Page 86 of Known By You
On the table in front of me sat plates with a decimated pile of croissants, profiteroles, cookies, miniature quiches, and a little tea pot we’d mostly drained of a nice black tea.
My friends each sat with their attention on the TV and Kit was curled up on my lap. Stone had brought Bear, who lay prone next to him, one paw on the man’s socked foot.
“I love this part,” I said, allowing the emotion to rush in.
Yes, I’d cried today. But not much.
No, I didn’t regret it.
I’d seen these men, especially Stone, but Cookie once or twice, too, at their lowest. I wouldn’t say this was a low, but I was struggling, and I couldn’t have been more grateful not to have to do it alone.
The fact that my support team came equipped with an actual gourmet tea party didn’t hurt.
“I feel weird that you’re tearing up and they’ve just accidentally collided while naked,” Luc said, giving me an expert side eye.
My eyes burned. “It’s fine. I’m fine. It’s fiiiiiine.”
He chuckled, and Stone’s lips pulled up into an almost-smile.
“It’s just the lack of sleep. And also the beautiful inevitability that Sandy B will absolutely fall for Ryan Reynolds, as we all do. She just doesn’t know it yet.”
Luc let out what I liked to think of as his adoring groan and Stone reached for a croissant.
“Are you going to talk to us about it? Or are we going to pretend to watchThe Proposalall morning?” Luc asked.
I gasped, hand to my heart. “How dare you.”
He rolled his eyes. “I know you love it, but it’s not my favorite and you’ll just have to accept that about me.”
“I don’t like how she tries to feed Kevin to the eagle,” Stone grumped.
Bear’s head popped up, and he eyed Stone, then dropped back down, almost as if to say, “I’d like to see an eagle eat me.” He weighed northwards of eighty pounds and could rest his paws on Stone’s shoulders if he stood on his hind legs, so good luck to the apex predator.
All their griping had me smiling, which I had to appreciate. There had been enough times in my life when I could hardly summon a flash of teeth, let alone a genuine smile. These men were with me whether I was sunny Barbie or broody or tearful Kenny, or anything in between.
“We can talk about it.” I paused the movie because I wasn’t about to talk over it. “I just don’t know that there’s much to say.”
“Try,” Stone demanded in that low, quiet voice of his. It was not unlike Beast’s approach, although there wouldn’thave been much gentleness in Beast’s order, or at least not until recently.
I inhaled, wondering where to begin. I should update them on my mom’s call and all of that nonsense, but what I really wanted to talk about was Liz.
“So I’m in love with her.” I swallowed, relief and a little flame of terror at saying it aloud burning bright in my chest.
Both men nodded like they knew this already.
Um, okay.“Was it that obvious?”
“Yes.” They spoke in unison, an event I would’ve appreciated a great deal more if it had been almost any other moment.
“We went out last night. Had a great meal. Went back to her place…” My eyes fell to my hands and I swallowed hard. “Had a nice time.”
“But?” Luc prompted.
“I’m not sure there’s a but. That’s the stupid thing. We didn’t sleep together, mostly because of me. I just had this moment where that’s where we were heading and I felt, like, destroyed.”
When I glanced up, Stone’s eyes narrowed on me, clearly waiting for more, and Luc took a drink of his tea like it was a shot.
“I want everything with her and it’s already breaking me that she’s leaving. And I hate that because she’s still here. I knew if we went any further it would be so much harder to move forward once she goes. It makes me a coward and selfish and probably not much of a man or whatever, but I couldn’t push for something I knew I’d only have for a while and then lose.” I exhaled sharply, the words tumbling fast enough I wasn’t breathing normally between sentences.
