Page 84 of The Heart

“Told them you’re not! We’d been lying all day!” he says back to her.

“Yeah, and I was fucking tired of it! How do you think I felt, sitting there listening to your mother ask us if we were married, engaged or sleeping in different goddamn bedrooms?! If she can’t accept we’relivingtogether, how the fuck will she react when she finds out about Seb? And what aboutkids, Lu?”

Kids? Fuck.

“She doesn’t need to find out about Seb!” Luke says.

“Are you fucking kidding me?” Sebastian finally joins the conversation. “You have been up my ass about telling the team. So what’s your plan, Lu? Are we just going to spend every holiday acting like Leena’s your girlfriend and I’m the lonely piece of shit roommate that just hangs around your fucking perfect vanilla relationship? Maybe we can even throw a big wedding for the two of you, really drive the point home!”

I lean my elbows on the counter and take a large bite out of my apple. Which, apparently they hear, because they all turn toward me.

“See?” I say with my mouth full. “This is why I didn’t want to go.” I point my apple between the three of them, then continue chewing, deciding I should probably stay behind the counter.

“Goddammit, Colton,” Luke says, exasperated. I just smile, because seeing a three-way relationship squabble was exactly what I needed to lighten my shitty mood this evening.

“Lu, don’t get your panties in a twist. You know your sleuth sisters would have figured it out,” I tell him.

“They did!”Leena insists.

“Again? With the panties?” Luke mumbles.

Again?I narrow my eyes.Nope. Not going there.“Anyway,” I say slowly, taking another bite. “Leena, the woman is prehistoric, doesn’t mean she doesn’t love you. Sebastian, give him a break. Telling the team and telling his family are completely different, and you fucking know it. And Luke?” He glares at me. “Seb’s right. Don’t make him feel like shit because you’re embarrassed.” I point my apple at him again.

“I’m not–” Luke starts to say, but I interrupt.

“You are,or you would have told them. So either stop going to family functions, or tell everyone you like swallowing Seb’s dick just as much as you love eating out Leena’s pussy.”

“Jesus Christ,Colt.” Sebastian runs a hand over his face, leaning against the back of the couch.

I ignore him, and continue, “Now. Would you all make up,preferablynot in front of me, so we can go eat? We don’t have any food in the house.”

“Wehad food in the house whenweleft,” Sebastian says, gesturing between the three of them.

I click my tongue. “Should’ve thought of that before you gave me a key to your smash pad, bro.”

“Don’t. Fucking. Call. Me. That. You absolute child,” he grumbles.

“Come on, old man, I’m like three years younger than you.” It’s silent for a moment. “We could always go get dinner at The Club?” I offer as a fucking joke, seeing just how far I can push them this evening. Maybe if I piss them off enough, it will help them forget about their trip to bum-fuck nowhere so we can all hang out tonight.

I stare between them with a smile.

They all glare at me.

“Fuck it,” Luke says. All of us stare at him, wide-eyed. “If we’re going down this rabbit hole ofeveryone being fucking honest,why not take Leena to the goddamn club?!” he shouts, throwing his arms up in exasperation.

Yup. I broke him.

A long minute passes where everyone is silent, and it’s starting to get fucking awkward until Sebastian finally says something. “Luke, can I speak to you?Outside?”he growls out.

I turn to look over my shoulder, watching them head out the sliding glass door next to the kitchen. I cringe when Sebastian opens it, and again when Luke closes it, surprised they didn’t break the damn thing.

The second it’s shut, I can see them shouting, but apparently, their brand of bulletproof glass is also soundproof.

I turn away, then take another bite of my apple, the sound of it deafening in the newfound silence. Leena makes her way over, leaning on the other side of the kitchen island across from me. She watches them through the glass for a moment, then gives up, and looks at me.

She reaches out, stealing my apple, then takes a large bite out of it. She stares at me while she chews.

I take it back, take another bite, my eyes still locked with hers. And at this moment, I’m pretending that watching how her lips just wrapped around the same part of the apple as mine doesn’t bother me.

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