51. Waiting
Chapter fifty-one
Waiting
Edward
The next morning...
I don’t think I’ve ever felt more relaxed in my life. Just one night away from everything, and it feels like nothing could ever go wrong. This might be exactly what we all needed to establish everything in stone and see where we stood with each other.
The other three are jovial and laughing as I drive back to my apartment. I can’t remember the last time I heard such mirth. It is so melodious that I can’t bring myself to turn on the radio.
Everything’s moving in the right direction now, isn’t it?
A peaceful bliss settles over me when I pull up to my apartment and park by the curb, eager to get inside so that I can finally ask Maria the question that’s been plaguing me for a while now.
Despite her declaration of love last night, I need to know exactly what she wants and expects out of all of this.
I don’t want there to be any confusion or misunderstandings.
Everything needs to be crystal clear so that we can move forward.
I can’t help but laugh as they practically stumble over each other down the hallway. Even my next-door neighbor pokes her head out to see what the commotion is.
“Sorry, Mrs. Brindle. Wild night out. I’ll get them to be quiet,” I assure her with an apologetic smile. She shakes her head in disbelief and softly shuts the door in my face.
I should probably send her a cookie tray as an apology.
“You guys need to be quiet,” I whisper harshly to them as they continue to guffaw and talk over each other. They perk up and press fingers to their lips, though that seems to only amuse them even further.
I roll my eyes and unlock the door to let them in. I didn’t realize I was going to be involved with children.
I check my watch; I have another hour or two before Sharon brings Alexander back. That gives me plenty of time to get down to business.
“Hey, if you guys want to throw your laundry into the washer, I can take care of all of it. Saves time on having to separate loads.”
“Here, I’ll do it.” Maria flits about the room and takes each of our small bags away from us, practically skipping on the balls of her feet. I’m ready to protest, to tell her that she doesn’t need to do that, but she seems happy to take care of it.
With her gone, though, I can have a small private conversation with the others.
“Last night was wonderful, wasn’t it?” I speak in hushed tones so that she can’t hear.
“The best.” Drake unpacks his laptop bag and starts setting it up at his work table. He’d brought it along in case he needed to take care of work, but last night ate up all of his attention.
“Are you thinking what I’m thinking?” I ask, hoping that they're on the same page.
Stan thumbs at the middle of his chin.
“You think she’s the one?” he asks, his eyes darting to the laundry room.
“I hope she is. I know she said that she loves us, but that could have been the hormones talking. I want to make sure that this is for real.” I need something real in my laugh right about now.
“This has already been screwed up once enough. You want to take that risk again?” Stan peers up at me beneath a hooded gaze, though I can see there's excitement buzzing in his eyes.
“For her? She’s worth it.” I don't think I've ever felt more confident about anything else in my life. Save for my medical degree, of course.
“Worth what?”
We all spin around, startled out of our conversation, as Maria walks back in with our empty bags. Stanley pats the empty spot on the seat beside him.
“We want to have a conversation with you, Maria. It’s about last night.”
“Good things, I hope.”
She sits with her hands in her lap, trying to look as small and neat as possible.
“One good thing, if we’re being honest.” I sit on the floor in front of her knees and take one of her hands in mine. “Last night... was it just about the sex or were you serious about what you said?”
She gasps quietly and her hand instantly grows cold. My heart sinks to the bottom of my chest.
“We want to know, would you like to be in a polyamorous relationship with us?”
Her eyes dart from one face to the next, trying to measure if we’re being serious or not.
“No hard feelings this time if you want to say no. We’re not going to hold it against you.” Drake leans in and rests his hand on top of hers. Stanley soon joins after.
“We just want to do what’s best for you. This could continue to be fun with no attachments. As casual as you want it to be.” Stanley curls his fingers around her wrist. “We can take it.”
Please say something. Please tell us.
"Are... are you really asking me this?"
I look at her with so much expectation, waiting for an answer—any answer—to spill from her lips.
Tears spring to the corners of her eyes.
"First, I have a confession to make."
It feels like all of the air is being sucked out of the room.
"Edward, I don't think I've met a man so dedicated to his son, especially one suddenly thrust into his already busy life.
You're doing everything right, even when it feels like you're doing it wrong.
And Stanley, you have a heart of gold. You put the needs of others before your own.
You stick your neck out for those who need the most help, advocating for their care and comfort, no matter who it is.
And Drake... dear Drake. You're determined to the point of stubbornness, you know what you want out of life, and you're slowly learning that you don't always have to deal with everything alone.
You've grown so much since we first met, and I'm sure with more time, all of that will just be a memory. "
I can see Drake thumbing away tears from the corner of his eye.
"You each fulfill a different aspect of me, and that's not something every woman gets to find in one man. Being with the three of you makes me feel like the luckiest woman in the world. In all honesty, I can't see myself without any of you. So the answer is yes."
The three of us bolt out of our seats at the same time and throw our arms around her, filling the entire room with excited yells and whoops of triumph.
"I'll get the wine," Stanley suggests as he starts rifling through my fridge.
“I’ll, uh, send an e-mail real quick asking for a deadline extension."
"What are you going to tell Alexander?" she asks as I sweep her up into my arms, swaying back and forth across the room to some unheard tune. "This is probably going to be very confusing for him."
"It doesn't have to be confusing," I reply. "I looked into it. They have these things called union ceremonies for those who are in our unique position... What?"
Maria has a knowing smile on her face, as if she's been keeping some kind of secret.
"I was just in one a year or two ago. You remember Chelsea."
“How could I forget? ... Wait...”
“Those three men that were with her in the delivery room, she’s ‘married’ to all of them. They’re all going to raise the twins and that little girl together.”
“Heh, and you wait until now to tell us?”
Maria shrugs.
“Not my story to tell. I don’t know how many people Chelsea wants to know. But now that you know, maybe she can help us with all the details. So that everything goes off without a hitch.”
“I hope you’re not expecting three diamond rings, though.” I chuckle and dip her low in this unplanned dance.
“Shucks, you got me there. My plan as a gold digger has been thwarted.”
“How about instead of a gold digger...” He swings me upright once more. “We have Alexander call you ‘Mom’ instead?”
“Wh-what?” She recoils and pulls away, pressing her hands to her mouth. “You can’t be serious.”
“I’m deadly serious.” I remain where I am, giving her the space she needs to process this.
“That’s...” Maria starts to get teary-eyed again as she throws herself against my chest. The embrace is warm and comforting, wiping away any further doubt I had in my mind.
“And Sharon is okay with that?” she continues, her voice muffled against my shirt.
“Absolutely. She knows how good you are with him. Even said so herself that she can think of no one better to be his mom.”
“Then yes. One hundred percent yes.” She throws her arms around me and I can feel her shuddering against me.
Soon, the moment is ruined.
“Edward, what the hell!? What did you do!? Why’s Maria crying?” Stanley stumbles back in with a bottle and four empty glasses perched in one hand.
“Crying? What?” Drake pops his head out from the back hall, his expression screwed up with concern.
“Why are you assuming I did something wrong!?” I bark back. “Drake’s the screw-up, remember?”
“Hey! I resent that remark!”
“More like represent it,” Stanley chimes in, finally returning with glasses of wine for each of us. Anything to get the attention off me.
“To a new future together,” I toast.
“To the four of us!” Maria chimes in as she wipes her face with her free hand.
It took a long journey to get to this point, didn’t it?