Chapter 22
Silas
Two Months Later
The executor’s office smells like old wood and older money.
I sit across from him, hands folded on the leather portfolio in my lap. He’s reviewing the documents I brought. Financial records proving cohabitation and unified decision-making. Shared accounts. Evidence that this arrangement is real.
It’s proof that we’ve complied before our thirtieth birthdays.
He sets the final page down and removes his reading glasses. “Well. This is certainly... comprehensive.”
“We fulfilled the clause.”
“You did.” He leans back in his chair. “I’ll be honest, Mr. Locke. When your father passed and this clause reactivated, I had my doubts. The original intent was to prevent fractured inheritance. But three men and one woman?” He shakes his head. “I thought you were looking for a loophole.”
I don’t respond because that was certainly true in the beginning.
“I was wrong.” He taps the union contract, since we can’t legally get married. “You’ve built something stable here. The kind of partnership that actually honors what your great-grandfather wanted.”
“I want the clause removed.”
His eyebrows lift. “Removed?”
“For future generations.” I lean forward. “We’re keeping the fortune. But I won’t pass this burden to my children. Or my brothers’ children. Or anyone who comes after.”
He studies me. “You fulfilled it. You could leave it in place. It worked for you.”
“It worked because we got lucky.” My fingers tighten on the portfolio. “Because Tania said yes. Because she chose this. But what if the next generation doesn’t get that choice? What if they’re forced into something they don’t want?”
“Your great-grandfather believed—”
“My great-grandfather controlled people through obligation.” The words come out harder than I intend. “I won’t do that. Not to my kids. Not to anyone.”
Silence.
He picks up his pen. “What do you want instead?”
“A new will. A new trust.” I pull the outline from my portfolio and slide it across the desk. “Tania is included as a full partner. Equal authority. Equal inheritance rights. Any future children—male or female—inherit equally. No conditions. No coercion. No clause.”
He reads it. Slowly.
When he looks up, his expression has shifted. “You’re rewriting your family’s legacy.”
“No.” I meet his eyes. “I’m choosing it.”
He nods once and sets down the pen. “I’ll have the paperwork drawn up by the end of the week.”
“Thank you.”
I stand. He does too and extends his hand.
“For what it’s worth?” He shakes my hand firmly. “I think your great-grandfather would be proud. Not because you followed his rules. Because you made your own.”
I smile politely, but I don’t tell him I don’t care what my great-grandfather would think.
I leave the office and head for the elevator.
My phone buzzes.
Tania: How did it go?
Me: It’s done. I’m coming home.
The penthouse is quiet when I walk in. Callum is on the couch. Evan is in the kitchen getting a snack. Tania is standing near the windows, arms crossed, watching the street below. She turns when she hears me.
“Well?”
I set my briefcase down, walk over to her, and pull her against my chest. Her arms wrap around my waist immediately.
“It’s done,” I say. “The clause is gone. For our kids. For anyone who comes after.”
She pulls back and looks up at me. “Our kids?”
I realize what I just said. Callum’s grinning from the couch. Evan’s watching from the kitchen.
“If we have them,” I clarify. “If you want them. No pressure. No expectations. But a... choice.”
Her eyes search mine. “You’ve been thinking about this.”
“I have.”
“How long?”
“For a while.” I brush a strand of hair off her face. “Since I realized I wasn’t doing this because I had to. I was doing it because I wanted to.”
Her throat moves. “I’ve thought about it, too.”
“Yeah?”
“Yeah.” She glances at Callum and Evan, then back at me. “I didn’t know if I should say anything. If it was too soon. If it was—”
“It’s not too soon.” I frame her face with my hands. “Not for me.”
Callum stands and crosses to us. “Not for me either, Red.”
Evan joins us. “Or me.”
Tania laughs. Breathless. “You three are actually agreeing on something.”
Callum’s hand finds her waist. “Don’t get used to it.”
Evan grins. “He’s right. This is a special occasion.”
“Speaking of.” I step back. Look at my brothers. “Should we?”
Callum nods. Evan’s already walking toward the office.
Tania watches us. “Should you what?”
Evan returns with a small black box. I can’t contain my smile. We planned this weeks ago. Ordered it. Revised the design three times because Callum wanted something bold, Evan wanted something classic, and I wanted something big enough that everyone knew she was ours.
We finally agreed.
Evan hands me the box. Tania’s eyes drop to it.
“What is that?”
“Open it.”
