Page 65 of The Grumpy Vet
"Because we wanted it to be your choice," Ryde says, lifting his chin so their eyes meet. "We didn't want to pressure you."
I glance between them. "But it was never our intention to make you feel like we didn't want you to stay. Because we did, and we both agreed to let you decide."
"It's silly, but…" A tear rolls down Dario's cheek. "I wanted you to ask me."
"That's not silly," I say, wiping the tear away. "If that's what you want, then that's what I'll do. Will you stay?"
He gives a small smile. "I appreciate that, but you're a little late. I already am."
"No. I don't mean stay in Scuttlebutt. I mean here. With me. Both of you. Will you both move in with me?"
Ryde's eyebrows rocket up. "Really?"
"Are you sure?" Dario adds.
"Because that's a big deal."
"A huge deal," Dario agrees with a nod. "You think you're ready for us?"
I lift my hand in the air, and they both go silent. "Yes and yes. Yes, it's a big deal. A really big deal. And yes, I'm ready for you." They both look amused, but I'm not done yet. "I think I've been ready for a while. It's taken losing my father and almost losing you, Dario, to make me realise I should have said something sooner. Not to pressure anyone or make anyone do something they don't want to do, but simply to reveal what is in my heart. I love you both. I want to be with you both. And I don't want to let anything get in the way of that."
Dario is nodding along as I talk, but Ryde is chewing into his lower lip, a sure sign he's worried about something. "What aboutanyone?" he asks a little timidly.
"Excuse me?" I say.
"Well, it's one thing to say we're not going to let anything stand in our way. But what aboutanyone? Like, say, oh, I don't know, my dad."
"Shit." I close my eyes. "Oakey. Of course."
The last twenty-four hours have been such a whirlwind, it's no surprise it momentarily slipped my mind how my best friend might react to the news that I'm with his son. And his son's best friend.
Jesus, this could be a colossal mess.
My phone buzzes on the table. It's the hospice. "I need to take this," I say, getting up. "We'll talk about this later."
Unfortunately,laterproves to be elusive. There's no time to grieve, no time to think about how to break the news to Oakey. I'm suddenly swamped with paperwork and calls to make and a funeral to organise.
Actually, I shouldn't sayI. Because the next few days are very much a team effort. A blur of phone calls and people dropping by with food and condolences, which I especially appreciate given my father wasn't very liked around here.
And then, the day before the funeral, a special guest arrives.
"Dad!"
Ryde gets up off the floor where we've been sorting through eighty-plus years of photos for the service tomorrow and crashes into his old man.
"Hey, son. Good to see you."
It warms my heart seeing how close they are. It also fills me with dread that Oakey finding out about the three of us could change that. Diminish their connection. Maybe even sever it entirely.
A small part of me is seriously contemplating whether it's worth the risk. But another much bigger and wiser part is applying the lesson I learned with Dario. We came so close to losing him because he was waiting for us to say something.
As much as I don't want to hurt Oakey, I'm a grown man, his son is an adult, and all three of us are going into this with our eyes wide open. Bottom line, he needs to be told.
Sure, a relationship with three people isn't the norm. And yes, there's a significant age difference, and I am their boss. I'm not disputing any of those very real, very important facts.
But beneath all that, there's love. Pure, genuine love.
And I trust my best friend. I trust him to see that. He might need to take a little time to get over the initial shock, but I have to believe in my heart of hearts that he'll see us for who we are:three men who belong together and are head over heels in love with one another.
