“We’re not.” I sigh, resting my forehead against his. “I still don’t understand why Trinity insisted on that damn couch.”
Cash’s eyes soften. “She’ll come around.”
“Will she? You saw how she looked at Kyren. Like he’d broken her heart.”
“And you saw how she looked at you at dinner. At all of us.” Cash reaches up, tracing my jawline. “This isn’t just business for her anymore.”
I want to believe him. The way Trinity had leaned into me during introductions, how naturally she’d fit against my side—it felt real. But then I remember her professional smile when we’d returned to the villa, the careful distance she maintains.
Six days to show her we could be real.
Days that will go too damn quickly if she sleeps on the couch.
The shower shuts off, and we both tense. Cash’s eyes dance with mischief as he pulls me down for one more kiss.
“Better make it count, then,” he whispers against my lips, just as the bathroom door opens and Matheo steps out in a cloud of steam with a towel wrapped low on his waist.
“Is this the point where I tell you two to get a room?” he asks sardonically, eyeing us.
I spread my arms wide. “We already did, but you’re more than welcome to join us.”
Matheo just shakes his head, but he’s smiling as he leans over the open suitcase on a rack in the corner.
I can’t help but admire Matheo’s physique as he turns to rummage through his suitcase. The towel sits dangerously low on his hips, water droplets still clinging to the defined muscles of his back. There’s something almost unfair about how good he looks without even trying.
I wonder, not for the first time, which one of us would come out on top in a challenge.
Sexual or otherwise.
It’s a thought I entertained even before this fake pack arrangement began.
A loud thump comes from the living room followed by a feminine sound of pain and we all freeze.
“Trinity?” Matheo calls out immediately, his voice tight with concern. “Are you okay?”
“I’m fine,” she answers, but her voice sounds strained, off somehow. “Just knocked over a...thing.”
Matheo moves toward the door, towel clutched in one hand. Cash is already rising from the bed, instinctively responding to the potential distress of our omega.
“Both of you, stay put,” I say, my tone firmer than intended. They both turn to me with surprised expressions.
I point at Cash. “You have that early morning conference call with Japan. You need sleep.” Then I turn to Matheo, eyeing his nearly naked form. “And you are not going to parade yourself around half-naked before I’ve even had my chance to impress her.”
“Your chance?” Matheo repeats, eyebrows rising.
“One look at those abs and it’s game over for the rest of us,” I explain with an overly dramatic sigh. “Some of us have to work with what we’ve got, you know.”
Cash bursts out laughing while Matheo’s cheeks actually flush pink. It’s endearing how someone who looks like him can still blush like a teenager.
“I’ll check on her,” I say, already moving toward the door.
My gaze immediately goes to the couch, where a rumpled blanket and pillows are haphazardly arranged. But the occupant of the makeshift sleeping space is noticeably absent.
A lamp lies on its side, clearly knocked over in her haste to get up. Something’s not right. The sliding glass door tothe balcony stands slightly ajar—I know for a fact we closed it after coming back from dinner.
I move quietly across the room, my bare feet silent against the plush carpet. The night air rushes in as I push the door open further, and there she is.
Trinity leans against the balcony railing, her back to me. She’s wearing nothing but a babydoll nightie that barely reaches mid-thigh, the silky fabric clinging to her curves in the gentle ocean breeze. Her curls are tamed into two thick braids that hang down her bare back, an expanse of skin that shines like sculptured bronze under the moonlight.
