On her way to the door, she gave me a fantastic view of her ass in those tight jeans, and was I seriously going to need to jerk off before brunch to survive it? Yeah, yeah the fuck I am. Because if I didn’t handle this problem between my legs, I really would snap.

When she was gone and the door was closed, I let go of a hot pent-up breath of air and got out of bed.

I sent a quick check-in text to Izzy and Hudson to see if they’d heard back from Sean and Emilia McGregor, as well as ensure Daniel and Jamie were still inside that hotel.

They didn’t respond right away, so I took my shower.

Beneath the warm spray of water from the double showerheads, I did my best to alleviate the tension between my legs.

Seventeen long damn years without her had me stroking myself in a punishing way. And had me feeling guilty for every woman I’d been with after her.

The guilt culminated into anger at myself, and it pulsed in my stomach and moved up into my chest. I snarled and bit down on my molars, stopping myself from finishing.

I slammed my palms against the wall and hung my head, cursing in Italian. I didn’t want to get off again unless it was with her, and I made the decision then and there that I’d withhold as long as I had to.

I hurriedly washed up, then stepped out, wrapping a towel around my waist before heading to the built-in shelves in my walk-in closet.

Once I had on jeans and shoes, I searched for a shirt, but nostalgia slowed me down in my pursuit and sent me to locate the NYU T-shirt Bianca bought me while she’d attended college there.

I held it open in front of me as memories assaulted my mind. After a minute or two, I forced myself to set the shirt aside, and I picked out a plain black tee, my usual. With a backward hat to tame my wet hair and my Apple watch on, I was ready to go.

I checked my messages, relieved to see a response.

Izzy: I told you, silly, I’d message you when I hear from Emilia and Sean.

Izzy: They’re still doing a deep dive. Something is fishy about Brian Cormac’s records. They'll let me know once they get to the bottom of it.

Great, just what I needed to hear about Lennon’s father, as if it couldn’t get any worse.

Hudson: Jamie, Lennon, and Daniel are still inside their hotel suite. No movement in or out.

Hudson: You should be clear to go out, but I can’t make any promises.

I hit reply to Izzy’s message first.

Me: The news about Cormac doesn’t sit well with me.