"So exactly what are you going to be doing," Will asked Paul as he sat on the bed and watched him get dressed. "Do coach stuff?"

"Coach stuff," Paul repeated with a chuckle.

Will, cheeks pink, looked down at his phone, "Well I don't know."

Sonny, standing in front of the closet, said, "Actually that's a good question. What are you going to be doing?"

"Well," Paul pulled his shirt on over his head, "I think for the most part I'm going to watch and give some input. You know, explain some things and teach."

"Are you going to travel with the team," Sonny questioned as he started pulling out some clothes. 'Is it going to be like before Salem and I hardly ever saw you?'

"I haven't really decided yet," Paul admitted. "It's an option though."

Will shifted on the bed uncomfortably, "Oh."

"What," Paul stepped forward to sit next to Will and put on his shoes. "Was that a good 'oh' or a bad 'oh'?"

"Um," Will tongued along the scar on his lips, "I don't know. I guess it's good for you but bad for me."

"What does that mean," Paul looked at Will quickly.

"It means," Sonny said from the side of the bed, "That Will is going to miss you if you're gone all the time. Just like I will, again."

Knowing that Sonny was never completely thrilled with the traveling aspects of his career Paul bit his lip, "Well I don't know if I'm going to be or not. I want to figure this stuff out first before I decide."

"You can do whatever you want," Will offered Paul a short smile. "Whatever you want to do is fine." 'And maybe if you have something to do you won't be so focused on me.'

"What about you," Paul returned Will's smile. "What do you think EJ is going to have you do today?"

"Hmm," Will thought about it some. "I'm not sure. Probably show me around his office and threaten a bunch of people in front of me to look impressive."

"You just remember to take it easy," Sonny warned, hating the idea of Will spending so much time with EJ, "You have class and work today. I don't want you overdoing it."

"Yeah," Paul added, "If you feel a headache coming on you're going straight home."

Rolling his eyes Will nodded, "If you say so."

"I saw that," Sonny laughed before smacking Will with his shirt.

Sonny walked into Common Grounds for the start of his shift. Seeing the rest of the employees had everything covered Sonny greeted them before walking into his office. Today they were getting their big shipment for the holiday weekend. Sonny wasn't sure exactly what to expect but as one of the few coffee shops in town in a centralized location he knew they were going to be busy.

Checking the voicemails on the machine and calling a few numbers back Sonny saw the pile of mail he ignored the other day in favor of leaving for Will's party. Opening the first one on the stack Sonny tossed it aside, 'Junk.' The next one was an interesting offer on discount coffee beans, 'I'll have to make sure that one is legitimate before I even think about it.'

The last piece of mail was a large manila envelope. Struggling a bit to open it Sonny started pulling the large stack of papers out. The top page was a business letter. Reading through it Sonny furrowed his brow before moving to the next page. Quickly spreading out the papers on the desk Sonny leaned back and looked at them all. Reading through the letter one more time Sonny picked up the phone. 'I better call my business partner for this one.'

Will stood in the lobby of DiMera Enterprises as he waited for EJ. Will pretty much knew where everything was but he was waiting for EJ after getting a new ID badge and the codes for all the rooms.

"Ah, William," EJ announced as he walked out of an elevator. Putting his arm around William's shoulders EJ continued, "There you are."

"Yep," Will bounced on the balls of his heels before EJ led him away. "So, what do I get to do first?"

"This job sucks," Will complained as he sat on the floor in EJ's office going through a box of old files.

"I didn't say it was going to be fun," EJ laughed as he typed away at his computer. He was desperate to find some way to get his father out of Salem and away from his family. But so far he couldn't find anything. 'Why the bloody hell didn't I destroy the evidence sooner?' Yanking on his tie EJ groaned, 'Why is my judgement so clouded with this situation?'

"You OK," Will questioned face lined in concern.

"Yes," EJ cleared his throat. "Nothing to worry about."

Will stood up carefully, not wanting to let on how cut and bruised he still was, and leaned against EJ's desk while staring at him. "Have you started taking your prescription?"

"Of course," EJ stated while rolling his shoulders back and forth.

"Because don't think I didn't see you drinking at my party," Will gave him a pointed look, "And that isn't going to help your blood pressure."

