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“We understand,” Harry said and waited for the police officer to leave. “We need their help, so we need to work with the police, not go off on them,” he said after the door had closed behind the officer.

“It doesn’t seem like they’re doing much,” Tristan said, stunned that Harry was taking their side.

“They’re doing what they can, and we need to keep them on friendly terms.”

“It feels like they could be doing more.”

“How, by stationing officers in the club? That will be great for business. Half the clientele will stay away, and the others will be here just to see what’s going to happen. No, we need their help, but they need to stay at a distance. A club like this has little more than its reputation, and once that’s gone, we might as well close our doors. That’s why we work so hard to keep the drugs and stuff out. If the club is clean, then we’re left alone to do business. But as soon as there’s trouble, regardless of whether we’re the victim or not, we get blamed for bringing down the neighborhood or some crap like that. Remember that club in York a few years ago? Some guy killed someone outside. It had nothing to do with the club other than the shooter had been inside, but they used that as an excuse to shut them down. So we cooperate and get them to help us while keeping them as far away as we can.”

“Okay,” Tristan said. He could understand that, even if it didn’t make him feel any better. “I didn’t mean to make trouble.”

Harry tugged him close. “You didn’t. We’re both tired, and I know you’re scared.” Harry’s warmth seeped through Tristan’s clothes. “We can’t let that get in our way. You and I need to be on our toes.” Harry guided him toward the leather sofa against the office wall. “Why don’t you lie down for a while and see if you can get some rest? There’s nothing you can do, and sleep will help.”

“What about you?” Tristan asked.

“I’ll be fine. This isn’t the first time I’ve gone with just a few hours of sleep. But please stay in here. I want you to be safe.”

Tristan smiled and sat down on the sofa. “This is all my fault. I keep thinking that I should have known better than to get involved with a guy like Eddie in the first place.” He held his head in his hands. “I should have known better than to think a guy like him would really be interested in me.” Tristan looked up and saw the surprise on Harry’s face, and he groaned. That so didn’t come out the way he meant it to. “Most of the time I can’t believe you’re interested in me.”

“Why? Eddie ripped your confidence from under you and made you second-guess yourself. But that’s what he did. You can decide if you’re going to let the way he treated you color the rest of your life.” Harry sat next to him and took his hand. “If you want my suggestion, close your eyes and listen to your heart. It won’t lead you wrong.” Harry paused, and Tristan turned toward him. “Let me ask you this: Did Eddie treat you right?”

Tristan thought and nodded. “At first.”

“Okay. But did he treat you right to get what he wanted or because he wanted to give you what you wanted? That’s what a person who really cares about you does. They want to give you what you want, rather than take what they want.” Harry squeezed Tristan’s hand. “You aren’t the only one who has been through this. We all make mistakes. I certainly did with Rodney, and I probably hurt him because I took what I wanted and took for granted that it was the same thing he wanted. I was wrong, and I need to find a way to make it right with him. I don’t know how yet, because he doesn’t seem to want to understand, but that’s my fault. I’m the owner of the club, and I shouldn’t shit where I eat, to quote an old saying.” Harry touched Tristan’s chin.

“I want to believe you.”

Harry chuckled softly. “Think of it this way—I’m just as awed that you like me.”

That stopped him cold. Harry had told him that he’d watched him and had liked him for a long time, but he’d never thought about Harry being insecure… about him. “No way,” he whispered.

“Yeah, and sometimes it’s possible to overthink things.” Harry leaned closer, kissed him gently, and then pulled him into his strong arms. “Trust me when I tell you that I want you in my life and that I’ll do my best to make you happy. And as for all the crap that’s going on, we’ll figure it out together with the help of our friends.” Harry didn’t let him go. “Why don’t you lie down for a few hours and get some rest? Things will seem clearer when you aren’t as tired.” Harry released him and stood up. Tristan lay down, and Harry pulled the blanket from the back of the sofa over him. “Everything is going to be all right,” Harry added and smiled at him. “We’ll figure it out, because I care too much about you to let anything happen to you.” Harry kissed him on the forehead and then turned off the light and left the office.

