Page 131 of Release

“Well, I would’ve been shocked if you hadn’t, Case. Ellen once got a little tipsy and admitted you have a habit of accumulating kompromat on people.”

“Wait.” I stare at him. “Youknew?”

“I suspected. After the fact. Honestly wasn’t thinking about it the night of. Makes sense, though.”

“And you still…trust me?”

He gently squeezes my hands again. “Yes.Myrule—youonlyfuck me and Declan, and that includes all forms of sex or intimate contact.Period. Can you promise me that and stick to it?”

“Yeah.”

“Okay, another rule—can wenottell him you have evidence on us? I won’t even make you get rid of it, if it makes you feel safer to have it on me. Just please keep it where he’ll never find it, and no one else will, either. And have some sort of deadman in place to destroy it upon your death.”

I nod. In my head, I’m already planning on wiping and destroying the external hard drive I have the only copy stored on in my safe deposit box.

“Okay, then.” His gaze darkens, and it’s sexy as fuck. “It makes mehotknowing you’ve got my back and you’ve got, like, this secret superpower. It makes me fuckinghard, if you couldn’t tell, that you have this dark side. And it makes me weak in the knees that you loved Ellen so much, and loved her for so long, and were so devoted to her. If I’d known about you two while she was alive, I would have asked both of you if we could have a secret triad or something. Seriously. I could’ve shared her with you, but not with another guy.”

Holy.

Shit.

Stunned, I stare at him. “And Declan?”

“Only with you. Anyone else tries to touch him, man or woman, I’m liable to fucking put hands on them. He’sourboy.” He squeezes my hands again. “Just likeshewasourgirl. This is why I’ve said Icannotdo this without you. Because Iknowyou have my back. I don’twantto do it without you.”

He releases my hands and I start unbuttoning his shirt while he works my blouse up and over my head. “I’mnotsubmitting to you,” I tell him.

He kisses me, his hands skimming up my back. “That’s fine. I don’t think I’m ever letting you fuck me with a strap-on again.”

“Aw.”

He smiles. “Iwilllet you watch while Declan fucks me, on the nights heearnsit. And I’ll gladly be in the middle while he fucks me if I can go down on you at the same time. Or more, if you ever decide that.”

“Oooh.Sploosh. I call those ‘freebie nights,’ when I let him have them. Boy’s got a gorgeous Alpha side, doesn’t he?”

“Does this mean I can convince you to stay tonight?” he asks.

His hands come to rest on my lower back. Man’s getting bonus points for not assuming he can feel me up, even though I’m sitting half-naked in his lap.

Wait.

“Just to clarify things…” I tip my head at him.

“About what?”

“How much do you want Declan to know? About one and two? I told him there’s a story, but that it’s up to you to decide if he can know.”

“Me?”

“He’s your boy.”

“Ourboy.”

“I don’t see how that works without him killingbothof us.”

“Let’s not talk about that tonight,” he says.

“We’re talkingnow.”