Chapter 27
Tessa
“Weeks have passed, and the famed Hollywood Actress Tessa Bradley remains a missing person. Reports now claim that the search will expand nationwide, with federal law enforcement stepping in to take over.”
It was bittersweet to only have a day with Levi before he left to manage the tour—a week without him, but a week with Lucas all to myself.
The polyamorous relationship thing would be an adjustment, something I’d never been a part of before, but was more than amenable to, knowing that I was not only getting one, but two boyfriends out of the arrangement.
Not only that, but men who actually seemed to care about me, which was a stark contrast from what I was used to.
Being wanted was one thing; everybody wants to feel desired, but to have a relationship, you needed the emotional anchor—a reason to stay instead of sailing off in another direction once the wind picked up and you got lost at sea.
I spent the entire day and night wrapped in Levi before he had to leave. We curled up on the couch in the living room, eating popcorn, listening to music, and watching the rain patter against the windows as we got to know each other on a deeper level.
In terms of a first date, it was far from what I would have normally expected. Still, the romantic aspect was beyond measure—having the time to slow down and just be made the intimacy even more meaningful.
When Lucas arrived home, he joined us for a few hours, finishing a movie before heading to his room, leaving me with Levi for the remainder of the evening. Brothers who knew how to share without so much as a fuss, who would have thought…
I went to bed with Levi that night, wondering if there would be a time when all three of us would share a room instead of sleeping separately. I don’t think I could continue to choose between the two—picking one over the other, switching beds every night.
“Hey, princess.” His breath warmed the back of my ear, and I turned to face Lucas, my eyes blinking open to a pair of striking blue ones and blond sleep-mussed hair.
It was strange—my situation. How could you let yourself fall for two men so easily?
In retrospect, I had been falling for the same man this entire time. Levi and Lucas looked, sounded, and treated me the same, seamlessly, and now I had to remind myself that they were two separate individuals, and I had fallen for them both equally.
I knew I didn’t adore one more than the other. I didn’t fight my feelings, I let them guide me, and as it turns out, it was to both of them.
“Lucas.” I palmed his cheek, dragging my thumb along the rough stubble of his chin.
“You should get up.” He pressed a tender kiss to my forehead before tipping onto his back and stretching out long. “We’ve got a full day ahead of us.” A full day?
“What do you mean by that?”
“I mean, I have a whole day planned for us, and it starts by taking you to pick up the rest of your clothes.” Lucas grinned and I peeked under the sheets at myself, feeling my face grow flush from embarrassment.
The whole time I had been here, I’d worn nothing but Levi’s sweatpants and Lucas’s shirts, both oversized and baggy on my tiny frame, but I couldn’t complain when they felt right to wear.
“Wait…” My gaze shifted to the nightstand where I had propped my pink wig over a small lampshade. My stomach tightened the longer I stared at it, and now I felt like I was going to have to roleplay all over again—pretending to be someone I wasn’t just to be out in public.
“Tessa.” Lucas caressed the side of my face in his gentle palm, and my eyes reconnected with his, grounding me.
I didn’t realize just how heavily I had been breathing until I felt his calming touch and found relief in it.
“Trust me, I would never do anything that would make you feel uncomfortable or unsafe.”
“H-how?” My gaze flicked from him to the wig once more, and he released a held breath after following my line of sight.
“I can do things that most men can’t, we’ll just leave it at that for now. And you won’t need to wear that pink hair with me—or Levi, for that matter. Not anymore.”
“What about Pulse?”
“That decision is entirely up to you.” Lucas pressed a soft kiss to my lips before pulling away and sliding out of bed.
“Think about that later though. The club is closed until Thursday, regardless.” He pulled on his light blue jeans.
I couldn’t help but bite my lip as they snagged at the base of his ass forcing him to bounce a little to tuck it all in.
Yeah, I’m definitely an ass girl. “Come on, I want to get out of here. I have a surprise for my princess and I’ll be damned if I waste a single second of having you all to myself for the next few days. ”
His… Theirs…
I never noticed the car Lucas drove; I was too drunk on lust the night he brought me back to their penthouse that I didn’t even care to pay attention.
Luckily, I didn’t forget to collect my gym bag from the locker room and was able to leave the penthouse wearing a pair of cutoff denim shorts and a white tank top. I couldn’t fathom walking out of here in their clothes or my work attire, looking like some cheap whore.
I wanted to take the chance to forgo my wig for once, but a split second before the elevator doors opened, I doubled back into his room and put it on, fearing the worst as I always did these days.
Lucas, supportive as he could ever be, wrapped his arm around my waist, holding me close as we made our way to the parking garage. He didn’t say a word about the pink hair, didn’t look at me any differently, even though I had a pretty good idea that he preferred the natural color.
I toyed with one of the long strands, twirling it around my fingers anxiously as my mind warred over my decision to wear it.
Take it off.
Leave it on.
No one will notice you.
You’re entirely fucked.
Life wasn’t fair, my identity was always at risk, and now I feared being judged by Lucas just the same. Because I was too fucking terrified to walk the streets looking like myself.
With the wig, I could be me, body and mind, heart and soul.
Without it, I was forced to wear a mask of feigned innocence and proper behavior.
