Page 120 of Sunrise

“Did you like it?” I gesture at the half-naked man chiseled to perfection on the cover.

“Yeah. It was a good twist at the end. Can I borrow the next one?”

“Of course.” I love that I got him addicted to reading romance. No one would guess that Dmitri is into vampire porn. Or maybe they would. He’d make an excellent fanged, morally grey hero. “Take the whole series. Trust me, you won’t want to wait to dive into book three.”

D collects the other six off my shelf. “We have the Butterfly Ceremony tonight,” he says cautiously, resting his fresh stack of reads on my coffee table.

“So?”

“You coming?”

“Why would I?” It’s not like I ever have before. Besides, I have work at Midnight Run.

“Just wondering.” He sits back down next tome. “Want me to wrap your elbow?”

Shit, I forgot about that again. “No, I got it.”

He ignores me and grabs my first aid bin from my bathroom. I love that he knows where everything is here. I love that my friends feel at home in my house. I love that we always take care of each other.

“Let me see it.” Dmitri inspects my elbow. “Not too bad. I think you’ll live.”

“Huzzah.”

He quickly bandages me all up, which makes me smile because this is like déjà vu for the two of us. “You’re so good at this.”

“Lots of practice.” He easily tapes the bandage in place.

D and I both came from similar backgrounds in the way that we had an abusive parent. We’ve been patching each other up since we were kids. He taught me how to stitch wounds closed. Someone else we know taught me how to perform small surgeries like flesh wound bullet removal.

“Why should I go to the Butterfly Ceremony?” I ask, unable to shake the feeling that he’s trying to tell me something without saying it. It’s the second time he’s mentioned it.

“I just figured you would, is all.”

“Why?”

He pins me with his icy blue eyes. “They’re dominants, Knox. Tonight, the Butterfly gets to choose who will be with them for the month.”

Pretty sure the blood rushes out of my head. I always knew that part about the Butterfly Ceremony, but never really put too much stock into it because it’s not my circus. I’m sure Vault’s a popular choice, and Sophie’s roster is always filled. I’ve handled myjealousy because I’m not there to see it. Out of sight, out of mind, ya know? Besides, we’ve never been exclusive.

Are we exclusive now?

“It’s their choice,” I say, masking my sudden surge of insecurity. “If they want to be with the Butterfly, I can’t stop them.”

A month without either of them, or both, will be a nightmare. Pure torture.

My stomach hurts now.

“You need to have some big discussions, Knox.”

He’s right, but isn’t it too soon for this much bullshit? Damnit, can’t I enjoy heaven a little longer before Hell takes over?

“She loves being a Domme.” I down more of my coffee. “And I have no doubt Vault is very good at being a stone top.”

Dmitri sighs. He used to be with Butterflies too until Daelyn came into his life. He only works security now, and sometimes walks the halls in a Dom persona, but it’s all for show. Not for sale.

Can I share Sophie and Vault with a stranger? Yes. I’ve done it a bunch of times over the past two years.

But I don’t want to share anymore.

---