“Look, I know this is a journey, and maybe it’s not my place to say all of that to you, but I love you, man. And I want to see you happy. You’ve definitely been lighter since you started thisdouble-date thing. And… you asked God to find you a woman, remember?”
I snicker, shaking my head. “And he found me my best friend’s girl?”
Grady winces. “Yeah, the Big G’s got a sick sense of humor. I’m sure he was laughing his ass off when he put me and Blake together.”
My snicker turns into a genuine laugh.
“I tried to fight so hard against everything I was feeling for her.” Grady shakes his head. “And it made me fucking miserable. All because I didn’t want to hurt Wily. In the end, it made everything worse. I should have just owned it right from the start, talked to him about how I was feeling.”
I go still, his words sinking into me.
“And I shouldn’t have fought so hard. I ended up hurting Blake by rejecting her, and what a fucking waste. Thankfully, we got through it pretty quickly, but still… all that angst when I should have just been honest.”
Now I’m nodding, although I still can’t say anything.
“Don’t let your guilt over something that happened three years ago ruin what could be an amazing, beautiful thing. You and Dani both deserve to be happy. You’re two good people. And good people should be together, you know?”
My lips curl into a grateful smile, and I manage to rasp a soft “Thanks, man.”
He holds out his hand, and I give it a quick slide before snapping my fingers and watching him walk up the stairs… to his bed… where Blake is no doubt waiting for him.
Pulling out my phone, I brush my thumb over the screen and send Dani a quick text.
Me: Thanks for the best date I’ve ever had.
Dani Girl: That wasn’t a date. That was you watching me work.
Me: The ending was pretty date-like.
Dani Girl: The ending was perfect.
I smile at her words, clutching the phone in my hand before sending her a string of emojis and a quick good night. She returns the favor, and I head up to my room, begging myself to believe that what happened between us was meant to be… and that Atlas, wherever he is in the afterlife, will forgive me for taking something that meant so much to him.
CHAPTER 31
DANI
Tonight was perfect.
But I still can’t shake the feeling that maybe it wasn’t supposed to happen.
After nearly three years of no sex, experiencing that again was so freaking good! And to have Tyrell be the one to pleasure me… well, it wasn’t as awkward as I thought it would be. If anything, it felt like the most natural thing in the world. Which is probably why I’m freaking out.
Because Atlas has always been my one and only.
But that’s not the case anymore, and shouldn’t it feel weirder than this?
But it really was perfect.
If I could play that scenario out any other way, I couldn’t find a better version. Doing it with Tyrell on that stage was sexy and sweet and erotic and…
I flop back down on my bed with a sigh, my arms splaying wide as I grin up at the ceiling, only to have that uncertainty butt into me again.
My smile fades, my stomach twisting as I pull my phone close and reread my texts with Tyrell.
He is a sweetheart.
And I didn’t plan on sleeping with him tonight.
