I feel breathless, giddy with excitement; the thought that someone could have walked in on us is shockingly thrilling. Hudson pulls me to his feet, a wicked smile on his face, and he starts to button up my shirt.

“Whatever you want, we got you, okay?”

We walk from the room. I am feeling more than a little aroused at the thought of what is to come. Max settles the phone back in the cradle and holds out his hand to me. I take it as we walk towards the lift.

“I put a call through to Cal as well. He’s taking Nisha out for the evening. I thought we could do with some time alone.”

“Really? I don’t want Calum to feel like he has to. Nisha wouldn’t want that either. She’d feel pretty crap if she thought he was made to take her out, rather than actually wanting to,” I say.

“Don’t worry about Calum,” Hudson says as we wait for the lift. “He’ll be the perfect gentleman.”

“I know, he has been. But after last week when we all thought he was interested, he seems to have cooled off. Nisha has been through a lot in her life. More than me, and that’s saying something. She can’t be fooled around. Calum shouldn’t take her out unless he wants to. Unless he’s certain.”

Max puts his arm around my shoulder. “Cal is a great guy, he does a lot for us. We’ve known him for a really long time. If he didn’t want to take her out, he would have said so. Don’t worry about Nisha. Tonight, the only thoughts we want running through your head are how fucking adored you are, okay?”

Well, that shuts me up. Max’s words have the desired effect, so too does the closeness of them all. Max holds me against his side, Hudson takes my hand on my left and Bryce places his arms around my waist. I look at us all in the mirrored doors of the lift. All three of them are staring intently at me. I am in the middle of a Freed sandwich. A slow smile spills across my face.

“What are you grinning at, baby?” Hudson asks.

“I guess I’m just happy.” I don’t get to see their answering expression because the doors to the lift ping open. We step out into the foyer.

“Your car is waiting outside, Sir,” a security guard says as we walk towards the exit.

“Thanks, Noah. Time to shut up shop and get off home. Have a good evening,” Max says. Noah waves us out, locking the door behind us.

Outside on the street, our cab is waiting. We climb inside and a delicious nervousness fills my belly at the thought of what is to come.

* * *

We are standing in my bedroom. The blinds are drawn and the lights dimmed. Hudson, Max and Bryce are all staring at me. Strangely tonight I feel inexplicably shy, despite having shared my bed with all of them. Something is shifting between us. I can feel it in the air, it ignites a tension, a longing that draws us to each other.

Max is the first to make a move. Of the three he is the most open, the most willing to share his thoughts about his past, his life growing up. I have an easy relationship with him and I am always relaxed in his presence. He stands in front of me, blocking my view from Hudson and Bryce. There is no cheeky smile on his face this time as he leans down and brushes his lips against mine. When he pulls back his expression is serious, worried.

“Icy, there’s something that has been playing on my mind.”

“What is it?” I ask, trying to hide the tremor in my voice at his apparent unease.

He sits down on the bed and takes my hands in his. I sit down with him.

“I partied hard when you left. One night I even pursued a woman, but when it came down to it, I couldn’t go through with it. I didn’t want her. I only wanted you. I still do.”

A frown creases on my forehead. I can’t pretend his words don’t sting. The thought of Max even being near another woman has my heart squeezing painfully in my chest and an ugly jealousy rearing its head. I drop my eyes, not certain about how I feel. Why tell me now, like this? I feel hurt, but I have no right to. I had left them, after all. Max lifts my chin with his finger, making me look at him.

“I’m telling you this now because I want to be completely honest with you. I should have told you earlier… Louisa, I’ve fucked many women, but I’ve only ever loved two. One was my mum, and the other is… you,” he says softly.

“You love me?” I whisper, his words taking me by surprise. Hudson and Bryce appear to be as surprised as I am. I see them glancing at each other. Bryce looks happy, Hudson is unreadable. Max presses his forehead against mine and for a moment it is just us in the room as we regard each other. He brings his hands upwards, cupping my face, and kisses me with such tenderness it brings tears to my eyes.

“Yes, I love you,” he whispers against my mouth. “I don’t say these words lightly. From the moment you left I’ve thought of nothing else. Since you’ve been here I am the happiest I’ve ever been. I don’t want any one else. Fuck, you make me so happy.” Then he gets up, as if to leave.