"Well don't think I didn't see the tension between your little boyfriends and your little friends," EJ commented wanting to change the subject.

"What does that mean," Will asked eyebrows furrowed and nose scrunched.

"It means," EJ declared while turning back to his laptop, "That sooner or later you're going to have to put your foot down about it."

"About what," Will asked completely lost.

"About the fact that your friends overstep when it comes to you," EJ remarked, "And I swear William if you come in this office and tell me you're dating all four of them you are never leaving again."

Sputtering Will couldn't even find the words to respond to that.

"Don't give me that look," EJ argued, "You surrounded yourself by men that want to sleep with you. I don't have time to have a self-esteem discussion with you. And it's going to throw Kiriakis and Narita over the edge sooner or later."

"They're just my friends," Will finally settled with, curling his arms around himself. "Sonny and Paul know that. Besides Neil and Brian are together and happy."

"William you need to make it very clear to all parties do you understand me," EJ insisted firmly. "I absolutely will not clean up anymore messes caused by your love life. Is that clear?"

Feeling properly chastised Will nodded before sitting back down on the floor, "Yes, Sir." 'I didn't think it was that awkward between us all.'

Rolling his eyes at the wounded look on William's face EJ sighed, "Tell me about your birthday."

"Why," Will asked feeling nervous. "Are you going to say something rude about my boyfriends? Or my friends? Or my feelings?"

"No," EJ closed his eyes tightly. "I simply want to know how your day went. And please skip the dirty parts."

"Well then there isn't much left to tell," Will smiled widely when EJ turned to glare at him. "Oh, well I guess there is one thing. Have you talked to Chad?"

"Oh god," EJ had almost forgotten about Chad's idiotic plan. "Don't tell me he actually tried something on you?"

Chuckling slightly Will nodded as he started rearranging files. "It kind of backfired on him a bit. Adrienne saw and misinterpreted it. Now she thinks Chad's some sexual predator out to get me."

Slamming his hands on the desk EJ asked, "Excuse me?"

"I don't know," Will shook his head, "I guess I kind of made it seem that way. I told her I tried to get away from Chad but I couldn't and she assumed that meant something else."

"Ridiculous," EJ barked, "I don't even know what part of that situation is worse." Turning back to his laptop EJ tried something else only to realize it was a dead end as well. "Damn," he shouted. 'Maybe I will have to deal with my father in a different way after all.'

Chad tentatively sat across from Sonny at a small table in the corner at Common Grounds.

Sonny, trying to keep his frustration with Chad under control, looked up and couldn't help but laugh. "Oh my god how hard did she hit you," Sonny asked through his giggles.

"Apparently hard enough," Chad mumbled, crossing his arms, a light bruise on his cheek. "It's not that funny Sonny."

"Yes it is," Sonny insisted before calming down. "It serves you right anyway."

"Well now your mom thinks I'm some sort of perv," Chad argued while he shifted uncomfortably.

"Well maybe you should have thought about what it would look like when you tried to go after my boyfriend," Sonny said pointedly.

"I told him I was going to do it," Chad objected. "I thought he would be excited to finally get to kiss me."

Giving Chad a scathing look Sonny growled, "Just stop talking right now." Shaking his head Sonny said, "That's not what we're here to talk about anyway." Pulling out the manila envelope with the paperwork in it Sonny showed it to Chad, "I got this in the mail the other day."

Taking the stack of papers and looking it over Chad lifted his eyebrows high in the air, "Is this serious?"

"I think so," Sonny nodded starting to feel excited. "I mean, what do you think? It looks good right?"

"It looks too good to be true," Chad said skeptically. "Why would someone we don't know send this to us?"

Sonny, now that Chad pointed that out, deflated slightly. "I don't know. I guess we'll have to call to find out." Licking his lips Sonny sat up straighter, "But it would be great right? If it's real."

"Yeah," Chad admitted while going through the papers once again. "I never even really thought about expanding before but it would be a good idea."

"Well yeah," Sonny nodded. "This place gets crazy in the morning and afternoons. If we had two locations I think it would really even things out."

"Especially in a location like this," Chad gestured to the paper. "I guess we better call and figure everything out right?"

