Chapter 18 Eris
The coffee really is perfect. And that pisses me off a little.
I sit at the table, my left leg curled under me, like the casual seating changes the moment. My borrowed shirt slips off one shoulder, and I fix it as I stare down the three men who’ve rewritten the definition of unethical tech support.
They stand like suspects in a police lineup. A very attractive, very dangerous lineup.
Cuffs not present.
I take another sip of my perfect coffee and blurt out the first question that pops into my mind. “Did you draw straws before you started flirting with me, or was it more of a first-come, first-unhinged type of situation?”
Kieran chokes, and Jace pats his back, grinning like he’s been waiting for this.
“We all came unhinged at the same time,” Silas deadpans. “You just didn’t notice.”
“Oh, I noticed,” I say lightly, rolling my eyes. “Some of you were better at hiding it.”
Jace’s smile softens, just a fraction. “You’re taking this… surprisingly well.”
“What would you prefer?” I tilt my head, raising a brow. “Screaming? Crying? Running?”
I don’t wait for an answer.
“My stalker ex already broke into my home. He thought he owned me just because I let him touch me. Compared to that?” I shrug. “Three men who watched too closely and cared too hard barely register as a crisis.”
Kieran exhales a laugh he tries to smother. “You’re terrifying.”
“Only when I’m hungry,” I pop back, shaking my head.
Nothing I’ve said or done is remotely terrifying, but they’re too hung up on me not running from them. They don’t quite seem to understand…
Silas’s gaze sharpens, not amused by my retort. I see the moment he begins his assessment of me, clocking the shift in my tone. The way I’m not spiraling; I’m simply organizing.
Because that’s what this is.
I’m getting the words out now, while I still control the conversation.
“Eat,” Silas says, nodding toward the food in front of me. “Then ask.”
“That’s generous,” I reply, dragging my fork through the eggs without taking a bite. “But I’m not actually hungry, and I’m not done asking questions.”
They wait, all three of them with varying degrees of patience, like they understand something is happening here and don’t dare interrupt it.
I point my fork at Jace. “Why didn’t you tell me the day you installed the cameras?”
He frowns, but he doesn’t dodge it. “Because I didn’t want to be the reason you shut the door.”
“You mean like you did.” My grip tightens ever-so-slightly on the fork. “That night… when you texted me about professionalism?”
His jaw flexes. “Yes.”
There it is. The real answer he’s been carrying. He wanted to say something but didn’t want to ruin what might be a thing…
I nod once and move on before it can soften me.
“Kieran?” I turn to face him, watching as he sets his drink down before taking another sip. “Why do you always sound like you’re talking me down from a ledge?”
He blinks as if he’s lagging. “That’s… oddly specific.”
“Answer.”
He scrubs a hand through his hair. “Because I watched the longest. I learned your patterns, what made you close off when talking, and what made you stay in chat with us.”
“And?” I prompt.
“And I didn’t want to be the reason you disappeared.”
I study him. Really look.
“Interesting,” I say, mostly to myself. “You’ve never sounded like you were scared of me disappearing.”
“Because I’m not.” His voice drops, and the honesty lands heavier than it should. “You never gave me a reason to believe you would… And I was watching you too closely to care if you tried. I wasn’t going to let you get far.”
I turn to Silas last, because he’s the spine of this thing. It’s so clear in the way they defer to him when they think I’m not watching. I bet his word is law.
“You’re the tone shift,” I accuse, a smile threatening to take over my lips. “The pressure. The reason I kept wondering if I was talking to one person or more, but you weren’t the one who answered that question.”
“Yes.”
“You deleted messages.”
He shrugs. “Some.”
“You installed the camera outside my front door without telling them.”
“Yes.”
I lean forward, arms folded on the tabletop. “What else?”
He doesn’t hesitate to match my movements. “I prepared. For Daniel. For escalation. The possibility you’d never trust us.”
“And you watched my life,” I add.
“Every second.”
The silence stretches, highlighting the challenge between the two of us.
The clear calculation.
“That should bother me,” I drawl.
“It doesn’t,” Silas replies. It’s not a defensive statement, though it is… strangely factual.
I smile, but it’s not sweet or kind. It’s that feral thing inside me, baring its teeth at another predator.
“You’ll be my favorite to fuck with.”
Kieran makes a noise somewhere between surprise and warning. “Eris—”
“What?” I lift a shoulder, gaze locked with Silas. “We’re being honest, aren’t we?”
Silas’s mouth twitches despite himself. And I know he’s figuring me out. There’s a twinkle in his vivid blue eyes, an insight he’s exploring.
I set my cup down, fingers steady as I tap the table.
This is the moment.
The pivot.
“Here’s the thing,” I declare quietly, relaxing in my chair as I look at each of them. “I’m asking all of this now because once I decide to stay, I won’t half-ass it.”
Their attention locks in like a sniper in a scope.
“I enjoy the twisted way you orbit me,” I continue. “The way you think I don’t notice the things you’ve been doing. I like the way you protect me, like you’ve already written me into your lives, regardless of whether I want to be here.”
“I don’t understand why this doesn’t scare you,” Jace comments, shaking his head in genuine confusion. “Or freak you out at the very least. Don’t get me wrong; I’m not trying to change your mind or run you off… But I can’t wrap my mind around your easy acceptance.”
“It doesn’t scare me,” I admit, trying to put this declaration to rest, although I feel like they’re going to keep asking me for… a while, as if it’s too good to be true. Once they know more about my career path, it will make sense. “And that should scare you...”
“What does scare you?” Kieran’s voice is quiet but curious.
I look down at my hands. At the calm within them. The certainty.
“How badly I want to keep you,” I confess, glancing up to meet his steady gaze. “All three of you.”
The silence that follows isn’t awkward.
It’s… irreverent.
Kieran exhales as if he had been holding his breath for my answer, praying I wouldn’t say something that would send him over the edge.
“We’re not letting you go,” he reminds me. “You’re keeping us.”