Tristan sighed and wondered if he could actually sleep. He was exhausted and had only had a few hours of sleep, but it was hard for him not to wonder what was going on outside the office. However, there wasn’t much he could do to help, and he knew the best thing would be to get some rest so he’d be able to help with anything Harry needed later. He tried to push aside the swirl of worry that related to Harry as well as his concern about who had broken into the club. He wasn’t successful until he pulled the blanket closer, and Harry’s scent filled his nose. He closed his eyes and let the deep, manly scent wrap around him. He relaxed almost immediately and closed his eyes. It was like Harry was there. His exhaustion overtook him, and he let go of his anxiety and dozed off.

T
HE
OFFICE
door opened, and Tristan gasped and sat right up. “What happened?” Tristan blinked and glanced at his watch. His mouth fell open when he realized he’d been asleep for three hours.

“The police have left, and I’ve called an electrician so he can check everything out,” Harry said.

Tristan yawned and pushed back the blanket, then stood up. Harry looked about ready to collapse. “You need to lie down.”

“I can’t. The police said they didn’t find much, as Officer Douglas suspected. He did say that the people who broke in knew what they were doing.” Harry half collapsed onto the sofa. “He didn’t name names, but I know as sure as there is booze and glass all over my fucking club that fuckhead Eddie is behind this. I just don’t know how to prove it.”

Tristan decided he was not going to feel guilty about that. Harry wasn’t blaming him; he knew that, especially when he tugged Tristan down onto the sofa and into his arms. “Get some rest, please.”

Harry yawned in his ear. “I’ll lie down for a few minutes, but then I need to make some phone calls.”

Tristan helped Harry settle on the sofa and covered him with the blanket, just like Harry had done for him. Then he kissed him lightly and left the office.

As soon as he stepped out of the office area, the chemical scent of alcohol assaulted his nostrils, almost burning. Tristan’s eyes watered, and he sloshed through the wet to the back door, propping it open for fresh air. Then he returned to the office area, got a mop, dustpan, and broom, along with as many cleaning supplies as he could, and began the process of soaking up the gallons of liquid off the floor.

He got nowhere fast, and even with the door open, the smell was oppressive. Tristan looked at the mess and sighed in frustration before pulling his phone out of his pocket and calling Kevin’s cell phone. “Kevin,” he said when his still groggy friend answered. “We need your help, so get dressed and come down to the club. It was broken into last night and it’s a mess. Harry is asleep, and he sent Bull and Zach home a few hours ago, but they need your help.”

“That’s really shitty. Did you call the police? Do they know who it is?”

“We did and they don’t, but everyone thinks it was Eddie.” Guilt threatened to rear its ugly head.

“I’ll take a shower and get right over.”

“Don’t bother with a shower. It’s a real mess. Just put on old shoes and clothes and come right over. See if Jeremy and Spook can come over too. We need all the help we can get.”

“Will do,” Kevin said with a yawn.

“Get as many people as you can.”

“Harry must be going out of his mind right now.”

“I have him lying down for a while because he didn’t get much sleep, and he’s been trying to get things together again.”

“We’ll be there soon.”

“Thanks,” Tristan said and hung up, then shoved his phone back in his pocket. He went back to work, mopping up as much of the liquid off the floor as he could while alternating with sweeping up the broken glass. It was slow going, but he finally began to make progress.

Tristan leaned on his mop, turning around to check on his progress. In his estimation he’d probably gotten a little more than half the alcohol off the floor. He’d started with the dance floor area, and that was now clean and dry. Hopefully he’d gotten the liquid off before it was ruined. The rest of the floor was concrete and was less easily damaged.

Someone pounded on the front door of the club. Tristan set his mop aside and walked to the door, peering out before unlocking it and letting the electrician inside. He closed the door, and the electrician sighed. “Maybe you should leave the front door open.”

Tristan agreed with him, but he didn’t want people gawking. “I’ll get Harry, and he can tell you what he needs.”

“He said he wanted to make sure it was safe to operate the lights and stuff. But we need to get this mess cleared away before I can check things in here. I don’t want anyone to get shocked.”

