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The clearing of a throat broke our lustful exchange. “I have a room already for you two. If you’ll please follow me,” Megan said while walking us toward a dressing room. I could practically hear the smile in her voice.

I didn’t know whether her amusement was for the way Caleb and I had just kissed like horny teenagers or the look of loathing that Mikayla was sending my way as she wrapped my items.

Megan flashed me a smile as she held the door open for us, quirking an eyebrow behind Caleb’s back and giving me a look that said I was a lucky bitch.

“I’ve already dropped off some of my favorite pieces. Take your time. No one will bother you,” she said, pulling the door closed behind her.

Caleb’s eyes grew darker and hungrier the moment she stepped out of the room. His gaze was sexual and raw. The hair on the back of my neck stood on end as he stalked me down, my back hitting one of the three mirrors in the room. His hands landed on my hips, giving the shorts a rough tug.

“Here, let me help you out of these,” he said against my neck, his breath like a warm caress against my skin.

I gasped when the cool air hit my breasts as he tugged the baggy shirt over my head, leaving me completely naked. His eyes widened at the sight, but he didn’t say a word or attempt to touch me. I stood there like a mannequin waiting to be dressed, and it pissed me off.

He turned to the pile Megan had left and began to rifle through it.

“Why is it that I’ve never seen you before?” he asked over his shoulder. “Adriana, Milania, Giana. I’ve seen all three of them numerous times.” He turned back around, a pair of blood red silk panties in his hand. “You, I’ve never seen.”

He knocked my hand away when I reached for the garment before getting down on a knee in front of me. My mouth went dry as he instructed me to step into the thong, trailing his fingers up the outer part of my legs as he pulled the fabric up over my hips.

The garment was so small it barely covered my pussy. The temptation was apparently too much because he leaned forward and kissed my silk-clad mound. My core clenched at the intimate gesture as blood rushed in my ears, my nipples tightening. Everything he did made my mind hazy with lust. The control that normally came so easily for me winked out of existence the moment I was in the vicinity of any of these three men.

“Fucking tease,” I bit out when he stood, giving me a cocky grin before it fell away and was replaced by his intimidating stare.

“Answer the question, Scar.” He placed his hands on either side of the wall, trapping me between them. Caleb acted as if he was unfazed, but the bulge straining against his dress slacks suggested otherwise.

“I get a question of my own then,” I said.

His jaw popped. He didn’t like the thought of giving me answers, but he knew it was the only way I’d cooperate. The fact that he was even asking me outright meant he’d exhausted all his information outlets.

“Fine,” he said through clenched teeth.

I knew he had to hate the smug smile I was giving him. “Dominick hates me, and I hate him. I don’t attend anything I’m not forced to,” I answered with a shrug, trying to make light of all the nuances that existed in my relationship with Dominick.

“My turn. Why are you three going after your fathers?” I asked.

His face flickered between lust and loathing. So the usual way he looked at me. He gnawed on his bottom lip, clearly conflicted about giving up the answer.

“The girl in the photo. Her name was Jessica.”

My brows wrinkled in confusion at the change in subject, but before I could ask what she had to do with anything, he continued on.

“Niko, Kenji, and I didn’t hold the same importance as our older brothers. We were sent off to public high school, tasked with keeping a presence among the young men who’d eventually join the ranks.” He ran his hand through his hair as he stared off, lost in his memories. “That’s where we met Jessica, and all four of us got close. Closer than we should have been for rivals.”

He whispered the last part, his eyes shadowing over with emotion.

I knew the look. The one you made when you worked through all your past choices and wondered what the outcomes would have been if you’d done something differently.

“Then what happened?” I asked, placing a hand on his chest, trying to pull him back.

I was taken aback by the openness shining in his eyes when he turned to face me. My heart clenched at how he tucked a stray hair behind my ear, the touch tender. He’d shown this side before—these hints of the man under the shield he placed between himself and the world.

The moment was charged with vulnerability, and I was afraid that if I breathed, I might ruin the moment. His throat bobbed as he swallowed, a nervous gesture I’d yet to see him do.

“Our fathers arranged for her to be kidnapped and sold.” His voice was thick with emotion, and he couldn’t look me in the eye as he spoke the words. “They figured she was the reason the three of us had gotten so close, and without her in the picture, we would go back to hating one another.

He let out a humorless chuckle. Anger churned in my gut at the disgusting actions of their sperm donors. Those men didn’t deserve the title of father.

“You three were in love with her…” I whispered. My hand had a mind of its own because it traveled up and cupped Caleb’s face, offering him a semblance of comfort. He snapped his attention to me at the touch but didn’t pull away.