Paul stood in the baseball dugout, hands in the pockets of his new Salem University jacket, baseball cap on his head. He had met the assistant coaches and the manager of operations when he arrived. Watching the team warm up Paul could easily see why they didn't have a winning record. 'This is going to be tougher than I thought.'

"Well," Paul told Jesse when he came to stand next to him, "I see what you mean about needing help."

"Yeah," Jesse shook his head, "It's been rough this season. They've got the talent but motivation not so much."

"Hmm," Paul nodded. "To be honest I'm not sure there's much I can do about that."

"I was thinking about that actually," Jesse turned to face Paul. "And maybe you could talk to them about your career and what happened."

"You mean how I had it all," Paul lifted an eyebrow, "And then it all came down?"

"Something like that," Jesse replied before turning back to face the field. "I think a lot of them love the game but love partying more. Salem isn't exactly a big contender for baseball recruiting but I really think some of them have what it could take."

"Most of them look like they like college a little too much," Paul gestured with his head towards a group of guys that looked a little hungover. "That's definitely not going to happen anymore."

"I guess they're going to find out the hard way," Jesse smiled at Paul before clapping his hands and walking out onto the field calling the team in together.

Will, still filing miserably, looked up at EJ and paused. EJ was typing furiously on his laptop before stopping and running his fingers through his hair.

Noticing William's stare EJ turned his head, "I know I'm handsome but I think that look is a little much, William."

Will blinked slowly before standing up, hand outstretched. He bit his lip carefully and touched EJ's hair. "EJ," he said slowly wanting to laugh.

"What," EJ asked beginning to feel alarmed. Grabbing William's hand and removing it from his head EJ demanded, "What?"

"I found a gray hair," Will said carefully not sure how EJ was going to respond.

"What," EJ shouted running his hands through his hair.

Will pulled his phone out of his pocket. Taking a close up photo Will handed it to EJ, "See?"

EJ held the phone between his hands staring intensely. "This is all your fault," EJ declared turning his sharp gaze on William. Pointing to his head EJ added, "You did this to me."

Holding in his laugh Will patted his shoulder, "Don't worry. I'm sure my mom will still want you even though you're getting old."

"I am not old," EJ hissed smacking William's hand away. Crossing his arms and pouting EJ mumbled under his breath, "I'm not old."

"Whatever you say," Will said before sitting back down and going to work. As Will rearranged some more files he paused before reading over a document. "Uh, EJ," Will asked curiously.

"What now," EJ barked, "Is my hair falling out too?"

"No," Will said, "And you are way too vain. I wanted to ask about this." Will waved the paper in the air.

EJ extended his hand and took the paper slowly reading it over. Gesturing for William to hand over the rest of the file EJ began to feel excited. "Huh," EJ smirked. Rushing to his feet and helping William stand up EJ pulled him into a tight hug, "I knew hiring you would be good for the both of us."

"What are you talking about," Will asked as EJ crushed the air out of his lungs.

"You just found our ticket out of this mess," EJ beamed before kissing William's forehead.

Will slowly stirred the contents in the crockpot with a frown on his face. This was the first time he was using it without any supervision. 'OK, you followed the directions. It should be fine.' Closing the lid Will stepped away slowly thinking, 'God I hope I don't poison anyone.'

Moving over to the couch Will opened his text book and started studying. Even if there was only a few days of school this week Will knew he needed to make sure he was completely caught up. After this week it was only two more weeks until finals. Will didn't really want to admit it but he was immensely looking forward to winter break. Between dealing with what happened with Ian and maintaining his relationship and the unending drama of his friendships and family Will was worn out.

'And I know if I tell anyone that they'll just freak out.' Will really wished he had someone who would understand without making him feel like he was incompetent. 'I know everyone means well but I think they all forget that I'm not a child.' Chewing on his pen Will laughed at himself. 'There is one person I can talk to.'

Finding his phone in his bag Will dialed Wendy's office number and hoped she wasn't in a session.

"Hello," Wendy asked gently into her phone. She was on her way out of the office to go home when she received the call.

"Um, hi, it's Will," Will rushed out. "Um, is it a bad time?"

"Will," Wendy breathed, dropping her bag on the floor and sitting down. "No, no it's not a bad time. I've been wanting to talk to you actually."

