“SO are you guys like dating now?” Laurie asks.

“Hmmm.” I don’t hear her at first. I’m sitting on one of the smaller chairs in the living room putting on my shoes, my mind on Landon and everything that happened earlier in the day.

After giving me two incredible orgasms, he cleaned me up and dressed me, smoothing my clothes and getting me presentable enough to return to the office. It had been tender and sweet, so sweet that I can’t think about it without smiling. Of course, he left the jewelry box on my dresser, and I’d only noticed when I finally returned from work.

“Rach…did you even hear me?”

I look up at where Laurie is lying on the couch, her head on Brett’s lap while he feeds her grapes with the decadence of a Roman emperor. “Not really.”

“I said, are you guys dating now?”

“I don’t know… We like each other, and we want to see where it goes.”

“So…dating,” Laurie concludes.

“Don’t assume,” Brett offers, popping a grape into his mouth. “Set the terms. What exactly is he offering? Long-term commitment? Exclusivity? Will there be a ring at the end of the tunnel?”

“What?” Both Laurie and I burst into laughter. “Has anybody ever told you that you have such a way with words?” I ask.

“Once or twice.” He grins.

“He’s right though,” Laurie says. “Find out what the deal is so you’re not left hanging in the end.”

In the end.

“We’re just taking it one day at a time,” I say nonchalantly, frowning as Brett feeds Laurie another grape and she licks his fingers. “That’s kind of gross. Can’t you just maybe wait for me to leave?”

“Nope.” Laurie grins. “We want to make you so uncomfortable you have to leave.”

I snort and get up to go to my room, where I study my reflection in the full-length mirror and judge the effect of my cream bandage dress and my nude heels. Landon will be here any moment to pick me up for his brother’s play, and I want to be ready when he comes.

I’m still looking at myself in the mirror when I hear the buzzer. I was expecting Landon to call when he was downstairs, so the sound of his voice in the living room as he says hello to Laurie and Brett takes me by surprise.

I take a deep breath and go to join them, stopping by my door to drink in the sight of him looking delicious in a dark blazer over a crisp blue shirt.

He raises his head immediately, and his eyes meet mine. “Hey baby.”

The endearment makes me warm. “Hey,” I reply.

He grins and walks over to me, dropping a very light kiss on my lips. “You ready?”

“Almost.” I scoot back into my room to pick up my purse, doing one last check in the mirror before joining them again. Laurie blows me a kiss. “Have fun,” she tells me before turning to Landon. “Take good care of her.”

He smiles at her before transferring his gaze back to me. His eyes are hot and full of all the sensual promise I’ve come to expect. “I fully intend to,” he says, and then takes my hand and leads me out the door.

WE have dinner before going to the theater, which is one of the bigger ones on Broadway. I’ve been to a few plays before, with my parents and also with Laurie, but the press viewing is a different experience. The theater is not packed, and in the front rows, serious-faced critics and bloggers are looking intently at the activities on the stage and typing quick notes into phones and tablets.

We’re seated on the gallery, which is almost empty. From that spot there’s a good view of the stage, the critics, and Landon’s brother Aidan in a darkened corner opposite us, looking down at the stage, his intense expression so like Landon’s that it’s almost eerie.

I don’t know if he’s worried, but even I can see he has no reason to be. The play is superb, with beautiful costumes, props, and excellent actors, especially the lead, a dark-haired girl who doesn’t look a day over seventeen but commands the stage like a pro.

“Who’s she?” I whisper to Landon.

“Elizabeth McKay. It’s her first role. Her father produced the play, and Aidan can’t stand her, for some reason.”

“What reason? She’s so talented.”

“Which is why Aidan had to grin and swallow whatever he’s feeling.” Landon smiles when he says his brother’s name, and I can see the pride clearly in his eyes.

My eyes find Aidan on the other side of the gallery, and I follow the direction of his gaze. He’s looking intently at Elizabeth McKay, his eyes so focused that I start to wonder if there’s more to his dislike.

“Maybe he likes her,” I whisper, leaning toward Landon. “Sometimes attraction can manifest as dislike.”

“Hmm.” Landon nuzzles my neck. “Is that why you disliked me so much at first?”

I smile. “Maybe I still do.”

“Do you?” I feel his hand on my thigh, inching up toward the hem of my dress. “Or maybe now you like me just a little.”

I pull in a breath as his hand disappears under the hem of my dress, moving slowly upward to stop at the juncture of my thighs. “Just a little,” I agree.

His voice is a warm whisper so close to my ear. “I guess I have to work on that. Open your legs Rachel.”

I obey without thinking, not even pausing to spare a glance at the other people in the darkened theater. Immediately his fingers cup my sex, moving over the silk of my panties in a slow sensuous rhythm, applying only a light pressure as he works my folds, using them to massage my clit.

I sigh and my legs fall farther apart, giving him more space. He slides his fingers into the crotch of my panties, stroking me from my wet inner lips to my swollen clit. I moan softly, my hips lifting from the seat. If he continues, I’m going to come, right here, in a public theater.

