Page 87 of Succumbed

“She’s pulling up,” Shane calls.

It’s been eight days since I saw Lex. After she nearly ran into me, I avoided her completely for the rest of Linc’s ridiculous little painting party. We haven’t been in the same room since our last tense weekly meeting.

Shane jogs down the stairs, no doubt headed outside to greet her. My chest feels tight with discomfort and tension in response. I haven’t talked to him or Linc about the kiss, resigned to pretending it never happened. Pretending my worldview isn’t forever changed.

“Pretty sure she can find the door on her own,” I say as he reaches the foyer.

He replies immediately without so much as a glance my way. “Not doing it for her, man.”

The thought of Shane feeling so strongly for her that he can’t wait the thirty seconds it’ll take for her to get out of the car and walk into the house makes my skin itch. I can see the cracks between the three of us widening and feel helpless to stop the progression. Just one week to go. If we can make it through the Green Innovation Summit in Paris, we’ll be back to normal soon enough.

Or, I can try to get her out of our hair sooner.

It’s a selfish thought. Being near her, but not with her? It’s fucking torture.

“She here?” Linc walks up from the basement in nothing but athletic shorts, a towel slung over his shoulder.

“Seriously? Were you working out?”

He opens the fridge, snagging a bottle of water. “Yeah. What good is the gym you’ve finally set up down there if we don’t use it?”

“You knew we had a meeting.”

He rolls his eyes. “Of course I did. I’m up here on time, aren’t I?”

“Oh, what? You thought you’d grace us all with your sweaty, smelly ass?”

“Pretty sure no one cares, Dec.”

“I care! Have you finally given up all pretenses of professionalism?” The lines between work and home are even more precious to me these days. The murkier they get, the more I worry.

He levels an annoyed glare at me. “Dude. We have business meetings all the fucking time. Hell, the three of us have literally had them at the gym. What’s your issue?”

“It’s not just the three of us anymore, Linc,” I point out.

“Lex doesn’t mind me sweaty, brother. Promise.”

The reminder of the intimacy between them makes my blood pressure spike. “For fuck’s sake–”

“There she is!” He calls, cutting me off as Shane opens the door for Lex.

She looks up with a bright smile for my brother, her dark hair straight and parted down the middle. It shines almost red in the fading evening sun streaming through the door, lighting her up. I swallow roughly, trying to ignore the heat flashing through me. I can’t look at her without remembering the feel of her body against mine, her mouth parted so willingly.

Her long legs are on display in a tight sheath dress, which stops short of her knees. The smooth black fabric fits her perfectly, showing off the tight nip of her waist and the flare of her hips. My eyes are drawn down the gentle slope of her calf as she toes off her heels before moving across the room toward us.

I hate how much of her I notice, how every little detail burrows its way into my mind. I’ll obsess over each one later, unable to banish her from my thoughts.

“Look at you,” she teases, smiling at Linc as though I’m not in the room. “Get a good workout in like you hoped?”

She knows his workout schedule? My brow furrows as I watch her walk into his embrace, and he sweeps her into a fierce kiss. They’ve never really hidden their affections, but they’ve gotten more brazen about the PDA in the last few weeks. The physical stuff is one thing, but the casual way she makes it clear how close they are lights a fire in my gut as I tear my eyes away.

“Sure did,” he says, drawing my eyes back to them as he releases her. “Thanks for being flexible with timing tonight.”

“Of course,” she murmurs, trailing a hand down his bare arm as she steps away.

It’s like I can see the mark of that featherlight touch on his skin, the effect she has on him glaringly obvious as he watches her. But it’s not a flash of lust or desire that rises in his eyes, it’s affection. Something tightens in my chest as the realization hits me. Turning toward Shane, I find my best friend watching me, a knowing look on his face. As my lips part on the question, he inclines his head, one shoulder lifting as though to say ‘what can you do?’

“Well, Declan, I’m glad the time worked for you. We have a lot to cover.”

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