The pizza was delicious, the atmosphere relaxed. We avoided talking about our families or work or school. Instead, Nicholas entertained me with stories from his high school days, and I shared a few of my own. After a few hours and a bottle of wine, we arrived back at the estate, and Nicholas assured me his parents were already in bed. Despite his certainty, I couldn’t bring myself to make use of the large infinity pool near the guesthouse. With all of the windows in the main house, it would feel like we were being watched, no matter how late it was.

We got ready for bed, and I had to borrow one of Nicholas’s shirts again, since I’d apparently forgotten sleepwear in my rush to finish packing. It was becoming a habit, one I didn’t mind in the slightest. His shirts dwarfed me, but rather than worrying about how silly I looked, I reveled in that feeling of being cared for by a big, strong man. The feeling was new but in no way unwelcome.

As serene as I was from the wine, I expected sleep to come quickly, but for some reason, I couldn’t stop thinking about the first time we met. I’d danced with Shane inside the club, then went outside to the patio for fresh air. Nicholas approached me at the bar, and I remembered thinking he was the most gorgeous man I’d ever laid eyes on. If it was possible, he was even more attractive now that he’d become someone I cared about.

“Can I ask you something?”

“Anything.” His chest rumbled under me, and I shifted back so I could see his face in the dim light filtering through the blinds from the pool area.

“That first night at Loft25 . . . if there hadn’t been a bet and you happened to run into me at the bar, would you have still been interested?”

“I made it a point not to hit on girls at the club, but there’s no question I would have noticed you.”

It was a relief to know I wasn’t one of many girls he’d met that way, but I still needed more from him. “Pretend we met at a random bar, then. Would you have asked for my number? Offered me a ride home?”

Nicholas was quiet for so long, I was certain he’d decided not to answer. When he finally spoke, his question baffled me. “Can you guess the first moment I knew you were more than a bet?”

“I don’t know. During our first official date?”

“No.” He lifted my right hand and caressed my forefinger. “The moment I saw that princess Band-Aid on your finger.”

I snorted. “You can’t be serious.”

“Dead serious. There you were in your sexy red dress, drawing the attention of every guy in the club, and you were wearing a Disney Band-Aid. I was charmed from minute one and already thought of you as my Cinderella.”

Well, damn. I wasn’t expecting him to say something so romantic. “What would you have done if I’d gone home with Cole or Shane?”

“I had no intention of letting that happen. After you went back inside, I went straight to the security room and watched you on the cameras. I would have known the minute you started to leave with one of them.”

“Which is how you managed to meet me at the door as I was leaving.”

“Precisely.”

“I don’t know whether to be annoyed or impressed by the stalking.”

“My vote is impressed.” He snaked an arm around my waist. “What made you ask about that night?”

It was my turn to fall silent. I wasn’t thrilled to admit why I’d felt the need to open this discussion in the first place. After his comment earlier about being worried I might run, I couldn’t stop thinking about why that was and whether he was right. I’d understood for a while that something was holding me back, and it wasn’t about trust anymore. It was about getting past my skepticism and accepting that the Ts were as committed to this relationship as they seemed.

I didn’t particularly care for the neediness I was exhibiting by seeking Nicholas’s reassurance, but I owed him honesty, especially after he’d opened up to me. “I can’t help but think the three of you are with me because of the novelty of this relationship. I mean, you realize it doesn’t actually make sense for you, Shane, and Cole to share me, right?”

“Doesn’t make sense how?”

“Too many reasons to list, starting with the fact that each of you could have a different girl in your bed every night.” That sounded more like his roommates. “Or the same one. Whatever.”

“Would you believe me if I told you I’ve never met a girl I wanted in my bed every night before you?”

“Probably not.”

“It’s true. I’ve had girlfriends, sure, but none who made me want to say, screw it, just move in with me, and let’s get a puppy.”

I both loved and hated the way my pulse quickened as his words sank in. He was saying all the right things, so why was I still questioning this?

“And that’s something you’ve wanted to say to me?”

“Well, I wouldn’t have come up with the puppy idea on my own, but the other part, yes. I’ve been thinking about it ever since returning from the ski trip. Seeing you only once a week isn’t working.”

“Isn’t that the point, though? If you weren’t sharing your girlfriend with two other guys, you wouldn’t have that problem.”

