“Any idea how we’re going to choose our best men?” Hunter asked drowsily.
Roman chuckled and gently pulled free of Hunter’s body before saying, “I get to play the brother card so I think that puts just you in the hot seat.”
Hunter groaned and Roman knew exactly why. For the young man who’d been isolated ever since leaving Dare, coming back had somehow had the exact opposite effect and he’d built lasting friendships with every single man in their extended family. He and Luke often snuck out to Luke’s shed which at some point had been re-coined his woodworking shop and played around with all the new toys Luke had stocked it with. Hunter had managed to get just as sucked into Gray’s books as everyone else but had inadvertently set off a firestorm when he’d let it slip that he’d managed to convince Roman in his own unique way to tell him what had happened to the harried detective. His friendship with Finn had flourished as they reminisced about the better parts of their high school experience. Rhys still had some epic guilt about the shitty way he’d treated Hunter so he always went out of his way to make sure Hunter knew how much he liked him and between Callan and Dane, Hunter had started working with the various rescue animals that the vet and the horse trainer always seemed to have on hand. Jax had been the easiest nut to crack because all Hunter had to do was work his magic on little Emma and the big man had easily accepted Hunter into the fold.
“You think I can flip a coin?” Hunter asked as he pressed up against Roman.
“Sure, but I can guarantee you’ll never hear the end of it if you do.”
“Maybe we should elope. I’ve never been to Vegas.”
“Your grandmother would kill us.”
“We’ll take her with us.”
“Your grandmother in Vegas?” Roman suggested.
“No, Vegas isn’t ready for that,” Hunter agreed. “Okay, putting a pin in the best man selection. What about location?”
Roman looked at him and said “Here” at the exact same time that Hunter did.
“When?” Hunter asked.
“Tomorrow.”
“Okay.”
“What?” Roman said as he leaned up on his elbow to look down at Hunter.
“Let’s do it.”
“Are you serious?”
Hunter levered up to kiss him. “I’ve been waiting my whole life for you, Roman Blackwell. Even one day more seems too long.”
Roman smiled and settled back down on top of him. Hunter’s arms wrapped around his neck. “We’re getting married tomorrow.”
“Yeah we are,” Hunter said with a big smile. “Don’t we need to get blood tests and a license?”
“We’ll do the ceremony tomorrow and do the rest of that stuff next week,” Roman said. “What about the best men?”
“As long as all of our friends are there, I don’t care where they stand. Beside us, behind us…just as long as they’re all with us.”
“Your grandmother is going to flip.”
Hunter thought about it for a moment. “She can officiate. She got ordained online for Dane and Jax’s wedding just in case the reverend got into an accident,” Hunter said as he used air bunnies when he said the word accident.
“You know what that means, right?”
“No, what?” Hunter asked.
“It means no sleeping in,” Roman said as he gave Hunter one last hard kiss and threw back the covers.
“Fuck, that’s cold,” Hunter said as Roman yanked him to his feet. “Hot springs?”
Roman was about to say they didn’t have time when Hunter arched his brows. “Thirty minutes.”
“I can work with that,” Hunter said as he began yanking on his pants. He paused when he heard some rustling in bushes behind them.
“Shit, what is that? A bear?” Roman asked. Hunter automatically reached for the rifle next to the sleeping bag but his hand hadn’t even closed around it when Champ came tearing through the woods and jumped onto the sleeping bag. The dog had gotten much bigger than Dane had thought he would and was still growing.
“Holy hell, Champ,” Roman groaned as he tried to yank his pants from underneath the dog’s heavy bulk. He was just righting himself when Champ jumped off the sleeping bag and took off towards the lake. Roman’s jeans snapped back and he nearly fell on his ass. Hunter began laughing hysterically.
“Damn dog,” Roman muttered. He was distracted by some more rustling and looked up just in time to see a patch of black and white waddle up to their campsite. “It’s just Lucy,” he called to the fleeing dog.
“Uh, Roman,” he heard Hunter say.