Chapter 21
Tania
Iwake to warmth on all sides.
Silas is behind me, his chest against my back, his arm heavy across my waist. Evan’s in front of me, close enough that I feel his breath on my forehead. My hand rests on his stomach, fingers laced with Callum’s on his other side.
The sheets are twisted, half on the floor. My body aches in places that remind me exactly what we did last night. And this morning.
I lost count of how many times.
Silas’s fingers brush along my leg, and I know he’s awake.
“Good morning,” he murmurs against my neck.
“Hi,” I whisper.
Callum’s eyes open. “Red.” He grins immediately. “Still feeling insatiable?”
I chuckle. “Don’t start.”
“I wasn’t going to start anything.” His hand slides up my thigh. “Unless you want me to.”
“She doesn’t.” Evan sits up, stretching. “We wore her out.”
“I’m fine.” I shift, and my thighs protest. “Mostly fine.”
Silas presses a kiss to my shoulder. “You’re more than fine.”
My phone vibrates against the nightstand. I reach for it.
Ben: I’m ready to talk. Can you all be at my house in an hour?
I stare at the screen. Read it twice.
“He wants to talk.” My fingers won’t stay still. “He said to come over. All of us.”
Callum sits up. “When?”
“An hour.”
Evan’s already moving. “Then we need to get ready.”
“Fast.” I slide out from between them. “Don’t try to distract me.”
Callum’s grin returns. “Not even a little distraction?”
“No.” I point at him. “Separate showers. Your rooms. Now.”
Callum stretches. “You know I love when you’re bossy.”
“I’m serious.” I walk toward the hallway. “We can’t be late.”
Silas kisses my temple as he passes. “We won’t be.”
I shower in my own bathroom, washing away the evidence of last night. My skin is sensitive everywhere. There are marks on my hips, my inner thighs, and at the base of my neck where Callum bit down.
I touch the spot and remember his teeth, his hands, and the weight of all three of them.
Not now. Focus.
I turn the water to cold.
When I get out, I dress in jeans and a sweater. Nothing that screams I just had the best sex of my life with three men.
I sit on the edge of my bed and clasp my hands together to keep them from shaking.
Ben wants to talk. That’s good. Progress.
But what if he’s only asking us over to tell us he’s done? That he can’t forgive this? My lungs won’t expand properly.
A knock sounds at my door.
“Come in.”
Evan appears, and he’s ready to go for the day. “How are you feeling?”
“Nervous.”
He crosses to me and takes my hand. “He texted. That means he’s willing to hear us out.”
“What if hearing us out isn’t enough?”
“Then we keep trying.” He squeezes my fingers. “But I think he’ll listen. I think he already knows.”
“Knows what?”
“That you’re happy.” Evan tips my chin up and kisses me, not to distract me, to ground me.
Callum appears in the doorway next. “Car is ready.”
“Where is Silas?”
“He’s downstairs.” Callum’s grin is gone. “Let’s go.”
The drive to Ben’s takes twenty minutes. Nobody talks.
Silas drives, knuckles white on the wheel. Callum stares out the window. Evan sits beside me in the back.
I try to figure out what I’m going to say.
I’m sorry we lied. I didn’t mean for this to happen.
I love them. I choose them.
None of it sounds right.
We pull up to Ben’s brownstone, and my throat goes dry.
“Ready?” Silas asks.
No. “Yes.”
We get out and walk to the door together. Silas reaches for the bell, and we wait. Ben opens the door within seconds. He must’ve been waiting for us to arrive.
He steps back and lets us in. His jaw is tight, and he looks tired. “Let’s talk in the living room.”
We follow him inside. The same room where we had Thanksgiving dinner two nights ago. When everything was still a secret.
Ben sits in the armchair. We take the couch—me between Evan and Callum, Silas on the end.
Silence.
I count my heartbeats and lose track after twelve.
Ben leans forward. “I’m listening.”
Silas speaks first. “We never meant for this to happen.” Despite what he must be feeling, he’s maintaining control of his emotions really well.