“Where are you going?” I ask gently, grabbing hold of his arm. Apart from Nisha, he is the only person in the entire world to have said those three words to me. I am overwhelmed and dumbstruck. He looks down at me, hope in his chocolate brown eyes.

“You don’t tell me you love me then leave. Stay. I want you to stay, Max.” I stand, pulling him into a hug, burying my face into his neck. He wraps his arms around me and we hold onto one another. I am a mess of feelings that I can’t quite unravel.

Eventually he pulls back, a beautiful smile lighting his face.

“Get undressed,” I say playfully.

“You wish is my command, Icy,” he says as he unbuttons his shirt. Once he reaches the last button his hands fall away, and he waits. I know what he wants, so I slide my hands over the firm muscles of his chest and ease the shirt off his shoulders. His mouth parts at my touch. I press a gentle kiss against his broad chest, savouring the delicious vanilla smell of his skin and the smattering of golden hair beneath my fingertips. My hands slide to the band of his trousers, undoing them. They drop to the floor. He is wearing a pair of black Calvin Klein boxer shorts, his cock straining against the material. Reaching down, I rub my hand up and down its length, whilst capturing his bottom lip gently between my teeth. He groans. Pulling back, I rest my hands against his chest. “Get on the bed, Jester,” I order.

Max grabs my hand and presses a kiss against the knuckles then climbs onto the bed behind me. Bryce steps forward next. He has already removed his jacket and the top few buttons of his shirt are undone. His muscular arms pull the material taut across his biceps. His dark chest hair peeks out from the gap in his shirt. I find it just as attractive as Max’s fair hair. I adore him for all of the alpha maleness he oozes.

“Louisa, you beautiful, amazing woman,” he says, shaking his head in wonderment. “You have made Max so happy…”

“What about you, Bryce? Do I make you happy?” If I’m honest with myself, what I want to know is whether he loves me as well. But I mustn’t hope for that too.

“Fuck, Louisa, of course you do. I came to find you because I missed you, because we missed you, even though some of us were too pigheaded to admit it.” He glances over his shoulder at Hudson, who says nothing.

“When I saw you in the café, my heart nearly stopped beating. I knew then with absolute clarity what I’d really known all along. You’re my family now. Come here, darling,” he says, pulling me into his arms. I am engulfed by the sheer size of him and more than lust fills me, more than desire. In his arms I am not a shattered girl.

“When that bastard hurt you, I would have killed him had you not been there. I still want to kill him. But right now, all I want is for you to feel adored, wanted, loved. You are the sun and we are just planets orbiting you and I will spend the rest of my days doing just that, so long as you’ll have me. Damn it, Louisa, if that isn’t love, I don’t know what is.” Bryce leans down and presses kisses on my cheeks, my nose, my closed eyes, my forehead and lastly against my mouth. White heat spreads outwards from my centre, rippling over my skin.

“So, you love me then?” I ask softly, wanting to hear the words. I need to hear them.

“Of course I love you. Darling, how can I not?”

Bryce steps back and rips open his shirt. Small white buttons fly everywhere. I giggle. He grins. Behind us, Max laughs.

“What about the rest?” I ask.

“You don’t have to ask me twice.” Bryce unbuckles his belt, sliding it free from the loops of his trousers. He pulls them down, not once removing his eyes from mine. He reaches for my hand, brings it to his mouth then sucks on my index finger. I feel the gentle pull, the swirl of his tongue over the sensitive tip. That action alone has me panting. His mouth pops open as a dark desire blooms in his eyes. This time it is clear he doesn’t mind sharing this moment with his brothers.

“I hope you’re ready for us, darling,” he says, moving aside for Hudson.

“Always,” I say.

“But I think Hudson has a few words to say first,” Bryce says, glancing over his shoulder at him. He climbs on the bed, and I wait for Hudson to approach me. His eyes flick to Max and Bryce. He is guarded, unsure. I can tell he is fighting against himself, against his urge to run. Not from the sex, but from the emotion, the feelings. I know it’s true because, despite what both Bryce and Max have confessed, I’m still afraid to say those words too, even though I am certain that I love them all.