As soon as I walked in the door, Thorn called me.

“Hey, what’s up?” I slipped off my heels as I sat on the couch. The five-inch stilettos were pointed at the ends, where they squished my toes together. I never cared about the discomfort because they looked amazing with every outfit I wore. They were fairly comfortable, as comfortable as they could be for a shoe like this.

“Your boy toy stopped by my office today.”

“He did?” I massaged the bottom of my foot, but I was only half paying attention to what I was doing. “Why? What did he say?”

“He told me you told him about Jeremy.”

That was the first thing he did after I told him my secret? Ran off and opened his mouth? “What else did he say?” Why would Hunt tell Thorn about all of that when Thorn obviously knew the story—he was there.

“Said he wanted to thank me for protecting you.”

I stopped rubbing my foot and sat back into the couch, suddenly breathless. Hunt and Thorn were always hostile to each other. I couldn’t picture Hunt going out of his way to be even remotely nice to Thorn.

“And he said he respected me for doing the right thing…for killing that asshole.”

I still didn’t know what to say. I was touched that Hunt went over there and thanked Thorn for what he did. He dropped all of his jealousy to say something nice. That was impressive for a stubborn man like him. And one who was psychotically jealous. “I’m surprised he did that.”

“I’ve always known he was a good guy. Most men are crooks or perverts. Diesel Hunt isn’t one of them. He stands on his own two feet, protects those who can’t protect themselves, and he truly admires you. I don’t have anything bad to say about him…but that doesn’t mean I like him.”

“You know that makes no sense, right?”

“He wants to keep you to himself. How am I supposed to like him?”

I didn’t correct Thorn this time. There was no way I could do it without lying. And I didn’t lie to my best friend.

“You didn’t tell him about our engagement.”

No, I didn’t. And yes, it was on purpose.

“Why?”

“I just…haven’t.”

“I kept your secret. Figured you’d want him to hear it from you instead of me.”

“Thank you.”

“I guess there’s no harm in waiting to tell him until your arrangement is over. Three weeks, right?”

Hunt must have told him that. “Yeah.”

“Let the guy down easy. He genuinely cares about you.”

“I know he does…” I could feel it every time he looked at me, every time he touched me. I laid my heart open to him, and he accepted my story without judgment. He said he admired me for everything I’d been through. He was a good man, one of the best I’d ever known.

“I know you care about him too. And I’ll be there for you when the time comes.”

---

Hunt summoned me to his penthouse after dinner. He sent me a simple message since he was a man of few words. Get over here. He was back to his bossy ways, commanding me like a general.

I was dropped off at his place, this time, a bag over my shoulder. I suspected he wanted me to spend the night despite my own reservations about it. He wouldn’t pity me for long. He was the kind of guy that believed in tough love.

I walked into his living room and saw him standing there to greet me.

He was shirtless and barefoot, only his sweatpants on his waist. They hung low on his hips, showing his eight-pack and the rest of the muscles he was packing. He walked up to me and lowered his face to mine. He gave me a soft kiss on the lips and gripped my hips. He pulled me into his chest and pressed our foreheads together. “Hey.”

“Hey…” I was light-headed and weak-kneed. My breath was fast and shallow. I suddenly wasn’t thinking about anything, my mind wiped completely clean. All I did was exist, listen to his heavy breathing and feel my heartbeat.

It was peaceful.

He pressed a kiss to my forehead before he released me. “How are you?”

“Good. You?”

“Had a long day and a long workout.”

My hand explored his arm, feeling his thick biceps. “Thorn told me you stopped by today.”

He was a foot taller than me, so he had to look down to meet my eyes. “Yeah.”

“He told me what you said.”

“I figured he would.”

I stared at his arm again, unsure what to say. I thought I had to address his visit with Thorn even though there wasn’t anything to talk about. It needed to be mentioned.

“Thorn is a good man. I’m glad you have him.”

“He is…”

“I’ll make a stronger effort to get along with him.”

“He said you were a good man and he doesn’t have anything bad to say about you…that you aren’t like the other crooks out there.”

“I’m sure he’s always known that.”

“Yeah.”

“I feel like I owe him something.”

“Why?” I whispered.

“Because if he hadn’t done that, I wouldn’t have you now.”

I looked up at him, my eyes soft.

“You changed my life, Titan. In many good ways.”

