Chapter 10

Marsh cruisedin from the back patio with the last of the empty platters and grilling utensils, savoring the AC and the relative quiet of the kitchen. Outside, the cookout was still in full swing, family and friends from one end of their backyard to the other, chatting with one another and dancing to the music playing on the outdoor speakers. "How are we gonna fit even more people here on Saturday? Our neighbors are gonna kill us. Maybe we should call Aunt Liz and see if we can do it at the mansion."

"We're doing it here," Levi said as he warmed up the espresso machine for after-dinner drinks and desserts. "We'll just send Jamie to the neighbors with a smile and a pint of barbecue."

Marsh filched a few bits of pulled pork from the chafing tray and popped them in his mouth. "Not a bad plan." He wished their other plans for the week had gone better, but Press's case still wasn't wrapped yet. Granted, having Jamie here early to contribute to the gut-busting picnic was a plus, but Marsh was worried about the stress Levi was putting on himself, juggling work and family and more visitors by the day. It was good they'd had this cookout scheduled for tonight. It was a break Levi couldn't get out of and the breather they all needed after pushing hard the past three days.

"So, I was thinking," Levi started, and Marsh figured he knew what was next. His husband, agent extraordinaire and certified workaholic, was not done pushing. "Maybe I should?—"

Stepping behind him, Marsh twined his arms around his waist and nipped his neck, cutting off the return-to-work comment Levi was about to make. "Maybe you should take the night off and spend it with your friends and family."

"But Press doesn't have a place to go home to."

Marsh slid the tamper out of his hand, clicked the portafilter into place, then clicked the Start button before turning his husband in his arms. "Does it look like Press is having a bad time?" Marsh flicked a glance out the back windows to where Press was at one end of the patio table, animatedly talking with Jamie, Farmer, Trevor, and David, who'd remained in his crush's orbit since he'd walked in the door. "Last I passed by them, they were laying odds for preseason number one. If Press can take a night off from studying and his murder house, so can you."

Marsh leaned forward and captured his husband's lips, pleased when Levi relaxed into the kiss, the two of them lazily making out until the portafilter gurgled.

Levi drew back but not far, resting his head against Marsh's shoulder. "Thank you for always pulling me back from that edge. It's just tough when there are so many moving pieces and so much evidence but none of it connects."

While they hadn't solved the case yet, Aidan and Brax had turned up more clues in their interviews with Cousins and the neighbors, and they were continuing to turn up leads on Ward too. As Levi said, they just needed to find the piece that tied it all together.

But not tonight. Tonight was for them and their family, all of them gathered to get a jump start on the celebration of their love, all of them instrumental in nurturing that love into what it was today. The most important connection of Marsh's life. He palmed his husband's cheek, thumb skating across his sun-warmed skin. "I love how hard you work, how good you are at your job, and this is part of mine, as your husband."

"It's appreciated." Levi lifted his chin and met his gaze. "I just want this done by Friday so we can fully enjoy ourselves."

"Oh, I intend to fully enjoy every minute of our wedding weekend and every inch of you on our wedding night."

"Then we gotta finish this case."

"Which is why," he said, kissing the tip of Levi's nose, "we're gonna make your mother's affogato." Marsh paused because after a year, he knew what was coming in three, two, one...

"Levi, Marsh, where's my dessert?"

Levi lost it, falling against his chest in a fit of giggles, the sound one hundred percent welcome, one of Marsh's favorites.

"On its way!" Marsh shouted back, then to Levi, leaned down and spoke next to his ear. "Which is why we're gonna serve our guests dessert, we're gonna spend some more time with them, and then while you spend some time with your son and family tonight, I'm going to do some hacking." Levi lifted his head, mouth open to object, and Marsh kissed him quiet. "You put in the extra time the other morning. Now it's my turn."

"Are you sure?"

Marsh laced their fingers together, their wedding bands catching the evening light streaming into the canyon. "As sure as I am that I can't wait to marry you again in front of all these people and more on Saturday."