"Spit it out," I said before picking up the flat white coffee his wife had made with their fancy espresso machine and taking a sip. There was something magical about Australian coffee. Nothing in the world tasted quite like it. "Don't start holding back on me now." I gave John a mischievous but challenging look. If I was being honest, I wanted to talk about it all, but I needed him to bring it up first. I was too much of a coward to do it myself.
"So Nix, huh?" he asked. His question was tentative and testing, like taking the first risky step on a frozen pond. Leave it to John to not ask about the evil group chasing us down or why my back was covered in burns and why his wife had to apply a cream to it. No, he wanted to know about my personal life. It was the one topic of conversation I preferred to have online.
"I've told you about him before." I'd told John about pretty much everything. Our online relationship was unique and special. There was no judgment, no boundaries. We shared our sins, our likes, dislikes, preferences, and a healthy dose of jokes. He knew how brokenhearted I'd been when Nix broke up with me. He knew that I hated watching Grace. Then, I suppose he knew when I stopped hating Grace. John was one presence in my life I deeply treasured.
John nodded. "And you told me about Grace. You two seem closer."
I sighed and leaned back in my seat. John was baiting me. He wanted to know when I finally pulled my head out of my ass and accepted that Grace was going to be a part of my life for good. I took my time answering his question and looked over at his wife, Kaydence, who was working in the living room. She had her headphones over her ears, and her nimble fingers were flying away on the keyboard of her MacBook. I knew she wouldn't eavesdrop, but this wasn't a conversation I wanted just anyone hearing. "I love Grace. We've been through a lot together."
"Do you love her enough to give up on Nix?" John asked.
"I'm not sure. Love isn't quantifiable, huh? It feels more like a list of hard limits and compromises."
John smiled to himself while looking over at Kaydence. "It's more infinite than that." His whimsical nature made me want to throttle him.
"So you'd share your wife with your best friend?" I asked, eyebrows raised in challenge.
"No." John's snappy response felt validating in a way. "But if I had to adapt. If I had to choose between her happiness and mine, I'd choose hers. If I had to choose between having her or not, I'd choose to have her. And if I could train myself to find a sense of happiness that way, I'd try. I'd fight for whatever I could with her. I'd do anything for my wife. I guess you need to decide if Nix is the type of person you could do anything for, too. Hell, you chased him across the world."
"Is it fucked up that I wanted to be picked? I wanted someone to choose me."
"You're still being chosen, mate. Just not in the way you wanted."
I let out a sigh and rolled my neck. I hated knowing that Nix and Grace were reuniting right under my feet. I also hated the rope of jealousy wrapping itself around my heart. Seeing Grace upset was killing me. But seeing her happy hurt more. This was such a fucked up situation, and I hated that I didn't know how to navigate it all.
"Alright. I won't make you talk about this much longer; there's something else we need to discuss. You know I love you, right?" John asked. "You're my best mate. But you can't stay here long."
I knew this was coming. "I wasn't planning on it," I assured him. When push came to shove, John would protect his wife. He’d let us stay here for a day or two, but we needed to get moving quickly. I didn't want anything to happen to them because of me. "I don't want to put you at risk. I debated on coming here in the first place, but my options were limited."
"Ah, we can handle ourselves. But I don't like sitting ducks in my pond. I'll get you some gear. Kaydence will take care of Grace, and we will send you off with a fighting chance. I've been trying to look into this group ever since you told me about them. What I found is bad, Alessandro. If you've got powerful friends, I suggest you shack up with them. It'll take an army to protect yourself. And even then, you probably won't win. I found hits. Trafficking. They all use the term Ringleader. It’s like a cult. A very powerful, very rich, very evil cult."
Fuck. I wasn't sure the Bullets were our best bet, but we were running out of options. At least Gavriel had some connections. Nix was right, though. He ran for a reason, and something told me that we'd be on the run for a while.
"We will rest up and get out of your hair," I promised. "Thank you for all your help. I wish we could have met under better circumstances."
"Stay alive and maybe we can have a better visit next time," John replied with a wink.
I smiled at my friend, then stood up. "I should get some rest."
"About that..." John licked his lips and folded his arms across his chest. "Kaydence accidentally locked the guest bedroom door. Can't get the fool thing opened. You don't mind sleeping in
