27

When I wake up, the sun is high in the sky, casting a warm glow on my face as I untangle myself from the cocoon I created during the night. Persistent banging at my door makes me realize it's what woke me, so I roll out of bed and stumble to answer it.

I'm still squinting my sleep away as I swing it open, and Eric stands there with his fist raised, ready to knock again. "There's sleeping beauty!" he shouts, and I wince as he pushes past me and flops onto my mattress.

The man has zero personal boundaries.

"Why are you here?" My voice is thick as I rub my eyes.

"Because now that you've slept, I want to make sure we're okay." His tone has lost its playful edge, and he stares at his feet, which tells me he's genuinely nervous.

I sigh and drop next to him, knocking his knee with mine. "I'm really fucking pissed at you, Eric."

"Yeah, I figured," he mutters, his shoulders heavy as they droop. "Can you hear me out, at least?" He peeks at me from the corner of his eye and I nod. "When Dante told me he saw you with a knife, my mind just went there , man. People talk about depression like it's this gradual process, all neat and polite as it takes its time making you miserable, but sometimes, that shit hits you like a grenade. It's chaos and confusion, and I was terrified that you had hurt yourself."

"But I hadn't."

He pulls his lips between his teeth, an adamant shake to his head. "I didn't know that. Until I found you, I had no way of knowing that." That far-away expression in his eyes means he's stuck in a memory—one that he keeps close to his heart. I wonder what he's hiding, but I've never been one to pry.

Gingerly, I reach over and grab his wrist, startling his attention back to me. "I appreciate you coming for me more than you could ever know, Eric, really. But—"

"There's that fucking word," he mutters. "Nothing good ever comes after a but."

"However—" I correct, but he shakes his head again.

"However is just a but in a tuxedo."

"Fucking A," I mutter, and shoot him a glare that earns me a toothy smile. "You blocked his number after we were at your house, and you saw for yourself I was alright."

"Define alright," he snarls.

"Eric."

Somehow, his shoulders sag even further. "Yeah, yeah, I know. You've just always had life by the balls, and seeing you like that? It fucking hurt, man."

I snort a quiet, humorless laugh. "Life by the balls, huh? That's what you think? Things aren't always as straightforward as they seem at first glance. You know that." He glances at me curiously but says nothing.

"People have to make their own mistakes, and you're living proof. Imagine the roles were reversed, and I blocked Dmitri from communicating with you after seeing how upset you got when he joined the band. What if I objected to his presence in the band? Pushed him from your life and didn't give you a choice in the matter? What if you never found each other again?"

His throat moves in a rough swallow before he buries his head in his hands. "That would have really sucked," he finally says.

"Yeah… it would have. Just like it really would have sucked if Connor and I hadn't reconnected… and we almost didn't. The odds that we found each other again are beyond astronomical, Eric. They're fucking impossible , but here we are."

"I'm sorry," he whispers, bumping me with his shoulder.

"I'm sorry I slapped you."

He snorts as he rubs his cheek. "Nah, I deserved it. Are we good?"

"We will be."

We're quiet for a minute before he says, "Yesterday I saw you smile for the first time in months. And not that fake shit you put on for everyone else, thinking I don't notice."

"You never said anything."

His shoulders lift in a shrug. "If there's anyone who understands what it's like being pushed before you're ready, it's me. Point is, you were happy yesterday… with him. As much as I busted his nuts…"

"That is not the phrase," I mutter.

"…he brings out a side of you that usually stays hidden. You lose your cool around him."

Unbidden, a smile spreads across my face. "I'm so tired of being cool."

"Too bad, buddy," he says, standing and clapping a hand on my shoulder. "You just can't help it."

The hinges creak as another knock taps on the door and it inches open where Eric failed to shut it fully. "Tai?" Connor peeks in and freezes when he spots me and Eric. His weight shifts between his feet as he stands half inside the room, undecided. "Sorry, I didn't mean to interrupt. I, uh… I brought you a coffee, but I'll just leave it on the table…"

"Connor," I scold, and he clamps his mouth shut. A low, burning heat flares deep in my belly at the way he submits, and I shake my head before that line of thinking gets out of control. "You aren't interrupting. Put that down and come here."

The door closes behind him with a click as he sits the cup on the table and walks over, never taking his eyes from mine. I raise a brow and glance at the space separating us. "Is that all I get?"

He twitches with a small smile as he cups my jaw and gives me another of those maddeningly chaste kisses on the side of my mouth. "Now, isn't that better?" I ask, and his eyes are hooded as he pulls away.

"Much," he murmurs, drawing me in for a hug.

"Whoa, Daddy Dom Tai," Eric says, and I sigh as I nuzzle into Connor's touch before turning and crossing my arms at my best friend.

"Eric has something he wants to say to you."

Eric's snarky grin turns sheepish as he takes a deep breath and shifts his attention to Connor. "I'm sorry for my part in keeping the two of you away from each other. It wasn't my place."

"You were looking out for Tai."

"I was, but that doesn't justify my actions."

"No," Connor agrees, wrapping his arms around my middle. "No, it doesn't, but I understand why you did it."

Eric's eyebrows raise. "That's it? Just, poof, we're cool?"

"He's too nice for his own good," I say, and Connor chuckles as he shrugs.

"What's done is done, and I don't want to be constantly fighting with Tai's best friend because I insist on being stuck in the past. I'm here now, and I'm not going anywhere." The smooth, confident way he says it makes my scalp tingle, a barely suppressed shudder travelling through my limbs. "Butting heads will only hurt Tai, and that? Not an option."

Eric's chin tilts at the obvious challenge in his words, and his suspicion remains, but he eventually nods. "Alright. Yeah, if you're good, I'm good."

