Page 36 of Scout

I top off everyone’s wine just enough to keep things warm. Then I look at them, glass in hand, my pulse ticking in my throat.

“Hot tub?”

Scout grins. “Hell yes.”

Kendrix nods. “I’m in.”

And just like that, something shifts again.

We’re not just three guys who shared a few kisses like they didn’t matter.

We’re something now.

Maybe nothing with a name.

Butdefinitelysomething.

14

Scout

The steam’salready rising by the time I step out onto the deck.

It’s dark now, stars scattered overhead, Mount Rainier a shadowed giant in the distance. The hot tub glows under the soft blue lights built into the rim, water swirling, bubbling, inviting.

And then I see them.

Xavier’s already in, arms stretched out along the edge like he owns the place, chest glistening with a light sheen of steam. His rich golden-brown skin catches the light in a way that should be illegal. The jets aren’t on yet, just crystal-clear water lapping gently around him, which makes it way too easy to notice the way his navy trunks ride low on his hips—the crisp white waistband framing the V of muscle like a neon sign that says,look here, Scout.

Kendrix steps in, one leg at a time, slow and deliberate. His hot pink swim shorts cling to him as if they were made for his body—bold, loud, and way too good-looking for anyone’s safety. His darker skin looks almost molten in the glow of the water,every muscle defined, every step calculated, fully aware of the mess he’s about to cause.

Then there's me.

I take a deep breath and drop the towel, revealing my turquoise trunks that ride a little too low and fit a little too tight. I picked them on purpose. The color pops against my skin, and the way both their eyes drag over me when I step toward the tub?

Worth it.

“Finally,” Xavier murmurs. “Thought maybe you changed your mind.”

“Please,” I say with a smirk, stepping into the hot water. “I don’t back down from a good decision.”

I settle between them, each of them taking a side like this was always the plan.

“So,” I say after a beat, glancing between them, “this is relaxing.”

Kendrix chuckles. “You sound nervous.”

I raise a brow. “Do I look nervous?”

“No,” Xavier says, eyes dragging slowly down my chest. “You look like trouble.”

I lean back on the edge of the tub, stretching just enough to make my abs tighten. “Good. That’s what I was going for.”

Silence stretches—but it’s not awkward. It’s charged. All three of us waiting for someone to break first.

The heat from the water makes my skin tingle. Or maybe it’s the fact that I’m wedged between two very shirtless, very toned, veryinteresteddoctors who keep glancing at each other like they don’t know if they want to kill each other or make out again.

I sip my wine, slow and deliberate.