Chapter 59
DATE MATH
Aubrey
This is the way to wake up.
To scruff against my neck. To a hungry groan. To a request. Well, a demand, really.
“Sit on my face, baby,” Dev says.
I stretch and then rise up. “Since it’s an order.”
Dev growls, pats his bare shoulders. “It is. Fuck my face. Do it now.”
Ledger’s not in bed, but I wouldn’t ask his permission anyway. The three of us made a deal long ago so that there’s no jealousy. Some nights, Ledger fucks me. Some mornings, Dev does. Most of the time they both do.
I slide off my panties but leave on my plain white cami as I straddle him. Dev grabs my hips and tugs me down. I ride him like a cowgirl till I’m falling apart on his mouth, his beard, his desire for me.
A desire that feels a lot like love.
So much so that when I disappear that morning to meet my girls and finish the errand I started a few weeks ago, I know I’m not making a mistake.
* * *
That afternoon as I leave No Regrets, the tattoo shop, my arm’s a little sore, but not much.
Trina and Ivy sat with me the whole time, like good friends do.
When we arrive at my apartment, I fetch the dog, take him around the block, then hand him off to them, giving Puck Fitzgibbons a scratch on his chin before I toss on a dove-gray hoodie over my tank and meet the guys at Dev’s place.
We hop into Dev’s electric car, and the three of us cruise over the Golden Gate Bridge, heading north past Marin County, winding our way into Wine Country like we did that September day when my life was upended.
The best thing that ever happened to me was Aiden walking away. Now, I’m walking into something better with two men.
But first, I’m walking into Beverly’s diner. The guys picked this spot and said they wanted to take me here. Once inside, the woman who runs it flashes me a grin like she knows me. “Hey, you! You’re not in your wedding dress today?”
“Good memory. But nope. Just my regular clothes,” I say with a smile I feel all the way to my soul.
“Well, you look pretty in jeans and a hoodie. Let me get you your table,” she says, then guides us to the very same spot we once sat.
After we open our menus, I say to the guys, “Is this your date math at play?”
Ledger nods. “Yup. Since this was definitely our first date.”
No one argues with him on his two plus twos this time.
After we order and Beverly retreats to the kitchen, Dev clears his throat. “And speaking of date math, we don’t want it to be our last one.”
I lift a curious brow. “Last one? Why would it be?”
His expression is serious. No joking.
I turn deadly serious, too. “Okay.”
I don’t know where we’re going but my heart is already racing. My pulse surges again when Ledger shucks off his jacket, reaching into the inside pocket as he does. He takes out a box from Elodie’s Chocolates.
Ah. I get it now. They do love to spoil me with chocolate. “My favorite,” I say, feeling all fizzy for them. The last time they gave me chocolate was the start of our honeymoon.
“Open it,” Ledger says, a bit stiffly, as if this is uncomfortable for him.
Curious, I undo the bow with excited fingers. But when I open the box, I don’t know what to make of the treats.
There are five pieces, each in the shape of a number.
I do the math. It’s the date of the football game last month. “It’s when we got back together,” I say, pleased I figured it out.
Dev shakes his head. “Yes, it’s the date of the football game, but it’s also the code to my home.”
Ledger leans closer to me, holding my gaze. “Your code.”
My heart flutters. “I love it.”
Dev shakes his head again. “Aubrey. It’s a permanent code. We want you to live with us. I want us all to live together. Move in with me,” he says, eyes locked with mine, full of vulnerability and hope. “Ledger will move in too. We can all be together with you. And Puck Fitzgibbons, as well.”
My heart stops. The hair on my arms stands on end.
I knew this was coming. I knew it was coming a month ago, yet it’s still more thrilling than I’d expected.
Maybe I didn’t entirely believe it would happen.
After last summer and all the expectations I placed on myself, all the expectations I took on, right or wrong, I’ve been reluctant to put more on us.
But Dev and Ledger exceeded all my dreams with their offer. “You do?” I want to be sure I’m not imagining this.
“Yes. I want us to be together. I want to cook for you. And walk the dog with you in the morning. And see you after games, and when you come home from work. I want to hear about your clients, and your boss, and your book club.”
Ledger reaches for my hand with a smile that says he has something to add. “I want the same. Because I love you, honey.”
My throat catches.
Dev reaches for my other hand. “I love you so damn much.”
Here, where we began, I’m between my two men, starting a whole new chapter before I expected to. But I have zero doubts. I’m ready. There is no second guessing. No voices in my head telling me to run away. All I want is to stay.
“I love you,” I say to Dev, then to Ledger, “and I love you.”
I take off my hoodie. I’m wearing a tank top. My right arm is bare.
Dev’s eyes widen. “That’s gorgeous.”
“I got a new tattoo,” I whisper, and I’m a little giddy for them to check out the dainty, delicate script on my shoulder.
Dev traces the air near my ink with his finger, as if he’s outlining each of the five letters. “Baby,” he says to me reverently, his tone telling me how he feels.
I shift to Ledger, showing it off to my other man. He drops an air kiss to each word.
A commitment to them.
All in.