Page 65 of Quinlan

Being the object of Rex’s tantrums has conditioned me into flinching at his tough voice. He’s bigger. Louder. It doesn’t help that I’m guilty. After all, I’m the one who’s to blame for his grief.

But—no. I stop that snowball before it even starts rolling. I can’t keep blaming myself for everything. Can’t keep letting him treat me like this.

Instead of cowering from him, I lift my chin up, and square my shoulders.

I haven’t contacted him today for a reason. He doesn’t get to be rude, then call and make demands.

“I’m fine,” I raise my voice to be heard over the music. “I’m about to meet—”

The sentence dies a miserable death on my tongue. Scratch that, it’s never made it that far. The words stuff my throat, choking me.

“Meet who?”

My friends, I want to say.

Except they aren’t the only people I know here.

Mystery man is sitting on one of the low round tables. His lips curl into a wicked smirk when he notices me, his sapphire eyesglinting. His dark hair is styled in a perfectly messy sort of way. The casual navy suit he’s wearing looks like it’s been molded to his toned body.

And if it were only him here, that would’ve been fine. Manageable.

He isn’t alone.

At his side, there’s Liam, handsome as ever in a black suit. His hair falls on his forehead, his amber eyes boring into mine. With his forearms resting on the table, one of his hands holds his gold Zippo. My gaze is drawn to it when he flicks it open. When the flame flickers to life.

Two out of three.

False.

A third man is seated at their table with his back to me. My stomach swoops at his broad shoulders and familiar buzz cut, but it can’t be.

“Quinlan, are you listening to me?” Rex, I think. More like a background noise.

It can’t be Rome.

Liam and mystery man’s focus on me must’ve tipped him off. Must’ve alerted him of me being here. He looks over his shoulder, glorious and dangerous in a dark blue suit to match his eyes.

Oh, fuck my life.

It is Rome.

He’s fixated on me, ensnaring me in his gaze.

His jaw tics, the movement like a magnet, pulling my eyes to his lips. Lips that kissed me. That made my heart flutter and my pussy wet. It took me forever to catch my breath after he walked away.

I’m struggling to catch it now.

When I dreamed of the three of them together, it was nothing like this. In my fantasy, the walls didn’t close in on me. I didn’t freeze.

It wasn’t so depraved and wrong to have all of them together.

Do they know each other? Do they know each of them met me?

“Quinlan.” A shout in my ear. “Quinlan, goddamn it, answer me! What’s going on?”

“I…” My tongue is heavy. My mind racing.

Run. Stay. Walk over there and confront them.

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