46. Marla
MARLA
Friday drags by in a haze of panic and dread. Every time one of the men walks into the room, my heart jumps into my throat and the words almost spill out. But then someone's phone rings, or Sharon appears, or Ekaterina asks a question, and the moment passes.
I can't keep doing this. This pregnancy secret is eating me alive from the inside out.
Evening finally arrives, and Sharon retreats to the main house with Ekaterina after dinner. The four of us are alone in the living room of the mother-in-law building.
Russ sprawls across the couch looking relaxed for the first time in days. Nick sits in the armchair near the window, his long black hair tied back, wearing dark jeans and a black henley.
Alex leans against the doorframe between the living room and kitchen, arms crossed over his chest, his gray-streaked brown hair slightly disheveled.
The atmosphere is surprisingly calm. No urgent phone calls or security alerts. No immediate threats demanding attention. Just the four of us existing in the same space without chaos pressing in from all sides.
I realize that if I don't say it now, I never will. My hands twist together in my lap. My heart pounds so hard I'm certain they can all hear it. I open my mouth but nothing comes out. I try again.
"I need to tell you something."
All three men turn their attention to me immediately. The shift is instantaneous and complete. Russ sits up straighter. Nick's green eyes sharpen with focus. Alex pushes away from the doorframe, his entire body going tense.
"What's wrong?" Russ asks. There's an edge to his voice that wasn't there a second ago.
"Did something happen?" Nick's tone is calm, but I can hear the concern underneath.
They think something terrible happened. They think I'm about to tell them someone got hurt or that Zach found me or that Sharon's in danger again. The panic on my face is making everything worse.
"I'm pregnant."
The words come out in a rush, blurted and graceless and completely lacking any of the careful phrasing I'd rehearsed in my head a thousand times. Complete silence crashes through the room.
Russ physically stops moving. He was reaching for his coffee mug on the side table and his hand just freezes mid-motion, suspended in the air like someone hit pause on reality.
Nick stares at me, his sharp mind clearly trying to process the information logically before the emotional weight of it catches up. I watch the calculation happen behind his eyes.
Alex goes unnervingly still in that way he does when something hits him deeply. Not the controlled stillness of a predator waiting to strike. Instead, the frozen stillness of a man whose entire world just shifted beneath his feet.
I force myself to keep talking before I shut down completely and run from the room. "I don't know which one of you is the father." My voice cracks on the words.
Humiliation floods through me so intensely I want to disappear. This is it. This is the moment they realize I'm not worth the complication. This is when they walk away. I brace myself for what will inevitably happen next.
Instead, Russ moves. He crosses the room in three strides and drops to his knees in front of where I'm sitting on the couch. His hands find mine, warm and steady, and he looks up at me with those eyes that always make me feel lighter.
"Are you alright?" he asks, and his voice is so gentle it makes my throat tighten. "Have you been feeling sick? Are you taking care of yourself?"
The question completely blindsides me. That's what he's worried about? Not whose child it is or how this complicates everything or whether I'm trying to trap them?
"How long have you known?" Nick asks quietly from across the room. He hasn't moved from the armchair but his entire focus is locked on me.
"I..." My brain struggles to catch up. "I've only known for a few days, and there hasn't been a chance to go to a doctor."
Alex finally moves, walking slowly across the room until he's standing beside Russ. He looks shaken, but not in a bad way. The emotion on his face looks dangerously close to happiness, and that terrifies me more than anger would have.
"Say something," I whisper, looking between the three of them. "Please just say something so I know what you're thinking."
"I'm thinking we need to get you to a doctor," Nick says, standing from the armchair.
"I'm thinking you've been carrying this alone for days and that's fucked up," Russ says, his grip on my hands tightening. "You should've told us immediately."
"I'm thinking," Alex says slowly, his voice rough with emotion, "that this changes everything between the four of us. Permanently."
The word hangs in the air. Permanent. The same word Ekaterina used last night.
"I know it's complicated," I start, but Russ cuts me off.
"Fuck complicated. Do you want this baby?"
The directness of the question catches me off guard. "Yes."
"Then that's all that matters." Russ looks up at Nick and Alex. "Right?"
"Right," Alex agrees immediately.
Nick nods once, sharp and decisive. "Agreed."
"But you don't know which of you is the father," I say, my voice breaking. "Doesn't that bother you? Doesn't it matter?"
"No," all three of them say at once.
The unified response makes my chest tighten. Russ shifts closer, one hand moving to rest gently against my stomach over my shirt.
"This child belongs to all of us now," he says firmly. "Regardless of biology. We're not doing this halfway, Marla."
"We've already crossed every conventional line anyway," Nick adds, moving closer. "What's one more?"
"None of us are walking away," Alex says, and there's steel in his voice. "Even if we wanted to. Which we don't."
