Chapter 27
Nonexclusive Basis
Sara
Fuck if I’m not curious. Wyatt still hasn’t said that he wants me. I’m afraid my attraction might be one-sided, especially after all these years.
Finn leans back. “Honestly, I think Sara would be perfect for what you want.”
That sends a little shiver through me. I’ve been aware of all these men since they returned to the apartment. But right now, my focus is on Wyatt.
Wyatt sinks back into his chair. “That’s not for me to decide.”
“Okay, let’s backtrack and table that for a few minutes.” Dante steeples his fingers against his lips. “Whoever Tom is afraid of might be after Sara too. However, we know they had access and didn’t use it to get to her.”
“Yet.” Finn takes a bite of his sandwich.
“They made it obvious they’d been there and didn’t trip the alarm system. It was a warning. A threat.” Dante’s blue eyes meet mine. I swallow. How many nights did I sleep there alone, possibly unaware of the danger lurking?
“There was this man I saw a few times.”
All their attention shifts to me and I squirm in my chair.
“It wasn’t obvious he was watching me.” I pick apart my bread to focus on something besides the guys. “I saw him at the bar. And outside the coffee shop. And then that one night on my street outside the house.”
“Why didn’t you tell me?” Dante surges forward. “Fuck, Sara, you could have—”
“I’m fine, and really it could’ve been a coincidence.” I shrug. “And I’m telling you now.”
“Did you know her parents were out of town?” Wyatt’s voice is quiet, but there’s that energy behind it again.
“Yes.” Dante rubs the back of his neck.
My cheeks flush, remembering how I got him to let me stay there on my own. When I smirk at him, his cheeks stain pink.
“You should have insisted she come and stay with us.” The fear in his voice is raw.
I’ve been avoiding looking at him, but now I shift my attention to him. His hands are fisted on the table. On instinct, without conscious thought, I put my hand over his.
Everything freezes in place. There’s just Wyatt and me for the space of a breath. Tingles burst through me at the contact. I snatch my hand away and time speeds back up. Wyatt’s dark eyes capture mine with their heat and feral need.
Awareness splashes over me, leaving me hot and achy.
“She didn’t want to come here.” Dante clears his throat. “She didn’t want to be around you.”
Wyatt’s eyes widen and his attention shifts to Dante. I suck in a breath. Fuck.
“What’s that supposed to mean?” Wyatt asks.
I find my voice. “It means that I didn’t want to watch you flaunt women in front of me.
You can’t begin to understand how I’ve felt for years.
Watching you with other women, knowing it would never be me.
And then to be forced to live with you and watch women rotate out of your room and having to smile and act like it’s not shredding my heart into pieces.
Fuck that. It means I didn’t want to want you more than I already do. ”
My heart pounds in my chest. It takes me a second to comprehend what I just let out into the universe. I sit back in my chair, semidazed.
It wasn’t a secret. Not really. I was never subtle, but I never came out and admitted it before.
Finn takes my hand and entwines our fingers, giving me his support. I don’t draw away from him. He doesn’t burn me like Wyatt does. Finn and Dante and even Drew light me on fire, but none of them hurt as much as Wyatt does.
The way I feel about Wyatt is an ache I can’t shake off.
Wyatt takes a breath like he’s going to explain everything to me.
“No.” Dante leans forward and looks at both Wyatt and me. “We’re not getting into that just yet. We need to figure shit out before we open that wound.”
It does feel like an open sore already. At least for me. The wound never scabs over. It never heals. It just festers with every breath.
I squeeze Finn’s hand and release it. Right now I need to stand on my own.
“I didn’t want to move into your apartment and work with you too. It seemed like overkill, so I asked Dante to not tell you.”
Wyatt’s gaze lifts to Dante.
Dante shakes his head. “I was doing what was best for all of us. The minute she entered this apartment, things would change. No one was ready for that.”
“And now we are?” Wyatt runs a hand through his hair.
Dante stands. He gathers the leftovers from lunch and cleans up the table. “We are. And we will.”
It seems like a natural break so I walk over to the couch and wait for Peabody to climb on my lap. The guys finish putting everything away. When Dante comes over, he hands me a glass of white wine and sits beside me.
Peabody stands and goes to sit on his lap. The little traitor.
Finn stops at the bar and pours scotch into three glasses. Wyatt sits on the edge of the couch like he wants to be able to bolt at any minute.
Dante drapes his arm around my shoulder and I lean into him, grateful for his warmth and comfort. This weekend just gets more stressful by the minute.
“Drew should be here.” Finn sits and glances at the other two before his green eyes focus on me.
“He’s busy. I have brunch with him tomorrow.” Taking a sip of my wine, I watch Wyatt over the rim.
