Much as Grace never wanted to hear about her brothers’ sex lives, she couldn’t exactly deny Parker and Erin their time to talk.

“It’s more than sex, though. It was everything. I find myself wanting to talk to him at the end of my day to tell him about work. I want to hear about his mom and know if he made it to Target to buy kitchen towels and dishwasher detergent.”

Each of them grabbed a plate of food and moved into the living room.

“It sounds like you really like him,” Parker said.

“I do.”

Erin kicked off her shoes and tucked her legs under her on the sofa. “What about your work? Aren’t you concerned Richard is going to find this relationship a conflict of interest?”

“I’ve been so mad at my boss, I don’t know if I care what he thinks. The worst he can do is pull the project away from me. Which is fine.”

“You’re not worried about getting fired?”

“He’d have to find some kind of foul play, and that isn’t happening. I’m an honest employee and I do my job well. Dameon’s project is barely off the ground. And I certainly haven’t used city time or money to see him privately.”

Parker lifted a piece of cheese to her mouth. “You might consider telling your boss before he finds out. Tell him if he doesn’t approve, he needs to pull you now.”

Grace saw the wisdom in Parker’s words. “Maybe.”

“So, when are you going to bring him around? Matt is dying to meet him.”

“I don’t know.”

“Have you met any of his friends?” Parker asked.

“No. We’re going out for New Year’s Eve. Something fancy downtown. My guess is he knows someone we’re going to see.”

“Friends always shed light on a man’s personality that he doesn’t always want to share when you’re first going out,” Erin said. “At least that’s what my therapist says. Everyone loves Matt, and most of the people who knew Desmond only tolerated him.”

Grace sighed. “How is therapy going?”

Erin lost her smile briefly. “I have good days and bad. I still see him when I close my eyes. Have nightmares. Matt is so patient with me. Careful.”

Grace placed a hand on Erin’s knee. “Matt loves you.”

“I know.”

“Have you guys talked about marriage?” Parker asked.

She nodded. “A little here and there. It’s what we both want, but we don’t want any clouds of this last year anywhere around us.”

“Take your time getting married, but that shouldn’t stop him from putting a ring on your finger,” Grace said.

Erin smiled. “I don’t need a ring to be committed to your brother. He has my heart and he knows that.”

Yeah, but Grace didn’t see Matt waiting too long to stake his claim. Her brothers were territorial like that.

“I already consider you my sister-in-law. Matt just needs to make it official.”

“Yes, please. And get your aunt off my empty uterus,” Parker said.

“Isn’t it crazy how life is constantly changing?” Grace asked. “I didn’t even know you guys two years ago and now we’re all family.”

“Everything changes,” Erin said. “And then you meet the right guy who changes everything.”

Grace smiled into the thought. Dameon was doing exactly that for her.

She unfolded from the sofa. “Time for a fashion show. I need help picking out what to wear for New Year’s.”

Dameon walked into his condo for the first time in five days.

The place felt cold, partially because the heater had been turned down, but more because it was starting to lose its appeal.

When had that happened? He liked living in the city. Enjoyed the closeness of restaurants and bars, nightlife, and energy the city afforded him.

But there weren’t as many stars in the sky and certainly a lack of yipping coyotes and rabbits avoiding his truck as he drove away.

He’d always looked at his home in the city as temporary. Having grown up in the suburbs in a traditional home with a yard and neighbors who shared a fence instead of a wall and hallway, he knew he’d one day return to a more rural lifestyle.

Granted, the house he was in now was pretty far off his spectrum. His closest neighbor was half a mile away, and he could throw a small Woodstock and not bother anyone. But that, too, would change once his development went in and the homes started going up.

He had spent quite a bit of time reflecting on the neighborhood, just as he intended. But he found himself thinking about it like a man with a family. Not a single developer turning raw land into a moneymaking machine.

And that was entirely Grace’s fault. Or caused by her entering Dameon’s life. He told his head to slow down, but his heart wasn’t listening.

He liked her . . . a lot.

He cranked his heater up and turned on his sound system. The simple comforts of his home that he was living without when he was in Santa Clarita. He opened his refrigerator and cracked open a beer. He tossed several items in the trash that had spoiled or otherwise wouldn’t be eaten. He moved a bottle of good champagne from a storage rack to the fridge so he had some on hand when he brought Grace back after the New Year’s Eve party. Here, she couldn’t giggle about an outdated couch or lack of a coffee table. He appointed his home with only his tastes in mind. He wasn’t one for clutter, so the tables and walls were minimally decorated. Contemporary furnishings in dark colors. His TV and sound system were state of the art and lacked nothing. He paid a housekeeper to come in twice a month to keep the dust down.

He looked out the large bay window at the city below. It was late, and the lights glistened against the small droplets of rain that fell from the sky.

This might be where he lived, but it no longer felt like home. And that reality was a little unsettling.

He set about doing laundry and gathering several items he wanted to take with him the next time he went to the canyon house.

When his phone rang, he saw Grace’s name pop up on his screen.

He turned his music down and answered. “Good evening.”

“Hi.”

“How is ladies’ night?”

“Already over,” she said. “But it was fun. Were your ears burning?”

He grinned. “I guess that means you were talking about me.”

“That’s okay, isn’t it?”

He walked away from the window and sat on his leather sofa. “I would be more concerned if you weren’t.”

“Really?”

“Yes, really.”

Grace was silent for a second. “Dameon, I need to ask you something. A favor.”

“Consider it done.”

She laughed. “I’m serious.”

His brain buzzed with questions. “I’m listening.”

“I’ve been dating since I was fifteen. Well, my parents thought I was sixteen, but in all reality, I was fifteen.”

He laughed.

“Anyway, I’ve found the more interested I was in someone, the less interested they were in me. I’ve been stood up, ghosted, and even left in a restaurant halfway through a meal. I’ve had more than my share of catfishers when I subscribed to the online dating racket. And the last guy I was on a date with . . .” Her words trailed off.