Archer ruffles my hair. “Don’t apologize, Chef. Last night was fun.”
“I heard,” I add over the top of my mug, glancing back and forth between them.
I catch the way they look at each other, mischief on their faces, and it makes my chest ache with longing. How could I miss out on watching them kiss?
I can’t help but wonder…who made the first move? Was there any groping? Who is the better kisser, or are they equally good?
I quickly shake the thought away. “Listen, as much as I’d like to further discuss what did and could have happened last night, we have to talk about your offer.”
“What about it?” Archer asks nonchalantly.
“Well, obviously, I know that was just…drunk talk, and I couldn’t possibly accept money like that.”
Their eyes wrinkle with confusion at the same time. “Why not?” Julian asks.
“Because it’s too much.”
“It’s an investment,” he argues.
“So I’d pay you back…”
“Nah,” Archer says.
At the same time, Julian rolls his eyes, muttering, “Sure.”
Chewing on the side of my cheek, I let this idea sink in some more. Surely, this is a mistake. Taking so much money, even as an investment, from two guys I just met…who I am romantically interested in…is not a wise idea.
Is it?
Looking down, I run my finger along the rim of my mug. “I don’t know the first thing about running a business.”
“We do,” Julian states firmly.
“You two are going to help me?” I ask.
“Why not?” Archer replies.
I look up into his eyes as he takes a sip of his coffee, his large hand nearly gripping the entire mug all the way around. “Well…for starters, I don’t think you’re supposed to go into business with people you almost had a threesome with.”
Archer nearly chokes. “Are you saying that if we open a restaurant together, we can’t have sex too?”
My cheeks flush with heat. “Basically.”
“Well, that’s not fair. He owns a sex club. I’m sure he’s slept with all the other owners.”
Julian shakes his head. “Not a single one.”
Archer levels him with a glare. “You’re not helping.”
“They’re like my siblings.”
“That’s even weirder.”
The two of them argue as my mind races. Archer’s right. It seems unfair that we would have to choose between each other and the restaurant of my dreams. And after what I learned about them in the elevator, they need this. Something to care about. Something to drive them. Something to excel at.
But this thing between us is so confusing already. I’m attracted to both of them, but one relationship is surely going to outlast the other, right? It’s not like I can end up with both men. So eventually one of these business relationships is going to turn sour. And I hate to even think about that.
There’s no way I could choose between them. And I can’t ask them to compete. They are clearly too fond of each other, and I’d hate to get in the middle of that. Or what if they choose each other, and I’m still stuck in business with them?
