This was the worst, but she couldn't lie. "Five years."

She tried to look away, but he tipped up her chin. The heat from his hand and the delicious scent of his musky cologne warmed her. Stone Petty was deadly in a suit, confirming she might never look at him the same way again. With his staggering height, the navy blue fabric molded to each bulky muscle, stretched across his broad chest, hugged his massive shoulders. The red tie gave him a distinguished dash of style that made her knees weaken. His goatee was neatly trimmed, and he'd shaved, so his cheeks were silky smooth. It was a miracle she hadn't pulled him by the tie across the table and ravished him right there.

She had high hopes for later.

"Don't apologize for him being an asshole, little one," he said. "It's his loss. You have an amazing support system, and I'm honored you asked me to come with you."

Her heart melted into a gooey puddle; Arilyn wondered if it would ever recover. "Thank you." She paused. "Why are you being so nice to me?"

He laughed, then dropped his head to press a kiss against her lips. "'Cause I'm hoping to get lucky later."

She smiled against his lips. "What if I told you I was a bona fide guarantee?"

"I'd drag you out of this reception right now. Especially before that disco shit comes on, 'cause it always does. Or even worse, one of those I am woman, hear me roar' songs like I Will Survive.' "

On cue, "Single Ladies" by Beyonce beat through the speakers. The women roared and began stomping and flailing their arms around, singing loudly to the familiar lyrics. Arilyn giggled at his disgusted expression. "And if I begged you to dance?"

"I'd say no. But I'll catch you when they put on a slow song. It'll give me an opp to get my hands all over you."

The sexy drawl to his gruff voice made shivers dance across her skin. Before she had time to counter, Kennedy, Kate, and Genevieve shrieked and grabbed her.

"Get up now! We're dancing!"

Stone put his hands up and shrank in his chair. "Take her. Just leave me, please. I'll keep your men company."

Kate's veil assaulted her face, Gen's fingers tickled her ribs, and Arilyn laughed uncontrollably as she was pushed and pulled onto the crowded dance floor. She caught sight of all the men with an expression that matched Stone's. Standing by the bar, they motioned her date over and closed in on him with male support, slapping shoulders, ribbing, and doing the classic testosterone dance boys learned when they were young.

Joy skittered through her. It was so very . . . normal. The way having a real boyfriend should be.

Of course, it was mostly about the sex, but she wasn't about to ruin a perfect night reminding herself that Stone belonged to her temporarily. At least, his temporary was more than she'd ever gotten before.

She was going to enjoy every moment.

STONE STOOD IN THE circle of men and watched the women dance. He tried not to shake his head at the awful moves they attempted in public, but their enthusiasm made up for their lack of true R&B talent.

Kennedy's man, Nate, held some kind of odd drink in his hand and seemed to be thinking the same thing. He grinned and jerked his head toward them. "Gotta give them credit for trying."

Stone chuckled. "What are you drinking?"

"Darth Maultini."

Stone raised his brow. "Cool, I love Star Wars. Arilyn said you used to work for NASA?"

"Yeah. Then when it disassembled, I focused on private space travel."

"Impressive. I don't know too many aerospace engineers."

Nate's face lit up. "You got the term right."

"Why wouldn't I?"

Wolfe laughed and clapped him on the shoulder. "'Cause everyone calls him a rocket scientist and pisses him off. Good to see you again, Stone, especially off duty."

Stone had met Wolfe over the summer, had the unfortunate task of arresting him once, and admitted he'd always liked the guy. With his serpent tat, badass attitude, and tenderness toward Genevieve, he was someone he could definitely hang with at the billiards room. "Good to see you out of a jail cell," he hit back, which gained him a hearty catcall all around.

The groom himself leaned in. "How's it going with Arilyn?" Slade asked curiously. "She's the most mysterious out of the group, you know. I'm glad she got rid of that Yoga Dude. Kate hated him."

His lips twitched. Something told him this group of men was just as bad at gossiping as the women. Another thing he liked about them. Stone enjoyed dishing the dirt. "Well, it's been a strange ride. Anger management classes aren't the ideal way to build a relationship. But after we decided we weren't mortal enemies, we figured we'd try dating."

