“It’s nice to meet you both,” Devon said. “And I’m sorry about Cain not sharing the news about our engagement with you. I asked him not to tell anyone until we announced it in the paper. Call it being superstitious, but I didn’t want to jinx anything.” She wrinkled her nose, the gesture adorable. And damn believable even as she lied with a straight face. “He was just indulging me.”
“I’m trying to picture an indulgent Cain.” Kenan cocked his head and squinted. “I kind of like the look on you, brother.”
Across the room, Achilles snorted.
“If you two are finished with the nosy busybodies act, can I have a private moment with Devon, please?” Cain growled, his patience with the two men ending.
Kenan tsked, shaking his head. “We would be eternally grateful if you could do something about his manners while you’re at it, Devon. Welcome to the family.”
Kenan twistedfamilyas if it were some kind of private joke. And maybe it was. To call them his “brothers” was more than a stretch—it neared a tall tale. Still, the asshole pressed a kiss to Devon’s cheek and had the audacity to flash a grin at Cain before exiting the office. With a chin lift, Achilles unfolded himself and followed their younger brother out.
“Would it be totally inappropriate for me to start singing ‘Papa Was a Rolling Stone’ right now?” Devon whispered.
Cain stared at her. Then snorted.
Instead of answering her question, though, he asked the one that had been plaguing him for the past few minutes. “Why did you lie to Kenan and Achilles?”
She shrugged. “I didn’t want your brothers’ feelings hurt because they believed you didn’t tell them about the engagement. And I didn’t want you to have to lie to another family member.”
Astonishment whipped through him. Was this another trick, another tactic to make her appear less calculating than he knew her to be? It had to be. Otherwise, why did she care if Kenan or Achilles felt slighted by him? Why did it concern her at all?
He searched her face, her eyes for an ulterior motive. And as even as he did so, he couldn’t get past how swollen her lips were—and how proud he felt that he was the cause.
“How are—” she faltered, glancing at the door. “You three are...”
“How are three men of different racial backgrounds, who are obviously strangers, brothers?” he finished for her.
She flushed but nodded.
“The miraculous story of the long-lost Farrell heirs was in the papers a couple of weeks ago. You didn’t read about it?”
“It’s better you find this out about me now instead of later. I honestly couldn’t give a damn about business or society gossip. I go online to find out the latest reality TV news and spoilers about my favorite Netflix shows. Everything else is detrimental to my ass.”
He arched an eyebrow. “Detrimental to your...ass?”
“Yes.” She nodded. “Reading all the crap that’s going on right now in the world makes me either sad or angry. And I’m an emotional eater. So, all the chips, ice cream and chocolate go straight to my ass. Therefore, no upsetting internet searching for me.”
He stared at her. Blinked. Then fought down the bark of laughter that pressed at his throat.Thiswas the woman from the garden. Funny. Candid. Fucking adorable.
Note to self: Stop handing her opportunities to be adorable.
“Achilles and Kenan are my father’s illegitimate children,” he said, guiding them back to her original question...and away from his memories of those stolen moments in the garden. “I didn’t discover their existence until after he died.” He told her about the meeting and the terms of his father’s will. “So we’re forced to stay together for one year to save my family’s company.”
“I take it back,” she whispered. “Your father wasn’t a rolling stone. He was an asshole.”
Again, the urge to laugh shoved at his throat. “Yes,” he agreed. “Yes, he was.”
She shook her head, the strands of that thick, gorgeous hair falling over her shoulder. He stared at the brown-and-gold mass. Curiosity had needled him into tugging it free from the bun during the photo shoot. He hadn’t expected its heaviness, its softness. Or that it would slide over his skin, between his hands like a caress. What would it feel like against his bare chest...his thighs? Would it stream like a caramel waterfall to her hips, stick to her damp skin while she rode him?
Lust shuddered through him.
He should never have touched her. Kissed her.
That had been a tactical error on his part. One he had to avoid committing again at all costs.
She was a danger that needed blinking neon caution signs.
“Why would he do that? Wait until so late in life to let you know you had brothers out there? Wouldn’t you have wanted to know about Achilles and Kenan much earlier?” she asked.
