His breath caught and he mouthed us as he stared at me. Before I knew what was happening, he had his hands on my hips and lifted me up, forcing my legs around his waist. His eyes met mine, my heart racing at the feel of his body against mine. “Say it again,” he growled.

“Us,” I whimpered, turned on by his dominance and power.

“Again,” he said, his voice still firm, as if the only thing that could chase the demons away was my voice saying that one singular word, assuring him there was hope.

“Us.”

His stature relaxed slightly as he leaned in and pressed his mouth against mine. Sighing, I wrapped my arms around his neck, trying to pull him closer. His tongue forcefully met mine, as if my kiss alone could soothe his fears. I knew he needed this, needed this physical connection to me. The truth was, I needed it just as much as he did. I needed to know he was real, he was here, his love was real. It was euphoric, his mouth covering mine, his hands supporting me, letting me know he would never let go.

“Again,” he murmured against my lips.

“Us,” I whispered.

He groaned. “Again.”

“Us. Us. Us.”

He exhaled, the unease and torment that had plagued him seconds ago leaving him with each instance of me saying that word. And each time, it gave me the same thing it gave him… Promise.

He trailed soft kisses across my cheek, down my neck, lingering on my collarbone. I threw my head back, a surge of electricity washing over me with each nip of his lips, each brush of his tongue. With each kiss, he was saying “I love you”, “I cherish you”, “I treasure you”. I didn’t need to hear his voice say those words. I just knew. Instead of simply declaring his love to me with mere words, he did what he had always done. He proved it with his benevolence, his passion, his desire.

A loud throat clearing sounded, startling both of us. Reluctantly, Tyler pulled away from me, helping me lower my feet to the ground. He smiled mischievously as he glanced at Brayden and Jenna standing just off to the side.

“Get a room!” Brayden joked.

“Brayden,” Tyler said, nodding at him, shaking his hand. “Thanks for going along with everything tonight.”

I looked between Tyler and my two best friends, who had guilty, yet satisfied expressions on their faces.

“This was planned?”

Tyler shrugged. “Yeah. I wanted to make sure I had a few minutes alone with you.”

“We were a bit hesitant at first,” Jenna added, crossing her arms in front of her chest. “After everything, we didn’t want to see you get hurt again, but Brayden took care of that.”

“How?”

“I told him I have ties to the gay mafia.” He winked.

“Gay mafia?” I asked in disbelief.

“Yeah. Seriously, Mack. We’ve stood by your side through everything, but this schmuck made you happy for those two weeks. Then, when we saw the look of remorse on his face early this morning, well… I couldn’t help but get a good feeling about this time around.”

Tearing my gaze from my friends, I met Tyler’s eyes. “Me, too.”

He smiled back at me, planting a soft kiss on my forehead. It was the most innocent of exchanges, but that didn’t stop those butterflies from erupting within my stomach at the feel of his warm lips on my skin.

Too soon, he pulled away and retreated toward where the valet attendant still stood next to his Jaguar. “Enjoy your evening, Mackenzie,” he crooned, his eyes dark and full of longing.

“You’re not going to stay?” I could hear the disappointment in my voice.

“No. It’s girls’ night.” Returning to me, he grabbed my hand in his. “You need time to catch up and you can’t do that with me around.”

“When am I going to see you again?”

“Why? Missing me already?”

“No.” I rolled my eyes in fake irritation.

Brushing a wayward curl behind my ear, he caressed my face.

“Okay, maybe a little,” I admitted.

“Can I take you out to dinner tomorrow night?”

“On a date?” I asked coyly.

He nodded. “Yes. A proper date. No expectations for anything more. Just two people getting to know each other.”

“I’d like that.”

“Does seven work for you?” He raised his eyebrows.

“Yes.”

He grinned. Bringing my hand to his lips, he murmured, “Until tomorrow, mi cariño.” With that, he hopped in his car, leaving me completely satisfied and feeling as if things were going to be okay.

“You were totally eye-fucking him,” Jenna commented as she pulled me into the restaurant, Brayden right on our heels.

“It’s not eye-fucking if she already knows what the goods look like,” Brayden countered when we all took our normal seats at the bar.

“Says who?” Jenna retorted. “I still eye-fuck Richard and we’ve been married for a year!”

“Speaking of which,” I said, sipping my sparkling water once more, trying to get the focus of the conversation off me. “How’s everything going with you two?”

“Good. Better than good.” She swirled the liquid in her wine glass that the bartender had just poured for her. “I took your and Brayden’s advice and talked to him. He explained everything.”

“What did he say about the lack of any record of his previous marriage?”

“Well, it was like you said. He agreed to give his ex-wife a very hefty settlement, but a contingent of doing so was her agreeing to have all records of their marriage and subsequent divorce completely expunged. I had always just assumed she served him with divorce papers, not the other way around.”

“Why did he want that?” Brayden interjected.

“He said he didn’t want one of the biggest mistakes of his life to always follow him around. He wanted a fresh start, a new beginning, and he didn’t think he’d have that if his previous marriage and subsequent divorce were always lurking in the background. It was really kind of sad, listening to him talk about her. I was always hesitant to bring her up because I know all about wanting a fresh start, but…”

“Yeah?” I popped an olive in my mouth. “What is it?”

“I actually felt bad for him. He was more or less conned into marrying her. He was in his early forties when they met. She was in college.”

“He’s got a thing for younger girls, doesn’t he?” Brayden commented, winking.

Jenna smiled, a small laugh leaving her lips. “Yeah, I guess he does. Anyway, they dated, but it wasn’t anything serious. He said they were better off as friends, and that’s what they remained for a few years. He was tapped to take over the entire hotel chain, and she continued with college. One day, he got a phone call from her and she was sobbing. He said he had never heard her so frightened.”

“What happened?”

“She found out she was pregnant. When she confronted her boyfriend at the time, he split, disappearing into nowhere.”

I glanced down, placing my hand over my stomach. I could certainly sympathize with how she must have felt. Although the circumstances were different, I knew what it felt like to think you were alone.

“She came from a very strict Irish Catholic family and she couldn’t go home as she was unless…”

“She was married,” I finished.

Jenna nodded. “And Richard, being who he is, agreed to the marriage. They had a small ceremony a few weeks later. He called it a blessing in disguise. He had been so busy with the hotels and building the brand, he never took a minute for himself or his personal life.”

“Sound familiar?” Brayden mumbled under his breath, looking at me.

I shot my eyes to him and slapped him playfully.

“So he settled down with his new bride and began buying baby clothes. He couldn’t wait to be a father. He didn’t care that the kid wasn’t technically his. He said that’s not what makes someone a father… It’s being there, supporting them, putting their needs above your own. And he was ready and willing to do that.”

“But…”

Jenna took a deep breath. “About a month later, she came home from her doctor’s appointment and told him she lost the baby. She was upset, but he told her if she wanted to be a mother, they could try to have a kid themselves. They had trouble conceiving, and Richard became increasingly busy with the hotel. They would argue and Richard would suggest just stopping the whole charade, considering the only reason they married in the first place was because she had gotten pregnant and was worried about telling her parents. She didn’t have that problem anymore. However, each time he was ready to walk away, she would tell him she was pregnant, but she kept losing the baby. Finally, after the fourth or fifth time, Richard grew suspicious and called her doctor, then a private investigator. He soon found out there was never a pregnancy, not even at the beginning. He realized this woman, Ariana, was simply after his fortune that was slowly growing as his hotel brand became more and more popular.”