EPILOGUE

Jude leaned down and kissed Gideon's sleeping form. Three weeks. They'd been married three weeks. They were still in the honeymoon phase. Sort of. As he sat up in bed, on his lap was his computer opened to the media streaming rights deal, which was the least sexy thing he could think of. The L.A. Devils were in the middle of contract negotiations with ISN, Amazon and TNT, with the League moderating.

"Put, that goddamn thing away," Gideon murmured, eyes still closed as his cool, hard thigh pressed against Jude's.

"Can't. It's a big fucking deal." Two billion over the next 10 years was gonna be huge. For the Devils. For Jelena. For him. For them. Jude instantly became hard as the other man continued to push against him.

"I know that. Rob's workin' on the same agreement," he replied, opening his eyes, sitting up, closing the laptop, and easily moving it to his, Gideon's, night table. "Half my fans are international and watch on the Internet. Whatever the outcome, this could be big for Team Zero."

Rob was Robert Forest-Smith, the EVP of the newly created L.A. Redwoods. Not only were they the Devils' rivals on the basketball court, but the front office was also their rival when it came to who would get the better streaming rights deal. There'd been talk of all the teams falling under the might of the League and letting them collectively bargain for all of them. However, greed and control were major factors with the owners, which included the board members, who didn't want to give up power. Jude for his part, lived by the mantra 'what's good for one team is good, mostly, for all…'

Gideon's blue eyes never wavering, as his hand snaked across Jude's abdomen. "Your pops taking a dive at the wedding, screwed up us leaving the state to go to Fiji for an actual honeymoon, so you owe me-"

"Stop," Jude gasped, as his husband manipulated his pulsating dick in his hand. "No, not that," he said, as Gideon made to halt touching him. "Talking about the contract!" he managed to eke out, as he felt the gooey, warm liquid.

Both knew it was against the League Charter to discuss it; the organization had at least that modicum of control over negotiations and wasn't afraid to exert it.

"Sorry, I know I'm just a dumb jock out of Grand Canyon University," Gideon teased. Although he hadn't graduated, due to being drafted by the Cleveland Wolves in his senior year, both knew his worth and that he was smart in all the ways it mattered.

"You know I don't think that. I've had to avoid talking to Lionel about it too… she's almost as persuasive, as you," he said with a pleasurable sigh.

"Almost?" Gideon asked, raising his brows temptingly.

Before Jude could respond, his cell pinged. He picked it up, "Speak of the hellion." He read Lionel's text, 'Oh, boy…' and then looked over at his husband, "… she's with my father."

With a tilt of his head, "What's the worst that could happen?" Gideon countered sarcastically.~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Is that my son?" asked Oscar, his blue eyes filled with a vague interest.

"Yes," Lionel replied. "Just in case I end up in a ditch or under a bridge, I thought I'd let someone know where I was… and who, I was with," she said with a tight smile, as she brought her dirty martini to her crimson lips. Of course, she was kidding. Largely. Her ex-husband and she sat together in The Devils Playground. In full view of everyone. "He's warning me that I shouldn't play with you, like the broken toy that you are."

Despite how, admittedly, Oscar had come through for Jude… she was reticent in dealing with him, again.

"My dear, you invited me here," he said leaning back into his chair, clasping his hands. "I was happily enjoying my days in Las Vegas… recovering."

"ISN," she stated, deciding to get straight to what she needed. Oscar wasn't someone who liked or needed pleasantries when it came to talk of money and power. "I want to retain those streaming rights. But I'm in competition with TNT and Amazon. Fucking Bezos, he's a bald you. I need your help," she said, taking another quick sip. God, she hated having to crawl back to Oscar, but he was the one person she could trust, to get shit done. Besides, she still had her earlier leverage from his "attempted murder" of her.

"Oh, really?" He played absently with the ring on his right hand.

While she noted the look of amusement written on his tan face, she'd learned many of his tells in their fleeting time together. Fidgeting with his ring was a sign that he was interested and intrigued with an idea.

"And here I thought you might need the services of a real man after your dalliances with those two teenagers."

