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Pain lances through my chest because I know she’s not lying. She really thinks I wouldn’t give up my career for her, that I wouldn’t walk through hell and back for her.

“If you don’t know that, I’ve more than fucked things up between us.”

“It’s not just you who has.” Quinn sniffs, her tone somber.

Silence settles over us. Well, until those damn ravens caw from somewhere nearby. I’m really starting to think they are a dark omen, and any good feelings I had before are gone now.

Beck sighs under his breath. “I think I should let the two of you talk alone.”

He moves to stand, but Quinn beats him to it, getting up and pointing a finger at him so he freezes in place. “Don’t you dare leave. I’m sick of men running away when they feel something, and I’m not letting it happen again.”

“Quinn—” he tries, but she stops him, determination set on her round features that makes my heart flutter in a pleasant way. I never see her like this, taking charge and putting people in their place. And fuck if I don’t like it.

“No, I want both of you to listen because I’m only going to say this once.” Her stance dares us to challenge her, but we don’t. “The two of you have history, but so do we, Noah.”

Her heated eyes are no longer pools of pale blue but stormy like the ocean.

“I’ve loved you for so long, stood by you, and put everything I desired to the side because I wanted you to thrive and fulfill your dreams. I kept my mouth shut when I was hurting, let you think that things were okay when they weren’t, watched you kill yourself at the gym and fall into depression when you felt as if you’d failed. But the last few days have changed me, and I’m not staying silent anymore.”

I bite my tongue to keep from speaking, from telling her that I want her to do what she’s saying, that she was right when she said I didn’t see her. Before, I only thought I was, but in truth, I was only seeing what I wanted to see. I wasn’t really seeing her or her needs.

She stares at Beck, her eyes filled with a different kind of fire that reminds me of how she and I looked at each other when we first met: with lust and desire, with something new building between them.

“I’m attracted to you, Beck. I think that’s obvious, but if it wasn’t, I’m saying it now.”

I go still in my seat, expecting to feel jealousy or anger like a normal husband should, but just like with all the times before this, that doesn’t happen. The only thing I feel is…relief.

Beck doesn’t move, his posture similar to mine. He swallows, Adam’s apple working up and down in his throat. His pupils shift to me briefly, and I nod, hoping he takes it as permission to speak freely.

“The feeling is mutual,” he says.

Both my and Quinn’s shoulders ease at his admission, the tension I hadn’t noticed in her muscles relaxing as she blinks away the water in her eyes. My heart thumps faster, and I shift in my chair.

Quinn exhales, threading her hands in front of her. “How does that make you feel, baby?” she asks.

My heart skips a beat at the endearment. I didn’t know how much I needed to hear her call me that until she had.

“It makes me feel…” I pause to observe Beck and my wife, ideas I thought could only be inappropriate fantasies coloring my mind. “…like you should explore it.”

I wait for regret to follow my words, but it never comes. I know this needs to happen—not just for Quinn but for me and Beck, too. Nothing good will come from pretending our feelings aren’t there.

“You’re serious?” Beck asks.

I stand and pull a wide-eyed Quinn into my side. I take her hand and kiss her ring before holding my hand out to Beck. He stares at it for a long moment, and then, with a shaky exhale, he finally takes it. I tug him to stand, the three of us mirroring a similar position from last night, the one that started us down this unknown path.

“I’ve made mistakes with both of you,” I reply. “I can’t take them back, but I can try to do better now.”

“And you think the way to do that is by exploring my attraction to Quinn?” Beck asks.

Quinn’s hand grips mine so tightly, I’m starting to lose feeling. I can see in her eyes how much she needs this to happen, but I’m still a selfish man. There’s no way I could walk away from her or Beck for a second time. Not after yesterday.

“Not just with Quinn, but with me,” I say confidently.

Beck’s jaw strains, and Quinn’s lips twitch into a smile, and for the second time, relief floods me. This is what she wanted—not just to explore her newfound attraction to Beck but for the three of us to explore the attraction between us all.

I pulse my hand back against hers in reassurance, both of us focusing on Beck. He hasn’t removed his hand from mine, but it’s clammy.

“Will you say something?” I ask him.