Chapter 91
When Mel walked into the clubhouse and saw Rhys looking lost and confused, they’d wanted to go up and give him a hug. They still wanted to as he spoke to some of his teammates, almost too low for them to hear. Though they did catch at least one ‘sorry’.
His teammates got an apology, but would Mel?
Not for what his asshole of a foster brother had done. That wasn't on him. But, for ghosting them? They were still upset with him. That didn’t mean they loved him any less.
And they did. Love him. That’s why it hurt so much when he’d just…been gone. Mel had thought they were working toward something. If they were going to make it work with all three of them, communication mattered. He couldn’t just stop talking to them.
Mel could have done better with that as well. They all could have.
Finally he came over and they headed out to the parking lot. Mel had ridden over here with Alfie. They’d get their car later. They reached inside and grabbed the cup they’d brought along.
Rhys blinked at them. “Is that…”
“I had Frank order more banana syrup. Just for you.”
“Even after I…”
“Completely shut me out? Technically it was already ordered. I only wanted you to talk to me, Rhys.”
He closed his eyes, and Mel wanted to kick themself. This was not the place to have this discussion. “Let’s go home,” they said.
Rhys climbed into the car, and they heard him take a sip of the coffee. And his small groan of appreciation. They couldn’t help smiling and glancing over at Alfie.
By the time they arrived at Mel’s house, Rhys had finished the coffee. “God, I missed that.”
“You could have come in any time,” Mel said, before even thinking about it. “I didn’t go anywhere.”
Rhys flinched at the words. They would have to discuss this, but Rhys was right. He did stink.
Still, they leaned in and pressed a kiss to his cheek. “Go take a shower. I’ll make something for us to eat.”
“Where are the twins?” He looked around as if he’d just realized they hadn’t been with Mel.
“At home.”
Rhys winced. “I’m sorry. This is all my…”
Mel put a finger over his lips. “It is not your fault. If one good thing came out of this, it’s that we got into a huge fight, Denny and Sonia stood their ground, and Mom’s giving them a little freedom.
Even if it’s only to try to give them enough rope to trip themselves with and prove she was right. ”
It was at least a step in the right direction. They needed to take another one. Mel nudged Rhys toward the bathroom, wrinkling their nose. He was sweaty. Which wasn’t necessarily bad, Mel wouldn’t mind getting him sweaty again once he was clean. But, first, they all needed to talk.
“I don’t have any clean clothes when I get out,” Rhys said.
Like that would be a problem for them. Mel did not mind at all getting to look at this man.
“I can run to your apartment,” Alfie said. “Even with traffic, I’m sure I’ll make it back in plenty of time.”
Rhys crossed his eyes and stuck his tongue out. “I don’t take that long of showers.”
Alfie put a hand to the back of Rhys’s head and pulled him in for a kiss. Damn, that was hot. They might be the one who needed a shower now. They could… No. They were talking first. Definitely.
“You really do,” Alfie murmured. He looked at Mel. “I’ll be back.”
When Rhys disappeared into the bathroom, they headed into the kitchen. They used the time apart to go grocery shopping, so they started getting out vegetables. Maybe chopping them up would help them work through exactly what they wanted to say to Rhys.
They wanted to say a lot. Not just how much his shutting down hurt. How it made them feel like they weren’t good enough. Just like their parents always had. They hadn’t thought they’d get that from Rhys.
Also, what this relationship of theirs could look like. Whether or not it continued to include Alfie. They could enjoy that, maybe not in the same way as what they had with Rhys. But, still, there was potential there.
They didn’t know exactly what all that could mean. Mel didn’t care what either of them told anyone else about what they were to each other. They didn’t want anyone hiding anything. Especially not from each other.
They were sure that was the only way they could move forward.