Chapter 23
Chapter Twenty-Three
Wolfe
What. The ever-loving. Fuck.
I set Amy aside when Rhys walked out the door without so much as a backward glance.
“Give me a minute,” I told her, then followed the sheriff out the door.
He was already climbing into his truck when he spotted me.
“What the fuck? Where you goin’?” I called out.
The son of a bitch had the nerve to shut his damn truck door. I had to wait for him to lower the fucking window.
“You got a curfew or somethin’?” I asked, scanning Rhys’s face to see if I could read him.
“Got an early mornin’ tomorrow.”
“Tomorrow’s Sunday,” I informed him.
“Some of us work on Sunday,” he said defensively.
I put my hand on the door and moved closer. “What the hell’s your deal?”
“Me?” Rhys’s expression hardened. “I’m goin’ home, Wolfe. What the fuck do you want me to do? Sit in the goddamn bar and stare at you and Amy from across the room? No fuckin’ thank you. I’ll pass. But happy fuckin’ birthday.”
I had no idea what had gotten into the man these past few days, but something was clearly bothering him. While I had tried to include him in any plans I'd made with Amy, Rhys had been coming up with one excuse after another.
Taking a deep breath, I considered all the things I wanted to say, but I opted to keep them to myself. I'd never been big on complications or drama, and I damn sure didn’t intend to start now.
“Fine,” I said with a sigh, releasing the door. “Later.”
Without a word, Rhys tore out of the parking lot, his tires kicking up gravel. I turned to see Amy standing near the door, watching me.
“Is he okay?”
I shrugged. “No fuckin’ clue.”
“What did he say?”
“Nothin’.”
Amy studied my face, concern forming a deep groove in her forehead. “Are you gonna go talk to him?”
“Fuck no.” Why the hell would I do that? If Rhys wanted to play childish games, he could do so alone.
When I reached for Amy’s hand, she pulled back.
“What the hell?” I stared down at her. “You’re gonna pull this shit, too?”
Amy flinched like I'd backhanded her. Of course, I then felt like an asshole. Which was probably fitting. But it was my birthday, for chrissakes. Where the fuck had the night gone wrong? And why tonight of all nights?
I studied her face momentarily. I could see she was concerned about Rhys. And I couldn’t really blame her. The sheriff was acting strange. Even for him.
With a sigh, I reached for her again. “Fine. When you get off work, we’ll go talk to him.”
She seemed to process that information and then nodded curtly. I wasn’t sure what she was thinking, but I wasn’t about to get into it with her here. It was my fucking birthday, damn it. Why the hell did everyone want to start a damn fight tonight?
Two hours later, we were closing down the bar. Literally.
I waited for Reagan and Amy to finish up, lock the doors, then join me outside. The two women spoke quietly, then Amy came over to where I stood by my truck.
“You ready?”
She nodded, but I noticed she wasn’t smiling.
Placing my hand on her lower back, I walked her around to the passenger door, then helped her into the truck. What I wanted to do was strip the woman naked right here in the parking lot and spend the next hour of my life feasting on her.
Instead, we were likely going to get into an argument when Amy realized I wasn’t going to go chasing after Rhys.
I'd considered it for a while, but then came to the conclusion that we both needed some space. If the man wanted to talk, we could do so tomorrow. After we’d slept on it for a little while.
“Did you have a good birthday?” Amy asked as I was pulling out of the parking lot.
“I did.”
She was silent for a few minutes, her eyes scanning outside. “I thought we were gonna go talk to Rhys.”
I shook my head. “He said he didn’t wanna be bothered. He’s gotta work in the mornin’.”
Amy’s eyebrows lowered, her eyes locked on me.
I cast a sideways glance her way, then turned my attention back to the road.
“I think we need to go to his house.”
“And what?” I asked, my tone rougher than I intended. “Beg him to give me the time of day? Not interested.”
I felt as though Rhys was purposely trying to push me away, and if that was the way the man wanted to play it, then I could certainly oblige him.
“Did you stop to think about how he felt tonight?”
Jerking my attention to Amy, I tried to process her question. “What?”
“At Reagan’s. When he was sitting on the opposite side of the room. Alone.”
Rhys hadn’t been alone, he’d been…
Son of a bitch.
Sighing, I pulled the truck off onto the side of the road. “What are you sayin’?”
She was staring at her hands clasped tightly in her lap.