Lionel rolled her eyes to the point that it might look to an outsider that she was stroking out.

She had to admit, he did look pretty damn good, since his slim down. If he hadn't been such a sleaze and so slick in the past, she might have at one time found him attractive. 'Jesus!' She really needed to get laid if her thoughts even touched upon the idea regarding Oscar.

Lionel knew it was common knowledge, that she had ended things with German and Eve. It was uncommon knowledge that she'd felt like a third wheel. She'd had to admit to herself that those two enjoyed themselves and thirsted for each other in a way that they didn't for her. She'd been in triangles before, and she wasn't about to repeat that again. She was Lionel 'fucking' Davenport, for Christ's sake. She'd also had to deal with Pete's drinking in the past and German's gambling felt disturbingly similar in many ways.

"Cut, the BS. Oscar. Who I was naked with a few weeks ago has nothing to do with why I asked you here. This could be beneficial to us both. I know you're trying to make your way back into the good graces of the League and everything that comes with it. I could help with that. Thanks to you, I'm a media mogul," she said with just a hint, but not too much, of smugness.

"How? I own Redwood Stadium. I might not be a team owner anymore, but nobody's gonna believe I'm impartial. Are you trying to use me to get to Jude or to the EVP for the Redwood's doing the leg work?" He then took a sip of his club soda and lime.

She'd noticed that he hadn't ordered his usual scotch on the rocks. 'Hmmm…' "Jude is a closed book on that score." She loved and respected her friend. It was why she was circumventing him but still letting him know that she was in contact with Oscar. It was the least she could do. The very least. "And Robert, well… if you help me to convince the League, to put pressure on the other... shall we say, more vulnerable teams. Maybe make a play to bring all the teams under the threat and auspice of the League. With your shady business dealings in the um, past?" she said with a smirk.

He looked at her for a second, before flagging down a waitress. "Single malt, ice," he said, then returned his gaze back to Lionel, sweeping it from top to bottom.

Lionel didn't flinch; she just tilted her dark tresses that framed her face. There'd been a time when she'd been deathly afraid of Oscar. Not anymore. Never again. This time, their period together would be vastly different.~~~~~~~~~~~

"Baby, what's wrong?" asked Terrence, as he sat next to Jelena.

"Maybe nothing, maybe everything," she murmured, then whipped out a smile. "Come on babe, let's have that drink," she said taking his warm hand in hers as the server set down their drinks. Her green gaze swept across the Devils Playground; early evening was busy and humming like the old days. Suddenly, Jelena missed Raquel.

'I just got off the phone with Adam, there's been a formal request floated. He wouldn't tell me who. The last couple of weeks, some of the other teams have been talking about banding together, to work more with the League. To make the decisions about streaming rights, instead of individual teams makin' their own deals."

"How do you feel about that?" His tone, at that moment, was that of the new L.A. Devils' head coach, not her husband.

"Not great!" she replied dryly. "On one hand a petition that the League make the final decision, and we all share in the profits, equally. No matter where we lie…it could be good for the Devils. Everyone is still looking at us as if we were ex-convicts on parole."

His impossibly handsome face looked at her with understanding.

After she'd been shot and he hadn't come to see her in the hospital, she'd been angry and hurt. Even though she knew it was warranted on Terrence's part. She'd screwed him over… multiple times. However, Vanessa had flown in and been by her side. Later her mother had told her that he'd called every day, just to check in and see how Jelena was.

When she'd left with Miguel in tow, she knew that there was one person who she could go to, and it was Terrence. Even if that meant…ugh, Phoenix. No one would think to look for Miguel and her there. It would give her a chance to formulate a workable plan.

As she stood there in his doorway, the little hand in hers, Terrence's eyes had darted across the two of them, and all he'd said was, "Come on," without a question.

It had been a long and hard struggle to get back to a place of trust and honesty in their relationship. It still was at times, but she had faith in him. More than in her mother. Even more than in her executives.

