My lids flew open, and all thoughts of sleep fled. “What?” I whispered as he lay on his side, facing me with eyes soft as twilight. Silence weighed heavily between us.
“You know I always have to be first.” He kissed me. “So? Is it?”
I nudged his cheek. “Not for me it isn’t. And since you didn’t exactly say it to me but asked the question, I love you.” I kissed the tip of his nose. “Now I said it first.”
“I’ve got you, so this time I don’t care if I come in second.” Weston claimed my mouth in a breath-stealing kiss. “I’m not that kind of guy to argue a point, especially when I’m on the winning side.”
“I think for the first time, we both came out on top.”
Chapter Twenty-Two
Weston
Even having to sidestep the photographers camped outside my apartment building, shouting questions about my sex life, I was in a damn good mood. The ugly confrontation with my father had faded away, replaced by the absolute perfection of having Brenner there with me all weekend. I strolled into my office alone, Brenner and I continuing to arrive separately so as not to raise suspicion. After our talk, neither of us had been able to sleep, so Brenner had gone home to change, and I’d decided to come to the office early. I’d assured Daniel that our relationship would have no impact on the firm, and I intended to keep that promise.
Yawning, I pushed open the door to my office, only to be greeted by Grady sitting at my conference table, a cup in his hand and a grin on his face.
“Well, well. Good morning, sunshine. How the hell are you, or do I even need to ask?”
I plucked the coffee out of his hand. “Thanks. And things have only gotten better since we last spoke.” I set my bag on the desk and sank into the chair. I took a sip of the coffee and almost died. “What the hell is this shit?”
“Turkish coffee. Drink up. It’ll put hair on your chest and keep you up all night.” His eyes twinkled. “Although maybe Brenner takes care of that?”
I handed him his cup. “My chest is hairy enough, and I’m not hearing any complaints from Brenner, thank you very much.” I smirked and got busy with my coffee machine.
“You two had a good weekend, I presume? No other repercussions from the meeting with your father?”
My good mood faded. “I wouldn’t exactly call it a meeting. More like a clash. He thinks I’m with Brenner to sabotage his run for the presidency.” I snorted. “I haven’t let my father influence my decisions in any part of my life since I was fifteen and caught him cheating on my mother when she had just been diagnosed with cancer.”
“Good,” Grady said, serious. “Brenner is a really good guy, and I’d hate to see him hurt.”
That stung. “Hey, what the hell does that mean? I’m a nice fucking guy too, you know. Why would I want to hurt him?”
“I’m not saying you do. But you like to party, always up for fun and games. Brenner’s quiet. He’s the guy who never fit in.”
“He fits with me. I know you don’t get it, and frankly, neither do we, but the two of us…we work. I couldn’t have faced my father if Brenner wasn’t there with me. But I hate having to duck and run from photographers all the time. And it’s not fair to Brenner. He didn’t sign up for this.” I pressed my lips together until they hurt. “But I’d run through fire to make sure he doesn’t ever feel less than wanted again.”
“You’re crazy about him.” There was no question. Grady knew.
“I fucking love him. I’m not afraid to say it.”
“You’ve told him?”
I took a sip of coffee. “Yeah. This morning. We said it to each other. But I gotta tell you…it’s almost like something I was waiting for. It happened so easily between us, maybe it was always there and we weren’t in the position or mindset to recognize it.”
Grady shrugged and finished his vile cup of death. “Sexuality is fluid, always changing. I’m proud of you two for accepting what I could see from the beginning.”
Someone knocked on my door.
“Come in.”
Brenner walked in but stopped when he saw Grady. “Oh, sorry. I didn’t mean to interrupt.”
“Don’t be ridiculous. Grady was giving me the third degree about us.”
“Hey,” Grady protested. “No way. I think it’s great. And I called it right away.”
Brenner’s face was red, which was cute. That shy uptick of his lips and the way he ducked his head? Adorable. And mine. Damn, I had it bad. No one but Brenner had ever brought out that possessive side of me.