"You have," Will asked sticking his bottom lip out in confusion.

"Yes," Wendy didn't want to say that Sonny accidentally revealed too much to her the other day but she had been very worried. "But why are you calling right now?"

Will scratched his neck and laughed awkwardly, "I wanted to talk to someone and I hoped it could be you."

Smiling, Wendy put her hand to her chest, "Of course you can talk to me Will. That's what I'm here for. Now, what's been on your mind?"

"I kind of just realized that I'm a little overwhelmed by everything," Will admitted in a low voice. "And I don't know. I just wanted to tell someone and not have them flip out."

"What do you mean overwhelmed," Wendy questioned putting her elbows on her desk.

"Just it's a lot you know," Will told her. "And sometimes I feel like no one really listens to me. They just hear that I'm upset or something and ignore the rest. I can be tired without it being because I'm sick or because of my head. I just realized I really want this semester to be over."

"That's completely understandable, Will," Wendy explained. "There's nothing wrong with feeling that way. Now, do you really feel like you don't have anyone that really listens to you?"

"I don't mean that they never listen to me," Will elaborated, "It's just that everyone is so protective. And I get that. I do. It's just sometimes I want to vent without having it be the end of the world."

"Have you tried talking to anyone about this," Wendy wondered. "I think Sonny and Paul might understand if you tried."

"Not really I guess," Will admitted sheepishly. "They've both been so busy worrying about me lately. And with the strange things that keep happening in my life I guess I'm afraid they're going to think I'm too much work."

"Will," Wendy scolded softly. "I don't think they're going to feel that way. You told me they love you and from what I saw they really do. Maybe they'll surprise you if you try to explain." Licking her lips Wendy continued, "But if they don't or if you're too afraid to try then I think you have a different problem on your hands."

"I'm not afraid of them," Will insisted with a shake of his head, lying down on the couch, "I just know they'll overreact."

"If you say so," Wendy thought about what to say next. "But if you were afraid of them you would tell me wouldn't you?"

"I would," Will told her, a bit surprised he trusted her so easily with everything, 'well almost everything.' "But they don't scare me."

"Well I'm glad," Wendy decided. Looking at her watch, realizing she was going to be late, Wendy cleared her throat, "Do you feel better now?"

"Yes," Will closed his eyes and smiled. "Thanks for listening."

"That's what I'm here for," Wendy supplied before reminding Will of his next appointment and letting him go. 'We're definitely talking about what Sonny told me at his next appointment. We have to.'

Will stood on the top step of the apartment hand on the railing. 'OK, you can do this. Just walk to the mailroom and get the mail. You can walk past that place.' Slowly walking down the steps Will had his keys crushed in his fist. Knowing he would see the studio as soon as he passed the big tree in front of him Will felt his breathing begin to labor. 'Just one step and then the other. See it's not so bad?'

As soon as the studio came into sight Will paused mid-step and stared. He pressed his free hand against his ribs where the first cut Ian gave him was located. If he tried hard enough he could feel it. He could feel the sharp blade pressed against him and Ian's clammy hand on his skin.

Suddenly a car alarm went off and Will jumped. Broken out of whatever trance he seemed to be in Will closed his eyes. He wanted to turn around and never come back. 'But I can't. I have to keep going.' Opening his eyes Will looked straight ahead on the cement path and walked as quickly as he could. Opening their mailbox Will hastily grabbed all the envelopes and slammed it closed. Running as fast as he could Will made it to the apartment on the top floor without so much as looking at the studio.

Slamming the door behind him and locking it soundly Will dropped the envelopes to the ground. Sinking to the floor Will put his head in his hands. Will inhaled and exhaled loudly for a few minutes. He leaned his head back against the door. Will lifted up his right arm to scratch absently at a few bite marks along his bellybutton. The metal from his bracelet reflected off the bit of light coming in from the blinds. Gently touching the engraving Will swallowed heavily before letting out a chuckle.

Laughing while slowly standing up Will wiped underneath his lenses at his eyes. He went into the kitchen to get a drink and check on dinner. Hiccupping loudly Will smiled, 'Oh my god, I did it.'

Hearing a knock on the door Will walked over and looked through the peephole. Once he was certain it was actually a delivery man Will opened the door cautiously. "Can I help you," he asked.

