Epilogue
TWO RIVALS AND THEIR GIRLFRIEND
Trina
A week later, I head to the park with my three roommates—my two boyfriends and my pervy little dog. We walk through the streets of Pacific Heights like, well, a throuple.
Along the way, Chase says, “So, I was watching this new dog video from the vet dude, and he was talking about dog DNA, and I thought we should get Nacho’s DNA tested. How fun would that be?”
“Only the most fun ever,” I say, because that sounds like Christmas and my birthday all at once.
“Make sure he didn’t just eat any panties when you swab his cheek,” Ryker says dryly.
I jerk my gaze to my bearded boyfriend, alarmed. “Is that your way of telling me he ate some undies?” Nacho’s been lingerie-less for several weeks now. I’m seriously proud of his panty-free diet. But he could relapse at any moment.
Ryker shoots me a reassuring grin. “Sweetheart, we hung your hamper five-feet high. In a laundry room. With a door that shuts,” he says. “That’s our job in the household. To make sure that boy is safe.”
He nods to the pooch leading the way, and I love that Ryker, a self-declared not a dog guy, has added Nacho to the inner circle of those he protects.
Chase clears his throat. “Speaking of household, did you know the word ménage comes from the French word for household?”
We all stop in our tracks, Ryker and I staring at Chase. “Is that you or did a word nerd take over your body?” Ryker asks.
Chase blows on his nails. “I live with a couple word nerds. Gotta hold my own.”
I squeeze his arm, gleeful. “And you did.”
We enter the park and head to the tents, where the guys from the two teams are gathered for the kickoff event for the Hockey Hotties calendar.
It’s a bark in the park for rescue pups, with dog treats, toys, pools, and jumps.
As we walk up the grassy hill, I’ve got Chase’s hand in one of mine, Ryker’s hand in the other.
Some of the athletes stare at us. Then, most of the athletes.
I squeeze both their hands, but they don’t seem worried. Just ready. Like me. When we reach the Sea Dogs’ tent, Chase holds up my hand, joined with his, and says, “This is my girlfriend, Trina.”
Right next to that tent is the one for the Avengers. “And this is my girlfriend, Trina,” Ryker adds. “Got it?”
There’s silence for several weighty seconds as gears turn in heads. Then Erik draws a triangle in the air. “Like a three-way?”
“And you can count,” Chase says as Ledger pushes past the guys and joins us, gesturing to Chase as he talks to me. “So glad this guy listened to my advice.”
I smile. “Is that so?”
“Yeah. I told him to get the girl,” he says, a little cocky, a little proud. His smile disappears, and he delivers a scathing look to Ryker. “But this changes nothing. We’re still going to destroy you when we play you.” Ledger turns back to Chase. “Right?”
Chase scoffs. “Like we’d do anything else.”
Ryker just rolls his eyes. “I’d like to see that happen.”
Dev, the goalie from Ryker’s team, heads over, stopping to give the three of us a long, appraising look. “So it’s two rivals sharing a woman?”
Ryker and Chase make a show of pretending to think on the question and then they nod.
Dev cackles, then thrusts his arms skyward under the San Francisco sun. “Dude, thank god for the two of you, because we will never have to deal with the press again with what you guys are gonna have to handle.”
All the hockey guys at the park crack up. “Talk about taking one for the team,” Ledger puts in.
“Yeah, that’s why I did it,” Chase says dryly.
Their teammates give them hell the whole afternoon. I never knew there were so many sandwich jokes. Meatball ones too. Then, Erik ups the ante asking if I’m the marshmallow between the graham crackers and the chocolate bar.
“I do like s’mores,” I say, and he laughs, but some of their teammates are quieter. Some say nothing. Some just give us curious looks.
Maybe this is just the way it goes, but I want to make sure my guys are good with everything.
Concerned, I pull them aside under a tree. “Is this okay? Does it bother you that some are looking at us funny?”
Chase shakes his head. “No. We did what we needed to do. We told them. It’s not a secret. We can finally be ourselves.”
I relax some. We were never hiding because of worries over his teammates, or honestly even the press. We were secretive because we didn’t want to look like a pair when we’re three of a kind.
“And the rest is out of our hands. Can’t please everyone,” Ryker seconds, then presses a reassuring kiss to my cheek.
“But what about the press?” I ask, because their teammates think that’ll be a field day.
“That is definitely out of our hands,” Chase says, and it’s clear the comment comes from experience. “But we’ll handle it.”
“You’re worth it,” Ryker adds.
