Page 53 of The Grumpy Vet
He gives a one-shoulder shrug. "Sure. Why not?"
"It's just that, well…"
Since I'm floundering, Dario steps in and, as if reading my mind, verbalises what I'm unable to. "We've never spent the night before, Linus. Your neighbours might see Ryde's car parked out front, and you know how people love to talk around here."
"Let them," Linus says decisively, dusting off his fingers. "I like you. Both. A lot. And…" We both lean in. "I'd like to talk about what we're doing."
I'm suddenly wide awake, like I've just had caffeine IV-dripped straight into my veins.
Dario is trying to remain cool, but his Adam's apple is thrashing around in his throat. "Okay. Let's talk," he says.
We leave the almost-finished jigsaw puzzle and head into the living room. We've spent a lot of time at Linus's place over the past few months, and I've never given much thought as to who sits where, but for the conversation we're about to have, the seating arrangement suddenly matters a lot.
Luckily, Linus takes the decision from me, grabbing each of us firmly by the hand and guiding us down onto the three-seater, plonking himself smack bang in the middle.
"Since dinner with the fellas the other night, I've been doing some thinking," he begins, resting each of our hands on his sturdy thighs and cradling them under his warm, calloused palms. "I stopped short of labelling what we've been doing because we haven't talked about that yet." He takes a breath, exhaling through his nose. "I'm going to be honest. I'm falling for you." Another breath, his jaw muscles clenching. "Both of you. I've obviously known you for longer, Ryde, but my feelings for Dario are just as strong."
His dark-hazel eyes pierce into me, waiting for a reaction. Do I feel jealous? Threatened? Angry? Hurt? Confused?
No.
All I feel is…relief. Mixed with a little tingling in my groin.
I smile at Linus. "I'm happy to hear that." Then I slant my head to see Dario. "My feelings for you are changing, too," I tell my best friend. "I don't know if it's because we've been sexual together, or if it's because you told me about your feelings for me, but I'm not just seeing you as my bestie anymore. I'm starting to like you the way I like Linus.Romantically," I add, just to spell it out since I'm not sure if I'm making any sense right now.
Dario doesn't respond right away, his eyes flicking between Linus and me before finally landing on me. "You know how I feel about you."
I nod. "I do."
He slowly turns to Linus, his shoulders rising and falling in uneven waves. I hold my breath, waiting to see what he says next. "And I like you, too, Linus. I haven't known how to process that or what to do with my feelings out of respect for you and Ryde."
"There is no Linus and Ryde," I say, readjusting my fingers so that I'm now gripping Linus's hand. "There's only Linus and Ryde and Dario. Right, Linus?"
The tension that's risen on Linus's face melts, replaced by the warmest, most endearing smile I've ever seen. "That's right, baby. I've been alone for so many years. I never expected to ever be with someone, much less two amazing guys. Yet here we are."
"Here we are," Dario and I repeat, smiling at each other as we realise we're saying it in unison.
"So what does this mean?" I ask. "Are we in a relationship?"
Linus turns left to right a few times then nods. "It's a yes from me."
"And a yes from me," Dario adds.
I break out into a huge grin, a deep spark of happiness taking hold in my chest. "Definitely a yes from me, too."
14
Linus
I'm in a relationship.
Halle-fucking-leujah! About bloody time, too.
Ryde, Dario, and I have officially been together for a month now. After so many years of being single and accepting that I was likely to stay that way for the rest of my life, it's a mindset shift to adjust to this new reality.
One I'm happily getting used to.
Even if there isn't all that much I need to get used to. Nothing's really changed from what we've slowly stumbled into over the past few months. We're basically joined at the hip at this point, the three of us working, training, and hanging out together.
