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“Holy shit,” Annie breathed.

“We created a monster.”Xavier glanced at Annie.“Are you as turned on as I am?”

“More,” she replied confidently.

Colum shook his head, grinning.“Go on with you.”

They took turns in the bathroom, cleaning up, before returning to bed together.

Annie lay with her head pillowed on Colum’s chest, her hand resting on his heart, her eyes closed.Xavier had claimed the other side.Her breathing slowed, and she was right on the cusp of sleep when she heard Xavier and Colum kissing.She didn’t open her eyes, didn’t interrupt their quiet moment.Instead, she was content to listen to the slowthud-thud-thudof Colum’s heart combined with the soft smacking of their lips together.

When the kiss ended, Colum whispered Xavier’s name.Just his name.But it was laced with so much emotion—sadness, desire, love—that Annie was overwhelmed with the need to comfort him.

Xavier got there first.

“It’s okay, Colum,” he reassured him in a soft, quiet voice.“We’ll figure it out.”

Figure it out.

Annie considered that, aware that there could be a happily ever after for Xavier and Colum.Eric thought of Colum as a brother, so it was possible the fleet admiral would undo at least part of Colum’s current marriage, especially if they hadn’t gone to the Isle of Man and performed the ceremony Xavier kept talking about.If Colum told Eric how he felt about Xavier, maybe Eric would switch out Sarah the knight for Xavier, and the trinity would be Colum, Xavier, and Nikolett.Xavier could move to Dublin and live with Colum.Then at least Colum wouldn’t be alone.

Alone.

Tiny fissures formed in her heart at the thought of leaving them.But those cracks turned to craters when Colum placed a soft kiss on the top of her head, and Xavier placed his warm hand over hers, grasping it lightly.

She’d never experienced love and heartbreak together at the same time.

And suddenly, Annie understood Wilde’s pain.

Poor Oscar.

No.Poor Annie.

ChapterFifteen

Colum: Thanks for the Lila Dubois book recs.

Franco:

Xavier studied Colum as Colum studied the house.Colum’s face spoke more than he did, though he’d been quite loquacious the past few days.

They’d fucked him into talking.

“Does Mary Balcombe have children?”Colum asked in a voice that wobbled a little.

Xavier looked at Annie and raised a brow.

“Yes,” Annie said slowly, touching Colum’s arm as she tipped her face up to him in concern.“You know that.We went over everything we know about her in the two-hour car ride here.Why?What’s wrong?”

Colum made a sound that might have been a whimper.

Xavier studied the house they’d parked in front of, trying to figure out why Colum was acting this way.The white one-story house had a large front garden, the plot edged by tall hedges.Beyond the hedges were fields with black-and-white cows on one side, fat cream-colored sheep on the other.

“An Irish mammy,” Colum muttered.“Jaysus, love and protect us.”

Annie’s gaze sharpened.

“Colum, are we in danger?”she asked.