“I don’t know about that…”

His hands cupped my cheeks, and he pressed his face close to mine. “Yes, you do. You brought me to life. I was dead inside…not feeling anything. But you make me a stronger man, you make me a more compassionate man.”

“Diesel…you were perfect before I came along.”

“That’s not true, and we both know it.” He kissed me on the mouth, his embrace tender and soft.

Now I’d never been more confused in my life. My heart pounded every time he touched me, and I felt so many sensations I’d never known. It was difficult to picture my life without him, to let him walk away and be with someone else. Even after my nightmare, I still wanted him to be in my bed, sleeping beside me.

I didn’t know if I could let him go.

And he wouldn’t let me go either.

Hunt scooped me up into his arms and carried me into the bedroom. He laid me down, my head landing on a pillow, and he lay on top of me, his thick arms holding his weight over mine. He didn’t remove my clothes, and he didn’t kick away his sweatpants. I assumed we were getting down to business, but he obviously had other ideas.

My fingers touched his chin, feeling the thick stubble that was coming in. I looked into his eyes, seeing those dark irises that reminded me of melted chocolate. He was warmth on a winter day, comfort in a difficult time.

He pulled my leg over his waist, making my dress ride up and exposing my panties. He held me against him that way, his hard cock right against the lace of my underwear. Despite his hardness, he didn’t undress me and take me the way he usually did.

Instead, he just looked at me.

“What?” I whispered. My fingers trailed down his face to his lips. I ran my fingertips over the softness of his mouth, feeling the flesh that kissed me all over. His chiseled face was hard like his jaw. He had terrifying eyes that were beautiful in their own way. His dark hair matched his eyes perfectly. His tanned skin looked like it was kissed by the sun often even though he was indoors most of the time.

“You’re beautiful.” He rubbed his nose against mine. “I enjoy looking at you.”

My hand glided up his neck and into his hair. “You can do whatever you want with me, but all you want to do is look at me?”

“It’s fascinating,” he said with a smile.

“I think you need to find a more exciting hobby.”

“I already do—and it involves you.” He ground against me gently, his thick length pressing right against my clit.

My thighs squeezed him automatically.

He stopped grinding against me, taking away the friction that drove me wild. “There’s something I want to say to you.”

“I’m listening.”

He grew serious, his playfulness evaporating. “These arrangements you have…”

I should have known that was what he wanted to talk about.

“What exactly are you afraid of?”

“What do you mean?”

“Why do you have arrangements instead of relationships? I know you aren’t scared of anyone. You can take care of yourself. You have more power than most people combined. If anyone tried to lay a finger on you, that would be the last mistake they would ever make.”

My fingers remained buried in his hair, feeling the soft strands as they curled around my fingertips. When I was underneath him this way, I had nowhere to go. I had to face his mocha eyes, his deep gaze. “That relationship with Jeremy was passionate. It wasn’t always bad. The beginning was great. The conversations were deep, the sex was good. But that passion changed form. He turned possessive and jealous, but not in a healthy way. The more he felt me slip away, the more he grabbed on to me. It turned into a destructive and abusive relationship. That experience made me realize that passionate love doesn’t exist. There’s only lust, desperation for power. And when it grows, it becomes dangerous. I decided then that I didn’t want another relationship like that. I wanted friendship, love, trust, loyalty…true love. And that’s exactly what I have with Thorn. We aren’t in love. We aren’t passionate toward each other. But there’s so much respect that it’s beautiful. It’s comfortable. It’s safe. Relationships like that are long and happy.”

“And your arrangements? Your need for power?”

“It gives me what I’m missing with Thorn, the passion that I crave. But in these scenarios, the men don’t have any power. They have no control. I’m the one in charge. There’s no risk. I can fulfill my fantasies without risking my heart.”

His expression didn’t change as he listened to every word. “But you made an exception for me.”

It wasn’t a question, but I took it as one. “Yeah…”

“Because you trust me.”

“At the time, I just wanted you. I was willing to do anything to have you.”

“And now we have something far better than an arrangement. We have friendship, trust, loyalty, and respect. We have everything you’ve ever wanted—including passion.” His eyes didn’t blink as they looked into mine.

I stared back, feeling my heart ache and my body quiver. He’d cornered me into a tiny space where I couldn’t run. His heavy body weighed me down, and he had me in the most intimate position possible—with unflinching eye contact.

