“Well, trust me. Daddies aren’t shy about spanking their boys. You should come to the Edge sometime and see for yourself. They even do demos and stuff. You aren’t going to freak Xavier out if you ask.”

Finn still looked unsure, but Ev let him have that. He sometimes needed to work through new stuff in his head before he got comfortable with it. He gave Finn a final squeeze, then pushed him to stand.

“We’ll talk about this later. For now, let’s see if our Daddies are ready to go.”

Gabe was winning whenit came to birthday stuff. After their nap, they’d gone to an escape room—something Ev had always wanted to try—and totally owned it. Now, they were going to the coolest rooftop bar ever for drinks before dinner.

It was bone-numbingly cold when they stepped out of the elevator and onto the roof, but that was part of the fun, because the space was dotted with dozens of colorful igloos. Not real igloos, of course, because that would have been difficult to manage in New York, but the PVC structures, covered in clear plastic, gave the same effect. They were lit from the inside with LED string lights, and it made them look like they were glowing.

Finn was tugging him toward a big one on the end, and Ev hurried with him, eager to get out of the wind. He opened the swinging door and stepped into the heated interior with a sigh of relief.

“Surprise!”

Ev took a startled step back, straight into Gabe’s chest. Were they in the wrong igloo? Finn still held Ev’s hand and was bouncing on his toes next to him with a grin on his face. What the fuck?

Micah and his partners, Ryan and Nick, were there, all the way from Split Rock. Ev went to hug them hello. Then he noticed Owen, bundled up in winter clothes but with a smile on his face and a drink in his hand. He got a hug too and a little shake for being so sneaky. It took Ev a second to place the other man in the igloo. Archer, Micah’s best friend, who worked with them at the ranch. Ev only knew him from hisinfrequent contributions to the group chat—but hey, the more, the merrier.

“What are you guys doing here? This is so awesome,” Ev exclaimed as he finished the rounds of hugs. “Why are you in New York?”

“Archer is meeting a client this weekend, and we tagged along,” Nick said, running a hand through his perfectly styled hair, which fell neatly back into place except for one strand that flipped to the wrong side. “I used to live here, so I’m always down for a visit.”

Ryan reached up and fixed Nick’s hair, then left an arm draped over his shoulders. “The weather might be terrible, but it’s the best time of year for all three of us to get away from work.”

Micah nodded in agreement. “Don’t let anyone tell you running a horse ranch is easy,” he said with a laugh. “I think the last time we slept in was the last time we were here. But lucky for you, we did! And we’re ready to have some fun tonight and celebrate your birthday.”

After Ev exchanged another exuberant hug with Micah, Archer reached out to shake Ev’s hand. “Happy birthday, man. I appreciate you letting me crash your party.”

Ev waved him off. Of course. “It’s awesome you’re here. I’m surprised Izzy let you guys leave him behind, though. He’s the one who keeps saying he wants to visit.”

Micah exchanged a look with Ryan, who gave a long-suffering shake of his head. “Izzy’s got some stuff going on. Hesays ‘Happy birthday,’ though, and he’s gonna hit you up next time,” Micah explained.

“Is he okay?” They weren’t exactly close, but they bantered all the time in the group chat, and Ev counted him as a friend.

“Oh yeah,” Micah said. “It’s just personal crap, according to him. But it’s Izzy. He’ll be fine.”

That was good. Ev would have to text him later, though, and check in.

It was warmer than he expected inside the igloo, a small electric fireplace pumping out heat. He stripped off his coat and gloves and dropped them onto one of the low sofas lining the curved walls. As he was straightening up again, Gabe walked over with a drink in a long-stemmed margarita glass.

Ev’s mouth dropped open. In the bowl of the drink sat a rubber duck, floating on a cloud of what looked like pink cotton candy. He took the glass, careful not to spill. “My drink comes with a toy surprise?”

The corner of Gabe’s mouth pulled up in a smirk. “Don’t tell the other littles. This place will be overrun.”

Ev laughed. He was definitely telling every little he knew. Which, granted, was mostly just Owen at the moment, and he was already here. Still— “Owen, look at my drink!” He held it up for Owen to see and was treated to his roommate’s eyes going wide. Owen was a total sucker for cute things.

It took Ev a few minutes to figure out how to drink around the cotton candy, and the duck, which kept bumping into his nose, but Gabe got him a cocktail straw, which helped. Evleaned toward Gabe after taking a sip—fruity and yummy. “Can you get one for Owen too? I’ll pay you back.”

Gabe kissed his forehead and walked away. What? Was that a yes? Well, Gabe was leaving their igloo, so Ev assumed that was a yes. Finny was over talking to Owen now, and Ev crossed to join them.

“I’m so glad you’re here,” he told Owen, pulling him in for a side hug. “I feel like I haven’t seen you in forever.”

“It’s been a while,” Owen agreed, hugging back. “I’d almost think you moved in with your boyfriend, but I keep finding your dirty clothes in the bathroom and your travel mugs in the sink. Also, your piano is still there, and I know you wouldn’t leave that behind.”

Ev winced, a tingle of guilt taking up residence in his stomach. He should really work on being a better roommate than that, but first, “Gabe’s not my boyfriend.”

Owen gave him a withering look that was spoiled by the LED lights washing over his face in pinks and then greens, highlighting his glossy lips and the faint sparkle on his eyelids. “Ev. I haven’t seen you since before you left for LA. You’re saying you’ve been living in the guy’s pocket for three weeks and youaren’tdating?”

“You’ve been staying with him since LA?” Finn asked. “You didn’t tell me that.”