GABRIEL
Christ.That was close.
I wipe the sweat from my forehead and lean against the door, trying to catch my breath.
I knew Elijah had someone over. But not in amillionyears would I have guessed it was Alex.
Jesus.
The sight of him half naked, wrapped up in my husband’s arms—ugh, I don’t have words.
Thank God they didn’t see me when I turned that corner.
I’d barely made it back to my room before I heard my daughter’s bedroom door creak open.
It’s like a three-ring circus in this house. A heads-up would’ve been nice.
I flop onto my bed, grab my sweatshirt off the floor, and tug it over my head, trying to push the image from my mind.
Was it really only last month that I’d stood outside Gravity, watching the finishing touches go up on the billboard over theclub? The new ad for Valente board shorts. His back to the camera, all smooth muscle and ink.
I knew exactly who I was looking at.
Alexander Jarrell.
The sound to my silence.
And, without question, my sin.
And now, apparently… Elijah’s new love interest.
Muttering a curse, I grab my laptop, type in the password with shaking fingers, and pull up the hidden folder I swore I’d never open again.
HIM—that’s what I named it.
Alex Jarrell, as he’s known on social media, the sexiest and most desirable male model to grace the electric pages of the internet.
I stare at each photo, unblinking. My eyes follow every curve of the puzzle pieces inked into his skin.
My thoughts spiral, a storm of want, lies, and regret.
I’m riddled with anxiety.
All I know is this: I’m closer than I ever imagined to solving that puzzle.
Because now he’s here.
In my home.
I drop my head into my hands, fingers tangling in my hair, as the truth escapes into the air and travels down the hallway, where the puzzle himself now sits…
With my husband.
5
ELIJAH
I findAlex standing by the living room windows, bathed in moonlight, his gaze fixed on the skyline. His back is to me, and for the first time, I really take in the ink that covers his body.