“He was by himself, Wolfe. While you were with your family. And me.” She met my gaze in the dark cab of the truck.
“Do you know the lengths he went to help set up that party? It wasn’t just me.
I played a role in getting people together, convincing them to keep their mouths shut. ”
Tightening my grip on the steering wheel, I stared out the window.
Honest to God, I hadn’t even thought about it tonight.
I'd been happy that Rhys was there, but I truthfully hadn’t considered what it felt like for him to keep his distance.
I'd thought Rhys was doing it on purpose, not because he felt he had to in order to keep this thing between us out of the public eye.
“Fuck.”
“You need to go talk to him.”
Amy was right. I did need to talk to Rhys.
And I knew exactly what I needed to say to the man.
Amy
I wasn’t sure what was going on between Wolfe and Rhys, but I figured it had a lot to do with ego. That and maybe a little confusion about how this thing between the three of us was going to play out.
There was no doubt about it, I'd seen the hurt in Rhys’s eyes tonight when he’d been sitting alone at the back of the bar.
And it had damn near broken my heart not to be with him.
I wanted to be with both of them. Not just Wolfe and not just Rhys.
I hadn’t signed on to this thing one-on-one, and I didn’t like the fact that we couldn’t go out in public together.
Although it was an unconventional setup, for me, it only seemed to work if the three of us were together.
I hadn’t given much thought to why that was, but I felt it deep inside.
Sure, I would go along with it if I had to—if this was what they wanted—but that didn’t mean I had to like it. So, when it came to our private spaces, I didn’t see why we couldn’t spend our time together.
I was surprised that Wolfe didn’t call Rhys to give him a heads-up that we were coming. Instead, he pulled his truck back out onto the road, only this time he turned in the opposite direction. Toward Rhys’s house.
We drove in silence, and I felt the nervous tension ratchet up a few notches the closer we got to his house.
I could practically feel the emotion bubbling inside Wolfe, and I wanted to ask him what he was feeling, what he intended to say when he saw Rhys, but I managed to keep my thoughts to myself.
One thing I had noticed about both Rhys and Wolfe was that neither man was big on conversation. Not the deep, personal kind, anyway.
As usual, when they pulled into the driveway and he shut off the truck, Wolfe climbed out first, then came around to my side and opened my door for me. I grabbed his hand, linking our fingers together as he marched toward the front door.
Before Wolfe knocked, the door opened and Rhys stood in the open doorway, no shirt, no boots, just a pair of jeans riding low on his hips.
The man really was a fine specimen. Sleek, muscular, sexy. He made my mouth water.
“Not done readin’ me the riot act?” Rhys questioned, leaning his shoulder against the doorjamb.
Knowing these two were going to go toe to toe, I released Wolfe’s hand, marched right up to Rhys, and waited until he looked at me.
When he did, I reached up, jerked his head down, and kissed him right on the mouth.
I didn’t let it linger, though, choosing to release him before sidestepping him and going inside.
If they wanted to act like fools, they could come find me when they were finished.
Taking a seat on the leather couch, I made sure I had a front-row view of the showdown about to take place on the porch.
Both men had squared off, staring at one another.
I could feel the waves of emotion pouring from each of them, although I wasn’t exactly sure what emotion that was.
Anger, frustration … maybe love. Who knew.
But sooner or later, they were going to have to man up and figure this out.
Otherwise, this thing between us was going to detonate long before it ever hit solid ground.
And wasn’t that going to suck?
Because one thing I knew with absolute certainty…
I'd fallen in love.
With two stubborn men.
Rhys
I was surprised to see Wolfe and Amy on my doorstep.
I figured their arrival probably had more to do with Amy insisting we solve this problem rather than let it fester. I seriously doubted Wolfe would’ve backed down quite so easily.
I was gearing up to say something, but Wolfe beat me to the punch.
With two steps, the big man closed the distance between us. I held my ground when Wolfe reached for me, surprised when he wrapped his big hand around the back of my neck and pulled me closer.
“I don’t wanna do this,” Wolfe said, his voice low, tone rough. “I’m not gonna fight with you.”
“Who said you had to?” I countered.
“I’m sorry,” Wolfe stated firmly.
I pulled back, meeting those dark green eyes. “For what?”
“For makin’ you feel like an outsider.”
Okay, so I had been gearing up to accuse Wolfe of not knowing what the hell was going on.
