. For now, he had beer and friends. He wasn’t alone. His shoulders relaxed. So this was what it was like to feel young. Diesel could get used to it.

Chapter Thirteen

Thewaterfromhisshower beat down on Diesel’s already pounding skull. A case of beer had led to liquor at Sandy’s place before he had weaved his way home around four in the morning. Unfortunately, the mixing of alcohols had Diesel seeing two toilets and missing them both when the puking began. After passing out on the bathroom floor, Diesel had awoken with a huge mess to clean. Despite his current hungover state, it felt good to be clean. Brushed teeth and scrubbed body. In no way did he resemble being human, but he wasn’t dead, so there was that. Even though he had barely made it out alive, Diesel had actually had a pretty good time. The moment his inhibitions had dropped, Diesel had opened up about the entire scenario and his confusion. Until he had said the words aloud, he didn’t realize how much hurt and anger was because of a lack of clarity. He got Kuba’s obsession with being the best now. Diesel totally understood Kuba not wanting the entirety of his life public, but he couldn’t figure out why Jayme had reacted so badly, andthat bugged him. That detail had him veering into the cheating theory again. Not just Jayme, but maybe Kuba had been hiding him because people knowing about him might interfere with his bed-hopping. He had said he’d fucked countless people. There were too many unanswered questions. They were just over and there was no closure. After Kuba’s reaction to getting caught, Diesel had thought they were done. Then Kuba kept refusing to sleep apart, and there had been a small part of him that thought maybe Kuba was just in shock, and he had misread the entire situation. He thought maybe Kuba just needed time to process, and that was it. They weren’t actually over. But then Kuba had screamed at him in Dread’s green room, and Diesel had saved himself. Well, he had done what he could to salvage his pride. Now there was this empty hole in the center of his chest, and he just had to accept it. Life lesson learned, even if Diesel hadn’t decided what that lesson was yet. He couldn’t even decide who had actually broken up with whom.

Halfway back to human, Diesel wandered from his bedroom. The house was silent. He had no idea if his mom was home. Diesel found her in the living room scrolling on her phone. She looked up as he came into the room. “Hey, baby. You look like you had a tough night. I’m guessing there was a hell of an after-party after Kuba’s win. You’re looking a little rough.”

He didn’t have the energy to confide anything. Something important hit his brain anyhow, veering him off topic. He was a bad son. “Happy birthday. I don’t have your gift yet. We can go together to pick something out, if you’d like.”

Nova beamed. “Thank you. You didn’t need to get me anything. You’re here. That’s enough for me.”

Diesel would buy her a gift. They both knew it. He sat on the couch. Diesel automatically grabbed a throw pillow and hugged it to his chest. He had no idea why. Everything inside him felt wrong, and he didn’t know how to find comfort.

“Are you doing anything with Tory today?” He kept the question as nonchalant as possible.

The way his mom's smile transformed was heartwarming. At least he knew Tory made her happy. “We went to dinner last night. I wanted to be free for you. But look.” She leaned forward and showed Diesel her wrist. “Look what she got me.”

A gorgeous gold bracelet hung from her wrist. It was dainty but looked amazing on her, as if Tory knew exactly what his mom would like. “Beautiful. Just like you.”

Nova rolled her eyes, but her smile didn’t budge. “Do you have plans with Kuba?”

Diesel panicked a little inside. He knew he should tell the truth, but it was her birthday and he didn’t want to ruin it. The doorbell rang, buying him time.

Nova’s brow furrowed, but she headed for the entryway. She checked the peephole before pulling the door open. A humongous flower arrangement hid the delivery guy, and several balloons whipped in the wind. The poor guy holding everything tried to speak around his haul. “I have a delivery for Nova.”

“That’s me.” His mom practically bounced with excitement.

Diesel jumped up to help her when the balloons didn’t want to come into the house. There were at least eight. He fought the good fight while his mom closed the door quickly once they had them trapped.

“I wonder who sent all this.” Nova sounded exactly like she knew Diesel had done it. He hadn’t.