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Okay seemed to always be July’s fallback. He simply agreed to appease people—like someone who always walked on eggshells. “Really, July. It’s not just me. You have Leary and JJ too. Plus all the Littles at the club.”

July nodded, but his eyes told the truth. He was sad and lonely, even though he wasn’t alone. July was such an upbeat ball of sunshine, but Fletch couldn’t unsee the truth: July warmed everyone but himself.

He wasn’t there. Banks had simply walked to the door and glided inside. While he wore surgical gloves, he didn’t really touch anything. It had turned out, according to whoever Banks asked that favor, that the place had high-tech security, like Pentagon level. The more details he learned about July, the more confused he became. Banks and he each picked a direction and swept the place from top to bottom. July was nowhere to be seen. They exchanged looks as they met back in the living room. With the security surveillance down, they didn’t feel the need to rush. Not to mention, July wouldn’t likely come home if he had been alerted. He had already pulled a gun on him once today.

“It doesn’t look as if he ran or anything.”

At Banks’ observation, Fletch nodded. “It’s crazy clean. I swear this place looks like no one lives here. Maybe he decided to take me up on my offer after all. It’s possible he’s on his way to club right now.”

Banks nodded. “Maybe. Someone definitely lives here, though. One room I searched looked like it was the primary. There was a robe on the bed and clothes in the closets.”

“Let me try texting him.” Before Fletch could pull out his phone, another phone rang. The sound was muted, but it was loud enough for them to follow. July’s sparkly pink phone was on the bathroom counter. Fletch grabbed it. “It’s someone named T-Rex.”

Banks tapped his shoulder.

When Fletch turned, a nightmare waited behind him. Blood splattered the walls and floor of the shower. A pile of white, blood-stained towels were crumpled in the corner, just as bloody as the shower. The blood didn’t look fresh, but there was no denying what he looked at.

“When I checked in here, I didn’t walk inside and look around. I just poked my head in the door. It seems I should’ve looked harder.”

Fletch couldn’t breathe. “What am I looking at, Banks? What am I looking at?” He sounded as panicked as he was. Fletch had just been here. That blood didn’t look new, but his mind was a mess.

“I don’t know, but we need to get the fuck out of here before the cops show up. While I don’t know if they’re imminently on their way, we shouldn’t take chances.”

“Agreed.” Fletch hesitated and then grabbed a towel. He knew people who would get a DNA analysis for him. Had July been more injured than he looked? Maybe July had killed whoever attacked him. They locked the house behind them, leaving no evidence behind. The moment they were safely out of sight, Banks called his friend and got the security turned on.

Who was T-Rex? Was that who hurt him, or had it been a stranger, and Fletch’s thoughts were headed in the wrong direction? His mind raced to picture July’s friends at The PlayPen. Did one wear dinosaur pajamas or behave like a dinosaur? No one came to mind. Luckily, he had held on to July’s phone. While he didn’t have the passcode, he bet the same friend who could check the DNA from the towel could also hack the phone. Now that all those thoughts were stuck in his head, he was eager to get Banks back to his home at The PlayPen and get going. First, he had to check the club to make sure July wasn’t there. He didn’t see July’s car in the parking garage.

“Damn. It doesn’t look like he’s here.”

Banks grabbed July’s phone from the cup holder. “I can get this hacked in no time. You go ahead and start searching his usual spots. If you find him, snatch his ass and bring him here. We can fix this. In the meantime, I’ll get this phone looked at and I’ll call you if he shows up or I learn anything.”

“Sounds like a plan.” Part of Fletch wanted to argue over the phone, but Banks could get right on breaking into the device. Fletch would check July’s favorite coffeehouse and clothing stores.

With Banks out of the car, Fletch drove from place to place, hoping against hope he would find July. Truthfully, he didn’t know what he would do if he found him. He could snatch him like Banks suggested, but he probably still had that gun. July might really choose to shoot him. After all, it wasn’t as if Fletch had given the poor guy any reason to trust him. In fact, he had done the opposite.

“I thought you planned to meet me at The PlayPen last night. I had to convince Leary and JJ to come so I wouldn’t be alone.”

Fletch rolled his eyes. “Not everything is about you, Princess.”

July went quiet. He didn’t argue or look surprised. His silence got under Fletch’s skin. “Me being there must not have meant too much to you. We’ve been out and about for three hours, and this is the first thing you’ve said about me not showing.” Even to his ears, Fletch sounded like an asshole.

July’s face scrunched as if Fletch confused the hell out of him. “Why do you sound like you want to fight about it? You found something or someone better than me to do. The whole ‘everything isn’t about me’ statement is true, so why would I bitch about that? I’ve always known I’m not special.”

The statement only pissed him off more. Fletch had no idea why he was so bent on starting shit today. Something inside him was agitated, and Fletch couldn’t put his finger on it. He itched for something he couldn’t name. July was an easy target. “Don’t say shit like that.”

July huffed. “I don’t know what you want from me here. You ghosted me. It’s whatever. Time won’t turn back, so let’s just let it be, okay?”

Fletch threw his hands up. “Fine.”

July shook his head and went back to flipping through the clothes in the teen section. Why did he make Fletch so crazy? All he wanted was… See the problem was… His shoulders fell. He didn’t fucking know. All he knew was July was under his skin and things shouldn’t be that way. He knew he was a shitty friend, but damn. July just truly drove him insane sometimes.

Fletch got it now. Hindsight was always twenty-twenty. July drove him mad because he drove him wild. Fletch had never been interested in anyone like him. He was used to drama and fits. Fletch had been with someone for years who intentionally embarrassed him everywhere he went by throwing tantrums. Being with July was different, and July didn’t look at him with the same need for more. Fletch had never deserved July. Now he had a bad feeling he had lost him forever.

The hotel was quiet. Even the bar was silent, which worked for July. He kept his head down as he ate in the corner. July was thankful as hell he had thought ahead and loaded up some prepaid cards to pay for rooms. Everyone wanted a card these days. A random thought hit. Maybe he should move to Thailand. With the money he had, he could start a new life. He could donate his car to a battered people’s shelter and just go. July could easily find an apartment and use his feet to get around. He could be free. The more he thought about it, the more the idea grew on him. With his thoughts swimming with new ideas, and his vision spinning even worse, July knew he would need to leave the planning until morning. Even as pain and weakness threatened to take him down, excitement filled him. The break from his bleak mood made him feel lighter. Life wasn’t hopeless. He stood and the room spun. July spent a second waiting for the dizziness to stop before he left a tip. On the way back to his room, he weaved as he walked and plotted. After he got some rest, he would look at flights. He was dead on his feet. Back in his room, he ensured the room was totally secure. He used every trick he knew to make sure no entry points could be breached. Then he fell across the bed and passed out.

A hand covered his mouth and pulled July from his comatose state. He panicked, biting and kicking. Blood loss stole his energy when July needed it most to survive. July tried to scream through his damaged vocal cords. He fought for his life in the pitch-dark. While he had no idea who had a hold on him, July knew the attack had everything to do with Rex. He couldn’t let anyone take him alive. July was done. Adrenaline poured through his veins, dulling the pain of July’s already bruised body.

“For fuck’s sake, knock him out. Goddamn.”