“I know you feel the same way, baby.”

“You do?” I whispered.

He nodded. “It’s obvious.”

“I don’t know about that…”

“I do. You’ve given yourself to me—completely.”

“When?”

“The second you put me in charge. You never would have done that unless you trusted me. You never would have let me sleep with you if you felt unsafe. You never would have made me your business partner if you suspected I was anything less than truthful. You haven’t said any of those things to me, but you don’t need to. You’ve shown me.”

Maybe I was letting my heart make all the decisions for me. I was losing my logic, losing my critical thinking skills that got me to the top. I was letting my body and my hormones do all the thinking.

“I’m not like the others.”

“No…you aren’t.”

He finally pulled my underwear down my thighs until they were gone from my ankles. He parted my legs and pulled his boxers and sweatpants down to his ass. He moved between my thighs and slid inside me.

I gripped his arms and moaned.

He moved completely inside and held his weight on both arms. He pressed his forehead to mine as he stretched me deep and wide. “I’m the only man you’ve allowed to make love to you.”

---

As the day passed, I was sinking deeper into my own turmoil.

Hunt showed me his feelings, wearing them on display like a sandwich board. He didn’t say anything to me directly, but his intentions were perfectly clear. To him, I really was his woman. There was no end to this arrangement.

Because there was no arrangement at all.

Thorn said I should wait to tell Hunt about my plans to become engaged to him, but the longer I waited, the more I was going to hurt Hunt.

I had to tell him.

It was the right thing to do, even though I really didn’t want to do it.

But I respected him too much to let this continue.

When I finished work the next day, I was the one who texted him. Come over.

I’d love to. Want me to bring anything?

Just you.

That’s all my woman ever needs.

He kept calling me that, and every time he did, it sent a chill down my spine.

He arrived at my penthouse fifteen minutes later. He was in jeans and a t-shirt, his jaw clean since he shaved as soon as he got home. He greeted me with a kiss and a tight pinch of my ass. “You want me now? Or later?”

“How about both?”

“Good answer.” He chuckled against my mouth before he kissed me again. His nose brushed against mine, and he looked at me like I was the only thing in the world that mattered. I was the focal point of his universe, the sun that he circled every single day.

I loved it when he looked at me that way.

His hand cupped my cheek, and his eyes slowly fell as he looked into my face. His thumb brushed against the corner of my mouth before he lifted my chin, making my gaze angle higher to reach his eyes. “What’s wrong?”

“What makes you think anything is wrong?”

“Because I know you, Tatum. You fool the rest of the world, but you don’t fool me.”

I was never trying to fool him—just myself.

“Talk to me.”

I didn’t know if we should sit down in the living room or lie down in the bedroom. Or maybe we should just stay here, standing in the living room while the TV was on in the corner. I’d never been nervous to talk to him before. My stomach was tied in my knots, and my knees weren’t strong like they usually were. “Thorn and I did some talking and…he’s going to propose in a few weeks.”

“Propose to whom?” he asked, his eyebrows furrowed.

“Me…”

Hunt stared at me with the exact same expression, his eyes fixated in one spot. The reflection of the city lights could be seen on the surface of his pupils, soft and nearly invisible. His hand paused on my face, his pulse no longer detected. Time seemed to slow down for both of us as he soaked in my words and I forced myself to say them. “You still want to marry him?”

“That’s what we agreed on.”

Once he snapped out of the shock, he moved his hand to my neck. “You didn’t answer my question.”

“Yes…I guess.”

“You guess?” He spoke with a clenched jaw, his mouth so tight it was about to come unhinged. “That doesn’t sound very convincing to me.”

“I made a commitment to Thorn…and I keep my promises.”

“What kind of man makes a woman promise to marry him when she’s clearly in love with another guy?”

“I’m not in love—”

“Bullshit, Titan,” he hissed. “You’re really going to look me in the eye and say that to me?”

I shut my mouth, now my jaw just as tense as his.

“This isn’t an arrangement anymore, Tatum. This is a relationship. I was never going to walk away in three weeks. And you’re an idiot for thinking you were ever going to walk away either.”

“I set out the rules of this arrangement…and I intend to keep them.”

“Rules don’t apply to us.”

“They apply to everyone.”

