“Sooo,” Colson says in a conspiratorial tone. “Bellamy is coming over.”
Both me and Whisper swing around to face Colson. “Come again?” Whisper says.
“He is.” Colson nods. “I invited him over for lunch.”
“Does Shadow know this?”
Colson scrunches his nose. “Not exactly.”
“No.” Specter shakes his head. “The whole thing could blow up.”
I add, “Dude, I don’t know if that’s a good idea. Shadow doesn’t like surprises.”
“Bellamy is my friend and I miss him.”
“You could’ve met him somewhere,” Whisper offers.
“I could’ve, yes, but he wanted to see you guys.” Colson smiles big. “He wants to see Shadow.”
Whisper frowns. “If I were you, Specter, I would give Shadow a heads-up.”
“About what?” Wraith asks, entering the room, his hand wrapped tightly around Paxon’s. Boone is with them too. “What’s going on?”
Specter squeezes his eyes shut for a second while Colson grins.
“I invited Bellamy to have lunch with me. Here.”
Wraith’s eyes go wide. “What? Bellamy’s coming over?”
“Who’s Bellamy?” Paxon asks.
“Long-ass story,” Wraith says. “I’ll catch you up.”
“What’s the worst that can happen?” Colson asks innocently.
“Clearly someone who’s never seen Shadow lose his shit before,” I murmur.
“Trust me, guys, okay?” Colson’s still smiling. “I know what I’m doing. These boys are hard headed and need a friendly shove in the right direction. Shadow won’t be mad.”
I raise an eyebrow, looking at Specter. He shrugs like he’s just as confused as the rest of us.
“Godspeed,” Wraith says, saluting Colson. “I can’t wait to see how this works out.”
“I’m so curious,” Boone says.
“Bellamy was dating Shadow for a while and they seemed really happy,” Wraith says. “Then, like, out of the blue, Bellamy left and Shadow hasn’t been the same since.”
“Bellamy has feelings for Shadow,” Colson says. “Big feelings, but he’s scared.”
“Of what?” Pax asks.
“Losing Shadow under tragic circumstances. It started when Specter was shot. Anyway, neither of them are over each other, obviously, so sue me for facilitating an in-person.”
“I’m not worried about a lawsuit,” Whisper says.
“You all worry too much. When all is said and done, Shadow is going to thank me.”
“Yeah, okay.” I chuckle.