Page 122 of Forgotten Promise

He sighed heavily, so many regrets crashing down around him. He’d gone along with Kailani and Benjamin, swept away by the romance, the magic of this place, even though he knew it was wrong.

And while they’d played and fucked, the one thing they hadn’t done was talk.

He leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees, looking down at the shiny surface of the water, his feet beneath.

Where the hell was he supposed to go from here? The trinity was broken, dissolved, so why was he staying? He should walk away from them, should get on a plane and return to his normal life.

That was what a smart man would do.

But he couldn’t make himself take the first step.

Because his normal life sucked, and even as fucked up and crazy as things were between them, the time he’d spent with them had been, God, amazing.

“John?”

He lifted his head, looking over his shoulder as Kailani emerged from the bedroom. She’d thrown on a T-shirt and panties, but nothing else. Benjamin was behind her, and like John, he was still shirtless, wearing a pair of lounge pants slung low on his waist.

“What are you doing out here?” Benjamin asked.

John lifted one shoulder. “I couldn’t sleep.”

Kailani lowered herself to sit next to him. “Mmm,” she hummed as she dipped her feet into the warm pool water. “That feels good.”

Benjamin pulled a lounger closer, placing it just behind and between them before perching on the end of it.

There was an ease between them. He was comfortable around them in ways he’d never experienced before. He kept everyone else in his life at a distance, always able to make a quick escape. The space between the three of them was almost nonexistent, and yet he kept finding himself seeking to close it even more.

John leaned back just slightly, letting his shoulder bump into Benjamin’s knee. He tried to pretend it was an accident as he shifted forward once more, but Benjamin reached out and gripped the back of John’s neck, pulling him toward him, encouraging him to lean against him. Then Benjamin kept his hand on his neck, his thumb drawing circles in a touch that was familiar yet far from friendly. The stroking was fucking hot, distracting, making it difficult to keep his dick in the down-boy position.

“I left today’s itinerary wide open—either for sightseeing, more gambling, sunbathing on the beach, or just hanging out here—so we can schedule a nap later. I think we’ll all need one.” Benjamin leaned forward, kissing the side of John’s head. “You have a preference, Double-O-Seven?”

Before he could reply, Kailani spoke. “Maybe before we make plans for the day, we should tie up loose ends from last night. There’s still one thing left on our list. One last debt to pay.”

Punishment.

In the heat of the moment, when they were playing with those markers, John had demanded Kailani and Benjamin accept their punishment.

For walking away from this…

From him.

When John added it to his list of demands last night, he’d intended to follow through, countless forms of erotic punishment flashing in his mind.

Now…

Now he couldn’t go through with it. Because the punishment—like everything they’d done last night—wouldn’t fix a goddamn thing.

John drew one leg out of the water, twisting until it was bent beneath him, so that he was facing both of them. “I think this is a good place for us to cut our losses. I’m heading back to L.A. today.”

Benjamin and Kailani both froze, exchanging a look before focusing on him.

“What are you talking about?” Kailani asked. At the same time Benjamin shook his head, simply saying, “No.”

“Last night was a mistake.”

Kailani’s face fell. “No,” she whispered. “It wasn’t.”

“I shouldn’t have let things go so far. Nothing’s changed between us.”

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