Page 60 of Shared By my Ex's Best Friends
Jake leans against the far wall, arms crossed, jaw tight. His eyes flick to Liam, then back to me—sharp, unreadable.
Ethan sinks down onto the edge of the couch. His gaze searches mine, worried and kind, and my stomach twists with the weight of what I’m about to say.
Liam stays close. He doesn’t speak, doesn’t move away—just lets his fingers drift lightly along my arm like he knows I need something to hold onto. I’m not sure I deserve that softness, but I lean into it anyway.
If I don’t say this now, I’ll drown in it.
I take a breath—shaky, shallow, barely enough to keep me upright—and then I take another. The room feels too small, too quiet, every heartbeat loud in my ears as I look at the three men standing before me.
My hands tremble at my sides, but I don’t hide them. I’m done hiding.
“I have to say this out loud,” I begin, my voice thin and unsteady. “Even if it ruins everything.”
Ethan watches me from the couch, his elbows on his knees, tension carved into every angle of him. Liam’s still at my side but silent. Jake continues leaning against the wall like he’s pretending not to care, but I can feel his focus like a spotlight on my skin.
“I’m falling for you,” I say, the words spilling out faster now. “Not one. Not a favorite. Just… all of you.”
I pause, swallowing the fear that’s lodged like a stone in my throat.
“I know how this sounds. I know it’s messy and complicated and maybe even selfish, but it’s the truth. I don’t want to pretend anymore. I don’t want to smile through dinners and kisses and late-night talks while I’m breaking apart inside, trying to choose when I don’t want to.”
I look at each of them in turn, willing them to see me—reallysee me.
“I don’t want to choose,” I whisper. “The truth is… I wantyou.All of you.”
The silence that follows is unbearable.
My breath hitches. “Maybe this is too much. Maybe you don’t feel the same, or maybe you do but you’ll still walk away. I wouldn’t blame you. I couldn’t keep it in anymore.”
I brace myself for the fallout, for the crack that will split this night in two. But instead—
“We’ve already talked,” Liam says quietly.
My head snaps toward him.
He meets my eyes, steady and sure. “We know what’s happening, and…we’re not against it.”
My mouth opens, but nothing comes out.
Then Ethan rises slowly from the couch, his gaze never leaving mine. “It’s not traditional,” he says. “But none of us are pretending this is casual anymore.”
I blink fast, the burn behind my eyes impossible to hold back.
Jake pushes off the wall with a grin tugging at his lips—cocky and warm all at once. “I’d rather have part of you than none of you,” he says. “But if we all get to be yours? Even better.”
My knees nearly buckle. Not just from the words, but from the look in their eyes—like I’m already theirs, and they’ve just been waiting for me to claim it.
“Okay,” I murmur. “Yes… yes, I want to try this.”
“Good,” Liam says before grabbing me and pulling me into a hard kiss as the other two move in as well.
Chapter twenty-five
MAYA
Liam’s kiss is slow at first. A tasting… a teasing. I moan and melt against him, sliding my hands up his chest and gripping the front of his shirt.
He cups my cheek, callused fingers brushing the corner of my mouth. I thread my fingers into his hair as warmth blooms deep in my chest and soon, I’m trembling with need.
