I notice how her breath catches. “Of course it is.”
Evan kisses the top of her head. “You know I’m in.”
She meets my gaze again. “Then, let’s go.”
Outside, we all hesitate in the parking lot. I look at Christopher for direction. He gives me a smile. “Evan and I will follow you to your place. Finley can ride with you.”
Finley and Evan are holding hands, and he lifts her hand and kisses the back of it. “See you soon, pretty girl.”
She steps close to me, obviously fine with this arrangement. That’s great. I’ve got her to myself a little longer. But that also means we’ll have to talk. We’ll have to hash this out. She’s going to ask me how I feel about it.
And I’m not really sure.
But it will also give me the chance to ask her how she feels about it. And I do really need to know.
Is she in love with the guys? If she is, how will I feel about that?
The truth hits me directly in the chest. They love her. If she’s in love with them too, I’m okay with that. I truly think thatChristopher and Evan are great men and that they will take care of her.
But I want in on this. I want her to love me too.
Did I ever,ever, imagine being in a relationship with someone who was clearly, openly involved with other people? No fucking way. But this is Finley Anderson. Nothing has been usual or common about knowing her from the beginning. Loving her will be an adventure. I think I’ve always known that.
Watching Christopher hug her and kiss her cheek and the way her hand goes up to cover the spot makes me realize that, of course, Finley needs more than one man to love her. She is, and always has been, unique and amazing and wonderful.
Did I realize it in high school? Of course not. I was a dumbass, just as ninety-nine percent of all teenage boys are.
But it took me about five minutes of being with her as an adult to understand that Finley is nothing like any other woman I’ve ever met.
Hell, it’s very possible that I could use the help from Christopher and Evan keeping up with her and keeping her happy. And staying un-cursed.
Finley turns to look up at me as Christopher and Evan walk toward their car.
“Are you ready to go?” she asks.
I look down at her. “Are you going to ask me if I’m okay with this? Just to be sure?”
She steps closer but shakes her head. “You’re a grown man. I saw you and Christopher talking. You were hatching some plan. If you’re not okay with this, you know how to end it.”
I lift my hand and cup her cheek. “Is that what you think is going to happen? Is that why you agreed to it? Do you think this is a way to thin the herd? Get me to leave you alone?”
She looks me directly in the eyes when she says, “Yes. It’s either that or I get to have all three of you. Either way, it’s a good outcome for me.”
“Youaretrying to get rid of me?”
“No. But I want all three of you. And if you aren’t okay with that, then it’s best we call it quits now.”
“Do you think that’s going to make it easier?” I ask, stepping in until our bodies are flush against one another.
“Make what easier?” Her voice is husky.
“To keep your walls up. To keep any one of us from getting too close. Do you think if there are three of us, you can keep some distance?”
She hesitates and blinks.
Bingo. I figured it out.
“So this isn’t just about hot sex?” I ask her. “This is your way of keeping things superficial until you leave.”