“I think you’re the one missing the point, Cinderella. I could be with some other hypothetical girl, and it would be a hell of a lot less complicated. But I don’t want anyone else. Cole doesn’t want anyone else. Shane doesn’t want anyone else. We want you. So, unless you’ve decided to choose one of us, sharing appears to be the only alternative.”

That shut me up. Choosing one ceased to be an option the moment I’d started falling for all three. It wouldn’t be fair to any of us to choose now. If my relationship with one deteriorated, I’d be forced to say goodbye to all of them. No wonder I was such a mess.

“Emma, no matter how I feel about all of this, you are in no way a novelty. Given the chance, I’d happily steal you away from Shane and Cole.”

Warmth spread through me at his declaration. The last thing I wanted was for him to steal me from the others, but knowing he’d thought about it was exactly what I needed to hear. It made absolutely no sense. Maybe I was crazy.

“Thank you.”

“For what? Wanting to steal you?”

“Yes, but also for opening up to me. It means more to me than I can say. You mean more to me than I can say.”

“You’re welcome,” he said, his voice husky. His hand drifted from my waist down to my thigh and slowly traveled north until he reached the edge of my panties. “For the record, I don’t think I can handle you in my bed on a regular basis unless there’s a lot more nakedness going on. It’s taking everything in me not to seduce you right now.”

My breath hitched. I wanted that so much. Too much. “Why don’t you?”

“Because, when you’re ready, I’m going to take great pleasure in allowing you to seduce me.”

I debated throwing caution to the wind and taking control right then. His voice, his body, his scent—everything about Nicholas was drawing me in. Even more than that, I felt closer to him than I ever had . . . like what we meant to each other finally clicked. Our relationship wasn’t ordinary, but I now felt equipped to embrace the extraordinary. If Nicholas, Shane, and Cole had all accepted it and wanted me for me, who was I to argue?

The knot of pressure that had been building in my chest eased, and I felt like I could breathe again for the first time in over a month.

When I didn’t say anything else, Nicholas pulled me against his chest, and I snuggled in deep. Even though his body was hard and warm, I felt comfortable and content in his arms. For once, I wasn’t questioning things or worrying about what would happen next. I was just happy to fall asleep with him.

* * *

The bedroom door opened, and I blinked a few times, willing myself to push past the sleepiness still holding on.

“Sorry I woke you.” Nicholas stood by the bed looking way too attractive in a dark gray business suit. He was wearing his glasses—it was the first time I’d seen them since I spent the night with him in December—and they only added to the hot professional look he had going on.

I sat up and stretched. “That’s okay. Are you already leaving? What time is it?”

“A little after eight, and yes, I need to leave in a few minutes. I left the keys to the guesthouse and my car on the table. Or you can use the service, if you don’t want to drive. You can also hang out here and go swimming or relax. My mother should be busy dealing with last-minute details for the party tonight, so I don’t anticipate that you’ll run into her.”

“I’ll be fine. Don’t worry about me.”

“Okay, I’ll text you later to check in.” He leaned over me, and his delicious fresh-from-the-shower scent wafted over me. “You look sexy first thing in the morning. It’s making me really not want to leave.”

“Well, you look sexy in your glasses. They’re making me want to ask you to stay.”

He stood and reached for the frames. “Oops. Forgot to put my contacts in.”

“You should wear them more often. You look more approachable. I like it.”

Walking toward the bathroom, he said, “Good to know. I have to get rid of them now, or my father will have a conniption. Something about how a businessman never reveals a weakness like poor eyesight.”

“Do men have conniptions? I thought that was a female thing.”

He reappeared a minute later, looking decidedly more intimidating without the black frames taming that movie star silhouette. “I don’t know. Maybe you should stick to debating semantics with Shane.” His phone buzzed in his pocket, and he rolled his eyes. “Duty calls. Literally.”

After a peck on the lips, he was out the door, and I was on my own. A small part of me wanted to lounge around, take a dip in the pool, and maybe even get a little sun. The much larger part couldn’t pass up time alone mere miles from where Jeremy used to work and live. I had no idea if I would find anything, but I also wouldn’t get another opportunity this golden to spy on him.

Ignoring the pang of guilt that shot through me, I typed the AutoShop address into my map application and was relieved to find it was only a twenty-minute drive from my current location. Knowing I would need to devote the afternoon to getting ready for the party, I didn’t waste much time dressing and threw on my least conspicuous clothes. Although both addresses weren’t too far outside the Pasadena city limits, I had a feeling the neighborhoods were nothing like the Pasadena I’d seen thus far.

