Josh shakes his head. “I don’t really want to get into anything until we’re somewhere private.”
All three of us stare at the glass panel separating us from the driver. I’m the first to laugh. “Oh, you guys. Okay, fine. I won’t ask any more until later.”
At the hotel they take me through the elite concierge area then on a private elevator to a landing outside our suite. After a quick tour of the opulent space, I’m drawn immediately to the huge floor to ceiling windows and the mountains rising in the distance. It’s late afternoon and the sun highlights some of the buildings in the valley below the peaks.
“It’s beautiful. Perfect,” I whisper.
Moving to my side, Josh wraps his arm around my shoulders. “Devin thought it might be a good idea to have dinner brought up here so we can watch the sun set as we eat. Tomorrow is soon enough for you to venture out onto the strip.”
Devin joins us although he stands a good twofeet away from me. “Your things are in your room. Anything special you’d like to eat? I’ll order.”
They’re still hiding something and prevaricating. I’ll give them until after we eat to open up. If I’m still in the dark then, all bets are off. “I think, tonight, I’d like a steak.”
The meal is perfect. I’ll never figure out how the food is prepared—I have no clue how far away the kitchen might be—and still served hot and perfectly cooked after delivery. My steak was melt in the mouth tender with the exact strip of red in the middle I prefer.
We linger over the meal and luscious desserts, catching up on each other’s lives. It’s full dark when Devin pushes the cart with our dirty dishes into the hall. Well, as dark as it gets with all the lights glowing from the strip. The edges of the mountains blur faintly into the sky. “Someday I’d love to spend at least one night in the mountains. Or maybe in the desert.”
“Why is that?” Devin asks when he returns with large goblets of pale wine.
I take a sip. “Ooh, that’s good. Because I’d like to see the stars, the expanse of the sky without so much light pollution.”
“Then we’ll do that someday soon,” Josh promises.
I set my glass on the table, lean on my forearms and with my palms against the tabletop, glare at the two men. “Time to spill it, guys. I know there’s something going on. Something that’s not quite right. What’s all this, my trip here all about?”
They share a look I’m unable to decipher.
Josh takes my hand and encourages me to sit sideways in the chair. He drops to one knee. “Kendall, will you marry me?”
two
Josh
Keni’s hand trembles in mine. I don’t know what that means, hopefully she’s just surprised. Hopefully she won’t turn me down without letting me explain. I feel the weight of Devin’s gaze on us, gauging our reactions. He and I spent a good deal of time over the past week discussing this moment. The possible outcomes. What to do next.
Even though we’ve never made our relationship ‘legal’, Devin and I have been together for fifteen years. We talked about getting married and I was willing to give up my place in the family business for him. Sometimes my uncle seems to have antiquatedideas about marriage, although he supports Devin’s and my relationship. I know he’s seen the matching rings we wear to show our commitment to each other, but he hasn’t said anything.
I never have been able to figure out that man’s thought processes and beliefs. Which is why we asked Kendall to come to Vegas.
Staring into her face, I watch emotions flow through her eyes, how they tense her lips or create tiny wrinkles in her forehead. I love her face. Hell, I love her. Back in high school she would have been mine except I didn’t understand the bisexual part of me—how I could want both a man and her. Since she believed I was gay, that’s how our friendship evolved.
I know who I am as a sexual being now. I glance at Devin and he gives me an encouraging half-smile. An emotional thumbs up.
I have my man. Now I want my woman. Even if it’s just pretend.
“Wha…what?”
Keni’s confusion is warranted. I did ask the question out of left field. No warning at all. I kiss the back of her hand and stand. “Remember that play we did junior year?”
Her eyelids lower to cover her rapidly movingpupils as she searches her memory. After a moment she opens her eyes. “The one about the fake relationship?”
“Exactly. I’d like to revisit that possibility with you.”
“What the hell are you talking about?”
Devin shakes his head. “Josh. You’re messing this up. Go talk in the living room. Get comfortable and be direct with the truth.” His gaze lingers on Keni. “She deserves that.”
She slips her hand from mine and uses both hands to lift her wine. The liquid shimmies with her trembling. “I have a feeling you’re involved with this, Devin. You’re coming, too.”