“We went into this agreement planning to end this after the year was up, or as soon as we could. We never expected to have a real relationship with your sister.”
Ben doesn’t respond.
“None of us expected it to be real.” Callum shifts forward. “But I fell for her. We all did.”
“When?” Ben asks.
Callum glances at Silas, then Evan. “Different times. But it happened.”
“And you?” Ben looks at Evan.
“Same.” Evan’s hand finds mine on the couch. “In the beginning, it was all for show. But at some point, those lines blurred, and I fell in love with her. But I couldn’t help it.”
Ben scoffs. “Love?”
Evan squeezes my hand. “It’s real.”
“I love her, too,” Callum agrees. Then he locks eyes with me. “I will never want someone else.”
I exhale. Hearing them admit this to Ben makes my whole body warm with affection.
Ben’s eyes shift to Silas.
“I held out the longest,” Silas admits. “I thought I could keep it professional, long after they did. I was wrong.”
Ben’s eyes shift to me. “And you? You love them?”
I sit straighter. “I do. I chose this. I want this.”
“Because of the money?”
“No!” I don’t mean to raise my voice, but the accusation hurts. “Because they make me feel safe. I belong with them. The love between us is real.”
Ben drags a hand through his hair.
“The inheritance clause seemed ridiculous at first,” Silas continues. “How could three men be happy with one woman? It felt impossible. But we are happy. And we’re grateful for it now, because it gave us this. Gave us her.”
“We lied to you,” Evan adds quietly. “And we’re sorry. We should have told you sooner.”
“We understand if you need time to forgive us. We just hope you can.” I’m barely holding it together.
Ben stares at the floor.
I dig my nails into my palms.
“I talked to Mom.” He still won’t look at me.
I blink. “You did?”
“Yeah. Last night. After I left.” He finally looks up. “She told me you’d already told her. At Thanksgiving.”
Oh.
“She said you looked happy. That you looked like you belonged with them.” He pauses. “And she was right. I saw it that night, too. Probably even before. I didn’t want to believe it.”
Callum shifts beside me.
“You three have been like family since we were kids.” Ben’s voice cracks slightly. “You’ve always taken care of each other. And you’ve been there for me when I needed you. And now you’re taking care of her.”
“We are,” Silas confirms.
“I wanted her to have stability. Security.” Ben’s eyes find mine. “I didn’t think it would look like this.”
“I know,” I tell him.
“You lied to me. That’s going to take time.” He looks at each of them. “But I can see she’s happy.”
I want to cry. I don’t.
“The contract expires next year,” Ben says. “What happens then?”
“I’m staying with them,” I tell him. “The contract doesn’t matter anymore.”
Ben nods slowly and absorbs that. Then he stands. We all tense.
He crosses to me, pulls me to my feet, and hugs me. Hard. Tight. The way he used to when I was a scared kid.
“I love you.” His voice is muffled against my hair. “And if they make you happy, then I’ll find a way to be okay with it.”
I press my face into his shoulder. I don’t trust myself to speak.
He pulls back and looks at the triplets. “If you hurt her, I won’t care how long we’ve been friends. I will end you.”
“Understood.” Silas stands. “She’s our wife. We would never hurt her.”
Callum nods. Evan does too.
Ben sits back down. “You mean that? You really consider her your wife?”
All of my guys nod, but only Silas answers out loud. “Yes.”
My brother scrubs both hands over his face. Then drops them. “There’s one more thing.”
I wipe my eyes with the heel of my hand. “What?”
“You owe her a wedding.”
I freeze.
“A real one,” Ben continues. “Not some legal loophole. Not a contract signing. She deserves to choose this in front of people who love her.” He pauses. “And I deserve to give my sister away.”
His eyes find mine. “If you’ll let me.”
My vision blurs. I nod, because I don’t trust my voice.
Evan’s grinning. Callum’s laughing. Silas looks at me like I just gave him everything he didn’t know he needed.