Chapter 22
Addison
Liam’s suit is wrinkled in ways I’ve never seen. Axel’s hair sticks up in five different directions. Nolan’s in an old t-shirt that must be Axel’s.
They are completely unhinged.
They must have driven straight here from Axel’s house. Didn’t sleep. Didn’t stop.
Liam steps forward. “I love you.” Direct.
No preamble. Very him. “I love you. And I came here to tell you that before you make any decisions. Before you decide whether we’re worth fighting for.
” His words come faster now, control slipping.
“I will walk away from Palmer Capital if that’s what it takes to keep you. ”
Walk away. From the company that their father left them. From the empire he rebuilt. From everything he’s used to define himself in his adult life.
“The investors can find another firm. The board can replace me.” He takes a breath. “You can’t be replaced.”
Axel shifts forward before Liam finishes. “I love you, too. And yeah, I’m scared as hell you’re gonna pick one of my brothers over me. Or walk away from all of us because the fight’s too hard.” His voice drops. Rough. “But I’d rather lose you trying than never tell you how I feel.”
Being chosen first. His core wound laid bare in my hallway.
Nolan waits until Axel stops talking. Patient even now.
“I love you. I’ve loved you since that first dinner when you told me about the educational software company you exposed, and I realized you were someone who fought for people who couldn’t fight for themselves.
Someone who saw things the rest of us missed. ”
He pauses.
“I’ll walk away from everything if you need me to. The company, the money, all of it. You’re the only thing that matters.”
I expected them to want to make our relationship work. But I didn’t expect them to tell me that they love me. And offer to give up their company for me.
The magnitude of it should make me cry. Should make me collapse into their arms and accept the rescue they’re offering.
Instead, I want to laugh.
“Are you finished?” Now it’s my turn to tell them something.
They exchange glances. Worry flashes across Liam’s face. Axel’s jaw sets. Nolan goes very still.
They think I’m about to tell them it’s over. That they’re too late.
“Yes,” Liam says.
“Good.” I step aside to clear the doorway. “Come inside. You look ridiculous standing in my hallway like some kind of reverse harem intervention.”
Axel chokes on a laugh.
They file in. The door clicks shut.
“I love you, too. All three of you.” The words come out steadier than expected. “I spent all night terrified that loving you meant losing everything else I’ve built.”
Axel’s mouth opens.
“I’m still talking.”
Closes.
“I spent years proving my worth to people who only valued me for what I could produce. My parents. My bosses at Apex. Every man I dated who needed saving more than he needed me.” Moving to the kitchen counter puts space between us.
“When you bought Archer Media, I thought it was happening again. That I’d have to perform to earn the right to exist in your world. ”
“Addison—” Liam tries to interrupt.
“Still talking,” I reiterate, cutting him off.
Liam stops trying to talk, and I continue.
“But you gave me my company. No strings. No conditions. Just gave it to me because you believed I’d already proven myself.” My laptop sits open. “Last night, when that article came out painting me as someone who sold herself, I realized something.”
“What?” Nolan asks.
“That I’ve spent my entire life exposing other people’s truth. Holding them accountable for lies and corruption and the damage they cause.” Meeting his gaze requires effort. “Refusing to bury my own truth just because it makes other people uncomfortable would make me a hypocrite.”
Liam shifts forward. “What are you saying?”
“I wrote an article last night.” The laptop screen brightens when I touch the trackpad. “I published it about an hour ago. Before you got here.”
Turning the screen toward them reveals the headline.
THE TRUTH ABOUT LOVE, ETHICS, AND CHOOSING YOURSELF By Addison Archer
“You already sent this out?” Axel asks.
I nod. “I wrote about how the relationship started. How it evolved. Why I’m choosing to go public on my terms instead of hiding.
” Scrolling down reveals paragraphs I rewrote seventeen times.
“Addressed the ethics questions. Acknowledged that people will doubt my credibility. Explained why my work at Palmer Capital stands on its own merit regardless of who I’m sleeping with. ”
“What did you say?” Liam’s voice is careful.
