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Chapter 7
ERIN
I let Francis talk me into spending a week in Spain, a week in France, and then a week in London. I’d need to email my boss and ask for the additional time off, but since this morning when all my travel wishes became travel realities, I couldn’t imagine going back to my old life. Not yet, at least. I had some living to do.
I wanted to be inspired by my life. And thus far, the most exciting thing that had ever happened to me was finding out that my pretend wedding during a second-grade trip to DC was a real deal marriage, so I would’ve been a fool to pass up this trip. Certainly not to rush back to a dead-end job where I could’ve been replaced in the space of ten minutes and a promotion of the coffee girl.
How I would ever be able to pay my rent if my boss fired me, I had no idea, but that was a problem for another day. Right now, I was on vacation and I was determined to enjoy myself.
When Francis finished organizing my travel, I excused myself because I was hung over and wanted a shower. I let the spray of steaming hot water wash away my headache and then I used some scented shampoo from an electric dispenser and then conditioned. I even did my makeup. The guys would be here soon, and I wanted to look my best. They were my husbands, after all. For a few more hours, anyway. I needed to look good.
I dressed in my favorite jeans and a tank, a long-sleeve top and my new black sweater. Despite the fires burning in most rooms, it was still colder than I was used to over here, so I dressed accordingly.
After a quick check in the mirror, a fluff of my curls, and a slow, deep breath, I wandered back to the foyer. My stomach twisted with nerves, and I was one flutter away from taking flight. I just couldn’t control my excitement.
I paced the foyer, checking the time on my phone every few minutes. Likely I looked anxious, but was unable to stop. I couldn’t wait for Ray to get back with Silas and Viktor.
“Can I get something for you, miss?” a maid asked as she approached with an empty tray.
I shook my head. “No. I’m fine, thank you. I—”
The front doors suddenly opened and Ray walked in, dressed in black jeans and a blue shirt. The outfit made him simultaneously gorgeous and lethal looking. How had I not noticed that yesterday? He moved quietly, graceful and lithe, a man who could slip in and out of shadows if necessary. I stared for a second.
Was he Henryk’s personal assistant or something more sinister? Maybe Henryk’s money came from the proceeds of crime? My imagination took off, and I shook my head to dispel the silly thoughts. Henryk was just a businessman. Obviously, a very one successful enough to buy a royal castle , but still...
“Hello, Miss Wright,” Ray said as he approached, scanning my casual outfit with an appreciative eye. He curled his finger under my chin and used it to lift my head. “You’re looking well today.”
“Thank you.” I grinned at him, at ease with Ray despite the fact I’d known him less than a day. “Did you pick up Silas and Viktor?”
He nodded. “Yes.” Then he leaned in and his breath was warm against my cheek. “Two more husbands coming your way.”
Heat flooded my face. It sounded so ridiculous, even now.Husbands.
I turned to the front doors and two guys walked in, wrapped in huge, puffy winter jackets.
“Fuck, it’s freezing,” the blond said as he stepped in the door. He was tall with the body of an athlete—slender and wiry. His hair was pushed back in one of those artful styles that required gel and mousse and clay. But it was his eyes—gray blue—that drew me in. I assumed, since he was blond when we were young, that this one was Silas.
The other one had shorter, dark hair and a neck tattoo creeping up behind his ear.
The blond pushed shut the door again, then they both peeled off their jackets. It was anoh mymoment and it took a second for my brain to resume normal function. Wow.
“Erin?” Silas asked, his gaze sweeping the length of my body. I stood still and waited until he was finished.
I stared back at him. “Silas?” I whispered, looking beyond the blond hair for any other signs of the stout little boy I’d once known.
“Yeah.” He moved in as if he was going to hug me and then I made it awkward by shifting my arms so that we would bump into one another arm first. He moved his, I moved mine. We were doing the reverse robot until he finally got close enough to wrap his arms around me and we both laughed.
Just that easily, my shy awkwardness dissipated. He set me on my feet again, as Viktor watched us from the side. I turned to him and grinned. “Hi, Viktor.”
“Erin.” He exuded cool guy calm. Even his smile was slightly subdued as if he were too cool to be excited. “It’s been a long time.”
“It has!” I exclaimed, taking in all the little details. Viktor’s gray sweater that matched Silas’s eyes. And Silas was an inch or so taller than Viktor. Viktor had eyes that were so brown I almost couldn’t tell where the pupil began. His legs were long, and his jeans fit him like they were tailor made. And Silas wore a blue sweater that made his eyes all the stormier. This was a moment I wanted etched into my memory. I was going to want to dissect it all later.
There wasn’t much to indicate that these were the little boys who’d each slipped a daisy ring on my fingers.
“Wow. You guys... grew up.” An understatement. They hadn’t just grown up, they were hot.
We were all glancing from one to another. I didn’t know if they’d kept in touch over the years or not and I wondered, but Viktor’s gaze sharpened as he glanced at me and he smiled. My stomach fluttered. When Silas looked at me in the same way, the flutter got stronger.