“Tessa.” I stopped just after stepping out of the elevator and turned to see Lucas reaching for my hand. He took it and pulled me into him. “I may share a bond with my brother, but I can still sense that something is troubling you.”
“It’s nothing I can’t handle.”
Lucas sucked in his cheek, blue eyes searching mine before nodding with a sigh of acceptance and understanding that I wouldn’t back down on my words. That I refused to be a burden to anyone other than myself.
With my hand firmly held in his, he proceeded to lead me down a row of luxury cars, stopping at a liquid metal matte Maserati with an all-black leather interior and the MC20 logo embedded into the passenger-side dashboard.
At the push of a button, the doors opened upward like a bird flaunting its wingspan, and I gawked in awe. I could only assume that Levi drove something similar, if not the same, given their matching tastes. All of this from just the club and the revue?
“I see your questioning eyes, princess, and don’t worry, you’ll find out soon enough.” Was I that easy to read?
I closed my gaping mouth and plopped down into the passenger seat. Lucas shut the door once I was settled in. He then rounded the back and got into the driver’s side, pulling up the GPS on the dashboard-mounted screen.
“Where to?” He smirked, and again, I felt my confidence dwindling.
Swallowing my pride, I leaned forward and typed the address to my apartment into the search bar, then pressed ‘Start.’ Once the navigation had loaded, Lucas backed up the car and peeled out of the underground garage in the direction of my very temporary residence.
Roughly twenty minutes later, we arrived at a newly built, brightly colored apartment complex. Lucas opened the passenger door, and I stepped out, looking up at the red, yellow, and steel blue building.
With the amount of money I had brought with me, I could have rented something bigger, more luxurious, but part of me wanted to try the cozy suburban lifestyle with neighbors to greet in the halls, and the ability to enjoy the simple routine of people-watching from the balcony on a hot summer day.
“A far stretch from a Malibu beach house,” Lucas mumbled as he took in the surrounding street view. “But a home is a home nonetheless, and soon you’ll be all moved into your new and permanent one.”
“I what?” I jerked my head in his direction, and he returned his attention to me with a broad smile that looked as though he’d just unwrapped the best present of his life.
“You didn’t think Levi and I would let you live anywhere besides with us, did you?
” His voice was a tease, as playful as his personality.
Why would they have me move in with them so fast?
We’d only just met... They couldn’t possibly— “Oh, come on, princess. Don’t tell me you’d rather live alone than with us?
I can promise you that Levi and I are far better company than anyone in this neighborhood. ”
I mean… He had a point? But I also hadn’t lived here long enough to make friends, let alone to determine if it would be worth the change of scenery so soon…
Oh, who was I fucking kidding? Of course, I wanted to move in with them. Living by myself was boring and lonely. They could live in a shitty studio of their own, and I’d still move in. I was an independent woman, but I knew my weak spots, and the need for companionship was my biggest downfall.
Playing it cool, I didn’t respond as I stepped around him and walked inside, punching in my pin to unlock the internal security door and then taking a sharp left as we passed through the main common area.
When we reached the elevator bay, I hesitated before pressing the call button, and one of three sets of doors opened right away.
Once inside, we ascended to the fourth floor, and I led Lucas down yet another long hall painted in bright red, yellow, and blue to match the building’s exterior.
My unit was at the far end of the hallway.
Pulling my keys from my bag, I unlocked and opened the door with a forceful push. The springs were tight, causing it to slam shut aggressively once you let go. An annoyance at times, but at least I never had to worry about accidentally leaving it open.
There wasn’t much in terms of furniture in my studio. A black two-seater sofa in one corner, a full-sized bed in the other. My clothes exploded out of two large suitcases on the floor—again, this was supposed to be temporary.
I never saw the point in buying all the luxuries of home, knowing I would either upgrade once I found a stable job or return to Malibu with some blown-up and exaggerated kidnapping story to keep me in the tabloids' good graces.
The latter of the two was far from my objective, and the last thing I wanted to happen was to return to my emotional prison.
“This is all you brought with you?” Lucas questioned as he took in my six-hundred and sixty-seven square foot unit, everything out in the open, nothing for me to hide.
“I couldn’t make it obvious that I’d left of my own free will… or announce where I was going…”
“Why’s that?” There was curiosity in his tone as he paced the layout, stopping at my suitcases before looking back over at me with a sympathetic gaze.
“Because they would’ve followed me, and then there would have been no point to any of this…” I gestured my arms wide to encompass the entire apartment. And I hated to think that the Tessa whom Lucas and Levi were expecting was the one I fought to leave behind. “I’m so much more, and I’m sorr—”
“You don’t have to say anything more, at least for right now, until you’re ready—and you sure as fuck don’t need to be sorry, princess.
” Lucas stepped into me, taking my anxious, fidgeting hands in one of his, while the other caressed my chin and lifted my face to meet his eyes.
“Let's pack up the largest suitcase with as much as we can fit and load it into the back of the Mas. We’ll bring a truck tomorrow to move the rest of your things. The day is nowhere near over, and I still need to take my girl to her surprise.”
Releasing his hold on me, Lucas pivoted and stepped over to where the suitcases lay on the floor before crouching down. As he started packing up my clothes, I stood there in enamored awe over him.
Where did this man fucking come from, and why the hell did he choose me…