Page 117 of Forbidden

His features tighten, all humor fading from his expression. “Forget I asked.”

“No.” I reach up and cup the side of his face, my thumb skimming the scruff of his shorter than usual beard. “Don’t do that. Don’t run.”

“I’m not running,” he says, his arms stiff around me as we turn. “I’m right here.”

I roll my eyes, resting my arms around his neck. “Doug, you know why I invited you today, right?”

“Yeah.” He snorts. “I bet you and Masters had a right laugh scheming away behind my back.”

“Doug,” I say firmly, waiting until his eyes meet mine before continuing. “We want you.Iwant you. You feel it, I know you do—how right things are when the four of us are together.”

He shakes his head, his fingers tightening where they grip my waist. “You shouldn’t want me. I’ll just infect what you three have. All I ever do is piss people off. I’m not relationship material, and I made my peace with that a long time ago.”

“Stop it,” I snap. “What would have happened if I hadn’t broken things off last summer?”

“I would have fucked it up at some point. Besides,” he leans in, his lips brushing my ear, “it wasn’t a relationship. We were just sucking each other’s dicks.”

My skin heats and I pull back to glare at him. “Don’t give me that crap. It was more than that and you fucking know it.”

He gives me a smug smile, but it doesn’t fool me. I can see the pain in those gray eyes as clear as day. Doug McMann doesn’t hide his emotions nearly as well as he thinks he does.

“Doug,” I say, trying not to let my fingers drift to play with the freshly cut hair at the nape of his neck. “We don’t even know what we’re doing. It’s new for all of us. But we all want you to be part of it—to figure it out with us. I don’t know what’s going to happen after graduation, but we still have a couple of months.”

Doug huffs and shakes his head. “You broke things off with me because you didn’t want me to get in trouble for fooling around with a student. Now, you’re asking me to double my efforts?”

My jaw clenches because he’s right. “This is more than fooling around, Doug. Or at least, it is to me. It is to Lane and Joy, too. Which is why I can’t kiss you until I know you’re all in.”

He stares down at me, his eyes slightly narrowed as he processes my ultimatum. When he leans closer, my breath halts, waiting to hear the words I hoped tonight would bring. But then he kisses my cheek, steps out of my embrace, and walks away.

DOUG

Fuck.Every time I walk away from Aldo, it hurts a little more than the last time. Am I walking away? I mean, literally I am. But I don’t know if I’m walking away from what he wants. I just know I need space. It’s not like anything he said was a surprise. I knew this invitation was a ploy to convince me to stay with them. Which is why I should have said no. I should never have come here.

I want to say yes to him. I want to dive in with both feet, but I’m scared. There. I said it. And only a tiny proportion of that fear has anything to do with Elizabeth fucking West. Although, she is particularly terrifying.

Aldo, Masters, and Joy have already wound themselves around my shriveled heart and I don’t know how to go about cutting them loose. Maybe because I don’t want to. I enjoy spending time with them. Even Masters. And the sex? Holy fuckamoly. How the hell am I ever going to find something that could even come close to competing? I won’t. I know that for certain.

It takes a lot of willpower not to turn around as I leave the dance floor, hating every fiber of my being for leaving him standing there. The only saving grace is knowing he’s surrounded by friends and family. He won’t be left standing there for long. Even so, I don’t risk turning around until I’m at the bar, with a vodka and coke in my hand, and a few dozen people serving as a barricade between me and the dance floor.

Relief knocks me for six as I spot him dancing with the bride. He’ll be okay. Just a few months more and he’ll never have to see me again. The thought causes a sharp pain in my gut, and I wince.

“You okay, dude?”

I force a smile as a broad, brown-haired man steps in beside me and orders two glasses of champagne. He’s built like a line-backer and has jock written all over him. I would know.

“Yeah, thanks,” I say. “Indigestion.”

He squints at me for a second, then his strangely blue eyes widen, and he grins. “You’re here with Aldo, aren’t you?”

I try not to wince again. “Yeah. I’m Doug.”

“Cameron.” He extends his hand. “His brother-in-law. I’m married to Avena.”

Trying not to grimace as his meaty hand crushes mine, I nod. “Nice to meet you.”

“Likewise.” He turns and leans against the bar, clearly deciding on staying for a bit. “Avena had a field day when she found out about you guys.”

I raise my eyebrows. “Excuse me?”

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