He started for the door, but as he passed me, his fingertips brushed against mine, curled around them, held on for the length of a single heartbeat. Exactly the way they had that night so long ago. “It’s good to have you home, Connor,” he murmured in a low voice, as if these particular words belonged to me alone. “Don’t be a stranger.” He pressed something into my palm before he let go.
I waited until he closed the door behind him, before circling around to stand in front of Gabi, who had yet to move a single muscle. “Acquaintances, huh?”
Coming back to life all at once, she released a growly cry and raked clawed fingers through her dark hair. “That man makes me so mad.” Stomping into the kitchen, she began unpacking the groceries in a great flurry of activity, lamenting Law’s flaws all the while. I didn’t bother to point out it wasn’t anger that had her so worked up.
Half-listening to Gabi’s rant, I looked down at the business card Law had given me. His phone number was printed in thick, black ink across the bottom. Confusion and lust warred inside me. He’d obviously never gotten over his desire to see us both in his bed, but his parting words to Gabi implied he would make a play for her at the wedding, with or without me.
Gabi had made it clear years ago she wasn’t interested in being part of a threesome, which meant only one man could win her heart. I’d be damned if I’d lose her to Law a second time.
I needed to be at that wedding.
ELEVEN
______
GABI
Sean had always been more organised than me. He had an impressive collection of photo books showing his work. Each one embossed with his professional photography logo,Visions by Grey. My heart went a little melty over the name. Dante had given Sean the name Grey when they’d met briefly as teenagers. From that moment on, it was like they were connected in some invisible way that went beyond a sudden surge of teen lust. It seemed more like fate or something. Now they’d finally found each other again, and officially become a couple, they seemed… complete.
I’d been unsure of Dante at first, even if he was a drop-dead gorgeous, world-famous rock star. But I’d seen how he was with Sean, and I appreciated the effort he’d put into getting to know me. After a while, liking him became impossible to resist. Plus, I’d never seen Sean so happy, and I’d known him since the first day of high school when we’d bonded over a photo of my dog I’d contacted to the front of my English book. He’d asked me what kind of camera I had. I’d answered with details about the body of the camera, and the type of lens I’d attached for that particular photo. When he got all excited and told me about the lens he’d gotten for Christmas and the photos he’d taken with it, I knew we’d be friends for life.
Sliding the last of the photo books onto the reassembled shelf, I added the empty box to the collection by the front door. “The books are done,” I yelled to no one in particular.
A thump came from the next room, followed by some faint shuffling. When Sean appeared in the bedroom doorway, he had messy hair and glazed eyes.
Lifting my eyebrows, I put my hands on my hips. “If you two have spent the last twenty minutes going at it while I’ve been out here unpacking your shit, I’ll be pissed. At least let me sneak a peek, so it’s worth my while.”
Dante appeared behind Sean, wearing a rakish grin as he gathered his curls into a low ponytail. “I needed to show Sean our new walk-in wardrobe.” Hair fixed, he lowered one hand until it disappeared behind Sean’s butt. Sean jumped, releasing a strangled whimper. “It’s a bit on the small side,” Dante added, “but I think we can make do.”
“Make do?” Sean scoffed as he moved out of his partner’s reach. “It may seem small to the rock stars among us, but I’ve spent the last two years living in a one-bedroom shoe box. This house is like a palace to me.”
Sean and Dante had gotten together while Sean lived and worked at his dad’s musician’s retreat, where Dante had been a guest. Now, Dante’s time at the retreat had come to an end and Sean had left his old job behind, leaving them both without a home. It made sense for them to move in together while Dante finished the album he’d been working on at the retreat. After the album release, they’d be jetting off together on Dante’s promotional tour, with Sean taking on his dream job as the tour photographer.
“Does your palace have coffee?” I asked, trying not to think about how much I’d miss my friends when they were gone. “I’m ready for a break.”
“You’re in luck.” Sean gestured for me to follow him into the kitchen. “We bought a fancy coffee machine yesterday.” He made a show of presenting the shiny chrome contraption. “I set it up before you got here this morning. You’ll have the honour of the first cup.”
“Babe?” Dante indicated the boxes piled on the counters. None of them were labelled. “Any idea where we can find some mugs?”
Sean shook his head. “Not a clue. But how hard can it be?”
Chuckling at their hopelessness, I picked a box at random and took the box cutter from my back pocket. “Hey, you won’t believe who went sneaking over to my place before I got home from work the other day,” I said as I sliced through the tape. “Lawrence Miller.”
Sean made an appropriate sound of disgruntled surprise. “What was he doing there?”
“Looking for Connor, of course. What does he always do when my back is turned?” Folding back the flaps, I peered into the box of smallish objects, each one wrapped in a sheet of newspaper. With any luck, at least three of them would turn out to be suitable for holding hot liquid. “I finally told him Connor was staying with me and it took him all of a day to show up with some excuse about delivering ribbons for the wedding. Lame,” I added with an extra dose of sarcasm.
“Lawrence,” Dante said as he unpacked a small pile of crockery on the other side of the kitchen. “He’s the guy who cheated on you with Connor, wasn’t he?”
I turned to Sean with a pointed look.
“What?” he asked, all innocence. “It happened forever ago and it’s a good story. I swear, I’ve never told anyone else.”
“If you say so,” I said, before turning back to Dante. “Yes, he’s the one.”
He hissed in a breath. “Damn, that must have hurt like a bitch.”
“Yeah, it really did.” Thankfully, the memories of that night had long since lost the power to hurt me. Although the knowledge that Law’s fascination with Connor continued unabated stung a little. “Not to mention, walking in on the two of them all cosy together the other day was a bit of a shock.”