"Delivery for Will Horton. Sign here," the man extended his electronic clipboard for Will to sign before handing over the package. "Have a nice night."

"You too," Will called out as he closed and locked the door again. 'What in the world is this,' Will thought as he moved the box to the counter. Assuming it must be a late birthday present Will found a box cutter in one of the kitchen drawers and sliced it open.

After moving around the plastic padding and stuffing Will pulled out an expensive looking journal. Furrowing his brows Will turned the journal over and traced along the intricate designs and gold leaf pages. Will rummaged the box to see if there was a note or any hint as to who could have sent it. Opening the book Will saw in a messy scrawl a phrase from CS Lewis on the back of the front cover, "There are far better things ahead than any we have left behind." Underneath that, in the same handwriting was another message, "Love, Chad."

Slamming the book closed Will tossed it back in the box. 'For god's sake Chad,' Will thought as he crossed his arms. He wanted to feel exasperated and annoyed but he wouldn't deny that he was a little bit touched. The journal was gorgeous and the quote did make him smile particularly after walking by the studio. But he also knew the only reason Chad sent it was to make his father happy. 'It's not real.'

Will picked up the journal again and walked over to the couch. Finding his phone on the coffee table Will picked it up and sent a text to Chad:

-STOP SENDING ME THINGS!

-all caps isn't necessary

-I am making a point. Stop it.

-Can't. I've committed now. Besides Father encouraged me to send another present in my attempts to woo you.

-Knock it off

-Nope. This is for your own safety. It will all work out in the end. And I thought it was a good gift. You can write everything down you can't tell your therapist.

-OK that is a nice thought. But this is getting out of hand. I don't want you sending me gifts or trying to kiss me.

-You could always just come over here and pretend you want me in front of my father. I might get it out of him what he has planned for you.

-NO!

-Well fine then I'm going to keep going then.

-Stop it!

-Can't stop me now. Sorry.

Will threw his phone on the coffee table and groaned. He turned his head and saw the journal staring at him almost mockingly. Picking up one of his pens from earlier Will grabbed the journal and started writing.

'Some days I really wish I didn't have such an overbearing family,' he began.

Paul finished talking about his career and leaned against the wall behind him uncomfortably. He couldn't remember a time he ever actually talked that openly about what losing his career felt like. Sure he had spoken to Sonny about it and even Will but it wasn't the same as with fellow athletes.

Paul wasn't conceited enough to think that entire Salem University team would suddenly be inspired to seize every opportunity they had. However, he did hope that at least a few would become a bit more motivated. 'Jesse was right there are a few that could really make it if they tried a little harder.'

Looking over at the other coaches Paul hoped his expression told them he was ready for the attention to be off of him.

Jesse clapped his hands together and told the team they would be having an early and a late practice the next day. Dismissing his team Jesse turned towards Paul and patted him loudly on the back, "That was good."

"If you say so," Paul shrugged. He was under no allusion that he was a great motivational speaker. It wasn't nearly as bad as speaking at the seminar last week though.

"It was," Jesse assured him. "Now, why don't you get out of here? Tomorrow you can sit down with all of us coaches and we can look at some workout schedules and what not and see what we can do."

Shaking Jesse's hand Paul said goodbye to the other coaches and walked out the door. Checking his watch Paul was surprised at the time. It was later than he expected.

"Hey," Paul heard behind him.

Turning his head Paul slowed his pace for a few of the players to catch up with him. Paul wondered what they wanted. Biting his lip Paul tried to assess if they were friendly or not.

"Hi," one of the guys said before sticking out his hand for Paul to shake. There were two other guys with him who all followed suit. They started walking with Paul towards the parking lot chatting about baseball and how excited they were that Paul was working with them.

"Uh thanks," Paul told them feeling a bit unnerved.

"Well you know we've seen you play on TV before," one of the guys replied with a shrug. "But um, we were kind of wondering something."

Dread filling his insides Paul assumed they were going to ask about being gay. 'I came out to the whole world it's not a big secret anymore.' "Yeah," he sighed in response.

"Well," the same guy asked, "We also saw a few things online you know. And we kind of wanted to ask if they were true."

"What things," Paul grunted out. 'What the hell?'