Slade grinned. "Cool. She comes off real chill, but inside she's tougher than nails. She ever make you do hot yoga?"

Stone shuddered at the thought. "Hell, no. Even I have my limits."

"It was insane. Cranked the temps to over one hundred degrees and then drilled my ass like an army sergeant. I didn't think I'd survive."

Nate lifted a brow. "Hot yoga, huh? Now, that could be interesting."

Slade shook his head. "Not. My body cut out on me, and I got embarrassed in front of Kate. That shit's hard-core."

"Bet sex after that type of workout would be off the charts," Nate murmured thoughtfully.

They all fell silent. Huh. Stone never thought of it like that.

"Gotta keep Kennedy on her toes, huh?" Wolfe commented. "Maybe she'd finally agree to marry you if you exhaust her."

Nate looked calm and resolute. "She'll say yes. Just a matter of time. I already calculated the odds of how many times she can reject me, so my projections tell me within the next three hundred days I'll secure a yes."

"Or I can just throw her ass in jail until she agreed," Stone suggested.

The guys laughed. "Welcome to the club, dude," Slade said. "It's a bit crazy here, but we take care of our own."

Wolfe nodded. "Damn straight. And them, of course."

They watched as their women swung their hands up in the air off beat, tipsily stamping around the dance floor while Kate's veil whipped around the crowd. And for a little while, Stone realized how badly he wanted to be part of this group of men who knew how to joke and gossip, and loved their women without question or apology.

ARILYN DANCED HER ASS off, making a good-natured fool of herself as the crowd clapped around the bride in happy abandon. After a solid set of oldies but goodies, they limped off the dance floor to recover with cosmos and a quick summary of events.

"Wasn't the ceremony amazing?"

"I'm so glad you picked the goat cheese salad to offer. It was delicious."

"Did you see the way Slade teared up at the ceremony? I swear I almost lost it."

"I thought I was having a heart attack when the little button thing busted off your train, but no one's noticed."

"I'm not taking you to the damn bathroom again, let Arilyn do it next time. Seeing your white ass is not on my bucket list; that's Slade's."

Arilyn rolled her eyes at Kennedy's last statement, and her friend went strolling off to find Nate. She turned to go get Stone but caught sight of the group of females weaving their way across the floor toward her and Kate.

"Oh my God, Kate, you're married!"

Gen's older sister Alexa threw herself over, her inky corkscrew curls bobbing as she hugged Kate tight. She was flanked by her best friend, Maggie Ryan, looking elegant in a floor-length, figure-hugging red dress. Maggie shook her cinnamon hair at Alexa's emotion. She was a famous male underwear photographer, and Arilyn always found her dramatic ways and quick wit a blast to be around. "They were already living together, dude," Maggie drawled. "You're acting like they're having sex for the first time."

The third woman, a curvy, petite brunette with laughing dark eyes, waved her hand in the air. Carina was Maggie's sister-in-law. "Maggie, stop shocking these poor girls. Wedding-night sex is more exciting than any other. Well, not for me, since I was forced to marry Max and was pissed, but later it was the best."

Arilyn leaned forward, hoping to get the full story, but Alexa was talking. "Puh-leeze. I had no wedding-night sex. Just a poker game that got out of control." She grinned cheekily. "But Nick and I made up for it later."

Maggie let out a breath. "Am I the only one who had great wedding-night sex? Damn. And Michael and I were faking a marriage the whole time. Who would've known?"

Kate's blue eyes were wide. Arilyn cleared her throat. "Umm, guys, think you can give us the background on this? You all seem so perfect and happy."

The three women laughed. "Oh, we are!" Alexa said. "But it didn't start off that way for any of us. Anyway, we came to say this is an amazing wedding and we're so happy for you, honey. Thanks for inviting us."

Kate sniffed. "I love you. Gen's been like a sister to me, and you're my family."

That made Alexa's blue eyes fill up, and then she was hugging Kate and Gen and crying. Arilyn felt her own throat tighten. Weddings were such a harvest of emotions.

A masculine voice rang out over the music. "Ah, here we go. My wife will always be the one to lead the charge of happy tears." Alexa's husband, Nick, decked out in a designer charcoal suit, winked at his wife and slipped an arm around her waist. The naked adoration on his face made her want to sigh.

