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That’s when I feel it. Him. Thick and hard against my ass.

“I should put this in the dishwasher,” I say, trying to stand again. But he holds me tight, like he knows I’m trying to escape.

“That email,” he says, because of course he knows what’s turned my mood. “It’s not what you think. I want to put the annulment on hold.”

“What?” I frown. “Why? Wasn’t the plan always to end this once Vin’s money is paid back?”

“It was, but things have changed.”

I frown. “What does that mean?”

He takes my chin in his palm, tipping it so our eyes meet. “How do you feel after last night?”

“I told you. Sore.”

A smile pulls at his lips. “I mean about me. How do you feel about me?”

I think I’m in love with you.“I feel like the more time I spend with you, the more scared I get.”

He blinks. “Scared? Why?” There’s an edge to his voice. Like he’s not happy about my answer.

“Because you’re you and I’m me. And I don’t see how any of this is going to end without somebody getting hurt. Probably me.” As I bare my feelings, I realize how true the words are. And I hate how vulnerable they make me feel.

“You think this ends?” His voice is flat. “Why?”

I swallow hard because I don’t want to talk about this. I like our bubble. The lies I tell myself. Especially the one that he could fall in love with me. “We got married because I was reckless, we stayed married to get the investment. But we both know you never would have chosen me to be your wife in any other circumstance.” I ignore the way my heart clenches. “Then there’s my family.”

“What about them?” He frowns.

“What happens if Hudson finds out?”

“You’re afraid of Hudson?” He sounds surprised.

Damn, he’s good at this. Turning everything back on me like a great lawyer would.

“I’m afraid that my brother will rip your pretty head off your pretty neck with his bare hands when he finds out.”

West shakes his head, like that’s the least of his worries. “I don’t give a damn about that. I care about you. About this.” He gestures between us. “Yes, he’ll be pissed. But we can deal with that when the time comes. I’m not letting you go because my best friend might lose his temper.”

The certainty in his voice makes my breath catch, but it doesn’t ease the knot in my chest. “You’ve always said you’d do anything for him. What if he asks you to choose between us?”

West narrows his eyes. “Then he’ll lose.”

The way he says it, so firm, makes my heart stumble. But then his voice softens, the steel giving way to something that sounds almost like fear. “Maybe I’m the wrong one being asked that question. What if it’syouwho has to choose?” he asks. “What will you do?”

The vulnerability in his question makes my chest ache. I open my mouth then close it again, because there’s no good answer here. Just a lot of pain for everybody.

Because whichever way I turn, somebody loses. West might lose his best friend. And I could lose my family all over again. Hudson. Autumn. My other brothers.

And I already lost them once.

“I hate letting everybody down,” I whisper. “I feel like that’s all I’ve done since I was a kid. Every choice I ever made pushed me further away from my family. Took away the things they loved.” My throat is so tight I’m finding it difficult to speak. “I don’t want to be the one to pull my family apart again.”

“Again?” West murmurs, his fingers brushing my stomach like he’s trying to keep me grounded. “You’ve never pulled them apart.”

God, he thinks too much of me. I want to laugh, but my chest aches too much. “I was the reason we lost our house. The island. It was me.”

West’s hand stills. “No it wasn’t. Your dad lost it in a poker game.”