Page 7 of Give Me Three

I scoffed. “You know your mother.”

He laughed. “I do. But just remember, she’s gone, Dad.” His throat bobbed. “She’s gone,” he repeated, his voice softer now—sadder. And it broke my fucking heart. “She can’t make you do anything anymore. You two had a happy, loving marriage; it was enviable, honestly. But now, you’re allowed to live your life however you want.”

With that, he walked inside, leaving me to my thoughts. And all my confusion and heartache.

CHAPTER 4

Jaxon

Ash meowed, the sound echoing in the car as I turned into the parking lot for Dr. Hendrix’s office. She was in the cat carrier I’d bought her a few days ago, and she wasnothappy. She preferred to be out so she could roam and lay on my lap and possibly interfere with my driving.

Ash had definitely gotten comfortable in her new home, and she was making it known… as well as making it known that she was a princess who expected princess treatment.

Apparently, princess treatment did not include ensuring she was safe in her pet carrier.

I parked the car before reaching over and grabbing Ash’s cat carrier. She hissed at me and swatted at my arm through the little bars in the front of her carrier. I sighed, yanking my hand back. She was beginning to make me feel like a terrible cat dad. “I will spoil you with soft food when we get home, okay? I promise.”

She only gave a pissy meow back. Avoiding the front of her carrier, I grabbed the handle at the top and eased from the car. The sun was bright in the sky, and the humidity was insane. I felt like I was drowning in wet air. Judging by Ash’s hiss, she wasn’t happy about the heat either.

The bell above the door jingled when I stepped into the reception area. Only a lone woman was sitting with a hound with cute droopy eyes and long, floppy ears, the rest of the lobby empty. The dog didn’t even bother lifting his head to look at me—just shut his eyes again and continued sleeping.

My gut tightened, and my heart raced at the sight of Zeppelin sitting at the counter, his feet kicked up on the desk in front of him, his iPad in his lap as he drew something on the tablet. He flicked his eyes up when my frame shadowed him, and a slow, mischievous smirk tilted his lips. His boots dropped to the ground with a loud thud, and he set his iPad down, setting the pencil beside it. It looked like he’d been drawing a dragon, and it was pretty fucking good, too.

“Well, well, well…” he murmured, smirking up at me. I glanced back at him, ripping my eyes from his art. “To what do we owe the pleasure, handsome?”

Warmth pooled low in my gut, and I did my damnest to ignore it. I was straight. Straight, dammit. What the fuck was wrong with me? I’d even gone as far as going out to a goddamn gay bar two nights ago, butno onehad interested me. Not a single damn soul. And I got hit on quite a bit.

Yet, the moment I laid my eyes on Zeppelin, there it all was. The want. The need. The fucking heat.

What in the hell was going on with me?

“Ash needs her first round of shots and another round of deworming,” I told him, hating how gruff my voice sounded. The effect he had on me was clear, and I wished I could hide it.

“Aww, that’s it?” He pretended to pout. “And here I thought you finally caved and just came to see us.” He heaved a dramatic sigh, but a teasing smirk still played on his lips. “We’ll settle for little miss Ash then, I suppose.”

I couldn’t help it; a smile twitched at my lips. Zeppelin grinned when he noticed, showing off two rows of perfect teeth and a damned dimple in his left cheek. Why did he have to be so good looking?

“Eros is busy grooming a dog, but once he sees Selvester, you and Ash will be next,” he told me. “You can take a seat, or…” He trailed off, letting his eyes roam over my upper body in a way that made me feel naked despite the jeans and t-shirt I was wearing. “You can always come around and keep me company.”

Nope. Nope. Nope.

I quickly turned on my heel and strode over to one of the benches to take a seat, not bothering to say a word, even as Zeppelin’s laughter rang out behind me. Ash gave another pissy meow when I set her down but didn’t let her out of her kennel. I wanted to reach through and pet her, but the last time I did that, she damn near bit my finger off, so she was going to have to suffer in there untilDr. Hendrixwas ready to see her.

I would not call him Eros. I had to keep some form of professionalism between us.Had to. I was too old for this bi-awakening or gay-for-you or whatever the fuck was wrong with me shit.

I was straight. Plain and simple. And two of the hottest men I’d ever seen in my life wouldnotchange that.

Eros—goddammit, no,Dr. Hendrix—smiled at me, looking genuinely happy to see me in his office. He and his husband did not make it easy to ignore their advances. Not when they smiled so damn prettily. “How’s Ash doing?” he asked as I set her carrier on the metal table against the wall.

“Good,” I said, happy he was leading with the reason I was here instead of flirting with me like his… I glanced at the ring on Dr. Hendrix’s finger. Husband. His husband.

This shit just got more and more confusing for me.

Did they both want me, or was this just some game to them to see which one could bed me?

Wait—why the fuck did I evencare? I’d decided I wasn’t doing this shit.

“How’s the soft food going?” he asked as he let Ash out of the pet carrier. She came flying out, her tail fluffed, her claws out, but he was ready and simply picked her up, rubbing her head and under her chin until she was settled and purring.

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