Jesse’s grip on my hip tightened, his hand between my legs speeding up to match his pace as he withdrew and pushed in again. I felt him everywhere all at once, my nerve endings tingling and every sensitive part inside me fully stimulated with every move he made.
As he found his rhythm, I thought I might’ve fallen and tripped into an alternate universe in which I was living in one of my books. My muscles tensed, but my body matched himseamlessly, so in tune with his that it was like I knew what he was going to do before he’d even done it.
But somehow the first orgasm took me by surprise, smacking into me so hard and so fast that it stole my breath and my vision. I nearly collapsed with the force of it, but Jesse was there, holding me, easing me onto the bed and then sliding down the length of my body to kiss between my legs.
It was entirely too much and yet I also didn’t want it to end. I lost track of what he was doing to me after that, adrift in a sea of sensation that only ended when he was finally inside me again, his eyes on mine this time when I felt him swell deep inside me.
He came on a low murmur of my name, his features beautifully contorted for a moment before he was kissing me again, pulling me to him and holding me like he’d never let me go.
CHAPTER 29
WILL
Iabsolutely shouldnothave done that.
The thought kept circling around my head all day long. It would’ve probably been there last night too, except for the fact that I’d been so out of my mind that I hadn’t been thinking at all.
To be fair, she’d baited me into it like a pro, but I’d taken that bait hook, line, and sinker, and not because I hadn’t known what she was doing, but because I hadn’t wanted to. Eliza Roderick had me wrapped around her little finger and she had officially managed to rob me of my sanity.
If this had been our engagement party for real, I would’ve been the happiest crazy guy in the world. But it wasn’t.
My father’s house was already full when we arrived. The music from the string quartet in the corner was low and too many voices already echoed through the halls. These were people who’d known us all our lives, who had watched Jesse charm his way through every room he’d ever walked into. People who knewhim,which was bound to be a problem, but my father seemed to have forgotten about that little technicality.
I walked in with my hand in the small of her back, needing to touch her. Even if just like this. Just for these last couple hours before my brother and I would have to switch.
IfJesse showed up, that was. He wasn’t here yet. I knew that as soon as I walked in, but it was early. He might still surprise me, but honestly, I was kind of hoping he would just stay gone.
Meanwhile, Eliza glanced up at me with something flickering in her eyes that hadn’t been there before last night. Intimacy. Trust. The way a person only looked at someone else when that final frontier had been crossed and they knew they were on their way to forever.
It fucking broke me, but I kept moving forward, doing my best not to think about it. The first few minutes were easy enough. I knew how to move through a room like this, who to greet first, who expected attention, and who could be acknowledged from a distance without causing offense. Today, I just had to do it as him.
“Jesse,” someone called and I turned instinctively, a smile already in place. “It’s about time you two showed up. Congratulations.”
“Thanks, Davie,” I replied smoothly, even though he’d always beenDavidto me.
I shook his hand, clapping him on the shoulder before moving on, falling into a rhythm I’d spent years observing. Jesse never stayed still during events like this. He was always on the move and I mimicked that, hating every second of dragging Eliza from group to group.
She stayed beside me, offering polite smiles when introduced, but otherwise, she was quiet. Her hand brushed mine occasionally though, the touches light and fleeting, but enough to keep me aware of her at all times.
Not that I needed the reminder.
“Will!” I didn’t flinch when I heard my name, turning to meet the gaze of an older man we’d known so long, I had a picture of him holding me in the hospital just after my birth. “How are you, my boy?”
“Jesse,” I corrected easily. “I’m good, though. Have you met Eliza yet?”
“I…” Martin trailed off, confusion furrowing his features as he looked at me intently. “Of course. Sorry. I just… Jesse?”
“Yeah, man. Don’t sweat it. It’s good to see you.”
He blinked a few times but I moved on before the conversation could really get uncomfortable, guiding Eliza with me. I kept our momentum going, but it happened again and again.
Callum, my cousin from California, audibly snorted when I tried correcting him, clearly not buying it at all. He flashed me a look that said we’d talk later, but then he fell into an easy conversation with Eliza, fighting a smile every time he said Jesse’s name.
An old family friend who probably hadn’t seen Jesse for years, but knewmewell enough to feel that something was off, came up to us next. One of Dad’s golf buddies whose company I did business with often took over after that.
Each time I corrected them, they hesitated. I tried smoothing it over, but by the time Eliza and I got separated by Kate dragging her away, I was exhausted. But that steady awareness of her was still humming under my skin.
It didn’t matter where she was in the room, I could feel the exact moment her attention shifted back to me. Every time it happened and I looked over, she was already watching me. I spoke to a few more guests, but I barely registered their words. When her eyes found mine again, the look in them wasn’t soft or uncertain. It was heated. Wanting. Making me hard—at the party to celebrate her engagement to my fucking brother.
