He jolted and looked up at Richie, who he’d assumed had been the one to kick him, but Richie was busy texting someone. He felt another sharp kick and John’s eyes slid over to Mary, who he could see was smiling rather hollowly at Hogan. She caught his eye for half a second, and he could easily read the help-me signal.

Ignoring the balloon of pride in his chest at being the one she’d asked for help, he tapped Beth on the elbow and steered her toward Mary.

“Hey, Mary,” John interrupted whatever cocky asshole thing that Hogan was saying. “Have you met Beth Herari? She’s actually a beat cop in your neighborhood.”

Hogan scowled at John, and John had to resist the urge to smirk at him.

Mary jumped on the chance. She slid off the barstool and took a few steps toward Beth, leaving Hogan behind and jumping into conversation with the other woman. John slid back onto the barstool, leaving Hogan nowhere to go but back to his original seat. He figured it wasn’t a coincidence that the second Hogan’s overbearing presence receded, Richie dragged his nose out of his phone and took a deep breath.

They finished their round, said goodbye to Beth and left the bar as a trio. “Jeez,” Richie said glumly, once they were out on the sidewalk and headed toward the trains. “Next time I’ll have you meet me at a gay bar, Mary. That way you won’t cockblock me so hard.”

Mary burst into that sparkly laugh of hers. “Who was I cockblocking you from? Oh, not Hogan?!”

“The very same,” Richie said with a sigh.

“He reads as very straight to me,” Mary said in a careful tone.

“Straight as an arrow,” Richie agreed with an even bigger sigh. “Hence the need for a gay bar. I spend too much time with this guy—” he tossed a thumb toward John “—and not enough time with my own people.”

John bristled. “Hey! I go to gay bars with you.” He’d always been very conscious of making sure his best friend felt supported. John had no desire to stifle Richie’s identity.

“Yeah, and then you’re the one cockblocking me,” Richie griped. “They eat up the tall, dark and grumpy thing he has going on,” he informed Mary.

“Well, you should know better than to go cruising for guys with your hot friend in tow,” Mary scolded Richie. She cocked her head to one side. “Either way, I can’t imagine you have much trouble finding interested men, Richie. You’re a babe.”

Richie and Mary laughed and chatted back and forth, and John bobbed along behind them. His brain was still frozen on the moment when Mary had called him hot.

“Oh, are you free, John?” Richie’s voice pulled John out of his blurry reverie.

“Huh?”