The relief that floods through me is so overwhelming I can barely breathe. Years of fear crack open inside my chest. Instead of rejection, I'm being pulled closer into the center of their lives.
"Come here," Alex says quietly, reaching for me.
Russ helps me stand, and then Alex is pulling me against his chest, his arms wrapping around me tightly. I feel Nick move behind me, his hand settling at the small of my back. Russ presses close to my side, his fingers threading through my hair.
"We've got you," Nick murmurs against my ear. His hands slides down to my belly. "Both of you."
The emotion becomes too much. I turn in Alex's arms and kiss him, desperate and needy and overwhelmed. He responds immediately, his mouth claiming mine with an intensity that makes my knees weak. His hands slide down my sides, gripping my hips and pulling me flush against him.
Russ's mouth finds my neck, kissing and biting gently while his hands work at the buttons of my shirt. Nick's fingers trace up my spine, finding the clasp of my bra and releasing it in the span of a heartbeat.
"Bedroom," Alex growls against my mouth.
We barely make it down the hallway, our clothes disappearing between kisses and touches. By the time we reach the bedroom, I'm down to just my underwear and they're all shirtless, their muscular bodies on full display.
Alex lays me back on the bed gently, his brown eyes dark with desire as he looks down at me. "You're fucking beautiful," he says, his voice rough. "Carrying our child makes you even more so."
The possessiveness in his tone sends heat flooding through me. Russ climbs onto the bed beside me, his mouth finding mine while his hands explore my body with renewed reverence. Nick settles on my other side, his fingers tracing patterns across my stomach.
Alex hooks his fingers into my underwear and slides them down slowly, his eyes never leaving mine. When I'm completely bare before them, all three men pause for a moment, just looking at me with expressions that make me feel worshipped.
Then Alex moves between my thighs, his mouth finding the sensitive skin of my inner leg. He kisses his way up slowly, deliberately, until his breath ghosts over where I'm already wet and aching for him.
I gasp, my hips lifting involuntarily. He doesn't make me wait.
His tongue finds my clit and I cry out, my hands fisting in the sheets.
Russ captures my mouth again, swallowing my moans while his hand cups my breast, his thumb brushing over my nipple.
Nick's mouth finds my other breast, sucking and biting gently until I'm trembling.
The pleasure builds impossibly fast. Alex knows exactly what he's doing, his tongue working me with precision while two fingers slide inside, curling to hit that perfect spot. Russ and Nick continue their attention on my breasts, the dual sensation overwhelming.
"Come for us," Alex commands against my skin, and the authority in his voice pushes me over the edge.
The orgasm crashes through me hard and fast, my back arching off the bed as I cry out. Alex doesn't stop, working me through it until I'm gasping and oversensitive.
When I finally come down, Alex moves up my body and kisses me deeply. I can taste myself on his tongue and it turns me on all over again.
"I need you," I whisper against his mouth. "All of you."
Alex positions himself between my thighs, the head of his cock pressing against my entrance. He pushes in slowly, carefully, watching my face for any sign of discomfort. When he's fully seated inside me, he pauses, letting me adjust.
"Fuck, you feel perfect," he groans, his forehead resting against mine.
He starts moving, slow and deep, each thrust deliberate and controlled. Russ's hand finds mine, threading our fingers together while Nick's mouth continues exploring my neck and shoulder.
The connection between all four of us feels different tonight. More intense. More permanent. Like something fundamental shifted the moment I told them about the pregnancy.
Alex's pace increases gradually, his control slipping as pleasure builds. I wrap my legs around his waist, pulling him deeper, and he groans low in his throat.
The second orgasm builds slower but stronger, coiling tight in my core. When it finally breaks, I shatter completely, crying out as waves of pleasure roll through me. Alex follows seconds later, his body going rigid as he comes with a harsh groan.
He pulls out carefully and Nick immediately takes his place, sliding into me while I'm still trembling from the aftershocks. His rhythm is different from Alex's, harder and more demanding, and I love it.
Russ moves to kiss me again, his tongue sliding against mine while Nick drives into me with increasing intensity.
The pleasure builds again impossibly fast, my body already oversensitive and responsive.
He comes with a low growl, his fingers digging into my hips hard enough to leave marks.
When he pulls out, Russ is already moving into position.
Russ's pace is faster, more playful, his mouth finding mine between thrusts. The pleasure builds one final time, and when I come again, it's softer but deeper, spreading through my entire body like warm honey.
Russ follows quickly, his body shuddering as he finishes. He collapses beside me, all three men surrounding me on the bed, their hands still touching me gently.
I fall asleep tangled between them, feeling safer and more connected than I ever have in my life.
Hours later, I wake to darkness and the sound of quiet breathing. I keep my eyes closed, not quite ready to fully surface from sleep.
"It's finally time to deal with the mayor and his son once and for all," Alex says quietly from somewhere near the window.
My eyes snap open, but I don't move. They don't realize I heard what was said.