She takes it. Her hands are shaking slightly as she lifts the lid. Inside: one ring. Platinum. Three diamonds set in a row.
Her breath catches.
“We wanted you to have something.” I hold the box steady. “Something that shows the world that we chose you.”
She stares at the ring, but she doesn’t touch it yet. “You three coordinated this without killing each other?”
I almost smile. “For you? We managed.”
Evan’s watching her face. “Do you like it?”
She looks up. Her eyes are glossy. “I love it.”
I take the ring out of the box. Tania extends her left hand without hesitation. The ring slides onto her finger. It fits perfectly.
She holds her hand up. The diamonds catch the light.
I brush my thumb over the ring. “This is permanent.”
Callum grins. “No takebacks, Red.”
Tania studies the ring on her finger. “Good thing you three finally got around to this. I’ve been planning the wedding for months.” She laughs.
We all laugh.
She bites her bottom lip. “I may have already asked Renata to be my maid of honor.”
Callum grins. “How long ago?”
“Six weeks.”
Callum raises an eyebrow. “Yeah? What’d she say?”
Tania smiles. “She said, ‘I always suspected you might end up with one of them. Not all three. About time, though.’”
“She’s not wrong,” Callum adds. “It is about time.”
Tania looks at all of us. “I can’t believe this is my life.”
“It is,” I confirm.
She looks at me. “We’re planning a future.”
I pull her into my arms. “We are.”
Her mouth finds mine, and when she pulls back, her breathing is uneven.
“Bedroom,” Callum says.
“Impatient,” Tania teases.
“Always.” He grabs her hand. “But also practical. Sandra will be here any minute.”
We head down the hallway—all four of us. Tania is between Callum and Evan. I’m behind them, watching her hand swing at her side. The ring catches the light with every step.
Tania’s already reaching for Callum’s shirt before we’re through the door. He grins and lets her pull it over his head.
Evan moves behind her. His hands find the hem of her sweater. “Arms up, Wifey.”
She lifts them. The sweater disappears.
I close the door. Lock it. Not because anyone’s here. Because this moment is ours.
Callum’s mouth is on her neck. Evan’s hands slide down her sides. She’s already breathing hard.
I cross to her and frame her face with my hands. “You’re sure about this? About us?”
“I’ve never been more sure of anything.”
I kiss her. Her mouth opens immediately. Soft and warm and wanting.
Callum’s hands are on her jeans now. Unfastening them and pushing them down.
Evan is unhooking her bra. She’s down to nothing in seconds.
I pull back and look at her. Flushed. Breathing hard. The ring on her finger, which shows the world we claimed her, and she claimed us, makes me even harder.
“Bed,” I tell her.
She climbs onto the mattress and kneels in the center.
Callum strips. So does Evan. I follow.
Tania watches all three of us. Her eyes drag over each of us in turn.
“Come here,” she says.
We do.
Callum reaches her first. His mouth finds hers while his hand slides between her legs. She gasps into the kiss. Evan moves behind her. His hands cup her breasts. His mouth finds her shoulder. I kneel in front of her and spread her thighs wider.
“Silas.” Her voice breaks on my name.
“I’ve got you.”
I delve into her pussy. She’s already slick, and the taste of her arousal floods my senses. I flatten my tongue against her, dragging slowly upward until she whimpers.
Callum’s fingers tangle in her hair. Evan’s hands work her nipples, rolling and pinching until they’re tight peaks. I thrust my fingers into her pussy, curling them to increase her arousal. Her hips roll against my mouth, chasing the pressure, and I increase the suction on her clit.
She lets out a strangled sound, which tells me I’ve found just the right spot.
My tongue circles and flicks while my fingers pump steadily. Callum swallows her moans with a deep kiss. Evan’s teeth scrape her shoulder.
She comes with a sharp cry, her inner walls clenching rhythmically around my fingers.
The pulsing is strong. I can feel each contraction as the orgasm rolls through her.
Her thighs quake against my shoulders, and I work her through every aftershock, only easing up when she’s gasping and trying to pull away from the overstimulation.
When I lift my head, her eyes are half-closed, lips swollen and parted.
“Your turn,” she manages, voice wrecked.
I move up the bed and position myself between her legs. When I push inside, we both groan—she’s impossibly tight and scorching hot, her body still fluttering from her climax.
Her head falls back against Evan’s shoulder as I start to move. Long, deep strokes that make her breath hitch.
She’s close again already. I can tell by how she’s tightening around me, her nails digging into my shoulders. “Come for me,” I command, my thumb finding her clit.
