“Callie, go over, baby.”

She cries out, then whimpers softly as she surrenders to the orgasm and pulls me over with her. We’re quiet, the room is hushed as we fall apart, then cling to each other and fall back together, catching our breath.

I brush the hair off her face and kiss her softly, then roll us to our sides, wrap her up against me and kiss her forehead.

“Sleepy,” she mumbles, and before I can reply, she’s slipped away, back into sleep.

I want this, every night.

***

Over the past year or so, my brothers, plus Ben and Rhys, have started getting together a couple times a month for a guy night. Mostly, we play pool, drink beer, and rag on each other.

It’s generally a good time, and as much as we all love our women, it’s nice to not have any estrogen around for a little while.

Not that we’d ever admit that to them.

Tonight, we’re in a dive bar a few blocks from the Quarter, playing pool and watching Monday night football. We usually gather at Ben’s, but he’s having work done on his place—mine’s not ready, and the others have that estrogen I mentioned earlier.

So, dive bar it is.

“Nine ball, corner,” Eli says and takes his shot, easily sinking the ball.

“So you’re moving into town?” I ask Beau as he watches Eli survey the table. Beau has lived on the inn property since Gabby opened, to keep an eye on things there, and to protect Gabby and Sam.

“Yeah, I’m moving into the loft next to Eli’s townhouse,” he confirms. “There’s no need for me to be out at the inn now that Rhys is there.”

“We told you a hundred times,” Rhys says and smirks when Eli misses his next shot. “We don’t mind if you stay. Your house is separate from the inn, you’re not in anyone’s way.”

“It makes sense to move into town,” Beau says. “I won’t have to commute to work anymore. The loft will do just fine until I find something else to buy.”

“Are you looking for a house?” Ben asks. “I think I saw a house about a block from me come up on the market.”

“Not yet,” Beau replies. “Although I do love the garden district.”

“How’s your house coming along?” Rhys asks me.

“It’s coming, one room at a time,” I reply with a shrug. “No hurry.”

“Declan’s never in a hurry for anything,” Eli says, but he smiles over at me with affection. It’s not a dig; it’s the truth.

I simply shrug just as my phone rings.

“This is Declan.”

“Hey, man, it’s Adam. Are you available to chat?”

“Sure, what’s up?”

“No, I mean in person.”

“Is Callie okay?” I ask with a frown.

“She’s great. I’d just like to talk to you in person.”

Ben raises a brow, but I just shrug. “Sure. I’m at the Big Boy, it’s a bar in—”

“I know it. See you in ten?”

“See you then.”

I hang up and frown.

“What’s that about?” Eli asks as he takes a shot and misses, then swears a blue streak when Ben laughs at him.

“Not sure. Adam, Callie’s friend, is on his way to chat.”

“Uh oh,” Rhys says and pats my shoulder. “Good luck with that.”

“What does that mean?”

“Means he’s gonna want to have the same chat with you that we all had with Rhys last year,” Beau says.

“You guys didn’t scare me,” Rhys insists.

“You didn’t have any reason to be afraid,” Eli replies. “What did you do, Dec?”

“I didn’t do anything,” I say and cross my arms over my chest, lean back against the bar and watch Eli at the table.

“I’m glad we get to watch this,” Ben says and cracks his knuckles. “Just so you know, if he takes a swing at you, we have your back.”

“Maybe,” Beau says. “Depends on what he did.”

“I didn’t do anything,” I reply, my voice hard just as Adam walks through the door, surveys the room, then walks toward me when he sees me at the bar in the back of the place. He doesn’t look angry. His face is calm, his walk loose and relaxed.

“Doesn’t look mad,” Rhys murmurs, reading my mind.

“Hey, Adam,” I say and shake his hand. “You remember my brothers.”

“I do. Hi, everyone.” He nods at them, then turns to me. “Can we talk?”

“You bet.”

He glances at the others and then at me.

“We can talk in front of them,” I tell him. “They’re a vault, and I don’t have anything to hide.”

“Fair enough.” He sits on a stool to my right and shakes his head at the bartender when asked if he wants anything to drink. “I’d like to talk about Callie.”

“Told you,” Beau says, earning a look from me that says shut it.

“Shoot,” I say and lean against the bar, facing him.

“Look, her dad’s gone, and I’m the only man in her life that gives a fuck about her. You and I have been friends for a long time, and I like you, but I love her.” He stops and frowns, looking down at his hands, and I suddenly respect my friend more than I ever have. “You have a history, Declan.”

“He’s a man whore,” Eli says from across the room.

“Not helping,” I say mildly.

“No, he’s right,” Adam says with a chuckle. “You are. So am I, so I know it when I see it.”

“And you want to make sure that Callie isn’t just another notch in my bedpost,” I say, nodding.

“She’s better than that,” Adam says simply. “She’s better than any of us.”

“Damn,” Ben whispers. “I like him.”

“Honestly,” Eli says as he sets his cue down and walks toward us, “I’ve been wondering what’s going on there too.”

“I think we all have,” Rhys says. “I know I haven’t been in the picture for long, but even I know that you’re not a one-woman kind of guy, Dec.”

I frown, suddenly ashamed of myself for the first time in my life where women are concerned. In the past, I always made it clear that if I was with a woman, it wasn’t going to be long term. We had fun together, and went our separate ways, no harm, no foul.

But it never occurred to me that it could have caused hurt feelings, and that leaves a bad taste in my mouth.

I glance around at the guys I respect most in the world, and then let out a gusty breath. “The truth?”

“No, lie to us, moron,” Beau says and rolls his eyes.

“I love her,” I say, enjoying the way the words roll off my tongue. “Adam’s right, she’s better than any of us. She’s probably too fucking good for me, but I’m so damn in love with her, I can’t breathe.”

“Well, that’s just the sweetest thing,” the bartender says, wiping a tear from her eye, eavesdropping unapologetically.

“Adorable,” Adam agrees, but he’s not smiling. “But that doesn’t really ease my mind.”

“What do you want from me?” I ask.

“I want to know where you plan to take this. Is she fun for now and when you decide you’re not in love with her anymore you move on to the next thing?”

“I should fucking deck you for that.”

“It’s a fair question,” Ben says quietly.

“Look, Callie and I have known each other for about four minutes. It’s early, way too early to put a ring on it. Especially for Callie. She doesn’t trust easily, and she definitely doesn’t make life-changing decisions in just a few months' time.”

“You’re evading,” Adam says. “And you forget that I know her. I agree, if you dropped to one knee and pulled out a rock, she’d run screaming into the night.”

I frown, hating that he’s right.

“But,” he continues, “that doesn’t mean that you haven’t already thought about what you want.”

“I want her. All of her.” I stand and pace to the pool table, then back to Adam. “I am in love with her. Not for a month, or until she irritates me. For good. I plan to make her mine, but damn it, it’s not as easy as just deciding it and expecting her to fall in line. She has a say.”

“You’re damn right she has a say,” Adam replies, smiling now. “And you’ve told me all I need to know.”

“You’re going to make a good dad someday,” Rhys says to Adam. “I hope you have a girl.”

“No kids for me, pal,” Adam replies, then shudders and takes a swig of my beer. “Unlike Declan, I’m a player for life.”