"Maybe make sure Dmitri is on board with that," Connor says and Eric grins, "because he was ready to throw down on that plane yesterday."

"You could take him," I tease.

"Oh, trust me, there was never any question about that." Another shiver works my body at his calm confidence, and he leans in, nuzzling his nose along the shell of my ear. "I'll fight anyone that gets between us."

I twist in his arms until the front of our bodies are flush, and his grunt is a soft, muted thing in the back of his throat. My words about taking things slow are biting me in the ass, because I want to fall to my knees and worship him.

"Not to interrupt, boys," Eric drawls, absolutely dripping with delighted sarcasm, "but I just got a text that lunch is waiting for us downstairs."

Lunch turns out to be a catered affair in one of the hotel's conference rooms, a delicious spread of amazing local cuisine. Jet lag has left everyone groggy and disoriented, but spirits are high as we eat and chat. Now that the bombshell of mine and Connor's history has lost its shock, everything has returned to normal, except for the occasional stank eye Dmitri throws at him.

And then at me.

Fuck, this isn't going to work.

I squeeze Connor's hand before I release him and walk over to Dmitri, dropping into the chair beside him. His jaw tenses as he breathes out a long exhale, his foot bouncing underneath the table in agitation. "Hey, man. I understand you're pissed at me."

"You slapped my husband," he says, making each word sound like a curse while refusing to look at me.

"Because your husband is a busybody, meddling man that can't keep his nose out of other people's business."

Okay, that was the wrong move.

Anger blazes in his dark eyes as he turns to face me, tilting his chin up and clenching his jaw as I continue. "He was at fault… he's admitted it, and you know it's true. Hell, you understand better than anyone how he loves to get involved in shit that he shouldn't."

"Regardless of my opinion, putting your hands on him was not okay."

"Yeah, probably not, but he should have talked to me before he cut someone out of my life." Dmitri sighs, and as much as I want to throttle him for his stubbornness, I respect his loyalty to Eric. "C'mon, man. You know I'm right, even if you won't admit it."

On his other side, Eric is positively bursting to speak, but I'll give him credit—he holds it in. Seems there's a drop of restraint hidden in his sea of chaos. After a tense few seconds, Dmitri blows out a long breath. "He was, perhaps, maybe wrong in this situation."

"Perhaps? Maybe?" I swallow my laughter when he glares at me again. "Alright, alright, I'll take what I can get. I don't want things to be weird between us, especially right now while we're in the middle of this tour. Are we cool?"

"Yeah, man, we're good."

"Good." I stand and squeeze his shoulder before returning to Connor, who watches in open curiosity.

"Get everything worked out?" I nod, intending to drop into my seat, when he suddenly grips my hips and pulls me onto his lap. A surprised squeak escapes me, and there's a giant sly smile on his face as I flush and whip to narrow my eyes at him. "What? You look so pretty in my lap."

"This is so hot," Theo stage-whispers to Dante, and I huff a laugh as I rest my forehead against Connor's.

"You, mister, are trouble," I murmur, pressing a kiss to his cheek.

"Never claimed to be otherwise."

"My trouble?"

His eyes burn into mine as he licks his lips, inching closer. "All yours, sweetheart."

"So fucking hot," Theo squeals, and I close my eyes with a sigh.

As I attempt to move into my seat, Connor's fingers flex around my hipbones and he anchors me in his lap. His hand slides up my front and splays over my sternum, holding me against his chest. My body—and every other person in this room—takes notice of the way he manhandles me.

"What did I just say?" he murmurs, planting a kiss on the base of my neck. "Mine."

He keeps me perched in his lap for a long time, lips and teeth occasionally grazing my shoulders and neck, and hands squeezing my hips or dragging up the sides of my thighs. PDA has never been my thing, but there's a certain thrill I get when Connor openly showers me with affection, right here in front of everyone.

He went from a straight man to straight whipped.

"What's the agenda for the rest of today?" Theo asks as we finish lunch.

"You haven't come up with any schemes?" Eric raises his eyebrow suspiciously, leaning into Dmitri's side. "We all remember the last time you made grand plans for us… although, I appreciate that monokini from time to time, if you catch my drift."

Dmitri blushes as we burst into laughter, but Theo shakes his head. "Don't blame me for that… I simply suggested renting a boat. Tai's the one that put our dicks on display."

Connor's eyebrows fly up as I choke on a laugh. "No, I came up with the idea for the game. I can't be blamed for the fact that all of you bought the most revealing swimsuits you could find. If you remember, I picked Theo something with full coverage."

"I still haven't forgiven you for that," Theo says with narrowed eyes, before turning to a confused Connor. "Your boyfriend forced me to wear swim trunks that made it look like I had really hairy legs and a tiny dick."

Connor chuckles under me, although both of us stiffen at the word, and I wag my finger in Dante's direction. "And your boyfriend bought me a speedo that I could barely stuff myself into."

"God, that was so hot!" Eric calls, and Dmitri glares at him.

"Fucking A, Eric, Dmitri and I just cleared the air. Can you not trigger the green giant yet?" Dmitri looks abashed, while Eric's grin morphs into a fiendish smirk.

Connor's arms circle around my waist, and he leans forward to rest his chin on my shoulder. "I seem to remember you mentioning that tiny pink speedo at the resort." His thumb swipes underneath my shirt, brushing against my bare stomach, and the unmistakable flex of his cock presses against me.

My breathing picks up as his teeth scrape the side of my neck again, and then he freezes. He rests his forehead against my shoulder as he mumbles, "Fuck, I'm sorry."

"Don't be," I whisper, twisting towards him right as he lifts his head. He licks his lips as he stares at me, so much vulnerability in his eyes. As I inch forward, Theo's voice breaks through the moment and we pop apart.

"Well, as luck would have it, I found something cool for us to do."