Page 225 of Beyond the Temptation: Vol 2

The young man jumps at the sound, then hurriedly says goodbye and leaves.

“Ah, he’s smitten with you,” I say to Finn with a laugh.

“What? No, he’s not.” Finn waves off my comment and gestures me into the room. “Here it is. Do you think Ollie will like it?”

I take in the painting. It’s gorgeous, and exactly what I asked for. Finn really is talented. I’m not just saying that because he’s my brother either. “He’s going to love it, Finn. Thank you for lending your talents to my gift.”

“Any time, Trenton. I just have a few finishing touches to complete, but it’s pretty much ready for Thursday. Who chooses Thursday to get married, anyway?” Finn asks with a laugh.

It’s been a running joke since we announced the date, but the truth is March 7th is the day Oliver and I met during Freshman year of high school. It was love at first sight. Marrying the love of my life on the anniversary of the day I fell for him just seems right. Of course Oliver agreed.

“You know why we chose the date. The day of the week doesn’t really matter, does it? Besides, a lot of wedding essentials are cheaper to book on less popular days. More to spend on the honeymoon,” I tell him with a wink.

“TMI. But I’m glad you have Oliver. You’ve been together for so long it gives me hope that true love exists.”

“Oh, Finn. You are a hopeless romantic. Oblivious, too.”

Finn shrugs. “If it was meant to be…”

The man has no idea when someone is into him. He’s missed out on so many opportunities to date because he didn’t realize until too late and the other person had moved on. One day someone is going to capture his attention and I hope I’m around to watch him flounder his way to love.

“So, have you chosen your best man yet?” Finn asks.

“No. I don’t want to hurt any of you if you’re not the one chosen.” My shoulders droop as I sigh.

“Well, it won’t hurt me any if you choose one of the others. We’ll all be at your side anyway.”

“Finn…”

“I mean it. Choose one of the others. I’ll have three more chances to be the best man. You’re not my only brother, you know that, right?” Finn gives me a wink and a smile to let me know he’s teasing.

“Finn–”

A knock at the front door startles us both.

“Finn!”

“Shit! I forgot. Sorry, Trenton, but I have work to do.”

With his arm at my shoulder, Finn rushes me out of the room and toward the front door, where a well-dressed, extremely handsome man waits.

“Skylar,” Finn greets the man, his arm falling from my shoulder. And I watch my brother become a cute schoolgirl with a crush. He twists his hands together and lightly bounces on his toes as he waits for the other man to acknowledge him. I’ve never seen him flustered like this, and I think I may get to witness him falling in love sooner than I expected.

“Goodbye Finn,” I say with a laugh and let myself out. I still haven’t chosen my best man, but the rest of the day seems brighter now that I know Finn may have found someone to steal his attention away from his art.

CHAPTER THREE

OLIVER

The front door slams in the living room. I hold my breath, waiting for a picture or two to come crashing down from the force used to create such a loud sound, but instead of breaking glass there’s a dramatic sigh, then silence. Trenton is in the shower so I know it’s not him who let themselves into our house without so much as a knock. A burglar would certainly be more quiet. That leaves four options, one of Trenton’s brothers. Checking my watch, I find it’s only eight a.m. “This can’t be good.”

Swallowing down the last sip of my coffee, I take my time placing the cup in the sink and rinsing it out. If there’s anything I’ve learned from my relationship with Trenton over the years, rinsing the dishes keeps my partner happy. It’s the small things.

Once I’ve dried my hands, straightened my tie and suit jacket, I head toward the living room.

I find Tucker perched on the edge of our sofa. From his disheveled hair, sweatpants, and wrinkled shirt, I’d say his day isn’t starting off quite the way he’d wanted it to.

“That was supposed to be off the record!” he shouts. His brows knitting tightly together as he swipes his finger frantically across the screen of his phone.

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