My first instinct was to reach for the keys instead of the car service instructions. I didn’t particularly like the idea of someone who drove for the rich, and probably famous, dropping me off in a less desirable area of town. But once I caught sight of the Mercedes emblem on the key fob, I reconsidered. It would be much worse if my secret trip resulted in a carjacking.

I signed into Nicholas’s account on the app I downloaded and scheduled a car to pick me up, then waited for the curbside service I knew was coming. When James, the same driver who had driven us home the night before, exited the car, I gave him a wide smile. In my semi-tipsy state, I’d decided to interrogate him about his life. He’d been a good sport, and I now knew that he had two teenage daughters and a dog named Sam.

He opened the rear passenger door and returned my smile. “Good morning, Miss Harris. I’m pleased to see you looking so well this morning.”

A startled laugh bubbled up. “I must have been acting like more of a lush last night than I realized.”

“Not at all. You were utterly delightful.”

Once he was back behind the driver’s seat, he turned to me. “I noticed the address you provided is for an AutoShop location. If you need your vehicle repaired, I can recommend a good mechanic.”

“Actually, I’m going there to see someone. It might take a few minutes. Will you be able to wait for me?”

“Of course.

“Thank you, James. I appreciate it.”

Unfortunately, my trip to AutoShop proved rather fruitless. One of his former co-workers said he heard Jeremy ran off to Vegas to hook up with a showgirl. Another wanted me to remind Jeremy that he owed him five hundred bucks. I tried to dig deeper and find out if he’d incurred the debt from drugs or gambling, but the man just laughed at me and walked away. Was that a confirmation? I had no idea.

After returning to the car, I reluctantly gave James the address for Jeremy’s apartment building. I’d been hoping to gain enough information at the AutoShop to skip it, but no such luck.

“Are you certain about this address? It’s not a great area of town.”

No surprise there. “This stop will be even quicker, I promise.”

Even though the short drive took us from an average neighborhood into scary territory, I refused to give up without at least attempting to follow the lead. I’d come this far, after all.

I walked to the second floor of the rundown building and knocked on the correct door, half-hoping no one would answer. Normally, I planned ahead for an interview. Thought through potential responses and anticipated follow-up questions. Not this time. I would truly be winging it. I didn’t even know if Jeremy had a roommate, much less how I would be received if he did.

“Tammy’s at work.”

I spun around to find a woman in her forties leaning over the railing and lighting a cigarette. Okay, this could work even better. “I was looking for Jeremy. Have you seen him around?”

She eyed me up and down. “Don’t tell me he knocked you up too?”

“Excuse me?”

After taking a long drag on her cigarette, she shook her head with disgust. “I wouldn’t be surprised if he was a cheater. Seems like the type.”

“Um, no, I was never involved with him.” Lie, Emma. Think of a believable lie. “We used to work together until he quit out of the blue a few weeks ago. I came by to check on him.”

“Jeremy hasn’t been around for at least that long. Sweet little Tammy swears he’s coming back for her, but I have a feeling we’ll never see his handsome face around here again.”

I wanted to confirm Tammy was his girlfriend, but that seemed like something a co-worker would know. “She’s pregnant with his baby?”

“Yep, and now that she has a belly on her, he took off.” She scattered ash with a violent flick of her wrist. “So like a man. Tammy’s nineteen. She has no business trying to raise a baby on her own.”

“That’s awful.” I didn’t even have to fake my dismay. Seriously, what the hell was Jeremy’s game? He’d left his pregnant girlfriend to what—live it up in Vegas? Was he really planning on coming back, or was that something he’d told Tammy to make himself feel better?

If anything, I now had more questions about Jeremy Reid than ever. I debated asking where I could find Tammy, but I was beginning to feel too much like a stalker for comfort. And if he had left her high and dry, I wasn’t sure it was the best idea to question her about him.

Instead, I went back to the car and asked James to take me to the best mall in the area. I hadn’t decided yet what I would tell Nicholas about my morning rendezvous, but at least I could honestly admit I’d gone shopping if anyone else asked.

Maybe it was time to come clean to Cole about his brother. Assuming the neighbor’s story was true, the idea of a young girl, pregnant and alone because of Jeremy’s selfish actions weighed on me. If nothing else, Cole deserved to know he was going to be an uncle. If he also decided to knock some sense into Jeremy, I had every intention of cheering him on.