Rayne looked at Gryff in surprise, but he avoided her eyes, dropping flat on his back again to stare up at the ceiling.

He didn’t want to talk about this. Not with Rayne. Not with Trey. Not with Grae. Not with anyone.

He couldn’t ignore his past, but he worked hard to get where he was. To be as successful as he was.

There was nothing wrong with being young and stupid. To a point. But he’d bypassed that point and had made some dangerous, possibly life-changing choices.

He didn’t necessarily want to forget about them. Hence the tattoo. But he didn’t want to flay himself open for others to judge him.

Though, he had judged Trey.

More than once.

Fuck.

Grae was right when he said Gryff had no right to judge.

“I’m sorry.”

Trey reached over Rayne and curled his fingers around Gryff’s bicep. “For what?”

“For unfairly judging you. I have no right.”

Rayne rolled on her side to press against him and Trey spooned her back. She ran her fingertips across Gryff’s furrowed brow, trying to smooth it out.

The three of them were not in any type of relationship, conventional or otherwise. He did not need to spill his guts to them. They did not need to know about his deepest, darkest secrets.

They did not.

But for some reason, he wanted to tell them, to get it off his chest. Hell, to get the dragon off his shoulders. For them to understand where he came from, why he was the way he was.

He couldn’t explain why he needed to relieve his burden. He just did.

Maybe it was the intimacy they currently shared. Maybe it was the pull he felt tonight once they all bared themselves to each other. Physically and emotionally.

No matter what, something pulled at him and it wasn’t just sexual. It wasn’t just the physical release.

He turned his head and studied the two of them, who, in turn, quietly studied him.

His chest tightened, and he suddenly got very, very scared.

What the fuck was happening to his life? How did he end up in bed with not only one of his employees but a man, and one who was a client as well?

He blinked.

“Don’t you dare pull away from us now,” Rayne said, her eyes getting sad. “Boss… Gryff. Please. Don’t shut us out.”

He closed his eyes, sucking air through his nostrils. His heart suddenly raced, and he was spinning out of control.

He couldn’t be having a panic attack. He was stronger than that.

His lungs felt like they were collapsing and he couldn’t catch his breath. He desperately reached out for them…

When their hands found him, when their warmth touched his skin, his chest started to rise and fall smoothly again. His vision cleared. His thoughts stopped spinning.

He blinked, then whispered, “Jesus.”

Rayne stroked a knuckle down his cheek. Trey squeezed his fingers. Neither said a word. He couldn’t look at them, couldn’t see the concern in their eyes. He needed to get out the words before he couldn’t.

“I came from a great home. Loving, successful parents. My siblings... I had everything. My stars were aligned. All I had to do was graduate, and I was guaranteed a spot at a good college on my parents’ dime. I didn’t need a scholarship to help me get an education. It waited for me.”

“I worshipped my brother. I doted on my sisters. But I got careless. Life became boring, predictable. No challenge. My brother had football, but unlike him, I didn’t want to play sports. I didn’t want to do much of anything but hang out with my friends. Play video games. Party.”

He took a deep breath and closed his eyes, remembering. “One type of party lead to another type. And then suddenly the crowd around you starts to change. People fall out, other people fall in. Maybe not the right people. Maybe not the friends who would’ve dragged you home before curfew, or who would’ve looked after you. No. Instead, it became people who encouraged you to party longer, harder. Fuck school. Fuck my parents. Fuck everything but chasing the high. Then, suddenly your life centers around finding that high until that thrill dulls. Then you search for the bigger thrill. For the ultimate high. I started chasing that elusive dragon.”

“Gryff…” Rayne whispered.

Gryff raised a hand to stop her words. He needed to get this all off his chest. “I chased that dragon until the dragon caught me. Dragged me down. Then I did something really stupid because my more than generous allowance was no longer enough to sustain me. I got caught. I thought my life was over, but I was lucky. I had parents who stood by me and could afford a great attorney. I got a second chance. I took that opportunity and ran with it, never looking back.”

If his father hadn’t gotten him a good defense attorney, he would have been convicted and thrown into the system. If he had been thrown into the system, he might not have ever escaped and never made anything of himself. Because of that, he decided to help others out, try to keep the innocent, or the people who made a stupid mistake, out of the endless cycle of the system. Give them their second chance like he was lucky enough to get. He was forever grateful for that attorney.

“I don’t chase the dragon anymore. I’ve slayed the bastard. I carry him on my shoulders as proof and as a reminder. This is why I’m hard on myself.” He rolled onto his side and faced both of them. “This is why I’m hard on you, Trey.”

Trey had his chin leaning on Rayne’s arm and his thigh draped over hers as he listened. When Gryff met his eyes, Trey snaked his arm around his neck, pulling him closer to give him a quick kiss on the lips, then released him.

“I want to be that defense attorney who gives you your second chance. You have a gift. Don’t blow it.”

“That’s why I need you two.”

Gryff shook his head. “We’ll get you out of this. Then it’s up to you to continue down the right path, to stay out of jail, to stop the bar fights, to stop the locker room brawls, the back-alley hookups. If you want to be with me, with us, you need to keep your shit together. I won’t be able to sit back and watch you crash and burn. I won’t watch it. Remember that.”

“Got it, boss man. I want to keep you two at my back and I want to keep you two in my bed. I promise to keep my shit together.”

“And I promise to try to be more flexible when it comes to the three of us being together.”

“You mean, when we’re doing the nasty? When we’re knockin’ boots? Rocking the boat? When we’re—”

Gryff punched him in the arm.

“Ow,” Trey complained, rubbing his arm, but shot Gryff a big grin and then laughed.

Rayne shook her head. “You two.” She pinned Gryff with her gaze. “Thanks for sharing, Boss.”

“No,” Gryff murmured, the weight on his chest a little lighter. “Thanks for letting us share you.”