Page 25 of Room One Hundred and Nineteen: Watching Her

She carried a world of worries on her delicate shoulders, day in and day out. A shit ton of responsibilities no one should everhave to carry alone. But there she was. Doing it and thriving. With a grace that was astounding.

She called herself a hot mess, but all Josh, Miles, and I saw was the fucking miracle she was.

She never let herself be vulnerable. But with us, standing in her living room, after the three of us finally kissed her together, we saw it. The sweet, tender, honey-soft middle she hid from everyone in order to protect herself from getting hurt.

It wasn’t easy for us to walk out after that.

To leave so much to chance.

After all, we weren’t stupid. We knew she could easily change her mind or talk herself out of going. But with the promise of an incredible night clinging to the air, I had the kind of hope running through my veins I didn’t know existed outside of fairytales.

And fuck me, if she took a chance on us, we were going to make sure she never regretted it.

8

ELENA

The back seat of the limo was a lot bigger than I had expected. Too big for just me. Yet they hadn’t just sent a car or an Uber to pick me up.

No, my doctors had sent a limo. Long and sleek. My eyes had felt like they were about pop out of their sockets after looking behind the driver who had knocked on my door. The older gentleman had led me down my driveway and to the car.

I couldn’t deny the disappointment I felt when he opened the door and not one of them was waiting for me in the back seat. It proved how involved I was getting. How deep I was when it came to Josh, Miles, and Rick.

My knee bounced nervously as I eyed the mini bottles of champagne sitting in ice next to the tequila, one I had mentioned once a couple of months ago that was my favorite.

One drink. One drink would help soothe my nerves and calm me down. But I couldn’t get myself to move from my seat. I was frozen. I still couldn’t believe the way the day had unfolded. Not that the morning surprised me at all. Not when Rosie asked if she could take the kids swimming to where she now lived. I’deven appreciated it. It gave me the chance to clean the house without it immediately getting messy again.

But when the three men showed up at my doorstep, I should have known better than to invite them in. I was in over my head. I knew better. After my marriage ended, not that I had been surprised because our relationship hadn’t been the best, but after feeling like I had somehow failed, not just me but my kids, I’d promised myself I wouldn’t do that again.

I wouldn’t put my heart on the line.

Not again.

And I would definitely not bring a man around Mike and Betsy. Not with how young my kids were. Not only did you hear about horror stories, but kids got attached. What if it didn’t work out? Which being me and how hard it seemed to stick around or to love me, my luck, it most likely wouldn’t. Right?

But the kids had met each of the doctors. They loved them.

They thought Josh, Miles, and Rick were literally the best.

Now they were hanging out with their aunt and her boyfriends, and I was on my way to a sex club. A real-life sex club. I’d heard things about Club Sin. Whispers between some of the nurses, and even Rosie had been there with her men.

Now I am going.

And I couldn’t believe it. Nor could I believe what I was wearing. The pads of my fingers skimmed my bare collarbone.When did my collarbone become so sensitive?I exhaled slowly, pulling on the hemmed edges of the slits of the long dress.

I had stared at the box the guys had set on my coffee table for about ten minutes before finding the guts to open it. For some reason, even though I knew Club Sin was one of the most exclusive members-only sex clubs in the city, I was shocked to see the outfit they had purchased with me in mind.

Or the lack of it.

My hands dropped and clasped together on my lap while the city passed by. I wanted to make sure I was in control of myself tonight. I wanted to make sure I enjoyed every single moment possible.Oh god! Am I really doing this?

After taking a deep breath and exhaling slowly, I caught a glimpse of my reflection and blinked. I hardly recognized myself. Not that I had done up my makeup so dramatically I looked like someone else. I didn’t even know how to do all that contouring stuff, and the only baking I did was cupcakes when the kids wanted something sweet.

I still looked like myself but dolled up. I couldn’t remember the last time I took more than five minutes to get ready, much less have two entire hours to get put together. I’d blow dried my hair sleek and straight down my back and had time to do more than apply a touch of ChapStick to my lips. I’d chosen red lipstick, nude eyeshadow, and a sharp cat eyeliner. It turned out that doing my makeup was a lot like riding a bike. It had been years since I’d even tried to use eyeliner, yet somehow, I managed to do it right the first try.

I looked like myself yet didn’t at the same time. I felt lighter. Happier. Relaxed. It was crazy what two uninterrupted hours of me-time could do.Not to mention three really hot kisses from even hotter guys,the bad girl in my perked up to remind me.

Yeah, kissing them had been very hot. Just the reminder made my lips tingle. My legs pressed together, and just like that, I was very aware of the dress I was wearing. The one they’d not only chosen for me but fit like it had been made specifically to my measurements.

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