“Do you want to join us?” Monroe asked. He was being polite, but I could see how much he wanted Alec to say yes.
Alec squeezed his shoulder, his hand lingering there. “I’d love to, but I need to get some ice packs on me. I’m already cramping up.”
Monroe nodded, his expression tight, and Alec shifted his hand, squeezing his nape. Monroe closed his eyes and minutely leaned into the touch. “Need some help with the ice packs?” Monroe asked, his voice rough.
Alec nodded. “Yeah. Please.” Then he hooked his finger under my chin, tilted my face up, and kissed me sweetly. “If Roe’s not back, message us when you’re back safe in your room, sweet girl.”
I flushed magenta and bit my lip, barely able to contain my smile. “Okay,” I whispered. I watched as they walked away,Monroe with his hands in his pockets and Alec still holding his jacket in front of him.
“So?” Zali asked, extending out the vowel.
“Oh, ah.” I was completely tongue-tied. Wide-eyed, I looked around the group. All eyes were on me. They were hanging off my every word. Their conversations had ceased. Their gazes bounced between me, Zali, and Monroe’s retreating back.
Ry smirked, and Ezra was watching me closely, his head tilted to the side. Where Ry looked like he was having fun at my expense, Ezra was serious. His brow furrowed and his lips were turned down in a frown. He was worried. It made sense. His best friend had been holding me earlier, and another man had just kissed me. Monroe was hurting—it was obvious—and I was the cause of it. Why did I think I could do this? Why did I think they could both be happy?
Tristan cleared his throat, getting everyone’s attention. “Let’s give Zali and Cara a chance to catch up.”
They left quickly, and Zali pulled her chair close to mine, then grasped my hands in hers.
My sob caught in my throat.
“No, honey, don’t cry,” she whispered, wrapping her arm around my shoulders. “I promise you, you can work it out.”
“I don’t want to hurt them.”
“Remember the night I told you about my mother? We were talking.”
I nodded. I did remember. She was a mess, and we got even messier together. That was the night she introduced me to Cocksucking Cowboys.
“You told me what you wanted—two men. Is that what you have?”
I nodded and bit down on my bottom lip. Nerves assaulted me. Telling Zali what had happened between us was anxiety inducing. But I needed to be honest.
“I kissed Monroe too,” I confessed, my words tumbling out of my mouth. She knew I’d kissed Alec earlier in the week, but I hadn’t talked to her about her dad. I’d left Monroe to speak with her, and that was wrong. As my friend, she deserved that I have the conversation with her and not delegate it, no matter how hard it might be.
“I’m sorry. But I really like him. Are you upset? I hope you’re not upset. Of course you’re upset. He’s your dad. I don’t want to lose you. You’re my best friend,” I rambled, tugging my hands free and crossing my arms over my chest as I blinked, trying to clear the sting from my eyes. I couldn’t look at her. But there was more I needed to say. “I don’t want to give him up. Please don’t make me choose between you and him.”
“Cara,” Zali said gently and reached for my hands again She squeezed them, waiting until I lifted my gaze to hers before she spoke. The warm, sympathetic smile tilting up the corners of her lips had me sucking in a breath. My vision swam as tears tracked down my cheeks. “You’ll never lose my friendship, and I’ll never ask you to choose.”
My breath whooshed out of my lungs on a shuddery exhale.
“Dad’s upset. Did he know you and Alec were together before tonight?”
“I… yes,” I confessed, wincing. I wasn’t ashamed of what happened between us—heck, I wanted to shout it from the rooftops, but this was a little too sensitive a topic, especially given who Alec was, the podcast, and the bar being so full.
“It was the three of us.”
Zali’s eyes lit up, but she bit back the slow smile spreading across her lips. “I was worried when we spoke that you were choosing Alec over Dad.”
I shook my head fast, rushing to reassure her. “No, I…. No. I couldn’t choose. They’re both….” I sighed wistfully. They wereboth incredible. I couldn’t help the smile that tilted up my lips. “Monroe told me I didn’t need to. Then they kissed me.”
Zali squeaked, and she bounced her legs, excitement pouring off her. “You got them—you got the silver fox and the sport star.”
My heart punched against my chest, and a bubbly effervescence filled me, making me float on cloud nine. But the bubbles popped quickly, and I landed with a thud back on earth when I thought about Monroe’s expression. “How do I keep them? Monroe wasn’t happy just then, and I don’t know how to fix it.”
“My first thought was that he was hurt, thinking you were cheating on him, but if he was there with you, that definitely wasn’t it.” Zali paused, and I replayed our conversation in the business centre over once more.
Then she continued. “Did you see the way Dad leaned into Alec when he touched him?”
