Page 84 of Ink Me Three Times
She almost slams her hand on the dashboard in shock. "Wait, wait, wait... so youdidhook up with your boss? This is a wild love… square."
I groan, rubbing my temples. "Yes, I know. And Freddie works at Ink & Iron. With Mitchell and Timothy. They all work together. And now… now it’s just a big mess."
Her jaw literally drops, and for a moment, she’s completely silent.
Then the words come spilling out, faster than I can process. "Ivy, honey, I thought you were just confused. But now? This iswild! How is this not an international scandal? Are theyawareof this? Have you been doing this behind their backs or…?"
"They know," I whisper, staring at the road ahead, willing myself not to break under the weight of it all. "They all know."
Liv’s silence is deafening. I can feel her staring at me, waiting for some kind of explanation that will make sense of this absolute clusterfuck.
"I didn’tmeanfor any of this to happen," I continue, voice shaking now. "It wasn’t a game. I didn’t set out to hurt anyone." I sigh, trying to gather my thoughts. "But it’s caused issues between them. I don’t want them to fall out."
Olivia doesn't respond right away, letting my words hang in the air like a thick fog. I can feel her processing it all, her mind racing a mile a minute. It's silent for too long, and the tension between us is suffocating. Finally, she turns to me, her eyes wide with a mix of disbelief and something I can't quite place.
"A bit of an issue?" she repeats, her voice low. "You think? Ivy, honey, you're juggling three men, and you're telling me that there's only abitof tension between them?"
She lets out a low whistle, clearly struggling to process the enormity of what I'm saying.
"Ivy," she starts, her voice steady, but sharp with concern. "You know what you’re doing, right? You’re getting wrapped up in this whirlwind, and it’s getting harder and harder to figure out what’s real and what’s just... what’s just chaos."
I nod, biting my lip. I know.
"I’m not saying you shouldn’t have fun," she continues, her tone softening a little. "But you need to decide what you want, and who you want. Because from the outside looking in, all this back and forth? It’s just making things harder for everyone, including yourself."
"Right," I murmur, feeling the weight of her words. "I know."
And I do. Man, I do.
Because she's right, I've been spinning in circles, chasing something I can’t quite name. Wanting comfort, passion, control… all of it, and none of it. And somewhere in the middle, I’ve started to lose track of who I am, and what I really want.
Freddie makes me feel seen. Timothy makes me feel safe. Mitchell… Mitchell makes me feel like I’m standing on the edge of something I’ve never dared to leap into.
But how do I choose, when they all give me something I’ve been starving for? When each one makes the others feel like both too much and not enough?
The car comes to a stop in front of the cabin, and the silence that falls between us is heavy, but it feels different now. There’s a shift, like Liv has laid everything out on the table for me, and now it's up to me to figure out what to do with it.
I kill the engine, and the quiet hum of the cabin surroundings seeps in. I glance over at her, and she's not looking at me with judgment, but with understanding.
Like she's waiting for me to make my move, to say the thing I’m not ready to say.
Because maybe I do know what I want. Maybe I’ve always known. But saying it out loud? That would make it real. And if I say the wrong name… I don’t know if I can live with what I lose.
"Let’s get inside," I say, finally managing a small smile. "Before I start spilling more of my mess and make you regret coming here."
As soon as we’re inside the cabin, I kick off my boots and drop my bag by the door, my body still buzzing from the whirlwind of feelings I’ve been trying to ignore all day.
Olivia’s already in the kitchen, rifling through the cabinets like she’s preparing for a full on grocery heist, her phone tucked under her chin while she talks to someone… probably a guy she met at a coffee shop last week.
“Liv, you can’t just show up and start raiding Jesse’s kitchen like it's your personal snack bar,” I call out, leaning against the doorframe. “You know he might have something to say about that…”
She glances over, eyes hidden behind her oversized sunglasses, even though we’re inside. She hurries a goodbye and ends her phone call. "I'm not raiding. I'mscouting. Totally different thing. And Jesse should be grateful. I'm about to make this cabin look chic. Think of it as my version of TLC. Or maybe I should focus onyou… make you look chic.”
I roll my eyes but can’t help smiling. "Okay, yeah, because that’s exactly what I need right now. Makeover magic from Olivia Quinn."
Olivia looks at me like I’ve just cursed her. “Excuse me? Youdoneed me right now. Your hair is a disaster zone and I’m here to save you. Honestly, you’re lucky I’m even offering."
I sigh and flop onto the couch. “Fine, do your thing. But if I end up looking like a Pinterest fail, I’m holding you responsible.”
