THREE MONTHS, SEVEN days, and twelve hours, to be exact, and every damn day I had to pinch myself that Jackson and I had been lucky enough to get a second chance, something I’d never expected in a million fucking years, but was grateful for, even if I hadn’t yet stopped reaching out in the mornings to make sure Jackson was still there. I knew this time he wasn’t going anywhere, but old fears died hard.

Tonight, after much pressure from Shaw and Bash, I’d invited over a few dozen friends to knock out two birds with one stone—celebrating Jackson’s twenty-seventh birthday and introducing him at our official housewarming party.

Yep, I’d suckered Jackson into moving in with me a couple of months after he’d relocated to South Haven, but, admittedly, that was because another tropical storm came through and flooded his apartment.

Thanks, Gram.

“Quick, hide—I think there’s about to be a toast,” Jackson said, coming up behind me. His hand went to the small of my back to push me toward the stairs, but he was a little too late, because Bash had discovered the microphone, and he pointed us out before calling everyone to attention.

“All right, all right,” Bash said, standing up on one of the two chairs Shaw had commandeered. As he snapped his fingers at the ones still talking in the corner, his tank rose up to expose a thin strip of his taut stomach. “Hush, you hookers, we’d like to make a toast.”

As the room fell silent, I glanced at Jackson, and he had a told you so expression.

“On behalf of Lucas and Jackson, we’d like to apologize to you all. I’m so sorry, fellas, but our longtime resident sex god is officially off the market.” As groans mixed with a few cheers, Bash put his hand over his heart. “I know. It’s almost a shame. But not to worry—Shaw and I will more than happily make up for any sadness or sexual frustration you may be feeling.”

Raucous whoops broke out as Bash and Shaw both lifted their drinks, and I wrapped my arm around Jackson’s waist, pulling him close. “You hear that? All mine,” I whispered, and he turned his head to kiss me.

Then Shaw took the mic, and someone in the crowd whistled. “And on a serious note, because you know there has to be one and we should really get that shit outta the way before we all get naked and do body shots, we’d like to say happy birthday to the guy who’s made our friend less of a dick than usual. Jackson, we didn’t think it was possible, but we’ve seen Lucas smile more in the last few months since you’ve been here than we have since we met the guy. Granted, it makes him look a little deranged when he’s not scowling, but whatevs, you’re the one who has to wake up to him.”

“Fuck your face,” I shouted, lifting a finger to go with my well wishes.

Shaw blew a kiss back and continued. “We know you guys have been to hell and back, so the fact that you’re here, together, and you choose each other…well, I guess that’s pretty fucking beautiful. What do you say, Bash?”

Bash leaned in toward the microphone. “I say make sure to use a condom. We know Jackson’s pretty, but we don’t need any mini Sullies crashing our orgies.”

“And on that note…” Shaw held up his drink. “Congratulations, you two. We love you.” As a chorus of awws swept through the crowd, Shaw added, “And those down for body shots, you can meet me in the kitchen.” Then he hopped off the chair as a group of eager participants followed him toward the back, and they all stopped on the way to say congrats and clink their glasses with ours.

“Okay, so that could’ve been worse,” I said.

“How so?”

“There could’ve been sing—” As soon as the word was out of my mouth, someone turned the music up, and—God help us all—Bash began to sing. Badly.

“Shots?” I said, raising a brow at Jackson.

“Shots,” he agreed.

“I SUPPOSE YOUR friends aren’t half bad. Most of them,” I teased Lucas a couple of hours later when I finally escaped from one of the guys who had wanted to tell me every hilarious story about his Chihuahua. I’d finally had to tell him I hated dogs just to get away. He was probably running home to call PETA now.

“I was wondering where you’d run off to. A party for us and I haven’t even seen you. I’m not fucking okay with that,” he said, drawing me to him.

There was a crash, and then Bash’s voice rang out from across the room. “Oh, I’m so terribly clumsy. Please forgive me for falling into your”—Bash ran his hands up and down the guy’s bicep—“thick, muscular arms.”

“Oh for fuck’s sake,” Lucas muttered, as Bash gave the guy one last pat-down and then sauntered over to us. “Think you can go one night without molesting our guests?”

With his hand on one hip and reaching for a glass of champagne on one of the platters in the corner with the other, Bash feigned shock. “Are you implying that I fell into that gorgeous specimen’s big, brawny arms on purpose?”

“It does seem like a rather Bash thing to do.”

“Well, la di da, all in the company of friends. Frankly, I’m surprised everyone is still clothed. Well, except for Shaw’s myriad of conquests.” As he took a dainty sip of his champagne, he stumbled a bit, and I grabbed his elbow to hold him steady.

“You okay tonight?” I chuckled as Bash righted himself.