“You’re so wet,” he whispers, “so ready. I want to fuck you right here, Rachel, and it’s killing me that I can’t.”

“It’s killing me too,” I reply, desperation making me rub myself against his fingers, wanting to feel all of him. He slips two fingers inside me, stroking them in and out while he leans back on his seat and concentrates his gaze on the stage.

He looks as if he has all his attention on the play, but his fingers…his fingers are driving me crazy. He finds a sensitive spot inside me and rubs against it, and I grip the arm of my chair, biting back a loud moan as I hover on the edge of coming.

He turns from the stage to look at me, and from the stage lights, I can see the stark arousal on his face, the lust in his dazzling blue eyes. I can’t stop myself from spiraling over the edge. I cover my mouth with my hand, biting my lips as ecstasy ripples through me. He doesn’t stop until my body stops shaking; only then does he pull his fingers out and pull my dress down over my thighs.

He leans close to me. “Do you like me better now?”

I’m still trying to catch my breath. “You’re growing on me,” I manage. “Perhaps you can keep trying.”

He chuckles. “I’m certainly up to that.”

After the play, we descend from the gallery and go downstairs to the circulation area, where most of the press and critics are standing, some of them discussing the show. Landon stops to talk to a few of them, his demeanor charming and friendly. He keeps me beside him, his arm around my waist in a gesture that feels both protective and possessive, and he introduces me to a few people.

After a while, we’re joined by Aidan Court, who looks just like a younger version of Landon except that his hair is dark and his eyes are a lighter shade of blue.

His gaze immediately lands on me and he smiles, his eyes sparkling with a mixture of friendliness and mischief. “You must be Rachel,” he says. “I’m Aidan.”

He looks almost too young to be directing a play on Broadway, but I don’t say so. “It’s great to meet you,” I reply, “and your play was very enjoyable.”

“I hope the critics think so,” he says with an easy laugh. “But let’s forget about work. What’s a nice girl like you doing with my brother?”

“None of your business,” Landon tells him, sounding both good-natured and affectionate.

Aidan wiggles his eyebrows at me, making me laugh.

Landon shakes his head. “How’re you coping with your ingénue?”

Aidan shudders. “Don’t ask.”

“I thought she was wonderful,” I proffer.

“Spellbinding actually,” Aidan corrects me, his eyes clouding for a moment. “But as I said, let’s forget about the play. Landon promised to take me out for a drink. I hope you’re coming?”

Landon’s hand tightens around my waist. “Of course she is,” he says, looking into my face for assent.

I nod. “I would love to.”

We end up at a bar close to the theater, where we find a private table and order drinks while Aidan regales me with stories about Landon. He’s five years younger, and from the way he talks about his brother, it’s plain to see that he idolizes him.

Some of the stories are hilarious, and Aidan is a gifted storyteller. I find myself laughing delightedly while Landon mock-threatens his unrepentant brother.

At some point in the evening, Landon has to take a call, leaving me alone at the table with Aidan.

“Now’s your chance to dig for dirt,” he says with a wink. “Ask me anything—I’ve been spilling on my brother since I could talk.”

I laugh. “Nah, I’m good.”

He nods, his voice turning serious. “Landon’s my big brother, and he’s saved my life…not just the one time everybody knows about. It’s great to see him looking as happy as he does with you.”

“You think he looks happy?”

“Are you kidding? I’ve seen him smile more tonight than I have since our mother died. In fact, I should be thanking you. Last week he was chewing my head off when I abandoned the play and went up north to hide out. He knew where to find me, and he talked me out of the funk I was in. He brought me back here, to the delight of the producer and investors. He was mad, now he’s not, and I’m sure I have you to thank for that.”

“Last week?”

“Yeah,” Aidan says with a shrug. “Occasionally, I go off the deep end, but I’m working on it.”

I’m not really listening anymore. When Landon left me in San Francisco, it was to take care of his brother, not work, as I’d imagined. There are so many sides to him, and each side I discover makes me love him more.

“Last call to dig for dirt,” Aidan announces, downing his drink. “I’ll tell you anything.”

“Come to think of it,” I start. “I just wondered…the day we met, Landon thought I was a hooker you sent to his suite.”

“Ouch.” Aidan manages to look shamefaced. “The thing is…it was his birthday, and I was so caught up in the play, I forgot to give him a present. We were having dinner and somehow, we started to have a conversation about the benefits of paid sex versus relationships. I’ve paid for sex. He hasn’t. I offered to prove the benefits by sending him a hooker, but he refused. When you arrived, he must have assumed I’d ignored his wishes, as I have been known to do.”

“Oh.”

Aidan shrugs. “I hope I cleared that up.”

“Cleared what up?”

I look up to see Landon. “Nothing.” I smile at him. “We were just talking about the play.”

He looks as if he doesn’t believe me, but he takes his seat and Aidan resumes his good-natured storytelling.

“Are you ready to go home?” Landon asks me after a while.

“Yes.” I turn to Aidan. “It was really great to meet you.”