I breathe a deeper sigh of relief. Whatever comes next I can handle. I did the hard thing—I told my family. That was always my biggest concern.
Beyond that, I’m lucky to work in a field that embraces love, in all its shapes, sizes and forms, including unconventional arrangements. The women and men I interact with don’t judge who you love.
Soon, some of them will be here—part of my found family and I can’t wait to share some of my love story with them.
But first, I have one more thing to say to my boyfriends. “I love you two,” I say, and the worries fade away even more.
* * *
A little later, Aubrey joins me at the launch. Ivy and Katie are here too, along with some of my friends from book club. Nacho’s parked at my feet in the grass, rolling on his back, showing off for the ladies as they ask me lots of questions.
Unlike my mother, they have no qualms about asking the at the same time question.
But I don’t kiss and tell. I just give a coy shrug and they move onto other queries.
“Do you always go out together?” Kimora asks.
“We’re figuring that out, but no, not always. Sometimes I hang out with Chase. Sometimes Ryker. And sometimes it’s the three of us.”
“And do your parents know?” Prana asks.
“They do, and they’re not totally freaking out. Just partially freaking out.”
“And their parents?” Aubrey asks, pointing to the guys.
Ivy laughs and raises a hand, swiping her dark hair from her cheek.
“I’ll take this one. Our mom is completely cool with it and so is Chase’s.
But they also were used to those two sharing toys when they were kids,” she says with a wicked grin, like she’s been dying to make that comment for some time.
“Well played,” Aubrey says approvingly, then the conversation returns to more questions.
“Do people look at you when you all go somewhere?” Prana inquires.
I nod to the big packs of burly men several feet away. “Well, they all did. But I suppose I would too,” I admit, then my gaze snags again on that group of men.
I could be wrong, but I’m pretty sure Ledger’s checking us out with obvious interest in his eyes.
Or really, he’s looking at Aubrey. And I see sparks in his dark eyes from a distance.
I’ll have to talk to my guys later and ask what they think, but for now, I chat more with my friends, then I join my boyfriends for a picture.
As we pose, I catch the team captain of the Avengers looking Ivy’s way. Yes, I believe that’s Stefan Christiansen, the handsome guy from Denmark. Pretty sure he just got out of an engagement and he’s finally single now. He’s striding towards Ivy. Where they chat for a good, long time.
I file that away too.
Later that night, as we’re all settled in on the couch, I prep the to post on Ryker’s social feed with the caption Two rivals and their girlfriend. But I add a heart.
I show it to him and he arches a brow. “Really? A heart emoji?”
Chase cracks up. “It’s just an emoji.”
“It’s a whole new image,” Ryker grumbles.
“It’s a whole new world,” Chase corrects.
I look from one man to the other. “Yes. Yes, it is.”
* * *
I don’t wake up to a welcome wagon on social media. There are plenty of questions, side-eyes and WTFs from hockey fans. At breakfast, Ryker’s and Chase’s notifications are blowing up with questions, and requests from the media—not even the hockey media. But from Page Six, and other celebrity sites.
It’s still so weird to me. So surreal.
I do worry about them. They’re mine after all. I can’t not worry. I set a hand on Ryker’s strong arm. “I hope this doesn’t mess things up for you with the team, and with everything we were trying to do,” I say. “Especially after the podcast thing.”
“It won’t. The team wasn’t even upset about that. They get that we can’t control the media. They just wanted me to show more of myself online,” he says, then faux shudders.
“You still hate that,” I say, laughing.
Chase laughs too. “He probably always will,” he says.
“Damn straight,” Ryker confirms. “But I’ll do it anyway. Since it matters to the people I care about. Like my team.”
And I fall a little harder for him.
Then I turn to Chase. “Is this going to distract you? What if I was the bad luck charm?”
He scoffs. “Sometimes you win, sometimes you lose. And the thing is, you showed me there’s room in my life for hockey and love.”
My heart thumps louder for him too.
“The real issue is this,” he adds, as he shows me his phone and his social feed. Right alongside the WTFs and the freaks are comments like cool, and can I come to the wedding, and whatever works, as long as she doesn’t root for the Sea Dogs.
Ryker stares sternly at me. “See? That’s all that matters. You’re an Avengers fan now, Trina.”
Chase clears his throat. “She’s a Sea Dogs fan, and that’s that.”
“Avengers.”
“Sea Dogs.”
And I suppose that really is the biggest concern. Which means, it’s time to set our phones down, and not worry about the world, and all the things we can’t control.
I have my guys, my dog, and some books to read. The rest is just noise.