He dropped his hand, giving me a stare more livid than any other before. “You can’t be serious right now.”

“I told you my intentions with Thorn from the very beginning.”

“No, actually. I had to pull that out of you like a dentist ripping out teeth.”

“You still knew about it, Hunt—”

“Diesel. There’s no switching back now.”

I’d known he wouldn’t take this well, but I didn’t realize just how difficult it was going to be.

“You said you wanted a partner you can trust. You said you needed trust, friendship, loyalty, and respect.”

“Yes. Thorn can give that to me.”

“And so can I,” he snapped. “And I can give you everything else.”

“And that’s the problem…”

“The problem?” he asked. “Don’t pretend that you don’t trust me because you do. There’s no way you can walk away from this and be happy. I’d be miserable without you, Titan. And you sure as hell would be miserable without me.”

I would.

“I’m done playing these games,” he said. “I’m throwing my cards on the table. Tatum, I want to be with you. I don’t want to go back to hooking up with nameless, meaningless women and pretending to be happy. I found the one woman who actually makes me feel something. I found a woman whom I admire and respect as my equal. I love everything about you. And I don’t need to hear you say that back to know you feel the same way.”

I stepped back, letting his hand slide off my cheek. “Hunt…”

“What?”

“This is exactly what I didn’t want.”

“Too fucking bad,” he hissed. “It happened. I wasn’t expecting it either.”

I stepped back farther and crossed my arms over my chest.

He stared me down, his expansive chest rising and falling at a rapid rate. “I can give you everything he can.”

“It’s not about what you can offer me.”

“Then what is it? Unless you’re in love with him, which I know you aren’t.”

“I just…I owe him.” That was the truth of the matter. It didn’t matter how strongly I felt about Hunt. I was loyal to Thorn. He did more for me than anyone else in the world.

“What do you mean by that? Because he killed Jeremy? You don’t owe him anything, Tatum. That asshole deserved to die. If Thorn is going to hold that over your head, then he’s just as bad as Jeremy.”

“He doesn’t hold anything over my head…”

“Then how do you owe him?”

“He was my first investor. I was broke, without a penny to my name. I had no collateral, so I couldn’t get a loan from the bank. He loaned me a hundred grand. Without him…I wouldn’t be where I am today.”

Hunt finally dropped his anger, understanding coming into his gaze.

“He has a lot to do with my success. So my earnings and my assets are all connected to him. Marrying him, even if it is just for convenience, benefits both of us.”

“How did this even come up?”

“I said I never wanted to be in a relationship again…and Thorn said he couldn’t marry anyone because they’d just be after his money.”

“So this was a mutual agreement?” He walked to my bar and poured himself a glass of scotch.

“Yes.”

“Then why was he so eager for us to be together? He was practically pushing me on you.” He drank the entire glass like it was a shot then refilled it. He moved to the couch and sat down.

I slowly walked toward him before I took the seat beside him. “Thorn has always wanted me to move on from my control issues…”

“Why?”

“Because he…” I wasn’t sure if I should tell this secret since it wasn’t mine to tell.

“We’re putting all our cards on the table now,” Hunt said as he stirred his drink. “Everything needs to be out in the open.”

I’d already told Hunt my darkest secret. Did it matter if I told another? “Thorn is like me…he likes to be in control in his own arrangements. He exposed me to the lifestyle once I was ready to be with men again.”

“I guess that makes sense.”

“But he’s not willing to compromise in our relationship. He needs to be in control. And since I allowed you to control me…he hopes I’ll do the same for him.”

Hunt nearly shattered the glass he was holding. His veins bulged in his forearms.

“We haven’t talked much about our sex life, but I—”

“I don’t want to hear about it.” Instead of breaking the glass, he took a long drink. “This man saved your life and built you from the ground up…” He shook his head and wiped his lips on the back of his hand. “I get it.”

I watched him stare at my fireplace as he refused to look at me. He’d never brushed me off like this before, shutting me out. He wouldn’t let me look into his eyes, the gateway to his thoughts. His muscular body was tensed, like a provoked bear that would strike at any moment.

I felt like shit.

He leaned forward and rested his elbows on his knees. His palms came together, and he rubbed them gently as he stared at the floor.

Now everything felt strained. Our comfortable and calm relationship was gone. Hunt had placed an invisible wall between us.

I wanted to say something to make this better, but I couldn’t think of anything.

