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him the money to replace the engine. So I sneak in
a little work on it here and there.
Devon blinked at him before cracking a big
ass grin. Heh. Now who s the stalker?
Wildly grateful for the opportunity to vent
a little of his long repressed anger at the man,
Michael glared at Devon. Fucking. Dick.
Although it felt good to call the man a dick,
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By Any Other Name Cherie Noel
Michael really needed to deflect Devon s attention
to something else unless he wanted to have it out
with the man about the whole Andy situation right
now. Thankfully Devon didn t catch the depth of
Michael s ire, instead just laughing as though at a
shared joke as he released his seatbelt and opened
the passenger side door.
Hey, I admit I m a little twitchy on the
subject right now, but if he says no, doesn t that
still mean no, cabron?
After a heartbeat where he wondered if
Devon had somehow gotten wind of Andy s
incident, Michael got out, scooped up a handful of
snow from the roof of Andy s car and flung it at
Devon in the best imitation of light heartedness he
could muster.
Screw you, Sarge. Go get your costume.
Tell Dieterman I said hi. I ll have to catch up with
him while he s here.
Devon slid into the driver s side of the Jeep.
Will do. Tell Andy I ll be at his party, okay? I just
gotta go find the right costume and get Dieterman
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By Any Other Name Cherie Noel
settled first.
Michael didn t really know how to respond
to that. He had a hinky feeling about Dieterman s
sudden reappearance in their lives, especially
given the other man s patently obvious crush on
the sergeant back before he got medically
discharged. Consequently, he muttered a
nondescript farewell while quickly popping the
hood of the Nova.
Yeah Sergeant, but I notice that you re
wearing different shoes than you showed up at
Adrien s with. What, do you keep a whole freaking
wardrobe over there? It s a little freaking early in
the game to be moving in with him isn t it?
Devon didn t answer, and Michael spent
the next few minutes, until the Jeep pulled out of
sight, praying Devon would leave quickly enough
that he wouldn t get caught screwing around with
some complete stranger s vehicle.
Once the black Jeep s taillights passed the
fourth row away from him, Michael dropped the
hood the vehicle he was pretending was Andy s.
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By Any Other Name Cherie Noel
The bus line that ran out to the mall would get him
close enough to home to walk back to his place
and pick up his own car. He had to get his own
costume ready and then get back over to Andy s to
help with the decorations like he d promised.
However, this time he wouldn t allow himself to
get distracted by Andy s extreme hotness.
Something had pissed Andy off, and Michael
meant to find out what it was.
Fortunately, a bus came within ten minutes
of Michael s arrival at the bus stop. Less than
forty-five minutes later, he was unlocking his front
door. Vowing to remember his gloves next time,
even if he was planning on being in a car, Michael
rubbed his chilly hands together as he headed
toward the kitchen for a hot drink. Instant cocoa
wasn t as good as Mrs. Simpson s home brewed
nectar of the gods, but it would get him warmed up
from his twenty minute jaunt through the cold.
Unable to shake the feeling of something being off
with the whole Dieterman scenario, Michael
pulled his phone from his pocket to call Devon. As
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By Any Other Name Cherie Noel
the water warmed for his cocoa, he d check in with
Devon about when the other man was planning to
meet up with Dieterman.
When the call connected, Michael nearly
dropped it. Instead of Devon s deep tones
rumbling back at him, Adrien s light tenor tickled
his ear.
Hey, Michael, what are you up to? I
thought you were gonna go check on Andy and
make sure he s okay& how s that going?
Confused as to why Adrien would be
answering Devon s phone right now, Michael
paused before he answered. Hey back, Adrien.
You okay, little elf?
Adrien huffed a little before he replied.
I m not an elf anymore, Michael. You know that.
And you can t reach Devon at this number right
now& he, um& he left it at my place.
Adrien stumbled a little over the last words,
his voice catching as though his throat had
suddenly clogged up. Michael paused again before
releasing a deep sigh.
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By Any Other Name Cherie Noel
I know. I picked him up from Mrs.
Simpson s place.
A loud gulping noise came to Michael
through the phone.
Well, Crap-doodly. That just blows,
Michael. Now she ll probably trick him into
becoming her patient or something.
Absolute silence echoed between them as
Michael searched for an acceptable reply to that
statement. Then a haughty sniffing sound occurred.
Hold on a second, Michael. I need to go
where I ll have a bit of privacy.
Sounds of movement, the hard smack of
flesh against wood, and then a suppressed yelp
came to Michael s straining ears.
What was that noise? Are you okay?
He could practically hear Adrien roll his
eyes. Geez, Michael, chill. You know if I was
actually hurt I d let someone know. Don t be an
ass.
Michael grunted back at him before
switching into a calmer tone and slightly more
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By Any Other Name Cherie Noel
eloquent wording. Right, I m just a little nervous
about this whole possible stalker thing. I mean,
Adrien& if I didn t know you I d be tempted to
stalk you after that little display, you know?
Adrien hissed at him. Shut up, Michael.
Low, rich laughter rolled out of Michael
and into the phone. Sure thing, Adrien, I m
shutting up about that topic entirely. Hey, where
are you at? I can swing by and pick up Devon s
phone and bring it back to him.
Michael paused to shrug as he poured his
cocoa into a to-go cup, snagged his keys and
headed back outside. This time he remembered to
grab his gloves and scarf, though. He grinned as he
thought up the perfect hook to get Adrien to agree
to his picking up the phone to return it to Devon.
That way, if he wants to call to let you
know exactly when he s gonna get there tonight,
he can.
A warm, needy tone entered Adrien s tone
at Michael s words. He said he was gonna come?
Snorting, Michael shook his head as he
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By Any Other Name Cherie Noel
answered. Oh, I d call that one a definite yes. He
practically threw me out of his car as soon as we
got to where I needed. He said something about
wanting to rush out and get a costume before he
had to meet Dieterman to let the guy into his place.
Tell me where you are, brat, and I ll come get the
phone to bring to him.
Adrien sounded positively giddy as he
answered. Okay, okay& and stop calling me a
brat. I m over at Benji s folks place. Apparently
the rents left his little sister on her own again to
go to some society function, so we re hanging out
with her for a bit.
Michael grunted again and this time the
sound dropped nearly an octave lower. Missy and
Benji s folks really didn t deserve such great kids.
Well, aren t they just nominees for best
parents of the year. Eh, I ll be there in fifteen,
twenty minutes tops, alright?
A smacking sound echoed over the line.
Uh, yeah, we just started eating, so waiting for
you is no problem. There s even a pineapple and
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By Any Other Name Cherie Noel
ham pizza if you want to join us. You and Missy
are the only two people I know who actually eat
that crap willingly.
As Michael slid behind the wheel of his car,
he laughed so hard his sides ached. I cannot
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