He grins. “Likewise.”

After we say goodnight, Landon follows me to the street, where Joe is waiting at the curb. Standing beside the car, he takes my face in his hands and gives me a deep kiss. “I have to stay, Aidan and I have some things to discuss, but Joe will take you home.”

I try to keep the disappointment out of my face. I assumed the night would end with us finding inevitable pleasure in each other’s arms. “Okay.” I sigh.

“See you soon,” he says, opening the door for me.

“Yeah,” I reply. “See you soon.”

LAURIE is still awake when I get home. She’s sitting yoga style on the couch while watching a late-night reality show.

“Where’s Brett,” I ask.

She shakes her head slowly. “He left. We had a fight.”

Frowning, I move closer to peer at her face, and just as I thought, her eyes are red-rimmed. “What happened?”

She sighs. “Some girl. Her name’s Emily…she started working at the gym a couple of weeks ago, and yesterday she came on to him. The skank.”

I collapse on one of the chairs and kick off my shoes. “How did you find out?”

“Brett told me.”

“And you fought with him? That’s nuts.”

“It’s not nuts when I knew she was interested in him. I told him she might misunderstand his flirtatiousness.”

I sigh. Laurie has always felt that Brett pays too much unnecessary attention to members of the opposite sex. “You mean friendliness.”

She rolls her eyes. “Come on. You and I both know how easy it is for some women to mistake his friendliness for flirtation. I don’t know why he can’t be a little more reserved.”

“I’m sorry Laurie,” I say with a shrug. “But if some bimbo tried to get in his pants, so what? He didn’t let her.”

“I know.” She gives me a small smile. “I didn’t plan to get angry. I just…couldn’t help myself after a while. I said some things Rach.” She puts her head in her hands. “God, I hate it when we fight.”

“I know.” I move to join her on the couch and put an arm around her shoulders. “It never lasts though.”

“Thank the stars for that.” She frowns. “So how did your date go?”

“Okay.”

“Come on.” Laurie cranes her neck to look at me. “You’ve got to give me more than that.”

“I met his brother,” I say with a smile.

“The hot one I saw online? Cool.” She wiggles her eyebrows. “So, you’ve met the family. This is definitely dating.”

“It’s not like he introduced me as the love of his life.”

Laurie studies my face. “Is that what you want?”

I sigh. “I don’t want to think about what I want. If I do, I won’t be able to enjoy what we have.”

“How long will you be able to enjoy it? You’re in love with him. Soon you won’t be able to take it if you don’t know for sure that he feels the same way.”

I’m silent. Of course, Laurie knows how I feel. She knows me too well not to have picked up on it.

“Do you know how he feels?” she asks gently.

“He says he wants me, and can’t stop thinking about me.” I sigh. “When we’re together it feels like nothing else matters. I’ve never felt something so intense.”

She nods. “He might feel the same way, you know. I saw the way he looked at you earlier. It seemed like way more than lust and chemistry to me.”

Yes, but is it love? Anything else is temporary. Anything else means that one day, he’ll be through with me, and then I’ll have to deal with his rejection.

I change the subject, steering Laurie into telling me more about her fight with Brett. Afterward, I say goodnight and go to my room, where, as soon as I’m alone, my mind goes back to Landon.

He wants me—I don’t doubt that—but how does he feel about me? How long will I be able to love him without knowing if there’s any chance he’ll ever feel the same?

I wash the makeup off my face and change into a tank top and shorts, but when I get into bed, I’m still unable to fall asleep. In the distance, a car alarm goes off, and I start to wonder what Landon is doing. He would have finished talking with Aidan long ago. Is he back at his apartment now? Is he alone? An unbidden, unwanted thought of him with another woman flashes across my mind. It’s far-fetched, improbable, but it still makes me feel desperate.

My phone starts to ring, rescuing me from my thoughts. I grab it from my nightstand and see Landon’s name on the screen. The surge of relief weakens me.

“Hey,” I say softly.

“Did I wake you?”

“No,” I reply. “I wasn’t asleep.”

“Oh?” He sounds surprised. “What are you doing?”

Thinking about you. “Nothing. I’m just lying in bed.”

“Alone?”

I smile. “Very funny.”

I hear him breathe. “Were you thinking of me?”

Always. “What if I was?”

“I’d tell you I was thinking about you too. I haven’t been able to stop thinking about you all night.”

My breath catches. “You should stop,” I tell him. “You’re in danger of starting to sound romantic.”

“Do you have anything against romance?”

“Not really,” I whisper. “Do you?’

“I cannot be opposed to anything that would bring you pleasure.”

I close my eyes. “My world is officially rocked.”

He laughs. “Did you have a good time tonight?”

“Mmhmm,” I tell him. “I loved the play, and Aidan is really great.”

“I think he may have fallen in love with you. He’s usually more reserved with women.”

I chuckle. “That’s ridiculous.”

He laughs too. “It is. I’d have to challenge him to a duel or something.”

“You wouldn’t,” I say, giggling.

“I’d have to.” He pauses. “I want to