But she was going to approach this as a team owner working with her head coach, not as lovers. "What do you think my next move should be? Our next move should be. It's only a matter of time before I'll have to deal with the board. I can't say that it might not prove to be a good thing, but I know there's more to this… someone, somewhere is trying to wrest control and I don't like it…" she said feeling an old steeliness return.

"We gotta put the team first. League backing, financial and otherwise, I think this could be great for us… but yeah, I think we've got to do some digging. Why the sudden interest in the "Team League Unity thing"?" Terrence's brown eyes questioned.

"Yes. I know exactly who to talk to about it," Jelena said firmly. Or whom to have talk to who she had in mind.

She then leaned in and gave him a quick and light kiss on his full lips. While she wasn't one for the drama anymore, she had to admit to herself that there was something exciting to finding herself in the middle of a play. maybe she had missed the drama… a little.

Jelena brought her chilled vodka to her lips and smiled at Terrence, who gave her that familiar look of loving amazement and admiration. It warmed her.~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Noah looked good. Really good. But, then again, he always had. That had never been the problem. As the late afternoon sun cast its glow through the privacy-screened windows, he and Jude sat at Browning's blue topped bar. He felt it was the perfect neutral territory, that held no memories. Even though Jude had no fears of anything happening between them, an enormous difference from when he'd been having drinks at another bar with a certain blond in Vegas.

Jude had lost the team and his reputation due, in part, to Noah, but it had also led him back to Zero. Gideon.

Noah had an air of amusement and good-naturedness. A big change from the last time that they'd seen each other face to face. Mostly, since then, their communications had been pleasant, moving from cold to fairly friendly. His ex had even liked one of the wedding photos on Jude's Instagram and had also sent him a text, 'You're still a romantic. Congrats, big guy.'

"Are you back in town permanently?" He'd been surprised to learn that Noah was in L.A., and that he didn't know. He couldn't believe that Lionel wasn't aware.

"No. New York's the place for me. Although, my dad has been pressuring me to come back to California. I think there's a part of him that holds out hope I'll go into medicine like him and my mom," he chuckled, then took a swallow of his beer.

For the first time in a long time, Jude didn't feel a twinge of jealousy when someone, with no major daddy/mommy issues, talked about them.

"I have to remind him I have a job… and a relationship there."

Jude's brows shot up in surprise, then relief. He was happy that the other man had moved on. While he had no guilt about leaving. Lying was a different story. "Great, what's he like? "

"Hot. Jamaican. He's a news director at the network," he said as he eagerly pulled up a photo on his phone that lay on the bar.

"Wow… he looks like Lenny Kravitz," Jude marveled. The indeed red-hot guy with short locs and glistening caramel skin, leaned shirtless against a palm tree.

"I'm kinda like Stella, but the gay part is known and wanted," he quipped before putting away his phone and getting serious. "Sooo?" A slight grin came to Noah's lips, followed by a knowing squint.

Jude took a deep breath. No point in being an asshole about what he wanted. No needed, from the investigative reporter. Information. Jelena and Jude had spoken yesterday, and she'd asked him, okay, told him to contact Noah. Use whatever leverage or residual good will he had, to find out what the other man knew. "I know that you've been looking into what happened to my father, at my wedding. Ugh, I'm here to see if you know anything about what's happening in the push to consolidate behind the League. There. I'm a dick, but you knew that!" he said with an apologetic look.

His handsome face lit up in a generous smile. "You're still adorable, you know that? Jude, relax. I'm not mad anymore. And the minute I got your text; I figured it was about all the corporate… League… negotiations goin' on. It's okay. I think we could help each other. What you got for me?"

"Oscar. Was it just a shellfish allergy-," he began, as he leaned forward and put his dark suit clad arms on the bar.

"Or did your father's shenanigans in regard to his former Hollywood stadium backers, come back to haunt?"

Jude suddenly did feel a bit more relaxed, as he peered at Noah, who was obviously weighing Jude's proposed info against what he knew. Same old Noah.~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

That night, Gideon lay on the bench press lifting weights as he breathed in and out. He had Dirty Gold loud and pumping. The expensive sound proofing in their home gym kept it from disturbing their neighbors. When he'd come back to L.A. Gideon had been surprised at how quickly it had become 'the new place to be.' If he had really thought about it, he might have felt guilty for gentrifying the neighborhood he'd grown up in. But, like so many things he'd learned to push certain thoughts away.

