Page 112 of Succumbed

His lips purse briefly, something flashing in his eyes. “I’m glad for you, Linc.”

I eye him. “You sound super stoked.”

He groans, dropping back into the chair by the bed. “There’s a lot to think through. What about her rules?”

“Nope.” I shake my head. “This is Paris, and Paris is magic. Rules aren’t magic.”

“Linc…”

“I’m serious, Dec. Not now.” I’m not ready to think through the what-ifs of whether Lex will walk away from us after this. Let her fucking try.

He searches my face for a long moment, no doubt tracking my hard jaw and steely eyes. Finally, he ducks his head and nods.

“Okay. I’ll follow your lead.” A smile curves his lips as he looks back up at me. “Never thought I’d see the day I let you three call the shots. And all at once, to boot.”

Laughing, I walk over to shove his shoulder. “You’re a controlling asshole on a good day, man. We’re good for you. Stick with us, you’ll see.”

Dec turns thoughtful eyes toward the bathroom, Lex’s laugh reaching our ears. He looks back at me, something indecipherable in his gaze.

“You might be right.”

Chapter 33

Declan

“You ready for today?” Lex eyes me from across the elevator, a soft smile on her lush lips.

I already found myself staring at her mouth a dozen times since breakfast, the vision of my cock disappearing into it warring with one of her flushed and needy, impaled between Shane and Linc. I can’t decide which I prefer. Absently, I shift to adjust myself.

“Ready as I’ll ever be.”

She smirks, Linc rolling his eyes at my short reply. Lex doesn’t need me to elaborate; she knows I’m ready, she just wants me to admit the same. I’m ready, thanks to you.

Sex could be clarifying. In the aftermath of arguably the best sexual encounter of my life, I had a few revelations. As I railed against Lex and my own feelings, I failed to celebrate something monumental–we’d been funded. Startups were a dime a dozen, but startups with prominent VC backing? Those were in a far more exclusive group. Shane and Linc were right–we should’ve been celebrating the last three months.

Looking back, it’s laughable that I tried to liken Lex to Anne-Marie for so long. Our conniving former business partner didn’t have a compassionate bone in her body. She looked out for number one–herself–and didn’t give a flying fuck what happened to anyone around her. She sold an inspiring story of trial and error, a bright young woman making it in a cutthroat industry, but it was all smoke and mirrors.

Lex was the antithesis of Anne-Marie. Cunning, direct, and invested in the people around her as much as she was in their professional success–more so, even.

“Greenstar’s on the schedule for this morning.” Linc stares at his phone with the Summit schedule pulled up on the event app.

Lex nods. “Right before you. We might run into her. Are you worried?”

Am I? I don’t want to be, but I can’t deny the thought of coming face-to-face with her is unpleasant.

“No.” Shane answers before I can, stepping through the elevator doors as they open.

He looks as relaxed as ever, hands tucked in the pockets of his dark gray suit pants. A small smile lifts Lex’s mouth as she glances from him to me, and I want to kick myself for missing so many similar moments over the last few months. Paris Lex is playful, unguarded. She’s quick to smile and laugh, and seems happiest when touching one of us. Is this what she’s like at home, too?

“She’ll try to unsettle you, Declan.” Lex pitches her voice low, her hand on my shoulder as we walk toward the registration desk. “Don’t let her. She’s the one who stands to lose everything today, not you. Remember that.”

I dip my chin as she grips me gently before moving to greet the event organizers with a smile. They’re clearly pleased to see her, several of them rushing over to take her hand. She’s relaxed and warm in response, one hand in the pocket of her wide-leg pants. So fucking effortless.

“You good?” Shane steps over, holding out my badge.

Taking it, I run a thumb over the bold green ‘Presenter’ banner along the top. It’s simple, but seeing my name and title over ‘Solum Technologies’ is something else. We’d never invested in business cards, so the opportunity to see my name in something more official than an email signature was rare. Everything suddenly feels real. I’m struck with the weight of the moment, years of pressure and strain fading as fragile hope settles in its place.

“You did it.” Linc joins us, gripping my shoulder.

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