Reading from the screen feels safer than looking at their faces.
“Some will claim this relationship compromises my objectivity. That I manipulated three men for professional advancement. To those people, I offer this: examine my work. The investor confidence metrics speak for themselves. The media coverage is measurable. The new partnerships are documented. My strategy succeeded because it was sound, not because I was sleeping with anyone.”
Scrolling further reveals the section I’m most proud of.
“But more than that, I refuse to apologize for loving people who see me as more than useful. You gave me my company back without conditions. You chose me, not for what I can do, but for who I am. That’s not a transaction. That’s partnership. And I won’t hide it to make anyone comfortable.”
Silence.
“You published this before we got here?” Nolan’s processing. Connecting dots.
“An hour ago.” Closing the laptop feels final. “I’m already getting responses. Some supportive. Some vicious. Most somewhere in between.”
“You didn’t wait for us.”
“No.” Holding Axel’s stare requires zero effort.
“Because I’ve spent my entire career telling the truth even when it’s uncomfortable.
Exposing corruption even when powerful people tried to silence me.
Burying this—hiding what we have because it won’t fit into neat boxes—would make me exactly what that hit piece accused me of being.
A woman who compromises her values when it’s convenient. ”
Liam closes the distance between us. “So you’re fighting.”
“Living honestly.” The correction matters. “Fighting implies defense. Explanation. Justification. I stated the facts, challenged anyone who thinks a consensual relationship between adults is unethical, and moved on.”
“What about Palmer Capital?” Nolan asks. “The board—”
“Will deal with it.” Liam’s voice is firm. “If they can’t handle honesty, they don’t deserve to work with us. And like I said before, if investors pull funding over this, they were never the right investors, anyway.”
Axel’s laugh bursts out. “You’re fucking fearless, Addison.”
“Terrified, actually.” Honesty requires admitting weakness. I meet each of their gazes. “But I’m refusing to let fear dictate my choices.”
“So, what happens now?” Liam asks.
“Now we move forward. Together. Handle whatever fallout comes. Rebuild if we have to. But we do it honestly. No pretending this is something other than what it is.”
“Which is?” Nolan asks.
I shrug. The answer is simple. “Four people who refuse to apologize for choosing each other.”
Liam’s hand finds my face. “You didn’t wait for us to save you.”
“No.” The admission settles something in my chest. “But I need you anyway. All three of you. Not because you’re useful. Because you see me and choose that version every single day.”
“We do.” Nolan’s voice is quiet. “We will.”
“Then we’re doing this.” I’m looking at Axel now. “No matter what comes next.”
My chin lifts. “No matter what.”
Liam’s thumb brushes my cheekbone. “We love you.”
When he kisses me, it’s thorough. Deliberate. A promise made with lips and tongue.
“Addison handled the media. Now, what about Palmer Capital’s stakeholders?” Axel asks.
“Call the board.” Liam’s already strategizing. “Handle the investor questions. Handle employee concerns. Deal with whatever crisis comes next.”
“Together,” I add.
“Together,” Liam agrees, taking my hand.
Nolan’s phone buzzes. He glances at the screen. “The board wants a meeting this afternoon.”
“Then we meet.” I don’t hesitate. “All four of us.”
Liam’s brow furrows. “You don’t have to—”
“Yes, I do,” I cut him off. “This affects all of us. We face it together.”
His hand finds mine. “Okay.”
“But first,” Axel’s smirks, “we celebrate.”
I raise an eyebrow. “Celebrate what?”
“You. Taking control of your own story. Publishing before anyone could twist it.” He pulls me against him. “Being so fucking brave it makes me wanna—”
Kissing him cuts off whatever crude thing he was about to say.
He groans. Hands tighten on my hips.
When I pull away, Liam and Nolan watch with identical expressions.
Hunger. Want. Love.
And a celebration is exactly what I am in the mood for.