Chapter 41 #3
“Before we jump the gun and agree to anything,” Raiden interjects, gaining all of our attention.
“I need each of you to consider what being in such an unconventional relationship would mean for us going forward. This is a small town, and word travels fast. We’ll face a fair amount of prejudice.
Our jobs could even be affected. Speaking for myself, I couldn’t care less.
But Andi will be on the receiving end of that, too.
So until we’re certain that this is sustainable and Col is undoubtedly on board, I vote we don’t go public with our relationship. ”
“I haven’t given a shit about the opinion of others for two years. Why start now?” Briggs gripes, looking annoyed that he needs to reiterate his stance on the matter.
“Nothing is more important to me than Andi. Jobs are replaceable; she’s not,” Dayton adds.
Everything Raiden just laid out only compounds my fears.
If the first place my thoughts go to is dark and negative when picturing the four of us with Andi, it’s safe to assume that the rest of Chaplain won’t fare much better.
Can I even blame them when I’m not sold on the idea either?
But I agreed to try, so I bite my tongue and mumble my agreement.
“Royce and Rita are the only people whose opinions truly matter, and they’ve already given us their blessing.” Dayton’s eyes widen in surprise.
“Then it’s settled,” Briggs surmises. “We explore this further, test the sharing aspect a little more fluidly, and pray like fuck to Aphrodite that she favors our coupling and sees to its longevity.” We stare at Briggs for several painfully long seconds, trying to decipher his rambling.
“And why, precisely, are we praying to a goddess?” Raiden asks the question we all want to know the answer to.
“Well, I highly doubt our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, would shine his blessings on such debauchery,” Briggs monotones. I groan, his choice of words doing little to alleviate my concerns.
Before we can comment on his idiocy, the creaking of the stairs alerts us to someone’s arrival.
Andi appears a moment later, slightly out of breath and looking like pure sin.
Her hair is mussed from sleep, and faint indentations from the blanket I placed around her crease her cheek.
Without a shred of makeup on, she’s still the most stunning woman I’ve ever laid eyes on.
Hudson is gripping her finger as he attempts to navigate the steps on his own, but the sight of her swollen belly makes my dick perk up.
I shove that revelation to the back of my mind to revisit at a later time.
“Hey, mama. Sleep okay?” Raiden probes, the four of us tracking her every move as she eliminates the distance between us. I home in on the pretty pink blush that spreads across her chest, wanting to feel the heat of it against my tongue.
“The best I’ve slept in a while, actually.
” She sighs contentedly, keeping her attention on Hudson as he begins to wander around the terrace.
Thankfully, there’s not much for him to get into, and the barrier wall is too high for him to topple over, but Dayton positions himself near the firepit just in case Hudson gets curious.
“I’m beginning to think you’re goading me, Angel.
Are you finding it difficult to sleep next to me every night?
” Briggs teases, stalking towards her until he’s able to pinch her chin between his finger and thumb, tilting her head upwards so he has her undivided attention.
Whatever he says is lost on me. I’m too enraptured by the way her lips part, her dichromatic irises being swallowed by her pupils dilating.
My own body’s response has me stumbling to the side, the rush of adrenaline making me dizzy.
No fucking way am I turned on by the sight of her with another man.
“Are you okay?” Andi questions, her concern dragging me back to the present.
“I’m fine, Sunshine,” I reassure her, needing to get the hell away from everyone so I can process my reaction to seeing her with Briggs in private. Wanting to clear the air between us, I check that the guys have eyes on Hudson and pull Andi aside. “I’m sorry I’ve been so distant.”
“It’s okay,” she starts, making excuses for my shitty behavior.
“It’s not,” I state adamantly. “But I’m trying, okay?
This is difficult for me. The idea of sharing you brings back a lot of bad memories regarding my mother.
It’s exactly what she was coaxed into, and I can’t help but compare myself to him.
The man who was supposed to love her but wasn’t bothered by other men having what was his.
” I watch as realization washes over her beautiful face, her pinched expression full of sympathy.
“That’s not what this is, Col. You know that.
You feel it, right?” She places her dainty hand over my heart.
I mirror the action, laying mine over hers.
“I can’t explain it, and I know it won’t make sense to most people.
But this feeling–the way each of you makes my heart race with awareness, and in the same breath, you can easily calm my thoughts and make the world fade away when reality becomes too much.
That’s rare. That’s not something you let slip away because it defies what’s deemed as normal or right.
Only we get to decide that, and nothing has ever felt as right as being with the four of you. ”
“I know that, and I’m trying to come to terms with it, but I can’t rewire my thought process in the blink of an eye.
Just be patient with me, okay?” I plead, knowing I’ll try my absolute hardest for her.
“But about that thing you let slip earlier?” I pause, allowing my words to register.
Andi bites her lip, shifting her feet anxiously.
“It’d be an impossibility not to love you, Sunshine.
” I press my lips to hers, pushing myself to give this relationship a fighting chance.
The taste of her invades my senses, but I pull back before either of us can deepen it.
I stroke my thumb across her bottom lip, then turn to leave, knowing if I don’t force myself to move, I never will, and I have some seriously confusing thoughts to sort through.