Page 81 of Bro Amazing

Shuffling my own papers into my bag, I tamp down the worry that zings through me. I don't think Maddie would also hit on my boyfriends in front of me, especially after hearing about the Sasha incident, but I'm still on edge.

"Here to collect your girlfriend?" asks Angela, loudly.

All five of my boyfriends break out into the biggest grins.

"So you're telling everyone about us now?" asks Miles, sliding into Sasha's empty seat.

"Says the guy who announced it to millions," I shoot back as the others snag empty chairs from nearby tables and pull them up.

"Wait, what?" asks Maddie, confused.

I don't blame her. She's not in the gamer scene, so she doesn't realize that some of these players have so many followers. I didn't know anything about it either, until I moved in with these guys.

"We made a small post on our socials so girls wouldn't hit on us." Quintin side-eyes me to judge how I handle this information.

Sasha isn't here, but I'm still keeping a close eye on Maddie and Angela even though I'm pretty sure I don't have anything to worry about. We talk a lot about sex and they've made some wild comments, but I shouldn't immediately assume they'll hit on my boyfriends right in front of me. Although Sasha had been just fine with doing it behind my back, so I'm still cautious.

"But we learned from that, didn't we?" I say, grinning. I can't help but provoke them. I'll pay for it later, but I know that will be more of a reward than a punishment.

"Yes, we did," agrees Miles.

"It's still cool though, when you tell your friends," whispers Ethan, leaning close.

I roll my eyes, but my heart still flutters a little harder because the more people who know, the more real this entiresituation becomes. And the harder it will be to walk away. I'm not sure if that's what I want anymore. Not if it means no longer being part of their lives.

Chapter Twenty-Six

"I don't give a shit about Mom and Dad, but I wanted to tell you something."

I nearly walk into Ethan pacing the upstairs hallway, his phone pressed to his ear. When I try to go around him though, he snakes out an arm to tuck me against his chest as he continues talking to whoever is on the other side of the line.

"No, it's nothing like that," says Ethan, shaking his head so his chin rubs against my hair. "I didn't want either of you to hear it from someone else, but I'm dating someone."

Now that they've told the entire world, my boyfriends are slowly calling their families and telling them. I'm not sure if they're explaining that they're dating a woman who is also dating four other guys, but at least they aren't keeping our relationship a secret anymore.

I wrap my arms around Ethan's waist and squeeze him tight in case he needs a little more confidence to keep this conversation going. I haven't even told my parents yet. I'm not sure what will freak my parents out more, that there are five boyfriends or that they're professional gamers.

"She's actually my roommate." Ethan plants a kiss on the top of my head as his sisters squeal in excitement, their voicescarrying even though they're not on speakerphone. "Yeah, the one who wrote that romance book you're ARC reading."

My stomach squirms. I want to ask what they think of my book so far, but don't want Ethan to learn too many details.

"No, I haven't read it yet. I'll have to buy a copy since I wasn't lucky enough to receive an ARC."

Ever since we started our stripping game, my boyfriends have started learning more writers' jargon and are always throwing in a few author terms to show me they're listening. It's super cute.

"Oh, wow, spicy, huh?" Ethan winks down at me.

And that's my cue to leave. I can't not blush every time I talk to anyone about the spice levels of my new books. It makes me miss writing sweet romance a little bit because the topic never came up. But I'm not about to give up on all of my very hands-on research.

As his sisters talk, Ethan's eyebrows keep raising ever higher.Yep. Definitely time to walk away.

Planting a kiss on his shoulder, I slip out of Ethan's grip and head into my room. My second book isn't going to write itself. And book one is already seeing enough reads that I should get book two out soon.

"Hey, Clarissa," says Helix, sticking his head into my room. "Would you mind coming downstairs a minute?"

My mind is so deep into my book that it takes me a full minute to register not only that Helix is talking to me, but what he's saying. I'd ask what he needs, but he's already disappeared.

I find my boyfriends in the kitchen, either leaning against the counters or sitting at the table. None of them smile when I come in, and my stomach flips. I can't remember a time when at least one of them didn't smile or reach for me when I walked into a room.

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