“Oh dear. I suppose eating a cube of cheese today does have me a little lightheaded, but how else was I supposed to fit into these pants?” he replied, skimming his hand over the tight leather that looked like it’d been painted on his slim frame.

“Bash—kitchen. Food. Now,” Lucas said.

“Mmm, he’s so bossy,” Bash said, and then leaned over to stage-whisper to me, “I hope he’s that way in bed too.”

“Go eat, fucker,” Lucas said, rolling his eyes and steering me away. “Why did we agree to have a party here again?”

“Because you wanted to introduce me to all of your friends and show off all the hard work we’ve done on the house.” As much as we’d loved nostalgia and the way Gram had things set up when she’d been alive, it had been time to overhaul the inside with paint and furniture Lucas and I could agree on. The result was a cozy mix of soft brown leather and shades of blue that he claimed matched my eyes—both of them.

Cheesy, lovesick bastard.

“This is where you should’ve told me no. We could be in bed right now.” As Lucas pressed his lips beneath my ear, I playfully pushed him away.

“But I’m not even tired.”

“I wasn’t talking about sleeping,” he said, coming back to lightly nip at my earlobe. “Come on. No one’ll miss us if we head upstairs.”

“And miss your own party?”

“For once, I’m not in the mood.”

Those words from Lucas Sullivan’s mouth would’ve caused anyone to do a double take, so my reaction couldn’t be helped. “What’s this? South Haven’s former sex god is bored two hours in? Is he turning over a new leaf? Say it ain’t so.”

“Not completely…” Lucas slipped his hands into the back of my pants to grab my ass and use it as leverage while he rubbed himself against me.

God, those hands of his. There was something to be said for dating someone who worked with their hands for a living, because fuckin’ hell. He could incite my cock to action without a touch, sure, but with those magic hands? He could bring shit to a full throttle in two seconds flat.

Then there were his lips…those full, bitable lips were equally as tempting, especially when they were trailing down my neck, and I grabbed a handful of Lucas’s hair and pulled his head back so I could suck his bottom one into my mouth.

“Mmm,” he said. “See? This is why we should—” There was a crash from the kitchen, and Lucas sighed. “Stay here. Don’t move.”

I laughed at his put-out tone as he went to check on whatever shenanigans had caused the breakage, and as I watched him disappear around the corner, it amazed me yet again that this was my life now.

The past three months had flown by so fast: starting a prominent position at AnaVoge, moving three times, renovating our place…it had been a whirlwind, the best time of my life, even when combined with the bad. I hadn’t spoken to my father since that day in Bash’s office, and there was no doubt in my mind that the ties between us had been completely severed. Part of me thought I should feel sad about that, because he was, after all, still my father, but I felt nothing but repulsed by even his name. Disowning my father had completely changed the direction of my life, and if I had to do it all over again, I wouldn’t think twice.

Sydney still called on occasion. After hearing what had happened with my father, she’d left Davenport Worldwide not long after me, and she was currently taking some time off to travel. In my attempt to help her bring her dream of being a mom to fruition, and to resolve some of the guilt I still carried from leading her on for so long, I’d had Bash get in touch about solo destinations for singles, and from what he said, she’d made plans to meet up with several of his acquaintances while overseas also.

That just left…Lucas. My Lucas.

As he stalked back toward me, the expression on his face changed from one of annoyance to one of pure love, with a healthy dose of lust for good measure.

“I shot them all with NyQuil darts. We should be alone soon,” he said. “Now, where were we?”

I hooked a finger under the corded necklace he wore, the one he’d made an exact replica of recently and given it to me when I’d moved the last of my things into his house—now our house. “What am I gonna do with you, Lucas Sullivan?”

His brown eyes sparkled. “I can think of a few things.”

“Does one of them involve that candle you just bought that turns into massage oil?”

“God, it’s like you know me so well. Yes. Yes, it does.”

“You get the lighter; I’ll get Shaw to distract everyone so they don’t know we’re missing.”

Lucas jerked me forward and kissed me until we were both breathless. “Fuck,” he said, holding my face between his hands. “Have I mentioned I love you?”

I grinned. “Not in the last hour. You’re slacking.”

Lucas brought his lips to mine again, and this time, the urgency gave way to passion, the kiss that always told me just how much he loved me.

“Lucas?” I said against his mouth. “I don’t think the darts are working.”

“Shit. Think we can make a run for it?”

“That depends.”

“On what?”

I gave him a smile full of mischief as I fondled the button of my pants to distract him and said, “How fast you catch me.”

“I caught you the first time we met, Davenport. Have you already forgotten?”

“No,” I said, and unzipped my shorts. “But I had no idea what I was getting into back then.”

“Oh yeah? And now you do?”

I took the one step I needed to close the gap between us and kissed his lips, and God, he tasted like everything I wanted, everything I needed. “Yeah. And it’s something a little bit like love.”