“Mandy’s sister, Chantelle,” I replied in a bored tone. Women flirted with Connor everywhere we went, even when I stood right beside him. He never flirted back. “Apparently, when Mandy told her the Ardonell Cologne guy had been a guest at the wedding, Chantelle couldn’t possibly believe it unless she met him herself. Her excuses are almost as lame as yours,” I added, winking at him over my shoulder.
The Ardonell Cologne advertising campaign had been Connor’s big break. It had launched him from a relative unknown to supermodel status within a few months. He’d continued to be the face of Ardonell Cologne for four years, his face plastered on billboards and in magazines all around the world.
“Tell her she’s dreamin’,” Law drawled, and I burst out laughing at the familiar line, drawing my brother’s attention from across the room. Seeing us standing together, his brow drew into a frown.
Smothering my amusement, I took a tiny step forward, away from Law. We hadn’t yet told anyone about our relationship. It was still so new and, being on the non-traditional side, we’d decided we weren’t ready to invite any opinions from the outside world.
Surprisingly, Law had proved the most reluctant to come clean. I suspected Frank’s reaction concerned him most. It worried me also but, as my brother, Frank had to love me anyway. Law stood on rockier ground, especially because we’d already been through the relationship wringer once, with painful results. I understood Law’s fear of losing his best friend over this second attempt, even if we were confident it would work out.
“I should go see if I can do anything to help,” Law said, crossing the room to stand beside Frank. Helping apparently involved the two of them watching from the sidelines while Caroline worked on connecting the laptop to the television.
Frank and Caroline had received their wedding photos from the photographer a few days ago and had called everyone to assemble at their place for dinner and a viewing. My parents were there, along with Mandy and her flirtatious sister, and the three of us. We’d already demolished the feast, while Frank and Caroline told us about their honeymoon—the G-rated parts at least. Now, we were left waiting for the electronics to be sorted out before we had the pleasure of sitting through an entire wedding day worth of pictures. The prospect wasn’t particularly enticing, but I enjoyed seeing my brother so happy, and at least I’d get to spend the time snuggled on a couch with my two favourite men. Even if we did have to be careful not to be too obvious about it.
“I think we’re ready to go,” Caroline announced at last. “Frank, can you get the lights, please?”
The overhead light went out as we all scrambled for seats. The room contained two couches and I nabbed a spot at the end of one of them. Connor joined me. There was barely enough room for a third person on Connor’s other side, but I saw Chantelle eying it off. She tried not to be obvious as she rushed across the room. Thankfully, Law dropped into the vacant spot just in time. “Hey there, mate,” he said to Connor as if they were the chummiest of friends in desperate need of catching up. “How’s things?” Not waiting for an answer, he looked up at Chantelle with smug satisfaction.
Her eyes narrowed as she glared at Law. But with no other recourse available, she went to find herself another seat.
“Thank you,” Connor whispered to Law as we all shifted around in an attempt to make the small couch comfortably accommodate all three of us.
“No problem.” Grinning, Law stretched one arm out along the back of the couch, taking care to keep some small margin of distance between himself and Connor. “There are very specific limits to my willingness to share.”
I snorted a laugh before winking at him.
We turned our attention to the glow of the giant television as the pictures began to cycle. Much ohing and ahing ensued, with laughter over the less than flattering shots, and admiration for those that turned out just right.
By the time we reached the reception photos, I’d curled in to one side of Connor, while Law had relaxed against his other side. Law’s arm still lay across the back of the couch, but it had drifted forward to settle against Connor’s back while his fingertips played lazily across my shoulder.
When I realised the subtle behaviours would be a dead giveaway to anyone who watched us closely enough, I let my gaze wander around the room, to see if anyone had noticed.
One set of eyes locked with mine.
Frank.
* * *
The coffee tasted like life and I needed to stop having sex with my boyfriends for five minutes so I could get some sleep.
“You two are turning me into a zombie,” I groaned, half-collapsed across the dining table. “I’m so glad I don’t have to work today.”
Connor leaned over me from behind, one hand sliding across my belly as he kissed my cheek. “Maybe you should take a nap.”
I snorted. “The last time I tried to take a nap you followed me, and we spent the whole afternoon naked and very much awake.”
Lawrence gave a low chuckle from his spot on the nearby couch. “But you can’t say that wasn’t entirely worth it in the end.”
A thumping on the door interrupted our conversation and Connor went to answer it.
Frank barged into the apartment, not bothering to wait for an invitation. His gaze darted about the living area, obviously looking for evidence of our transgressions. He took in Connor’s bare chest, then my loosely tied dressing gown. When Law stood up from the couch wearing only a pair of low-slung pyjama pants, Frank zeroed in on him.
“You son of a bitch,” he growled, striding across the room. His fist connected with Law’s jaw, knocking him back a step.
I came to my feet with a gasp. Connor swore under his breath and leapt between the two men, but Frank was already backing away, not intent on doing any more damage. “Fuck,” he muttered, cupping his fist with his other hand. “That fucking hurt.”
“No kidding,” Law snapped as he straightened, rubbing his jaw.
Rounding the table, I rushed to Law’s side. “Are you all right?”
