“I assumed,” Chloe said faintly, head spinning.
“See?It’s fine.Shit, I have to pee again.”Putting the phone down, Lou hauled herself up.“Don’t leave until I get back,” she told Chloe and waddled off.
Chloe looked at Sawyer.“Is she always like this?”
Sawyer laughed softly.“Pretty much.Lou’s a bit of a whirlwind.”
Understatement of the year,Chloe thought.
“Anyway,” Sawyer said.“We were talking about Knox and Jesse being in love with you.”
Chloe shook her head and ignored the wild leap of hope.“You’re wrong.”
“I’m not,” Sawyer said, and his voice was so firm and sure that she stopped to stare at him.“I’ve known them a long time, in Knox’s case longer than I’ve known my wife, and I can honestly say I’ve never seen them this way with anyone but each other.”
That hope wanted to leap again, forcing Chloe to ruthlessly tamp it down.“It doesn’t matter.It could never work.”
Sawyer’s gaze was steady, those peridot eyes watchful.“Why not?”
Chloe stared at him, anger rising at his oh-so-reasonable tone.Couldn’t hesee, didn’t heknowhow much this hurt?
His gaze gentled.“Let me rephrase that.Do you want it to work?”
Theyeswas there on the tip of her tongue, ready to spill out.She bit it back.“I don’t know.”
He nodded.“Well, then I guess that’s what you have to figure out.”
Lou came hurrying back, face flushed.“What did I miss?”
“Not much,” Sawyer said easily.
Lou rolled her eyes.“Right.Is she going to talk to them?”
Sawyer glanced at Chloe.“Undecided.”
“Uh-huh.Well, for the record, I think you should.”
Chloe looked at her, this woman who’d married a sex worker and was fine with it—more than fine, from all appearances.“Can I ask you a question?”
Lou’s eyebrows went up, her only indication of surprise.“Sure.”
“You know what your husband does for a living, right?”
Amusement sparked in Lou’s eyes now, curved her lush mouth.“Yes, I do.”
“So you have what most people might call an…unconventional relationship.”
The smile deepened.“I suppose that’s true.”
Chloe lifted her hands, let them fall.“How do you do it?”
“I remember that what matters is here.”Lou pointed at Sawyer and then at herself.“Between us.The rest isn’t my problem.”
Chloe waited a beat.“That’s it?”
“Pretty much.You gotta decide if it’s worth it.Once you do?”She shrugged.“Other people’s opinions are just noise.”
“It’s not quite the same situation, Chloe,” Sawyer said quietly.“Not everyone sees my job, the way they will the three of you.You’ll have public speculation, public disapproval.There’s no avoiding that.”