Tristan nodded and hurried toward the office. Harry roused as soon as he entered the office, and Tristan told him the electrician had just arrived. Harry stretched and followed him back out into the club. Tristan went back to cleaning up the floor and nearly had the last of the alcohol mess cleaned up by the time Jeremy, Kevin, and Spook came in the back door.

“What the hell happened?” Spook asked, but Tristan figured he wasn’t expecting an answer, especially when he began prowling around.

“Harry is in back with the electrician. He’ll be back out soon.”

“I talked to Bull and Zach, and they’re on their way,” Spook said as he continued… whatever it was he was doing. It appeared to Tristan as though he were prowling the perimeter of the room, but who knew with him? “How much of the room has been disturbed?”

“I’ve been cleaning up the mess and sweeping up glass. I haven’t touched the chairs other than to get them out of the way.” Tristan turned and handed Kevin the mop and Jeremy the broom and dustpan. “Can you finish with the floors?”

“Don’t touch the rest yet,” Spook said from the far side of the room, near the bar. “I’ll let you know when it’s okay to move on.”

“Fine. The electrician said we needed to get the floors done before he can check things out in here,” Tristan told Spook before adding, “I need to clean up behind the bar, so let me know when you’re done.”

“It’s….” Spook stood behind the bar, motioning slowly. Tristan watched him, and Spook eventually stopped and called him over. “Whoever made the mess was back here. They stood about where I am and threw bottle after bottle. The worst of the glass should have been over there.” Spook pointed to the far wall, and Tristan nodded. That had been where he’d found the most glass. “They didn’t wreck the bar fridges—they’re still cold, and they didn’t mess up the other bar infrastructure. This seems like sending a message to me.”

“That’s what they thought,” Tristan said. “But why wouldn’t they mess things up back here? That would put the club out of commission for a while.”

“True, but if they had, there was a greater chance of leaving evidence. They simply grabbed bottles, chucked them, and the evidence broke and was covered in alcohol, which would remove most everything, then as soon as they heard the sirens, they got the hell out and disappeared into the night.” Spook knelt behind the bar and peered around before moving on. “I’m done back here. You can clean up whatever you need. I suggest wiping down everything and washing all the glasses. Assume that nothing is clean.”

“I won’t, and I’ll make sure to sanitize everything.”

“Perfect.” Spook moved away, and Tristan got to work. Harry and the electrician came back into the room. The electrician left, then returned with a ladder and started working on the electrical equipment while Harry walked over to Tristan.

“I called Rodney and Chuck, but only Chuck answered. He should be in soon. Do you need help?”

Tristan shook his head. “I’m well under way. Why don’t you start wiping down chairs and seats? You might want to get some fans to try to air things out. We’re going to need to get the smell out of here and everything dry.”

Harry’s lips parted slightly and he paused. “You did all this?”

Tristan rolled his eyes. “Yeah. And since I put myself in charge of cleaning up, you need to get busy. The floors have dried and need to be cleaned. The guys are doing that, and I’m going to be back here for a while cleaning all the barware.” Tristan did his best not to break into a smile. “If we want to have any hope of getting this smell out of here, then everything has to be wiped down.” It was already better without pools of alcohol adding to the fumes, but the place still smelled like a distillery, and that wouldn’t leave a good impression on their customers.

“All right. What do you have Bull doing?” Harry asked as Bull approached the bar. Harry was teasing him.

“He’s on wall duty,” Tristan said without batting a lash.

“Excuse me?” Bull said with only a hint of his usual growl.

“Everything has to be washed down and cleaned to get rid of the smell. Also, we don’t know what else they might have done in here. What did the electrician say?” Tristan shifted his gaze to Harry and then back to Bull. The two of them exchanged glances and shook their heads. “What?”

“Nothing,” Harry commented. “We better get to work.” Tristan had expected a fight, or at least one of them asserting their authority, but they both turned and did what Tristan had told them. Zach snickered softly and shared one of those silent communicative looks with Bull that said volumes without saying a word. Ignoring him, Tristan went back to work.

After working a few hours, he had all the glassware washed, and the guys were working their way around the room, cleaning everything. Chuck arrived, and Tristan turned the bar-cleaning duty over to him.