“That’s what you have us for.”
I blew a kiss over my shoulder at him as I walked away, moving a little steadier now. Brad was still sitting at the kitchen counter, and he gave me another sly look when I came back in. “Feel better about me now?”
I jumped. I considered deflecting, but I decided to be truthful. “Not really.”
He laughed. “Why not?”
“Do you know what we are doing tonight?” I stared at him.
“Yes, but I was told you all were going to a party, and I was to make you as stunning as possible. I feel like I achieved that. Why don’t you trust me?”
“I don’t trust anyone anymore. It’s not just you.”
Smiling, he said, “I can understand that. I am a trusted servant of the royal household, but that doesn’t necessarily mean I’m not a spy. Well, I wish you well. You’re gonna knock them dead.”
I snickered. They were going to be dead at the end of the night, that was for sure. “Uh, thank you.”
“Let me touch up your lipstick. We need to add the gloss over the stain as well.”
“Oh. Okay.” I stood still while he touched up the color. He waited for a minute, then added the clear gloss. When he was done, I pressed my lips together for a second. He waved his hand in front of my face. “What are you doing?”
“Using magic to hold the gloss on. It will be just as durable as the stain now.”
David came in the room, adjusting his bow-tie with one hand, and carrying his jacket with the other. After he threw the jacket over the back of the chair by the counter, he started buttoning his sleeves. I don’t know what it was about a man buttoning his shirt sleeves, but damn, it was hot. David looked at me, smiling. He slowly walked toward me, still fixing his sleeves. My eyes traveled appreciatively down his body. The color of the bow-tie and cummerbund matched my dress and accentuated his slim waist. His body moved fluidly as he came toward me. I could tell by the smirk on his face, he knew exactly how much I liked what I saw. He stopped in front of me, just out of reach.
His voice was soft as he said, “You clean up nice, Sugar.”
I snorted. “You, too.” He stepped forward and ran a fingertip from my shoulder to my elbow.
Travis's deep baritone surprised us as he called out from the other room. “David, where did you put my cufflinks?”
David didn’t take his eyes off mine as he called back, “Kait had them. Go ask him.”
Travis moved off down the hallway, muttering as he went. David’s lips tipped up in a small smile as he leaned in a brushed a soft kiss across my lips. My arms trembled as I struggled not to reach for him. I wanted nothing more than to stay home tonight with my three wonderful guys, to forget the Svikari and the cluster my life had become. Despite my resolve, I moved forward into his embrace. Much to my disappointment, instead of deepening the kiss, David merely put his arms around me and hugged me hard.
I sighed, which caused him to chuckle. “You are always beautiful, Sugar, but today you are radiant.” He was almost whispering.
“You look pretty good yourself. Are you sure we can’t just stay home?”
“You know the answer to that.”
I looked away. “Yeah, I do.”
Travis strode back into the room. He was wearing a variation of the same tuxedo that David was wearing, but he didn’t have a bow-tie and instead of a cummerbund, it seemed he had suspenders. Usually, they remind me of old men, but on him, it was drool-worthy. The vertical lines made his legs look longer and drew the eye to his muscled chest.
Clearing my throat, I looked away from them both. “Are we about ready to go, then?”
“Yes. Boys, get your jackets on. Princess, here’s a shawl to wear over your shoulders. It’s cold out tonight.” Kait was in business mode, but I was afraid to look at him. If he was dressed anywhere near as good as David and Travis, I was going to go up in hormone-fueled flames. I attempted to peek at him out of the corner of my eye, but he snickered and moved in front of me.
Kait was dressed in a classic black suit, with a black tie. It made him look like James Bond. I just stared. David and Travis picked up their jackets, putting them on before moving in behind Kait. Tears sprung into my eyes. I couldn’t believe these gorgeous men in front of me loved me.
Oh, shit! My makeup was going to run if I allowed myself to cry. I turned, putting my back to them. Travis started to say something, but David stopped him, whispering to him for a moment before Travis said, “Ohhh.” Kait gave me a minute to compose myself.
“Okay, Princess, we really do need to go.” He draped the shawl over my shoulders before rubbing them briefly. I took a deep breath and turned around.
“You guys look very, very good. Handsome doesn’t begin to describe it. Now, let’s go get this over with so we can have our happily ever after.”
Silence greeted my words, as my guys just stared at me. I glanced at each one of them, and they all looked stunned. “What? Why are you looking at me like that?”
David moved forward, his voice husky as he said. “I think that’s the first time you have acknowledged out loud that we have a chance after all this is done. I can feel that you love us, but a part of me has always wondered if you would leave once the threat has been taken care of.”
“Oh, Sweetie. I thought you all knew how I feel. I did have my doubts.
