Chapter 59
luna
Two Months Later
“Thank you so much for coming to our little housewarming party. It was so kind of you to come all the way down from Minnesota.”
I wrapped Dirks’s mom, dad, and sister into big hugs one by one before I slipped back into the crowd.
Nova stood nearby, chatting with Charlie, who was glowing, her hands resting protectively over her very pregnant belly.
“I’m still sad you moved out of the guesthouse,” Nova said the moment she spotted me. Her smile was soft, but her tone carried that sisterly pout only she could pull off. “But I guess this makes up for it.”
I laughed, my gaze sweeping over the house—our house—the one Jer, Dirks, and I had poured ourselves into.
“It’s right across the street from you, Nove,” I reminded her with a grin.
“I know,” she sighed dramatically, pulling me into a quick squeeze. “But I still miss you being right there.”
Her words warmed me, even as I hugged her back and then reached out to gently pat Charlie’s tummy. “Thank you for coming, both of you. It means more than you know.”
“There’s nowhere else I’d rather be.”
The living room buzzed with life, warm laughter spilling over the low hum of music.
The walls were painted a soft cream that caught the afternoon light streaming through the big bay window, and the hardwood floors gleamed beneath a scatter of mismatched rugs we’d collected together.
Family photos already lined the mantel, alongside a vase of fresh flowers Nova had insisted on bringing over.
The scent of coffee and something sweet from the kitchen lingered in the air.
My gaze caught on Jer and Dirks standing in the middle of the living room, shoulders brushing as they talked. The two of them—my anchors, my chaos, my steady—waiting for me.
I moved toward them, weaving through the crowd with a smile tugging at my lips.
“Speech! Speech!” Nova shouted over the chatter, her grin wide as Ollie and Scarlette clung to her sides.
Austin stood next to them with his arm protectively wrapped around Charlie, his hand clasping her belly. Ledger stood tall beside Auburn with little Evie perched on his hip. Across the room, Dirks’s mom, dad, and sister watched with soft, expectant smiles.
I laughed nervously, heat blooming in my cheeks as I turned to my men.
Jer stood steady on one side of me, his fingers laced tightly through mine, the inked stars and a moon like they belonged there just to guide me home.
On the other side, Dirks—my sunshine, my blue-eyed anchor—squeezed my hand, his warmth grounding me even as my chest ached with the rush of it all.
Looking out at everyone gathered in the home we’d built together, my throat tightened.
“Thank you all for coming. For so long, I was a foster kid. No home. No family. No place to truly belong. And then . . . ” I glanced toward Jer, emotion catching in my throat.
“I met him. He gave me the first glimpse of what love and safety could feel like. Years later, when the universe spun us back together, I met my sunshine in Dirks. My anchor. The one who reminded me I didn’t only deserve a home—I deserved to build one. ”
Silence hung for a beat, tears glimmering in more than a few eyes. Both Jer and Dirks slipped their hands from mine, as though wordlessly agreeing this moment wasn’t just mine to hold.
Dirks turned toward me, his jaw tight, but his eyes—those bright, endless blue eyes—soft as they locked onto mine. “Luna girl . . . you know I love you.”
Before I could take my next breath, he was dropping down on one knee right there in the middle of our living room, in front of everyone.
He took my hand in both of his, thumb brushing over my knuckles.
“When you left for London, I thought I’d lost you forever.
I thought I’d never get the chance to tell you how much you meant to me, how much you made me better.
And when you finally came back . . . God, Luna, I realized how much I’d taken for granted.
I don’t want to waste another second without you knowing—you’re it for me.
My sunshine, my wild girl, my anchor when I didn’t even know I needed one.
Every day with you, I learn what love actually means.
I want to wake up next to you, fight beside you, build a life with you forever. Marry me, Luna girl. Be mine.”
The room erupted, gasps, hands flying to mouths, a squeal from Nova that I’d never let her live down.
My heart hammered against my ribs, and tears pricked the corners of my eyes.
Instead of answering him, my gaze darted sideways. To Jer. To the dark ink on his arms, the steady strength in his jaw, the man who had carried my shadows for years.
My hands trembled as I shook my head, whispering through a broken laugh, “I . . . I couldn’t do this without him.”
