Page 53 of The Barn: Frost and Q
Frost looked to Q and shook his head. “That’s a terrible thought.”
“I know. I didn’t have it. You did. You’re to blame.” Q stripped off his ratty sweater, baring that gorgeous belly. “If I find myself a giant throwback balance Chihuahua, though, he’s coming to live here. You’ll just have to buy him a big coat.”
“I think I’d rather get you a baby bear.”
Q’s eyes lit up, and Frost shook his head.
“No, no, no, no, no. I was joking. That was not a real thing. Bears are not friends. Bears are not pets. Baby bears belong with their moms out in the wilderness.”
“We live in the wilderness.”
“You live on the fourth floor,” Frost shot back.
Quentin pursed his lips for a second, then grinned. “Bears like to climb. If the baby bear climbed up the mountain and into my window…”
“Stop it. I’m getting your dog. The fuzzy one. And I’m getting you an entire staff to deal with the dog. No bears.”
“Okay, no bears.” There was a pregnant pause. “In the house.”
“Ugh.” He chuckled. “You are a hell of a bargainer.”
“What can I say? You actually taught me all that. I never had enough money to bargain for shit.”
He chuckled, and for the first time, he didn’t flinch at the mention of the money, which had been the damn devil in the first place. He managed to grin over it now.
“Shit, baby, you know I ate ramen noodles for years.”
“I do. And now look at us. You can hire four and a fraction assistants and round it up to five.”
“I can.” He texted the other guys to see if they wanted a pickup, then called in to say he was filing a flight plan. By the time he had it all arranged, Q had a go bag out for each of them.
“Just in case?”
“Yeah. You haven’t filed the return plan yet. I thought we could meet him today and pick him up tomorrow. Have a night at a hotel and go to supper at the Bush Pilot.”
“I’ll make reservations.” Frost knew what a big deal this was. A huge deal. This wasn’t just going to get a dog. This was going to a nice restaurant in Ketchikan where they might see another pilot or two that they knew, since the place did like a dinner and a tour package.
“Cool.” Q said it with elaborate casualness.
“What brought this on?” he asked, keeping it offhand as well.
“I figure you went back to work because I asked. I can go out in public.”
“That’s amazing, baby.” He stopped to take a kiss. “What do you need?”
“Carry the bags? I need to grab my arm crutches, just in case.”
“You got it.” He wasn’t about to argue, and he was going to get this show on the road before Q changed his mind. He knew it was a little harder for Q to get into the float plane, but they had a decent dock, and a good attendant, so they would make it happen.
He was going to take his husband out to supper and maybe get laid before they welcomed a dog into their lives.
That was a pretty damn good trade.
“We havea reservation for two for Kelly,” Frost told the host, smiling some. He looked damn handsome all cleaned up in a fisherman’s knit sweater and dark jeans, his hair brushed back off his forehead instead of kind of all over the place.
Quentin felt a bit dumpy by comparison in loose khakis and a pair of henleys, one over the other, but it was comfortable, and he prioritized that these days.
“Would you like one of our more accessible tables, or is a regular one okay?” she asked.
