“Ford!” Asher yelled. “What the fuck is going on?”
His husband’s urgent voice broke Rocky out of his trance and spurred him into action. He hurried down the crooked ladder as fast as his shaking legs permitted, only to collapse as soon as his feet touched the ground. Rocky gripped the treehouse ladder and hauled himself to his feet while managing to stagger toward the house where Julia Warner stood sobbing.
She hugged herself and fell to her knees. “Why?” she screamed at the motionless woman. “Why did you do this to me?”
Rocky’s legs got stronger with each step, and he was eventually able to run. Julia seemed lost in her own world until Rocky walked through the sliding glass door. Fear for his own safety hadn’t even registered until Julia Warner lifted her head and stared into his eyes. All traces of warmth and humanity were gone.
Rocky shifted his attention to the hand holding the firearm. He assumed it was fully loaded when she came in, which meant there were plenty of bullets left if Julia decided not to leave behind any witnesses. Rocky’s mind immediately began to lament all the things he’d miss and the dreams he’d yet to realize with the man he loved. No more lazy Sunday mornings where they fought over the crossword puzzle answers. No house with a backyard. No dog. No kids.
Rocky held up his hands in front of him, showing Julia he wasn’t armed. He risked meeting her gaze, hoping against all odds that he’d somehow survive and get home to Asher. One look into her vacant eyes and Rocky knew all hope was lost.
Calm washed over him as soon as he accepted his fate. “I love you, Asher.”
“Ford!” Asher’s panicked voice came through the phone. “Where the fuck are you?”
Rocky had the presence of mind to disconnect the call so Asher wouldn’t have to hear him dying.
Don’t you dare give up so easily, a voice inside his brain whispered. It sounded a lot like Asher.
“No, Julia. Please.” He had to try.
Julia lifted the gun and aimed it at Rocky. His body tensed as if bracing itself for impact. When staring into her vacuous expression became too much, Rocky closed his eyes and pictured Asher on their wedding day.
If this was it, he wanted to go out with Asher on his mind and love, not fear, filling his heart.
Savannah, fifteen months later…
“You’re listening to Mornings with Mad Dog Mulroney on Kiss FM, and boy, do I have a treat for you. If you’re a fan of my radio show, you know my latest obsession is the Sinister in Savannah podcast. What you didn’t know is that my producer has been working hard behind the scenes to arrange a sit-down interview with the three hosts.”
Rocky glanced over at Felix and Jonah, who both shrugged. The producer had sent one email asking if they’d be interested in an interview, and they’d agreed. They’d exchanged a few more emails to set a time that would work for everyone involved. How hard was that?
Rocky chalked it up to showbiz propaganda and urged his thoughts toward something more substantial, like how Mad Dog’s deep raspy voice didn’t match his physical appearance. He’d expected Joe Manganiello and got Pee-wee Herman. He’d had to tense his jaw to keep his chin from hitting the floor when the man introduced himself. The adage “you have a face made for radio” now made perfect sense to Rocky.
Had the producer implied they’d been hard to work with or had she exaggerated just to score points with her boss? Christ. Move on, Rocky. But he couldn’t. It seemed like such a little detail, but their reputation was everything—collectively and individually. Rocky couldn’t afford for bad press to negatively impact the PI agency he was building with Peter, and the podcast would falter if their listeners lost faith in them.
He opened his mouth to speak, but Felix clamped his hand on Rocky’s knee. The gesture was both calming and unnerving. It scared him how well Felix could read him sometimes. Rocky nudged him with an elbow, and silent laughter vibrated through Felix.
“I want to welcome Jonah St. John, Felix Franklin, and Rocky Jacobs to the show. Guys, I can’t tell you how excited I am to have you all here today.”
“It’s our pleasure,” Felix replied.
“Thanks for having us,” Jonah added.
“No problem,” Rocky said. No problem? Could he broadcast any louder just how uncomfortable these appearances made him?
“I know you guys are super busy, so I’ll jump right into the questions,” Mad Dog said. “I know you must get asked this all the time, but why don’t we start out with a little background. Can you tell my listeners how you met?”
It was the most common question they received, but Rocky appreciated starting off with something he could answer in his sleep. “We have mutual friends in the Savannah Police Department who introduced us.” He left out the part about them joining forces for an off-the-books investigation.
“We didn’t like each other very much,” Felix added, which was something they’d never shared publicly.
“No,” Jonah corrected. “Leave me out of that equation. You two couldn’t stand each other on sight.”
Mad Dog laughed. “Why not?”
The question was a natural sequitur, but one Rocky didn’t have a ready answer for. Since Felix was the one who’d opened this can of worms, it was only fair for him to field the question. Rocky turned and met Felix’s roguish gaze. “Tell the nice man why you didn’t like me, Fee.”
Felix narrowed his eyes. “You know why, Major.”
“Yes, I do, but I’m not the one who brought it up,” Rocky countered. Then he sighed dramatically and faced Mad Dog, who stared at them with wide-eyed interest. “He thinks I’m prettier than him, and he’s jealous.”
Felix chuckled and shook his head. “Puh-lease.” He hooked his thumb in Rocky’s direction and leaned toward Mad Dog. “Major here is hung up on size. He’s worried that he doesn’t measure up.”
Rocky snorted and looked over at Felix. “As if. I have nothing to be ashamed of.” Facing Mad Dog once more, he said, “I’m a grower. He’s a shower.”
“Um, guys,” Mad Dog said slowly. “You’re making me really happy this isn’t a live interview right now.”
“What?” Felix asked.
“Why?” Rocky added.
“I can’t afford to have my show yanked because you guys are talking about penis sizes.”
“Penis sizes?” Rocky and Felix both asked, then looked at each other.
“Wait, were you talking about your dick?” Rocky asked.
“No, and you can’t say dick on the radio,” Felix replied.
“What were you talking about, then?” Mad Dog asked.
“Brains,” Rocky replied. “Felix likes to show off by using big fancy words.”
Felix shook his head. “And I was talking about muscles.” Then he flexed his biceps for everyone to see.
Mad Dog’s grin stretched from ear to ear. “I’ve been had.”
“Lucky you,” Felix and Rocky said at once.
“Jesus,” Jonah groaned.
“Does this happen often?” Mad Dog asked him.
“Uh-huh, but you get used to it.” Jonah laughed. “The reason these two jackasses didn’t get along was because they’re so much alike.”