DONOVAN
I arrived late to the party. Everyone was already spread out, into their second or third drink. Pat had texted me at the last minute to invite me, and I was in the middle of a workout. I agreed to come but only after I finished up, showered, and changed.
Hank Brighton answered the door. I recognized him from all the games I had seen on television. I wasn’t expecting the team to be there, and it took me a moment to recover.
“Hank Brighton,” I said in astonishment.
“Hey, man,” he replied, waving me in.
“Where’s Patrick?” I asked.
“He’s in here somewhere. Make yourself at home.”
I took the ball player’s advice, walking to the kitchen to grab myself a drink. There was a fridge full of beer bottles and a keg on a stand in an alcove. I opted for the keg. It wasn’t often I got to taste fresh brew, except for when I went out to a bar.
Part of me worried about the scene. I didn’t want to get caught in a compromising position. But everyone at the party seemed to have their clothes on, and the women, while beautiful, appeared to be wives and girlfriends, not paid partygoers. I scoffed at myself for even thinking it. Pat might have sprung for a keg, but he definitely wasn’t the kind of person to invite working girls to a party.
Relaxing somewhat, I started to circle the room. There were plenty of players there that I recognized. Assuming my natural political persona, I engaged with all of them, shaking their hands and asking questions about their season. I learned a lot about the job they held, about the stresses they were under, and the things they hoped to see in the coming weeks.
Filing it all away in the folder in my mind marked baseball, I knew somehow the information would come in handy. It took me a while to work my way around to Cory. He was sitting with a group of players, talking about college sports. Since he was there and I was there, I guessed Gavin was somewhere around too.
Petra showed up out of the blue, walking around the group to sit right next to Cory. I knew they had a thing, but seeing her choose him was a stark reminder that I wasn’t the only man in her life.
Remembering our kiss and the way she’d left me on the sidewalk, I had to force myself to smile. I wondered if Patrick knew. How could he not? They weren’t making a big secret of it. To anybody watching, it looked like they were a couple.
It’s not that they held hands or kissed or anything so blatant, but the easy back and forth between them spoke volumes. She still hadn’t seen me, but when she did, her face lit up. She stood and crossed the distance between us in a few quick steps. Opening her arms, she pulled me into a hug as if I was some long-lost friend.
“Donovan!” she cried, pulling back to look me in the eye. “I didn’t think you were here.”
I allowed my hand to drift to her waist, resting gently at the base of her spine. “I got held up.”
“Donovan is another one of my investors,” Petra introduced me to the group.
I saw some curious eyebrows go up. The exchange between me and Petra was as unmistakable as the exchange between Petra and Cory. We were both closer than friends, and it showed. Petra didn’t seem to mind, leading me around the seated ball players to take a spot beside her and Cory.
I sat down, feeling a little foolish. Here I was, following her around like some damned puppy. She had us both eating out of her hand, and she knew it. I almost threw in the towel and walked out on the whole arrangement, but she was so beautiful and kind, I didn’t have the heart to tell her no.
I had forgotten all about Patrick when he put his hand on my shoulder. “Can we talk?” Petra’s brother narrowed his gaze at Cory as well. “All of us.”
I glanced over at Cory, knowing what this was about. Patrick wasn’t a fool. He’d read the room and saw the intimate little gestures both Cory and I were making with his sister. He didn’t like it and I wasn’t surprised.
I got up to follow him, feeling like I had little choice. Whatever it was Patrick had to say was better said in private, I was sure of that. I didn’t want to make a scene in front of dozens of influential men and women.
Patrick led us to the bedroom, where we found Gavin waiting. If all three of us were involved, I knew this was going to be bad. I didn’t want to push back against Pat’s no dating my sister rule, but things had already happened. I couldn’t erase that kiss we had shared, nor did I want to. In fact, all I wanted to do was move forward, to take my relationship with Petra to the next level.
“What the fuck is going on?” Patrick demanded as soon as we were alone.
I kept my eyes focused on him, not daring to glance around to check with my co-conspirators. A furtive glance at Cory or Petra would give the plot away, and I didn’t want to be accused of that.
Around me, both Cory and Gavin shifted uncomfortably. Petra crossed her arms over her chest, daring her brother to interfere in her life. It looked like we were going to see some fireworks. I almost felt sorry for Patrick. He was trying to do the right thing and protect his family from the likes of us, but Petra wasn’t going to stand for it.
“Fine,” Petra snapped. “You want to know what happened?”
I glanced over at her, wishing there was any way out of this conversation except through the confrontation that was about to occur. I knew Petra well enough by then to tell that she was just winding up. Patrick was in for a tongue-lashing, and the rest of us were awkward witnesses.
“I kissed Cory,” Petra said, her beautiful face flushed with anger. “And I kissed Donovan, and you know what? I would kiss Gavin if the opportunity arose because I think he’s hot.”
I couldn’t help looking over at Gavin. The man seemed pleased, but also a little surprised. I gathered he hadn’t had the same success with our bakery connection that Cory and I shared. Far from picking one of us, Petra seemed to be declaring her affection for the entire group. I was proud of her and not the least bit jealous. It took a lot of courage to declare her intentions, and even though I wouldn’t have chosen this venue, it was nice to get it out in the open.