It wasn’t rejection—it was the truth. Our truth. I needed both of them. Two halves that made me whole. Sunshine and starlight. Anchor and edge.
Jer froze for only a moment, then his lips curved into that rare, quiet smile. “Guess I’d better not let him show me up, huh?” And shit, he dropped to one knee, too.
Jer took my other hand. “Lune, I’ve loved you since I was a kid, before I even knew what love meant. And standing here now, after everything—we survived. You, me, Dirks. We’re not halves anymore. Marry me.”
My knees buckled, tears streaming down my face as laughter spilled out between sobs. Two men on their knees in front of me, both my anchors, both my wild, impossible loves.
My chest cracked wide open, and I didn’t even try to hold back the sob when I dropped to my knees between them, hands clutching theirs so hard it almost hurt. “Yes. Yes. To both of you. Always, yes.”
Dirks was the first to surge up, cupping my face and kissing me with the kind of passion that burned, his sunshine warmth wrapping me up until I was dizzy.
Then Jer was there, tugging me back, his kiss slower.
And then—God help us—we were all laughing, tangled together on the floor of our brand-new living room while our family and friends lost their minds around us.
The roar of cheers and applause was deafening. Someone—Ledger, probably—whistled. Charlie was crying into Austin’s chest. Dirks’s mom had both hands pressed over her mouth like she’d just watched the most romantic movie of her life.
Nova’s voice cut through all of it. “Well, holy shit, Luna. Some of us are out here struggling to get one proposal, and you just bagged two within five minutes.”
I wiped my eyes, breathless and laughing so hard it hurt, and shot her a look. “Yeah, well . . . what can I say? I’m an overachiever.”
Jer groaned, forehead pressed to mine. “Only you would make a double engagement sound like bragging rights.”
“Why couldn’t I just have one, huh? Would’ve been a lot simpler.”
Dirks grinned, pulling me tighter between them. “Because simple was never your style, Luna girl.”
Before I could even catch my breath, Nova wrapped me up in a hug.
“You deserve this, Lune. After everything you’ve been through, after all the times you were told to settle for scraps, to come second—” Her words caught, and she waved a hand in front of her face before continuing.
“Now you’re somebody’s first. Two people’s first. That’s all you’ve ever deserved.
To be chosen. To be loved without apology. ”
I let out a shaky laugh. “Why do you always know exactly what to say to ruin my makeup?”
“Because I’ve been here the whole time. I watched you disappear into yourself, Lune. I watched you give and give until there was nothing left. But tonight—” She gestured between Jer and Dirks. “Tonight I get to watch you finally be poured into. And you have no idea how happy that makes me.”
Dirks tugged me against his side, pressing a kiss to my hair. Jer squeezed my hand tight, his thumb brushing over my knuckles.
One by one, people began to peel away. Dirks’s parents hugged me tightly, his mom whispering Welcome to the family in my ear.
His sister promised to text me later. Ledger clapped Jer on the back with a grin and told him he’d better not screw this up.
Auburn and Evie left arm-in-arm with Scarlette.
Charlie waddled to the door with Austin glued to her side, her round belly leading the way.
Nova was the last to go. She pulled me into a hug that lingered, her lips brushing my ear as she whispered, “Don’t forget, you’re worthy of this. Always.”
When the door finally shut behind her, the house suddenly quieted.
I turned to Jer and Dirks, my heart thudding in my chest. They were both watching me.
“God,” I said, laughing through the lump in my throat. “That was . . . a lot.”
Dirks grinned, shoving his hands in his pockets. “Speech of the year, Luna girl.”
I looked between them, my chest aching with so much love it was hard to breathe. “You two are gonna kill me one day.”
Dirks leaned in, his blue eyes glinting. “Nah, Luna girl. We’re gonna keep you alive.”
Jer snorted. “Barely.”
Dirks smirked, tugging me into his chest. “Where’s the fun in simple?”
Jer kissed my cheek, his hand warm at my back. “Besides, you’d be bored in a week.”
I leaned into Jer first, pressing my lips to his. When I pulled back, Dirks was already leaning down, grinning like the sun itself, and I kissed him, too.
When I opened my eyes, Dirks was already fishing in his pocket. He dropped to one knee again, this time pulling out a velvet box. Inside was a diamond that caught the light like fire, huge and bold, so him.