She does. Her whole body goes rigid, then shakes, a long keening sound tearing from her throat. The feeling of her clamping down on me triggers my own release.
I bury myself deep and let go, groaning her name.
For a moment, none of us moves. Just breathing. Tangled together.
Tania’s the first to shift. She reaches for Callum. “Now it’s your turn to make me come.”
He grins. “Greedy.”
“Always.”
I pull out carefully and move aside. Callum takes my place, sliding into her without hesitation.
She gasps—still sensitive from two orgasms—but her hips rise to meet his first thrust.
Evan moves beside her, taking her hand and threading their fingers together. The ring presses between their palms.
Callum sets a punishing pace—fast and hard, exactly what she needs right now. “Fuck, Red. You feel incredible. So goddamn wet and tight around my cock.”
She’s making these high, desperate sounds that drive him wild, while Evan kisses her, swallowing those needy whimpers.
Callum’s grip tightens on her hips. “You gonna come on my dick, baby? Let me feel that sweet pussy squeeze me?”
She breaks the kiss with Evan, panting. “Yes!”
“Do it,” he growls. “Come all over me.”
Her third orgasm hits, and she cries out. Callum follows seconds later, burying himself to the hilt with a harsh groan.
When he pulls out, Tania collapses onto Evan’s chest, trembling.
Evan wraps his arms around her, holding her while the aftershocks roll through her. “You okay, Wifey?”
“More than okay,” she breathes.
He smiles and kisses her forehead. “Good. Because I’m not done with you yet.”
She looks up at him with heavy-lidded eyes.
Evan eases her onto her back, settling between her thighs. But instead of entering her immediately, he takes his time. Kissing down her neck. Her collarbone. The valley between her breasts.
“Evan...” She’s still sensitive, still trembling.
“Shh.” His mouth closes around one nipple, sucking gently. “Let me make you feel good.”
His hand slides down her stomach, between her legs. His fingers part her folds, gathering the slickness there.
“So wet,” he murmurs against her skin. “So perfect.”
He slides one finger inside her, and she whimpers at the intrusion. He goes slow, patient, adding a second finger only when she relaxes around the first.
“That’s it, Wifey.” His thumb finds her clit, circling with just the right pressure. “You’re doing so well.”
Callum and I watch from either side of her. Callum’s hand strokes her thigh. Mine rests on her stomach, feeling the muscles contract with each wave of pleasure.
Evan’s fingers work inside her. He knows exactly where to touch and how much pressure to apply. His mouth moves to her other breast while his thumb maintains that maddening rhythm on her clit.
She’s writhing now, her fourth orgasm building despite her exhaustion.
“I’m going to give you what you need.” He removes his fingers and positions himself at her entrance. “Look at me.”
She does, and he pushes inside slowly. So slowly. Letting her feel every inch.
“Oh God,” she gasps.
He starts moving with long, measured strokes. Nothing rushed. Nothing frantic. Just steady, deep thrusts that hit that perfect spot inside her every single time.
“You feel amazing,” he tells her, his voice rough with pleasure. “So warm and tight around me. I could stay inside you forever.”
She reaches up, cupping his face. “Evan, I love you.”
“I love you, too, Tania.” He picks up the pace slightly, angling his hips so that every thrust grinds against her clit. “Let go for me, Wifey. One more time.”
Her back arches as she comes apart.
Evan groans, his rhythm faltering as her release triggers his own. He thrusts deep one final time and holds there, shuddering as he empties himself inside her.
They stay like that for a long moment, foreheads pressed together, both breathing hard.
When Evan finally pulls out and collapses beside her, Tania is completely spent.
Callum reaches over to brush hair from her face. “You alive, Red?”
“Barely,” she manages, but she’s smiling.
I pull the covers over all of us. She’s in the center, surrounded on all sides.
Her hand lifts, and she admires her new piece of jewelry.
“It really is perfect,” she says quietly.
Callum grins. “We know.”
Evan laughs. “Modest as always.”
She closes her eyes, settling deeper into the mattress. Within minutes, her breathing evens out. Asleep.
Callum’s watching her. “She’s really ours.”
“She is,” Evan confirms softly.
I look at the ring on her finger; the three diamonds catching light—one for each of us.
I spent my whole life doing what I was supposed to. Following rules. Meeting expectations. Building an empire I never asked for.
This is the first thing I’ve done just because I wanted to.
And I’d choose this again. Every time.
My wife. Our wife.
The woman who changed everything.