"Just some pictures," the guy rushed out. "So, um, we knew that you were engaged but is it true that you slept with that Will guy?"

Paul's mouth dropped open in shock.

"We're only asking because we have some classes with him," another player explained. "Not that we care if you sleep with guys. We just heard some stuff about him too and wanted to know. You don't have to answer if we're being dicks."

Unsure what to say, torn between anger and horror, Paul sputtered out, "Technically it's true."

"Cool," the first guy responded. "But I heard that he's dating the DiMera kid?"

"Excuse me," Paul barked out. He stopped walking once he got to his car. "Where did you hear that?"

"Just around," the guy shrugged. "I heard that he broke up with his girlfriend to be with Will and that they were sneaking around now or something."

"That's bullshit," Paul insisted trying to keep his cool. 'I can't freak out here. You know it's just a rumor.' "Will is very much taken."

"By who," asked the last teammate who had remained silent throughout all of this.

"Me," Paul growled crossing his arms and glaring at the floor.

"Uh," the first teammate wasn't sure how to phrase this next part. "Aren't you engaged to that coffee guy?"

"We were but now we're with Will," Paul confessed not even thinking about if it was a good idea or not.

"Right," the second player nodded. "Uh good for you, I guess." Seeing the odd look Paul shot him he added, "Well I assume having two guys is hot. If I had two chicks I would be proud of myself."

The first teammate shook his head and stated, "Look we're sorry if we got too personal. We were just curious."

"No," Paul put his hands at his sides. "It's not like it's a secret."

"We really are excited to have you here," the last player confessed. "It's super cool having someone famous around."

"Right," Paul answered feeling uncomfortable.

"Well we'll see you tomorrow," the second guy told him as they all waved and walked off.

Paul opened the car door and sat in the driver's seat. 'That was weird,' he thought as he started up the car. As he drove the short distance to the apartment Paul wondered why it was so easy to tell total strangers his business but he couldn't tell his own mother. 'Maybe she'll surprise me and understand.'

Sonny looked over at Chad. He didn't like the pinched look on his face. "Who are you texting," Sonny asked with narrowed eyes.

"You don't need to know," Chad answered immediately. Chad sent a message to his father once Will was done responding to him. After he let him know Will got his gift Chad put his phone inside his pocket and glanced at Sonny. "What?"

"I swear if that's Will I am going to kill you," Sonny told him honestly.

"Oh like you have the means," Chad waved away Sonny's response. They were sitting in the waiting room at the bank. They had a meeting with their financial guy about whether expanding their business would be feasible.

Lifting one eyebrow Sonny crossed his arms, 'Oh you have no idea.' He shook his head, "Why are you even doing this Chad? It doesn't make any sense."

"Because I already made Will's life worse when I went through with that article," Chad tried to explain. "And because of that Ian found out about him. If my father really was involved than I am going to do whatever I can to find out what he wants and why."

Sonny, feeling a bit sympathetic for Chad, nodded. "OK, and have you even found anything out?"

"Well," Chad put his hands in his pockets and told Sonny in a low voice. "I know that he wants Will for something. He says cryptic things about the future. Now that he thinks I want to be with Will he's walking around acting like every day is Christmas."

Disturbed Sonny bit the side of his cheek. "I still think this is too dangerous," Sonny admitted. "You're just doing what your father wants. And if he wants you and Will together than he has something planned. I don't want Will involved in anything."

"That's why I'm doing this," Chad sighed in exasperation. "I have to do this. I'll find out what my father is planning and prevent it."

Before Sonny had a chance to reply their financial advisor walked outside of his office and called them inside. Sonny followed the man to his office thinking, 'This isn't over Chad.'

Will looked at his phone, seeing he didn't have any messages, tossed it on the couch again. He hadn't heard from Sonny or Paul all day. At first it was nice not having to explain his comings and goings to anyone. But now that it was almost dark out he was beginning to feel a bit strange about it. Picking at his fingernail slightly Will got up and went to the kitchen. He checked his recipe book once more before turning off the crockpot. 'I don't want it to be overdone.'

