A Chip and a Chair (Seven of Spades, #5)(12)

Carlos’s expression was soft with sympathy. “I’m sorry.”

“I have a niece and nephew who are practically strangers to me. I saw them when I visited over the holidays, and I barely recognized them.” Stretching an arm across the corner of the table, Levi rested his hand on Carlos’s. “It hurts when your family rejects you. It probably always will. But family is also something you choose. And you couldn’t have chosen better than Jasmine and the Andersons.”

A small smile broke across Carlos’s face, giving him an unmistakable glow. “Yeah, you’re right.”

“You might feel better if you talked to Jasmine.”

“We said we wouldn’t until the wedding, but . . . maybe a text wouldn’t hurt.” Carlos pulled his phone out of the pocket of his sweatpants. “Thanks, Levi.”

Levi inclined his head, returning to his tablet as Carlos became absorbed in a text exchange with Jasmine. They finished their breakfasts in companionable silence.

Dominic finally emerged from the bedroom while Levi was doing the dishes and Carlos was nursing a second coffee. This was much earlier than he preferred to get up on the weekends, and he looked half-asleep as he stumbled over to kiss Levi good morning.

“Hey, Carlos,” he said, dropping a hand on Carlos’s shoulder as he rounded the table. “Ready for the big day?”

Carlos flinched. Touching base with Jasmine seemed to have mellowed him a bit, but he was still vibrating with anxiety, his hands clenched tightly around his mug and his foot tapping against the floor.

Dominic looked him up and down, then met Levi’s eyes over Carlos’s shoulder. Levi shrugged.

“Why don’t we all go for a run after I eat?” Dominic said.

Rebel perked up immediately, leaping to her feet and spinning around once in a happy circle.

Carlos was far less enthusiastic. “I don’t know, Dom. I don’t think I’m up for that.”

“Come on. Our brunch reservations aren’t until eleven; what else are we gonna do until then? A good hard run will get your blood racing, your endorphins pumping-it’s the best way to psych yourself up.” Dominic gestured to Rebel, who was listening with bright eyes and a wagging tail. “And you don’t want to disappoint Rebel, do you?”

Carlos raised his hands in surrender. “All right, all right. I’ll go get changed.”

Levi shook his head fondly as Carlos headed for the spare room and Dominic returned to his side in the kitchen. Manipulating people was as natural to Dominic as breathing, but Levi didn’t mind so much when it was done for the greater good.

“How are you doing?” Dominic asked, his voice pitched low.

“I’m fine.” Levi knew what he meant without needing to hear the words. Dominic had put surveillance measures into place around Leila a few days ago, but they hadn’t turned up anything yet. “Today is about Carlos and Jasmine, not me or the Seven of Spades. I can set all that aside for twenty-four hours.”

Resting his hands on Levi’s hips, Dominic pressed him up against the counter. “Good. Because when we get home tonight, I plan on making up for everything we didn’t get to do last night.”

Although they’d both been very much in the mood, they hadn’t been able to fool around; Levi was too loud during sex, and they hadn’t wanted to subject Carlos to that.

Levi kissed the hollow of Dominic’s throat. “Promises, promises,” he said, and twisted away with a laugh when Dominic pinched his side.



“Do you have the rings?”

“For the fourteenth time, yes, I have them right here,” Dominic said gently.

Carlos stared at his reflection in the full-length mirror in the groomsmen’s room at the Las Vegas Paiute Golf Resort. His eyes went wide, and he began frantically patting himself down. “The vows! I don’t have the copy of my vows-”

“They’re in your breast pocket.” Dominic took Carlos by the shoulders and turned him around, concerned by his shallow breathing.

It was still a couple of hours before the wedding itself-Carlos and Jasmine had opted for a first look, so they could be together before the ceremony and get the formal pictures out of the way. The rest of Carlos’s wedding party was already milling the grounds, along with Jasmine’s closest family members.

The run earlier had relaxed Carlos a little, but in the hours since, he’d gotten himself all worked up again. Dominic squeezed his shoulders.

“Everything is going to be fine,” he said, stressing every syllable. “You’re about to marry the woman you love, and I promise, the moment you see her, nothing else is going to matter. You’re going to have the best day of your life.” He straightened Carlos’s tie. “And you’re going to look great doing it.”

Carlos laughed. He did look handsome, his floppy brown hair falling roguishly into his eyes, his lanky body clad in a dove gray suit ornamented with a boutonniere of succulents and aromatic herbs. As the best man, Dominic had a similar arrangement pinned to his own lapel.

“Thanks.” Carlos took a deep breath. “I mean it, Dom. Thank you, for-for everything. You’ve been an amazing friend.”

Dominic looked away. “Not always.”

“Yes,” Carlos said firmly. “Always.”

He pulled Dominic into a hug. Smiling, Dominic slapped his back.