“Thorn cares about you.” When Hunt spoke, the words almost didn’t make sense. “If you told him you wanted to be with me, he would understand. He would want you to be happy. That’s what real friends do.” He finally looked at me. “And Tatum Titan doesn’t do anything she doesn’t want to do. So the question is…what do you want?”

I stared at his espresso eyes, then observed the power radiating from all of his extremities.

“Baby?”

“It’s not about what I want…”

“Yes, it is.”

“It’s a lot more complicated than that. If I marry Thorn like I planned, my future is set. I know exactly what will happen and when it’ll happen. It’s safe.”

“And fucking boring. I’m not a risk, Tatum.”

“Yes, you are. Even if we wanted to have a relationship, we have no idea where it would go, how long it would last.”

“That doesn’t matter.”

“It does matter. If I publicly break things off with Thorn, I can’t go back to him. It would make him look bad.”

“Who cares what the media thinks?”

“I do,” I snapped. “The media has control of everything. It even affects the stocks in my companies. Being liked is more important than anything else. It opens doors.”

He rubbed the back of his neck, growing visibly frustrated. “You’d rather settle for a fake relationship than be in a real one with a man like me?”

“It’s not about what I would rather have…”

“Yes, it is, Tatum. You can’t possibly do this.”

“It makes the most sense. I can’t jeopardize all of my plans because I’ve developed feelings for you.”

“They aren’t just feelings, Tatum.”

I looked away, unwilling to meet his expression. Whenever I looked into those eyes, I couldn’t hide myself from him.

“You’re in love with me.”

I took a deep breath at the words but still didn’t look at him. I refused to acknowledge what he said. I refused to admit it.

“We both know it’s true.”

I kept my eyes focused straight ahead.

“So I don’t believe you could marry Thorn and not think about me. I don’t believe you could be his and not wonder where I’m sleeping at night. I don’t think you could work with me every day and ignore the smell of women’s perfume on my suit. It would eat you alive. I know how jealous you get.”

“Just because I’d be married doesn’t mean we can’t continue this relationship. Fidelity is something that Thorn and I never promised each other.”

“Are you serious right now?”

I turned back to him, seeing his hard expression.

“I’m not going to screw a married woman, even if Thorn is okay with it. That’s not the kind of guy I am.”

“Then I guess we’ll stop when I get married.”

“No. We’ll stop the second you’re wearing his ring.”

Now that the ending of our relationship was even closer, I felt the panic creep into my veins. He was already slipping away, disappearing.

“I can see how much you don’t want that. I see it in your eyes right now.”

I blinked then shifted my gaze to the TV.

“I know you want to be with me.” His voice turned gentle. “Take the risk, Tatum. I’ve more than proven myself to you.”

“I know…”

He moved toward me and slowly lowered my body onto the couch. He climbed on top of me, covering my body with his massive size. His face hovered against mine, and he looked at me as if he had me cornered—a second time. “I know you told me how this was going to be. You set a deadline and rules. I expected to follow them… I never expected to feel this way. I never expected to fall for you.”

I forgot to breathe as the words entered my heart.

“And now, I don’t want to share you. Now, I want to rule this city with you. I don’t want to move on with my life and leave you behind. I don’t want to shake your hand and pretend to be your friend. It just happened…and I never meant for it to happen. But you need to understand I’m not like that asshole. I would never lay a hand on you, Tatum.”

“I know that, Diesel… I never thought that.”

“Then don’t let the past ruin what you could have now. Don’t pick Thorn just because he’s the safe bet.”

“I know…”

“You don’t owe him anything. If you want to be with me, he’ll step aside. I know he will.”

Yeah, he probably would. He’d be disappointed, but not angry.

“Just think about it. I know this didn’t fit into your plans. I know if it doesn’t work out between us, you’d lose everything you built. But…I think it would be worth it. I want you so much now…and I doubt that’ll ever change. The more I have you, the more I want you.” He moved into me and kissed me on the mouth. “Please think about it. Just think about it.” He kissed me again, his soft mouth making love to mine.

My lips automatically moved with his, my hands slipping into his hair. The passionate roar erupted in my heart, and I pulled him closer to me, swept away in his eager embrace. The clothes didn’t come off, but that didn’t stop us from wanting each other, from grinding against each other like there was nothing keeping us apart.