Chapter Thirty-Six #2
Instantly, I tense, almost like a reflex brought on from the past. I brace myself for irritation or annoyance, mentally shielding myself before he even utters a single word.
I’m already watching for any shift in his mood, almost waiting for the inevitable switch, but my efforts are wasted.
I mean, of course they are. Caiden and the others are nothing like Toby, they’ve proven as much time and time again already.
Ryan had no qualms about me taking photos of him in the studio, even though that scenario was different and didn’t fill me with dread.
I suppose being in a work environment helped, the camera in my hand keeping a professional barrier between Ry and me rather than the selfies or candid shots taken on a cell would offer.
It was still a nice surprise to see Ryan happy with the photos I took, and I should have expected much the same reaction from Caid.
So it’s to no one else’s surprise that the words that come out of Caid’s mouth are, “Damn, that’s some good lighting. I don’t think I’ve ever seen my eyes that green before. Thanks, Blue.”
My entire body turns to liquid, instantly relaxing when there isn’t a single note of anger in his voice, and the smile I’d been about to give him breaks free even wider as my chest feels light and airy.
“You did look pretty damned handsome, even if you were laughing at my bone-deep rejection to being turned into those flappy fucks. You still didn’t promise, by the way.
Reincarnation is no joke, and the universe has a knack for shitting on me just for the giggles.
So should I come back as an overgrown trash compactor with wings, put me out of my misery. ”
“But what if I’m reincarnated as a seagull, too?” Caid asks, lit up with amusement as he tugs me along toward where Ryan now stands at a different truck, a dessert truck that sells tasty-looking cheesecake, with several more bags hanging from his hands and arms.
Wow. Unbelievable.
While Caiden’s and my lives were at stake, Ryan was shopping as though he didn’t care for our survival.
Raising an eyebrow at the guy, wincing slightly when I hear another seagull screech I’m no doubt going to hear in my nightmares, I tell Caid, “I don’t think the universe hates us so much that we’d both be turned into seagulls, so it’s a nonissue.”
“You don’t know that,” he argues, leaning against a bird-free bench with my hand still clutched in his. “What if I get turned into one of those things? Are you going to turn me into a Thanksgiving dinner?”
I give him a playfully dirty look before deadpanning, “I’d rather throw myself into the army of winged rats still eating our food than attempt to eat your cooked seagull carcass. So I guess I’m going to have to set you free or something.”
“You wouldn’t even keep me as a pet?” he pushes, overdramatically outraged by the idea that I wouldn’t home a fucking seagull.
I shake my head in all honesty, admitting, “If you were a pigeon, I’d keep you, because they used to be useful before we domesticated them and then set them back into the wild. Pigeons are cute. Pigeons won’t peck my face off for a crumb. Come back to me as a pigeon, okay?”
“Do I even want to know what conversation you two are having?” Ryan suddenly asks, words full of curiosity, but nowhere near cute enough for me to forget the sheer abandonment we suffered no thanks to him.
Attempting to cross my arms makes me look like a dumbass, because Caid is still holding my hand, so I opt for the next best thing.
I prop my free hand on my hip and give Ry my best “what the actual fuck” face that confuses him enough that he glances at Caid for help.
The man holding my hand knows whose side he’s on, because he shakes his head, signaling the charming hazel-eyed man is on his own.
When Ry turns back to me, I accuse, “What was that? Every man for himself? We almost died.”
Ry looks over my shoulder to the table we were occupying, only to wince adorably when he witnesses the carnage that is still in full swing.
When those warm eyes fall back to me, I almost melt.
Almost. I’m still trying to rationalize everything in my mind while avoiding the fact that it was entirely of my own doing, my mind too occupied to be suckered by the handsome devil doing his best to look apologetic.
“Okay, in my defense, there were only, what, five of them when I left?” he argues, a sprinkle of amusement infiltrating his eyes as he gazes down at me. “How did a single nacho chip bring that chaos?”
I shake my head, eyes unfocusing as I stare into the distance, replaying the hellish few minutes I spent thinking I was going to die at the feathers of a seagull at a food festival at a park near a beach.
Honestly, let me walk up all of the apartment stairs again, because that is a far more humane way to go.
With a whisper that tells tales of my haunted past, I mutter, “It all happened so fast.”
“Oh my God,” Caiden snickers, squeezing my hand and drawing me back to the now.
Ryan is grinning at me like I amuse him, which is actually really nice, and then he asks, “Would it help to know I didn’t abandon you for selfish reasons? I was replacing the food I spilled—”
“The food that actually caused the tragedy I just endured,” I interrupt.
He goes on without a hiccup, “—and I got distracted with the other trucks we didn’t try. I was going to bring it over.”
Oh. Well, now I feel like an ass.
Ryan laughs at the face I pull, waving his hand as though he knew I was readying myself to apologize for thinking he turned his back on us in our time of need.
“I can see how it would look like I ran for the hills. I probably should have mentioned what I was doing before doing it, but I needed a second to regain some badass points after startling from a bird.”
I purse my lips to stop from smiling, because that’s actually hella cute. It makes it all the sweeter that he was gathering more delicacies, and I damn near hand over my heart right then and there.
Instead, I propose, “Do we have any objections to rebuying all that we lost before heading somewhere where there are no aviated twats? Home doesn’t have aviated twats, but it has a TV, blankets, and safety if you guys want to watch a movie and pig out.”
“I’m down for that. Movies and chill sounds like a dope way to spend the rest of the day. What say you, Ry?” Caid asks, tugging me closer until he can wrap his arm around my waist, growing more and more comfortable with being touchy-feely after our little chat in my bedroom earlier.
Ry looks around for a moment before he nods. “I’m good with that. Everywhere we went to first is still serving, so why don’t we divide and conquer? Maddie can stay away from the section with the loitering birds.”
“I’m good with that,” I snort, eyeing the winged parasites with every ounce of disgust I possess. “Meet back up at the fountain?”
Both guys nod before we split up, and I smile as I watch them go, enjoying the full feeling in my chest. There have been plenty of times in my life where I’ve been happy to the point of delirium, but there has never been a time where that happiness has been accompanied by the rightness and warmth I feel when I remember this is real.
Four men chose me, despite my chaos, despite the drama.
They want to be with me, and there’s a sense of surrealism that comes with knowing I’ve bagged four gorgeous, sweet, kind, and warmhearted men who like me exactly as I am.
So, with a pep in my step, I go about gathering the food we lost while they do the same. By the time we head home, the car is filled with far too many containers, too many smells, and a whole lot of food that could almost feed a village.
Not even half of it is consumed by the end of the night, all three of us gorging until we fall asleep in various positions around the living room, the remainder of the food stored in the fridge for the next movie-and-chill night we plan for after work the next day.
And with Caiden’s head in my lap and Ryan’s warmth beside me, I etch another day into my memory as one of the best I’ve had in a long time, even if I almost died in the process.