Chapter 29
“Absolutely no fucking way.”
On this, Jesse and I one hundred percent agreed. “Seconded,” I added. When Tally had sat us down and told us Antony’s idea, the visceral need to shout, “No!” was only tempered by the sleeping baby in the bassinet, being watched over by Norton.
Tally had her arms crossed over her chest, and honestly, she didn’t seem thrilled with the idea either. I kind of felt like an ass, because that made me happy.
“It would be just in name only. It would make my legal issues completely cut and dry. No one could possibly argue that Brick could give her a better life when Rocco’s net worth is nine digits and climbing.”
I snorted. “If you think Rocco wants a wife in name only, you’ve never seen the way he looks at you.”
She rolled her eyes. “I love you two. I told them that I couldn’t even consider it, if it meant breaking up with you guys. Rocco was totally okay with us having a relationship. Does that sound like a guy who only wants to marry me to get in my pants?” She snorted, as if it was craziness. “The guy was literally photographed with his tongue down the throat of a Victoria’s Secret model four months ago. His last girlfriend was an actress known for her great ass—acting ability,” she corrected. “I still haven’t gotten my pre-baby body back, and everything is wrinkly. My boobs leak. I’m permanently tired, and have bags under my eyes so big, Delta would make me check them at the gate.”
Jesse froze his pacing, walking over to her to kneel beside the couch. “You’re the most beautiful fucking woman on the planet, Tally Palmer. I don’t want to hear you talk about yourself like you’re anything other than gorgeous.”
Leaning forward, she put her hands on his shoulders and kissed him sweetly. Jealousy swept through me, though only because I wanted a kiss too, not because I hated the thought of her kissing Jesse.
That being said, Jesse was a whole different ball game to Rocco Passero, the fuckboy of Europe.
“I’m not ashamed of my body. I’m just saying, I’m not getting Rack Of The Year in Playboy. Honestly, if he wanted to, like, see other women too, I wouldn’t even care.” Her words said one thing, but her frown said something entirely different. “There’s no waiting period in California for a marriage license. We could go down to the courthouse, get someone to officiate it, and be done in twenty minutes.”
I shook my head. “It’s not a twenty-minute thing, though, Tally. You’ll be husband and wife, and to convince the courts of that, you’ll have to move into his house?—”
“Mansion,” Jesse corrected unhelpfully, and I glared at him.
“Right. And not just until the end of the court case. But for at least… I don’t know how many years you have to be married to keep your green card. That’s a long-term commitment, not just from you, but from all of us. We’re a team.”
She inhaled a shaky breath, and I knew then and there, that I’d have to adapt or I’d lose her. Her next words confirmed it.
“I love you guys, but if I have to choose between a surefire way of keeping my baby and you both, I’m choosing her. Always her.” She leaned toward me, grabbing my hands. “I understand it’s a lot to ask in a relationship that’s so new. I wouldn’t blame you at all if this was one thing too many.” Her voice cracked, but she kept her jaw firm.
Jesse looked back and forth between us. “I told you, I’m all in with you and Short Stack. And I would never make you choose. This is just… a lot, like you said.”
It was beyond a lot. I could see everything we’d been working toward slipping away from me.
Letting my head fall back on the couch, I tried to do the coping technique my dad had taught me for whenever I couldn’t make a decision. I imagined the best-case scenario. That was us moving in with Rocco, and he turned out to be a eunuch with no interest in my girl, and we lived in a blissful kind of solidarity.
Then I imagined the worst-case scenario, though there were several that got progressively worse. She left us, and I’d fucked my chance at happiness. Worse again, she stayed and lost custody of Bobbi-June.
Then I imagined the likely outcome if Rocco and Tally got married. We all moved into his mega-mansion and lived in cordial harmony. Eventually, Rocco made a move on my girl, and she fell into bed with him. I mean, they’d be married, and I was secure enough to admit that Rocco Passero was a devilishly handsome guy. We added him to the relationship we had here for a few years, and either he stayed or we parted ways at the end.
Which outcome is worse—the likely outcome or the worst-case scenario? Because it will always end up in the worst-case scenario, if you dither too long. He who hesitates is lost.
I blew out a breath. “I’m with you, whatever you decide. We’ll work through this, just like everything else,” I told her, and the relief on her face made me feel like shit. I cuddled closer to her, wrapping her sweet body in my arms. “You’re mine, Tally. And if I have to share you, it doesn’t make you any less mine.” I kissed her softly, letting her melt against me with a soft sigh.
Jesse sat on her other side, his gaze meeting mine over her head. Ours, his eyes said.
I nodded. Let’s show her that.