His anger subsiding, but not his bitterness. He knew it was stupid. But he fucking couldn't help it. He should be on top of the world. That afternoon he'd had a meeting with Fareas about the launch of their second scent, Paradise. After the initial success of Nirvana, they'd gotten more backers, which led to even more money in the 'piggy' as Jude would have said. Fucking Jude.

Also, he was captain of the L.A. Redwoods with practice for the new season beginning next week, making Derek his number two guy. He wasn't exactly sure how he felt about that… why couldn't the dude just take his two hot clubs and even hotter ex-wife and quietly go away.

He was dripping salt and deep in the zone, so he didn't hear Jude come into the house or walk in the room, until he sensed him and glanced over. Jude was standing at the door looking at him, in that same soft and open way that at one time had made him feel unsettled. 'Christ, he loved him'… he wasn't gonna fuck it up. Again, by acting crazy or jealous.

He squinted before he set the weights onto the grey mat, swung around, then used the remote to turn down, but not off, the sounds of Angel Haze. He stayed seated and just looked at him.

"How did your meeting go?' Jude asked as he came further into the gym. He'd already cast off his tie and jacket in the living room.

"Great. Apparently, everybody wants to smell like Zero… how did your meeting with Noah go?" he blurted just as Jude leaned down to kiss him. So much for no crazy jealousy.

Jude's brows shot up and Gideon could see surprise, guilt, and suspicion cross those beautiful features before settling on rational. "Fine. How did you know about that?" He stood up straight but remained standing over him.

"James. The manager of Browning. We're old… friends."

"I needed some information. He had it," Jude replied simply.

Gideon recognized when Jude was trying to be cagey. He'd just never really experienced it firsthand. That had been reserved for people like Derek or Millie, or random agents. Not him. He looked at Jude pointedly. "What, information?"

Jude just gazed at him. "About the deal," he finally answered, after what seemed forever.

Gideon sensed a deflection. It wasn't like talk wasn't floating around Redwood Stadium about all the teams in the League. But there were thousands of rumors floating around, personal and professional, every day. He stared back. Then with a dry, humorless laugh he began to take off his workout gloves. He knew the Charter of the League. Fuck the charter. And the League.

"He's my friend. He's always gonna be important to me. You're going to have to accept that…" Jude said cautiously.

"I'm being an asshole," Gideon said suddenly. "I realize, even all these years later… on paper. You guys fit, more than we do," he said looking down with a slight shake of his head.

"You're everything to me. You always have been. There's no reason to be jealous. You should know that. The entire time I was with him… I have loved you probably since the minute I fucking saw you. Every aspect of that relationship, you were there. I don't know if I ever did anything that wasn't a retread of us, even if I didn't know it. It's like how you said I couldn't be jealous of every woman you ever flirted with. Well, you can't be that way about Noah… besides, I'm not jealous of Jelena… anymore," he said with a light snort.

"Well, the difference is she never even liked me, let alone loved me."

Jude tilted his head, looked at him hard and took a breath. "Okay. I'll tell you what we talked about, but Gideon you have to promise it goes no further than you and me, and please do not say, hand to god!" he said with a laugh.

"I promise…" he said standing up and suddenly needing to breathe the other man in. They stood chest to chest and Gideon indeed inhaled the slight scent of lavender, that mingled with his own sweat tinged musk as Jude with a smile, grabbed him and pulled him closer. Gideon quickly caught him by the back of the head and pulled him into an enthusiastic kiss. While he was already shirtless and wearing the baggy blue, white and red shorts of the Redwoods, he easily slipped out of them, as Jude quickly removed his own clothes…

"Damn," Gideon uttered. Jude had told him everything. Even beyond the Noah conversation. He looked into those green eyes. He understood that this was going to bind them and that they were in it together, and if anything went wrong they would go down together.

He realized he would do any and everything for him.