He finished his reading for the day. He wrote in his journal. He talked to Wendy. He found some sort of miracle file at work for EJ. He made dinner. He got the mail. 'And yet still no Sonny or Paul.' Rolling his eyes at himself Will got out a plate, 'You can't have it both ways Horton.'

About ten minutes later Will was slowly finishing his plate and feeling proud of himself for making something that actually tasted like food. He was contemplating calling at least one of his boyfriends but didn't want to seem too clingy. 'They're probably busy. It's fine. It's perfectly fine. It's good to spend time apart.' Hearing a key in the door Will bowed his head and clamped his lips together, holding in a grin.

"Hey," Paul greeted walking in the door. He took off his jacket and hat and hung them in the closet carefully. He knew Will had a thing about everything being tidy. Sniffing the air Paul wandered over to Will and asked, "What smells so good?"

"Oh," Will looked up at Paul, "I tried to make dinner." Watching as Paul walked over to the crockpot and lifted the lid Will explained, "I wanted to wait for you but I wasn't sure when you or Sonny would be home."

Stirring the food around Paul turned back to Will and smiled, "That's OK. You should eat when you're hungry anyway." He put the lid back on and went to wash his hands before grabbing a plate of his own. He loaded up his plate and went to sit by Will.

"How did it go today," Will asked carefully. His fingers were itching to reach out and touch Paul but for some reason he held himself back.

"Pretty good," Paul admitted as he started cutting his chicken. "It's going to be a lot of work though. I understand why the team management wanted me to come in and help. But I think it will be fun."

Offering Paul a shy smile Will nodded, "That sounds really great. I'm glad you're enjoying it."

As Paul was going to ask Will about his day they heard Sonny opening the door.

"Hey," Sonny greeted with a wide smile. "You are not going to guess what happened today." He quickly took off his jacket and haphazardly hung it in the closet. Hurrying over to his boyfriends Sonny was practically buzzing with excitement. Too eager to wait for either of them to say anything Sonny blurted out, "Chad and I are thinking about opening another location."

Seeing how excited Sonny was Will couldn't help but grin at him and say, "Wow. That's awesome."

"That's fantastic," Paul agreed through a mouthful of food. "Is this something you've been thinking about?"

"Well it's crossed my mind," Sonny told them both while leaning on the counter. "But I wasn't really sure, you know? Then I got something in the mail. The owner of that coffee house on the other side of town well they decided to retire. They don't have any family or anything to take over the business so they offered it to us."

"That's nice of them," Paul said quickly.

Will lifted his eyebrows at that information. 'Suddenly decided to retire?' Will vaguely knew those owners. They would go into the Pub on his shifts sometimes. 'They're in their 40s why would they decide to retire?' Will wasn't sure why but he found the whole thing kind of sketchy. 'Not that I'll tell Sonny that. Maybe I'll ask EJ to look into it.' Shaking his head Will tuned back into the conversation around him.

"So then we went to see our finance guy and everything seems like it's going to work out," Sonny elaborated with a pleased grin. "I just, I feel fantastic right about now. Even Chad and his dbag behavior didn't bother me today."

"Speaking of dbags," Paul said before looking at Will. "How was your day with EJ?"

Giving Paul a disapproving look Will said, "It was fine. I filed stuff and bugged him all day. I discovered a gray hair on him and he blamed me." Will contemplated telling them about the file he found but EJ had warned him not to tell anyone. Will didn't want to keep secrets from his boyfriends but at the same time he knew it was important.

Sonny got his own plate of food and sat next to his boyfriends. As Sonny explained his day in further detail Will sat quietly in between them and listened to them talk. Hearing them talk about financial advisers and business loans made Will feel a bit uncomfortable. He never really thought about it before but he was beginning to realize just how much older his boyfriends were than him.

Before he had a chance to worry or think on it much Sonny took his plate of food and put it in the sink. Paul guided him to the couch and turned the TV to Sports Center. Sonny sat closely next to Will and immediately held his hand. Burrowed into Paul's side with Sonny pressed against him Will ignored the new insecurities that began invading his mind. 'Everything is fine as long as we're together,' Will thought.

Author's note:

What does everyone think Will found that made EJ so happy?

I started planning out the next few chapters and I think things are going to take an interesting turn from here on out. I'm a bit excited.

Please review and let me know what you thought.

Thanks for reading!