obvious. At least Declan seemed to think so.”
I hold in my sigh. It is obvious. Janey’s been working for us for a few years, but it wasn’t until she
helped us identify a thieving employee that she really hit our radar. She has a way of connecting with
people that I’ll never understand. Her gentle nature snagged Jonas’s attention. The man asked her to
call him by his first name —he never does that— so it’s a big fucking deal.
“It’s obvious to us, yeah, but only because we know you so well. You haven’t paid much attention
to women in the past, so the way you act around Janey is glaring.”
“Yes, well. I find myself thinking about her far too often and at quite inconvenient times.” He
frowns, rolling his head to meet my eyes. “I don’t think I like it. It feels…unsettling. Like a piece of
me is not where it’s supposed to be anymore.”
I understand exactly what he means. That’s exactly how I feel about Jonas. The fact that he feels
that way about a woman? I’m not sure I like it either. Everything is changing too fast. Four of my
brothers are coupled up in less than a year. And now Jonas has fallen.
“Have you talked to her about it…about how you feel?”
“Is that what I should do? Tell her she makes my chest ache?”
I sit up, resting my arm on my bent knee as I study him. I know the lines of his face better than I
know my own. But this man looking back at me is a stranger, and I’m desperate to change that. To find
my way back inside to the core of our relationship. “Fuck, brother. I don’t know. Maybe? Or maybe,
you should figure out what it is you’re feeling and what you want. If you’re just needing to scratch an
itch, or if you want something more from her. Because if it’s just an itch…then you have to make
different choices.”
He rolls over, resting his chin on his folded hands, and stares at the lake stretching out before us.
“Explain choices. Be specific.”
The familiar order settles me. “If this is just an itch…if it’s just sexual attraction, then pursuing
Janey isn’t fair. There are plenty of women out there that could meet those needs.” His grimace is
telling. He doesn’t like the idea of other women. “If you want Janey, then you’re going to have to be
careful. She’s an employee, but she’s also….” I don’t know how to finish that.
“Fragile,” he says softly. “She’s one of the kindest, most nurturing people I’ve ever met. But she’s
also self-conscious and does not believe in herself.”
Placing my hand on his back, I give him the truth he’s looking for. “You’re a man in a position of
