And yet… I feel it again, that strange, sharp mix of fear and something dangerously close to excitement.
“I should hate this,” I admit quietly. “This situation. This place. The fact that I’m here at all.”
Finn tilts his head. “But?”
I swallow. “But I don’t.”
Zane’s voice is low when he speaks. “You understand what that means, right?”
I glance at him. “That I have questionable judgment?”
Finn huffs. “Confirmed.”
Ryder doesn’t smile. “It means you see us clearly. And you’re still here.”
My pulse spikes.
Because that’s the truth, isn’t it?
I’ve seen the edge, and I didn’t walk away.
I step closer without thinking about it.
“That’s the part that scares me,” I admit.
“Good. Means you’re not naïve,” Finn says.
Zane’s fingers brush my arm. “And?”
I look between them.
“At the same time…” I hesitate, then force the words out. “It doesn’t make me want to run.”
I reach up instinctively, my hand gripping the back of Ryder’s neck, pulling his mouth to mine. His skin is warm, the muscles beneath taut. His breath hitches slightly, and I can feel his heat seeping through me, the pressure of his body against mine.
When he pulls away, I’m left breathless. His lips hover just above mine, his eyes locked onto mine with that same intensity that’s always been there.
Finn’s hand slides back to my waist, firmer now, and my body answers like it’s been waiting for him. Maybe it has. I curl back against him, feeling a cloud of warmth at my shoulders. His breath is at my ear.
“Are you cold?” he asks, and the real question is: do you want this?
I can’t speak. I just nod and let him pull me further into the room with the couches. I feel another presence beside me.
It’s Zane.
His fingers brush my shoulder, and then his lips are on my neck, soft and teasing. He’s slower than Ryder, more calculated, making sure every kiss is intense. His hands trace down my back, sending a shiver down my spine.
I break open, flooding me with need.
Not the trembly, uncertain kind from before.
This is tidal.
I want to drown in it. I want all three of them, at once, any way they’ll give themselves to me. I reach for Zane with my free hand, finding his shirt collar and pulling him close, tangling our lips together with force and need. He meets me there with a hungry little growl, his fingers kneading my back.
His teeth scrape.
Ryder’s hand slides down my arm, his thumb skating the inside of my wrist with a gentleness that should be at odds with the heat rampaging through us.