“I saw him last night and this morning.” Wyatt rests his head against the couch. “He had somewhere to be today, but whatever you guys want, he’s probably all in.”
Wyatt’s gaze locks with mine, but I look away. I’m okay as long as we stick to the mystery of Tom.
“Did you ask him if he’s found anything out about Tom?” Dante’s fingers sweep across the back of my neck and little shivers trickle through me.
“No. Apparently, I went there to confront him about Sara.”
My eyes bounce up to his, but he’s looking away.
“Why apparently?” Dante asks.
“Because I don’t remember. I drank too much last night.” Wyatt runs a hand through his hair again, making it stick out every which way. It makes me want to run my hands through it to smooth it back down. To run my hands over him and smooth him back down.
He sighs and drinks most of his scotch, then leans forward with his elbows on his knees, dangling the glass between them. “He spoke to me at the restaurant on Thursday night.”
That’s news to me.
“I told him I couldn’t tear my friends apart, and he said maybe I should check with you guys.” Wyatt lifts his dark eyes to Finn and Dante. “When I asked him what he meant this morning, he told me you’d both kissed Sara. And that if I wanted to know what Sara wanted, I should ask her.”
That makes sense.
“He also said he’s sure we’re a package deal.” Wyatt’s attention lands on me and my breath catches. Drew has made it clear to me that he’s open to me being with more than just him.
But with Wyatt’s attention on me, it makes me squirm. It works for Madison, but is that really what I want? The full focus of four men on me?
I slip back to the memory of this morning with Dante and Finn. My panties dampen at how good it felt to be with both of them. Wyatt leans toward me, holding my gaze.
“Is that what you want, trouble? Four men ready to service your every need?” His dark eyes hold me locked in time. This is one of those questions that could change the direction of my life.
I know the answer, but that fear of his rejection still stains my heart.
“Am I what you want?” My voice shakes but I hold my head high. I’d rather him be honest with me now.
He reaches out and captures a lock of my hair. “You’re all I ever wanted, Sara.”
My heart hammers in my chest, but I see the moment he withdraws again. A stone sinks in my gut.
“I don’t know that I can be what you need.” He finishes his drink and sets the glass on the table before retreating to his room. Tears well in my eyes.
“You should talk to him, pip.” Dante squeezes my shoulder.
I shake my head because, as much as I want to take charge of my life, Wyatt is the one thing I can’t have. And to let myself believe again that he wants me and I can have him just to lose it all over again would break me.
When Wyatt left the conversation, the conversation stopped. Finn turned on a game and I went into Tom’s room to put away my meager belongings. Peabody finds a spot on the corner of the bed where he can watch me.
The room is spotless like Dante promised. Instead of Tom’s bedspread, a set of crisp white sheets and a pretty, subtle floral duvet rest on the king-sized bed. The pillows all look new too.
It takes me less time to unpack than it did to pack everything. I sit on the edge of the bed next to Peabody and sigh. I’m not sure what to think anymore. What to feel anymore.
Wyatt’s worried that he can’t be what I want, but how would he know if I don’t even know what he needs? I lie back on the bed and Peabody gets up and snuggles against me with a loud sigh.
My phone buzzes and I reach out to pick it up.
Kayla:
I’m bored. Want to go to the strip club again?
Me:
I might be on lockdown
I don’t even know anymore. Is it safe for me to go out with my friends? It’s not like someone will run up and grab me and carry me away.
Madison:
Your brother?
Hope:
Where?
Me:
Someone went through my and Tom’s rooms last night at the townhouse
I’m staying with Dante, Finn, and Wyatt in Tom’s room
Kayla:
You could’ve stayed with me
Hope:
I have room too
I think about repacking and moving to their couches, but this morning and that look in Wyatt’s eyes makes me want to stay here and figure this out.
Me:
Thanks, guys, but I’m settled
Madison:
How about a movie night?
Madison lived for school and her career for years, so we’ve been educating her on what she missed. I get up and go to the door, opening it to see who’s still out in the living room. It’s just Finn and Dante.
Dante works on his computer while Finn watches the game.
I clear my throat to get their attention.
Dante glances my way and his blue eyes soften, making my insides buzz softly.
“You need something, pip?”
Okay, those words shouldn’t make me want to grab him and drag him into this room. Fuck, things are complicated now.
“I was hoping to go over to my friend’s to watch a movie.” I feel like I’m fourteen again and have to ask permission to do anything.
“Sure, I can make sure you get there and back.” Dante glances at his computer screen. “What time, pip?”
I hold up a finger and text the group. The response is quick.
“An hour?” I ask.
“I’ve got you, pip.”
My insides buzz from him and his words. But then my gaze goes to the closed door across from mine and some of that fades. Maybe my friends will help me understand this. Maybe there’s a way to have them all without it being a struggle.