Three superheroes in love! Or one superhero, one former sidekick, and one redeemed supervillain, at least. Ryan, John, and Holiday have been partners -- in every sense of the word -- for two years. They’ve saved the world, fallen in love, and remodeled the secret base to include bookshelves and a bigger bed. But Ryan and John have always been the public face of the team. The world still believes Holiday’s a villain. And he’s been using that reputation to stay undercover and share information. Tonight, though, Holiday comes home injured, and his partners aren’t sure the mission’s worth his life. Caution: this story also contains lasagna, superhero theatrics, home renovation, a thunderstorm, and very enjoyable use of superpowers in bed.

Extraordinary Book 1: Sundown, Holiday, Beacon

“Ridiculous supervillain,” Ryan said, with fondness. “Don’t go off and play spy until I get back, I want to talk to you, okay?” and went to shower and change. He did not want John to get wetter as a result of his own rain-drenched suit; those lungs were still recovering.2


The shower felt incredible. Massaging heat. Pebbled floors. Icy rainwater sluicing away down the drain. Holly’s ludicrously expensive apple-scented body wash and John’s ocean-spray cleanness. His own shampoo, light and woodsy and familiar.


Ryan turned his hair into foamy spikes just because. Pondered how he’d look with a new haircut to go with a proposed new name. Caught sight of their collection of shower lube, bottles arranged in tidy formation because they’d each independently remembered to buy more and had come home with three different new brands and John had shrugged and said, “Why not test them all and compare?”


Chapter 5