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Though what did he know?He’d never been in love in his life.Never managed to forge that kind of connection, too perplexed by human interactions to break through to something that strong, that real.

So, he had to be wrong about loving her.

Maybe.

Probably.

His emotions were getting mixed up in his head, his fondness for Annie jumbled up with memories of Josephine, anxiety over his trinity marriage, and the overpowering lust he felt for her and Xavier.

Lust.

That was another thing he was fairly new at too.

Well, no, that wasn’t true.He was a normal guy, and all his parts functioned just fine.He felt lust as much as the next fella, so maybe it was more accurate to say he was overwhelmed by sex that wasn’t based only on physical release, like his past two encounters had been.

Sex with Annie, with Xavier, was so much more than that.Because it included that deeper, more meaningful connection that had always eluded him.

Colum dismissed the ideas of love and lust, deciding instead that he was merely moved by the two of them and the way they looked at him, somehow seeing something worthy of their attention.

After all, Annie had been angry at the idea of him being forced into a loveless, in-name-only marriage, and though she’d pointed out Sarah might be able to move to Dublin with him, he was sure that wouldn’t happen.Knights were the law and order of a territory, and Dublin, as a neutral zone, had no knights.Sarah would have to give up her job to come to Dublin, and that would be a waste of a good knight.No, Sarah would go to Hungary and become one of Nikolett’s harcosok.

Nikolett.He wasn’t exactly chuffed to be married to her as he found her terrifying, and knowing Eric loved her made the idea of even kissing her abhorrent.But it was the price he paid to get what he wanted.

A price that hadn’t seemed unreasonable at the time.

Eric was twisted in a million knots over Nikolett.There was no telling how the two of them would ever unravel their feelings for each other.

His whole reason for accepting membership to the Masters’ Admiralty and the position of archivist was because he would be exempt from the arranged marriage, something he’d always known he’d fail at.Eric understood that, and when Hande’s conditions for the Trinity Archive were put in place, Eric obviously thought he was protecting the solitary nature of what had first made Colum agree to join, by placing him with two people who he wouldn’t live with, and most likely rarely see.

Now, however, as he looked at Annie, and then at Xavier, he wondered if perhaps he’d been too quick to write off relationships.

Annie did a deep bend, touching her toes, drawing his attention from her tits to her ass.

Xavier caught him, perfectly aware Colum had been checking her out.Probably because he’d been doing the same thing.

The sexy Frenchman gave him a wink, and Annie caught sight of it.

“I know you’re both looking at me,” Annie said.

“Because you’re putting on a show,” Xavier said.

Annie laughed.“It’s time for a work break.”

Colum looked at the clock.They really had been at it for hours.

Had they even stopped for lunch?Or dinner?

Glancing around, the empty plate next to his elbow told him he’d eaten something, though there weren’t enough crumbs left behind to tell him what.

“What did you have in mind?”Colum asked.“Not sure we should take a walk outside after dark if we’re in danger, security detail or not.”

Annie tilted her head, wiggling her eyebrows.“Oh, I’m definitely interested in some physical activity, but not a walk.”

Xavier shifted closer to Colum on the couch, wrapping his arm around his neck.“Our girl knows what she needs.”

Annie smirked but didn’t deny it.

Colum nudged closer to Xavier.“I’d say that’s a bit like the pot calling the kettle black.”