“Holy shit,” I whispered.
Before I could even recover, Jer reached behind him, pulling out a thinner band he’d hidden away. It was delicate, lined with tiny diamonds cut into the shapes of crescent moons, glinting like stars across the metal.
“This was special,” they both said, nearly in unison. “Just for us.”
Tears blurred my vision as I kissed them both again.
“Does this mean . . . ” I laughed wetly, wiping at my eyes. “We’re going to live together in one bed? One big ridiculous bed?”
Dirks chuckled, sliding the diamond ring onto my finger like it was the easiest thing in the world. “As long as I’m next to you, Luna girl, I don’t care where I sleep.”
Jer smirked, slipping the crescent moons band on the same hand, his thumb brushing across my knuckles. “Whatever you need, Luna. I’m not going anywhere.”
I stared down at both rings on my hand, the sparkle of diamonds and the shimmer of moons stacked together, like two halves of the same vow. My chest tightened, my heart stretching wide enough to fit them both.
Dirks clapped Jer’s shoulder once, then straightened, already scanning the room. “Alright, lovebirds. I’ll go clean up before this place looks like a frat house.”
He winked at me, then disappeared toward the kitchen, leaving Jer and me standing there in the quiet glow of our new forever.
“I’m so sorry. Never, ever again will I hurt you or run away. Never.”
I swallowed hard, covering his hands with mine, forcing him to see me steady, to feel me grounded. “Jer, you don’t have to keep punishing yourself. You’re here. With me. That’s all I need.”
He shook his head, jaw tight, eyes stormy but vulnerable in a way I rarely saw. “No. I swear, Luna—I swear on my fucking soul—I will fight every single day for us. There will be no more hot and cold between us.”
Behind us, Dirks leaned quietly against the doorway, watching without interrupting, his blue eyes softer than I’d ever seen them. It wasn’t jealousy, it wasn’t doubt—it was pride. Relief. Like he knew this was the moment Jer needed to say out loud, and the moment I needed to finally hear.
“I know you won’t leave again, and I promise—to both of you—I’m done hiding. I’m done carrying this weight like it belongs to me alone. I’m here. With you. Always.”
Dirks stepped closer, the warmth of his hand settling on my shoulder.
He didn’t need to say anything. His presence had always been enough, his steady sunshine filling the dark corners I’d once thought would swallow me whole.
With him at my side, with Jer’s hands trembling in mine, I felt like I was standing in a life I’d never believed was mine to claim.
For so long, my life had been defined by the secrets I carried.
Secrets that silenced me. Secrets that bruised me from the inside out.
Secrets that told me love was supposed to hurt, that safety was temporary, that home was something meant for other people but never me.
They were chains I thought I’d drag forever, heavy reminders that my story would always be survival and never joy.
But then there was Jeremy. My best friend.
My shadow. The boy who didn’t know the worst of what I’d endured but gave me my first taste of what it meant to be seen anyway.
He gave me laughter when I was broken. He gave me permission to be safe in my own skin, in my own sexuality, in the parts of myself I thought had been ruined.
He was my first family, my first home, and even when fear pulled us apart, some thread always tied us back together.
And then there was Dirks. My sunshine. My anchor.
The man who walked into my storm and refused to let me drown in it.
Who gave me steadiness when I shook, who handed me joy like it was mine to keep, who stood at my side when the shadows crept in and said, “I’m not moving.
” He wasn’t a replacement for what I lost. He was proof that I could be loved twice, and just as fiercely.
Love was never about choosing between halves. It was about finding the people who made me whole, no matter how impossible it looked from the outside.
The world would never understand us. They’d whisper and wonder and judge. But what the world thought didn’t matter. What mattered was the three of us, our secrets stitched together into something unbreakable.
Because secrets didn’t always have to destroy you. Sometimes, if you were lucky enough to find the right people, they became the very thing that saved you.
We were three broken souls who found home in each other. Three people who weren’t afraid to love louder, fiercer, and messier than anyone else dared.
This was my family. My home. My forever.
My secrets once felt like a curse. Buried so deep, they ate me alive. But with them—Jer, Dirks, and the messy, beautiful truth of us—I found the most powerful thing of all: a life I actually wanted to live.
Two men. Shared secrets.
And, fine . . .
Maybe the ball gag, too.