“Yes, I do.” His eyes are hard, and Ryan’s are pretty much the same.
“Because you lied to me. More than once.”
“What the fuck are you talking about?”
Tilting my head, I glare at Ryan and then Grant. “You told me you’ve only been here a few times. Well, I ran into Alex in the bathroom, and according to her, you come here a couple of times a week.”
“Emma…” Grant reaches for my arm, but I pull it away. I don’t want him touching me right now.
“She also says you spend all of your time with Elena and Louisa,” I say, cutting him off.
The hard look on Ryan’s face softens, and for some reason, that just sets me off. “Emma—”
“In the presidential suite,” I add, cutting him off. “How cozy. And here I thought that what we shared here was special.”
“This is special. You are special.” Ryan grins and looks at Grant. “She’s jealous.”
“This isn’t funny, and I am not jealous.”
Grant lays a placating hand on my arm and tries to fight a grin of his own, but I pull away and try to stand up. I’m not sure where I’ll go with them caging me in, but I’m not opposed to crawling under the table if that’s what it takes.
“Emma, sit.” Grant’s voice is low and hard, and I glare at him but plop back down.
“I was foolish to believe that what we shared was special. You made it clear in the shower that I’m just your best friend. I’ll never be more than that. I’ll never be good enough for the two of you because you’re already a package deal—a team. I thought I could handle that. That’s how badly I wanted to be with you two. But I can’t. I can’t do it. That’s not the type of girl I am.”
Grant shakes his head. “Emma—”
“Let me out.” I try to shove him out of the booth, not caring anymore if I’m making a scene, but he doesn’t budge.
“Not until you let us explain.”
“Fine.” I cross my arms over my chest and sit back. “You want to explain? Go ahead. Explain.”
“Jesus Christ, you’re stubborn,” Grant growls. He runs a hand through his golden blond hair, messing it up. “Let’s start with you not being good enough. That’s bullshit, and you know it. You’re the best damn thing that’s ever happened to us.”
“Really? Then why did you wait so long to make your move? To share me?”
“Because we aren’t good enough for you. But we’re working on it. That’s what all of this is about,” Ryan says, waving in a motion to indicate the restaurant.
“All of what? I don’t understand.”
Ryan shakes his head and looks at Grant, who scoots closer to me in the booth. When he sees that I’m not going to bite his head off, he tries again to put a hand on my arm. This time, I let him.
“We’re going to explain everything,” Grant says. “But first, you need to know that you are so much more than just our best friend. And, yes, Ryan and I are a package deal, but you are part of that package—at least we’re hoping you’ll be.”
My eyes widen, and the vice around my heart loosens just a tiny bit. “I thought that’s what you wanted when we were sitting in bed, and you said that I was yours and you weren’t letting me go, and again in the shower when you said that what we shared was a first for the two of you.”
“And we meant it.” Ryan grabs my hand, linking his fingers with mine on top of the table.
“But then you said…” I look at Grant and try to remember his exact words.
“I said what?”
“’Of course, I love you. I’ve loved you for years, you’re one of my best friends.’”
“You dumbass.” Ryan reaches behind me to smack Grant upside the head. But Grant doesn’t flinch. His eyes bounce between mine. “This is all your fault.”
“Emma, sweetheart, I’m confused. I do love you. I don’t understand why you’re upset over what I said.”