Chapter 33: A Gathering of Handsome Men

Ethan Sutton came from serious money old family wealth stacked several generations deep.

He just happened to be remarkably low-key about it.

His love of fitness had led him to become a trainer, and most people who crossed paths with him simply assumed that was the whole story.

In reality, he owned every gym in Meridian City.

The Sutton family had a long military pedigree his grandfather a decorated general, his grandmother equally formidable in her own right.

His father ran one of the country's top conglomerates. His mother, a prominent socialite, carried an equally distinguished pedigree and education.

None of that fit the image of the easygoing gym trainer everyone assumed he was.

Claire sat at her desk, staring at a report she wasn't actually reading.

Lucas had spent the night. When she'd left for work, he'd still been sound asleep in her bed, completely unbothered.

Guess he's just going to let himself in and out whenever he wants now.

This man is exhausting.

Her phone buzzed. A message from Ethan: Claire, come with me to a get-together tonight.

She hesitated over the screen.

Gatherings like that usually meant dressing up, and she was running on fumes lately.

She typed back: Sorry, I want to head home and rest early tonight.

His reply came fast: Small group, very casual. No need to dress up.

I'll get you home early, promise.

She hesitated another moment, then relented.

After work, Ethan pulled up outside her building in a black Maybach, understated but unmistakably expensive.

Claire climbed in and froze.

Sitting in the back seat was a face she knew very well.

Lucas. What is he doing here?

Her pulse spiked, but she kept her expression neutral, sliding smoothly into the passenger seat.

Ethan glanced over at her, something knowing flickering in his eyes.

"Claire, this is my good friend, Lucas Kane." He nodded toward the back seat.

Claire gave Lucas a brief, deliberately casual glance over her shoulder, then turned back forward. "Hm."

Lucas's eyes stayed fixed on her the entire time.

"Claire, Ethan and I just decided we're going to start training together going forward."

The air in the car went distinctly strange.

Claire tucked her hair behind her ear, forcing an even smile. "Sounds fun. Great idea."

Of course Julian doesn't know Ethan. But Lucas does.

And Julian and Lucas are close. And now Ethan and Lucas are apparently close too.

This is getting genuinely ridiculous.

The idea of it training sessions with two men she'd slept with, now suddenly best friends with each other sent an odd little thrill through her despite the danger of it all.

Ethan clearly already knows about Lucas, she realized. That's exactly why he was looking at me like that back at the gym.

And now they're introducing each other to me like it's nothing.

She sat quietly in her seat, composed on the outside, mind racing underneath.

I genuinely have no idea what these two are planning.

The Maybach eventually pulled up outside an exclusive private club heavy security, members-only, the kind of place that didn't advertise itself.

When they walked in, Claire quickly clocked something odd: barely anyone was there. Just five men, all polished, composed, and unmistakably wealthy.

Not a single other woman in sight.

She kept her surprise carefully hidden.

Walking in flanked by Lucas on one side and Ethan on the other, she felt distinctly like the center of some elaborate joke she wasn't in on.

The three of them approached the group.

Ethan gestured toward them. "Claire, these are friends of mine and Lucas's."

Claire smiled easily, greeting each of them in turn, her pulse steady on the surface even as her mind kept circling one question: what exactly is this gathering actually about?

Seven strikingly handsome men. One woman.

The whole atmosphere had a strange, charged quality to it.

Still she had to admit, the company was easy on the eyes. Every single one of them carried the same effortless polish as Lucas and Ethan, each one distinct, each one dangerously attractive in his own way.