Forbidden Legacy by Mari Carr Read Free Book Online Page B

accept him? It was clear she was as in love with Harrison as his friend was with her.
    Which made Michael the lynchpin. The one who could make or break this whole deal.
    It terrified him.
    If she could accept that they weren’t doing anything wrong, Michael knew she’d make the perfect partner. Alexis could certainly hold her own with them—intellectually and sexually.
    Hell, he wasn’t too proud to admit she was smarter than he was. And there was a definite attraction. While she’d said she wasn’t ready for more tonight—and he intended to honor that request—there was no denying the sexual undertones flowing between the three of them.
    Alexis looked at Michael as Harrison’s question hovered in the air. Did she want out?
    Michael schooled his features. They wouldn’t make her stay, wouldn’t hold her to the time limit if she were miserable.
    “I agreed to a month,” she said at last. “I’m not going back on my word.”
    Michael had expected her answer to make Harrison happy, but instead, he looked troubled, though he tried to mask it. Michael was becoming accustomed to Harrison’s heavy moods. He’d chalked up his friend’s distant nature to his unrequited love for Alexis, but now that they were embarking on this affair, Michael wasn’t sure that was the problem at all.
    Harrison kissed her on the cheek. “Thank you. What do you say we go get something to eat? I promised you a meal that wasn’t prepared in the hospital cafeteria.”
    She accepted Harrison’s help as he slid her jacket over her arms and then she took his hand. Once the two of them reached the door, she turned around, looking at Michael over her shoulder. “Are you coming?”
    He nodded and fell into step next to them. While Harrison still held her hand, Michael was careful not to touch her. In the hospital, he was her boss. He’d pointed out that difficulty to Harrison, but his friend wouldn’t be swayed from this course. There were other members of the Trinity Masters who had been forced to find creative ways to hide the true nature of their relationships. Each triad had done it and so would they.
    Harrison insisted this was the perfect trinity. Michael was beginning to think he was right. If only he could silence the tiny part of him that told him something was wrong.
    Terribly, terribly wrong.

Chapter Four

    Three days. Alexis reached above her head, trying to stretch some of the tension from her neck and back. She hadn’t spoken more than a few words to Michael or Harrison in three days, not since they’d both said a very platonic—disappointing—goodnight to her after their first date. Neither man had even offered her a kiss. She didn’t bother to admit that they’d kept a respectful distance because of her foolish assertion she couldn’t handle any more physical contact.
    She rolled her eyes. God. She was an idiot. Alexis had gone years without having an orgasm she hadn’t given to herself. Then within two days, Harrison and Michael had triggered some of the most intense climaxes of her life. And she’d claimed she couldn’t handle more.
    Yeah, right.
    She would have sought them both out the next day, but all hell had broken loose when an arsonist set fire to a church on Sunday. She’d spent the past three days volunteering to help treat the countless victims, working round the clock, grabbing catnaps in the doctors’ lounge while remaining close to lend a hand.
    Alexis spotted a man near the doorway looking around the emergency room. Something about him looked out of place, so she walked over to him.
    “Can I help you?”
    The young man startled, which triggered an alarm for her. Something about this man told her he didn’t belong.
    “Um,” he hesitated. “Yes. You can.”
    She waited for him to elaborate. When he didn’t, she prodded him. “Are you ill?”
    He shook his head, his whole demeanor suddenly changing from curious to concerned. It was an amazing transformation. “I understand a lot of the burn