Clearly I didn’t have a leg to stand on because he had nailed it right on the head.
And damn it to hell, it took all the wind right out of my sails.
Not that I wanted to fight with the man, but I had felt like an outsider.
And not just tonight.
Wolfe leaned in, his hand still cupping the back of my neck, our foreheads touching.
“That wasn’t my intention. Not by a long shot.”
I took a deep breath, released it.
“I told you,” he continued, “I don’t know how this fuckin’ works. I don’t know what I’m supposed to do or say … or … fuck. I don’t even know what I’m supposed to feel.”
Those words shocked me momentarily.
“But I know one goddamn thing,” Wolfe growled, moving even closer, our lips practically touching.
“I’m not about to let you shut me out. I’m all in where you and Amy are concerned.
I want every damn thing you’ll give me. Not just tonight.
Not just tomorrow night. I want every goddamn night, Rhys. From here on out.”
Swallowing hard, I fought the emotion that clogged my throat. I hadn’t been sure what I'd wanted from Wolfe. Not even what I'd wanted him to say. However, this was a damn good start.
“I don’t know how it works, either,” I admitted.
I knew I felt something for Wolfe and Amy. Whether it was love or simply lust, I hadn’t yet figured that out, but it was serious, whatever it was. It was the very reason I'd needed time and space. To think. To work it out in my head. To come to terms with it.
“We can figure that out together,” Wolfe whispered.
We could. But that would require us to talk about it, and I damn sure wasn’t good at that.
I'd never been the kind to open up. Having had a hard-ass for a father, I had learned long ago to keep my feelings locked up tight. I didn’t know how to express myself, and half the time, I didn’t even know what I fucking wanted.
But I knew what I wanted right now.
Wolfe and Amy.
That was what felt right to me.
This.
Here.
These two people with me. They made me feel whole. Complete.
“So, does that mean y’all are gonna kiss and make up?”
I grinned, reaching for Amy when she moved up beside me, her cool hand sliding over my bare chest.
“Is that what you want us to do?” Wolfe asked, pulling back.
“Oh, yeah.”
“Well, we should probably take this party inside then,” Wolfe suggested.
I stepped back, keeping Amy locked to my side as Wolfe moved inside the house. I shut and locked the door behind them. When I turned around, I found Wolfe standing as close as he’d been on the porch. Only this time, neither of us said a word before Wolfe’s mouth crashed down on mine.
An overwhelming surge of adrenaline powered through my veins, fueled by a desperate, all-consuming need and something a hell of a lot stronger.
I grabbed Wolfe, fisting his shirt as I pulled him closer, letting the kiss consume me.
The way Wolfe plundered my mouth stole my breath and all of my thoughts.
Realizing I was still holding on to Amy, I managed to break the kiss, but as soon as I did, her mouth was on mine. Or maybe it was vice versa.
Her soft moan vibrated through my entire body and I grabbed for her, lifting her until she had no choice but to wrap her legs around me. Once she was securely against me, I carried her to my bedroom, then deposited her on my bed.
Amy chuckled as she got to her knees, pulling her mouth free from mine.
“I know it’s after midnight,” she whispered, “but you think we could pretend it’s still Wolfe’s birthday for a little while longer?”
I felt the smile tugging at my lips while it grabbed hold of my heart. This woman never ceased to amaze me. I felt as though she was what I'd been waiting for my entire life.
And okay, yeah. I probably owed Wolfe that much.
“What’d you have in mind?”
We both turned to look at Wolfe. The man’s eyes were dark with desire as he watched us, one shoulder leaning against the wall, hands in his pockets as though he was completely unaffected.
Right.
The bulge in his jeans said otherwise.
“Don’t mind me,” he said gruffly. “I certainly don’t mind watchin’.”
“I think it’s my turn to watch.”
My attention turned to Amy instantly.
She smiled shyly. “What?”
“You wanna watch, darlin’?” Wolfe sauntered toward us.
“I do.”
I glanced back at Wolfe.
“Come here, Sheriff.”
There wasn’t an ounce of request in Wolfe’s gravelly tone. Without thinking, I turned to face the sexy cowboy who had driven all the way to my house in an attempt to salvage this thing we had. I wasn’t sure what the next steps were after tonight, but right now, I knew exactly what I wanted.
And I damn sure wasn’t about to do anything to jeopardize that.