Page 74 of The Companion Love Trap

Cruz lifted an eyebrow but didn’t say anything. Hands on my hips, I held his stare. Eventually he smiled and walked forward.

“We bought the places on either side of this unit, as well.”

“Why?”

Jace cozied up to my back. “So Kieran and I could have an office closer, and…”

“Our family has a place to crash if we didn’t want to drive out to the estate,” Cruz added.

Estate was one way of putting it.

The mansion and land Cruz owned spanned more acreage than I thought possible. It was beautiful and outside the city proper—over a thirty minute drive. Some nights we’d stay at Jace and Kieran’s condo since Cruz’s room at Howlers wasn’t big enough for all of us, but it wasn’t ideal considering their building didn’t allow pets of any kind.

“And Buns can stay?” I asked.

“Yep. Buns will have his own kingdom.” Cruz smiled, and not for the first time I wondered how I’d kept him at arm's length for so long. The man was intoxicating.

“It should be criminal for you to wear your hair down,” I grumbled.

Cruz laughed. “Meu Dengo, apparently I’m fucking you too much because now I’m dressing like you.”

Jace chuckled, the vibrations racing up my spine. “You are deliciously dashing in that button-down, but I’m not sure we can draw conclusions just yet. We need more evidence to fully make a correlation.” He nipped my neck and my head rolled back to his shoulder, the two of them working to bring me to the brink of another orgasm.

Being thirty was amazing.

part two

KIERAN

TWO MONTHS LATER

My fingers tapped out a rhythm, the melody playing in my head soothing against the irritation of the voices in the room. I despised these types of meetings but knew they were necessary. Unfortunately.

However, the more I thought about it, the more I wondered if I’d achieved enough clout to just send Jace. Fuck it. I’d decide for myself if I had, and considering I loathed every second sitting in these board meetings, my time could be spent better elsewhere.

Like between Everly’s legs.

Doubtful the board would approve that excuse, I’d keep that one to myself.

“Mr. Byrne?”

I jolted, my head snapping up. “I will no longer be attending these meetings. Jace is my proxy with full voting power,” I said, ignoring whatever he’d been about to ask me. I stood, buttoned my jacket, and walked out without a backward glance. Jace would ream me later, but I’d gladly bend over and let him if it meant I didn’t have to suffer a second longer in that stuffy room.

Cruz’s offer to buyout all my current board members and become the sole investor sounded more appealing every day. Initially, I didn’t want to depend on Cruz in that capacity, worried it would muddy the waters. But it had been three months since we stepped off that cruiseliner, and my life was barely recognizable to what it had been before Everly.

The four of us had become a family, and it was hard to picture a future without the three of them. Maybe it wouldn’t be such a bad thing to consider his offer. I could spend my time doing what I liked and leave more opportunities to be with Everly. Whether we were creating music together, fucking, or simply enjoying the other’s company, I never had enough.

The balmy air hit me as I stepped out of the skyscraper and headed to the black car parked at the curb. With a few long strides, I slid into the backseat and out of the heat. The driver startled at my sudden appearance but quickly recovered.

“Where to, sir?”

“The Loft.”

“Yes, sir.”

I raised the divider and leaned against the leather seat, letting the AC cool my skin. My shoulders felt lighter with my decision, and my fingers tapped out a different rhythm—one I’d been fiddling with the past few months. I kept getting stuck on the refrain, the notes becoming jumbled in my mind and not making sense.

Except this time, they didn’t.

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