Nick's sister, Maggie, gave him a friendly poke. "Coming from Mr. Sappy himself. Ever since you had those gorgeous girls, you've gone soft."

Arilyn looked up as the elegant Italian man strode over and leaned in to whisper something in Maggie's ear. Maggie's cheeks turned red, which made Carina giggle. "Who's the softie?" Carina teased. "Your hubby owns you, babe. Admit it."

"Never. I just let him think so," Maggie said.

Michael nuzzled his wife's neck and winked. His Italian accent curled like rich smoke and caressed her ears. "Ah, cara, don't make me prove to you who's the real boss in the household. We'll be up all night again."

Maggie grinned wickedly. "Promises, promises."

The third man, a tall, elegant James Bond look-alike-Pierce Brosnan, of course-took his place next to Carina. He was deadly sexy, with thick dark hair and piercing blue eyes. The protective way he tucked her by his side told Arilyn they were just as crazy about each other as the other couples were. "Why do we always talk about sex when we're together?" he commented drily, his hand stroking his wife's belly. "What happened to interesting topics like business, politics, and cuisine?"

Maggie rolled her eyes. "Says you, who can't keep your hands off Carina. When is baby number two due, Max?"

Carina patted her small belly, which was just beginning to show. "Spring. Baby Max is just as excited as Daddy to get a little brother or sister." Her brows drew together in a frown. "I have to finish my collection before chaos lets loose again. My show is on Valentine's Day, so you all must come. We'll go to dinner and celebrate afterward."

"I don't want you stressed-out like last time," Max said firmly. "I'll cut back on my work hours so you have more time to paint."

Carina was a well-known artist who brought erotic art to a whole new generation. Arilyn was amazed at the power couples before them. How did they manage? They had huge careers, thriving businesses, children, and were still madly in love?

She looked at Kate. Slade and Stone, who had joined them, stood behind them listening to the whole conversation.

Kate finally said what they were all probably thinking. "How do you do it?" she burst out.

Alexa cocked her head. "Do what?"

"Everything!" Arilyn said. "How do you stay in love while managing careers and babies and stress and life and family? What's the secret?"

A shocked silence fell over the group. Alexa looked at Nick. Michael rested his chin on Maggie's head. Max placed his hand over his wife's belly.

Then they all burst into hysterical laughter.

"Oh, boy, it's official!" Alexa announced. "We're old."

Maggie groaned. "Yep, getting asked by the younger generation how you handle it all sucks. Should we tell them the super secret to lifetime bliss?"

The group leaned in. Arilyn held her breath.

Maggie snorted out a laugh. "Gotcha! Trust me, there is no super secret. It's a lot of hard work."

Carina giggled. "And fights. Lots and lots of fights. Oh, and making up. And wrong choices."

"And crying, lots of crying," Alexa added.

"But it's all worth it, as Mama Conte would say," Maggie pointed out.

Then the three women linked arms. "You'll figure it out. We did. Let's go dance."

The couples left for the dance floor.

Kate sighed. "Damn them. Why don't they just tell us the real truth?"

Slade leaned over and kissed his new wife. "'Cause we already know, baby. And I'm going to make sure we never forget."

Kate reached up and slid her arms around his neck. For a moment, they were lost in each other, alone. Just a bride and groom with a brand-new life stretching ahead of them.

"I love you, Slade Montgomery."

"And I love you, Kate Montgomery."

They kissed. And when Arilyn turned, Stone was staring at them with a mix of emotions in his eyes, so raw and so real, she wondered if she'd ever figure him out. Because for just a second, it looked like he also wanted what they had.

But that was impossible.

Arilyn reached out and touched his arm. Wanting to belong to him for a sliver in time, she sought connection. He answered the call, drawing her close, his arms wrapped tight around her waist. The music pounded, and guests chattered, and couples whispered.

"I want you."

His words were stark. Stripped bare. No pretty words, or promises, or poetry. Yet Arilyn felt his wanting in her soul, and bones, and heart. She lifted herself up on the toes of her pretty shoes, and whispered the only answer in his ear.

"Take me home."

fifteen.