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“Surprise!” Daniel exclaimed from my side, kissing my lifeless cheek. If I wasn’t so hyper-aware of the man in front of me, I would’ve missed the subtle rippling of his jaw caused by my husband’s easy display of affection toward me.
“The terrace is empty if you want some privacy.” Privacy was the last thing we needed. Cole and I needed to be supervised at all times.
“I took Daniel’s invitation as a sign—” “As an excuse, you mean. An excuse to show up and throw my life off its fucking axis.” “I see New York has roughened you,”
“And I missed my brother,” he admitted, his tone held a vulnerability his stoicism would never betray. “Stepbrothers,” I corrected. “And we were never just that, Cole.” We had been more. We had been sinful. And the high voltage of electricity sizzling through my veins warned me we were all those things still. Time and space would never change that. “But we aren’t even that anymore. Any familial link we had died with my mother.”
because my heart wasn’t whole. I’d left the other half of it back in Seattle, and now it was here, right in front of me, staring into me as if nothing could keep us apart. Not even my vows.
“I gave you what you wanted. I let you go, and I stayed away. I didn’t try to find or make contact with you. But I miss our friendship. Our brotherhood. I miss you,” he whispered. “And not in the way you think.”
But Cole was an animal with a suit as his cage, and no forged piece of jewelry on my hand or legal document binding me to Daniel would keep him from what he wanted, if what he wanted was me. I couldn’t afford to forget that. I couldn’t afford to forget we were one and the same.
“Is following HR protocol below your paygrade?” “Are you asking me if I’m fucking my assistant?” “Are you?” “Do you care?” he asked. “Only as far as using your answer to build my case on your character—or lack thereof—goes.”
“You could’ve knocked on my door—” “And you would’ve turned me away,” he argued. “So you hired Daniel as a way to tether us together. You decided to make it impossible for me to get rid of you,” I said around the lump of terror lodged in my throat. “Impossible for you to ignore me,” he amended without remorse. “I’m not here to make your life hard.” “Then why has it suddenly gotten harder? Why does it feel like it’s about to implode?”
“Are you still in love with me, Cole?” “No,” he said quickly. Too quickly. I should’ve called bullshit. It should’ve been a deal breaker for whatever I was about to concede to.
“Anything, Jas,” he said desperately, using the nickname he’d given me as a kid. “No one’s called me that before,” I’d said. “It’s mine. If anyone calls you that, you tell them it belongs to me. That you belong to me.”
Without him I might have ended up like you, but because of him, I know what makes a great man. And he’s the greatest man in this room.”
“Why?” he implored. “You’re too good for him.” “Don’t.” I looked nervously toward the stairs. “Why do you let him demean you?”
“Whoa, slow down.” He pushed me back by my shoulders. “What’s gotten into you tonight?” “How about sex right here?” I hopped onto the island. “We eat here,” he said, mouth downturned.
