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Matt spoke first. “Our wife, Jena, and Ashley are good friends.”
He and Sean told the story about how they’d met and fallen in love with Jena. “So you see, we’re not blood brothers either, Nic. But in every other way we are.”
The rest of the men told Nic their stories until late in the night.
At the very end, Sylas stood. “Nic, you’re my brother. Even though we had a bump in the road, you’ve never stopped being my brother. I know you love Ashley, and you know I love her, too. Just like Patrick and Sam, we just didn’t know what to do about it. Now we do. Sam’s intervention was about you, but hearing all these men’s stories also helped me. This is new for us, but I believe that you and I can make Ashley happy. You only had a loving family for a short time. This is our chance for the three of us to be a family for the rest of our lives. I love you, bro. So what do you say?”
Wracked with emotion, Nic stood and walked up to Sylas. He pulled him in for a hug. “I’m sorry, bro. For everything. I do love you. And you’re right—I do love her.” He turned to the other men in the room. “Thank you, but I still don’t understand how the sex works. I assume you are all heterosexuals.”
They all laughed.
“You assume right,” Patrick said, smiling.
“Not that we have anything against gays or bisexuals,” Sam added. “In fact, we have gay families and bisexual families in Destiny. This town respects everyone’s right to love any way that they want.”
“You should see our gay pride parade, Nic,” Mit
chell chimed in. “It’s over the top and everyone participates—gay, straight, whatever.”
Nic couldn’t get over how accepting these men were. “So…do you take turns?”
Sam laughed. “Now you sound just like Sylas. That was exactly what he asked us. I’ll give you the same answer that my wife gave him. Sometimes it’s separate. Sometimes it’s together. Take it from me, a man who’s been married for over five decades. Sexuality is a journey that is discovered day by day.”
“And night by night,” Patrick teased. “You can teach old dogs new tricks, Nic. The fun is learning with the woman you love.”
Imagining what making love to Ashley for the rest of his life would be like, Nic smiled. “Sylas, you and I need to talk to Ashley.”
“Yes, we do.” Sylas looked him in the eyes. “So you’re convinced? You want this? You believe that you and I can make it work with Ashley?”
Nic laughed. “Now who sounds like they need convincing? Yes. I do. I love her. You love her. She loves us. She wants us both. I know it’s late, but I have to see her. I’ve put her through hell. I can’t go another second without letting her know how much she means to me and that I want us to be a family. Are you with me, Sylas?”
“For the rest of my life, bro.”
Chapter Thirteen
Sitting in her comfy PJs and slippers, Ashley stared at the page of the law book in her lap. She’d read the same sentence at least a dozen times. She just couldn’t concentrate, even though she needed to be studying. Phoebe had left at eleven-thirty, which was over an hour ago.
Surely the intervention is over by now. Why haven’t I heard anything?
She decided to put on a fresh pot of coffee. She was thankful for the little bit of sleep she’d gotten after making love to Sylas. But there would be no more sleep tonight. She was too wound up.
Please let Nic see that we belong together. This can work. He has to believe it.
Sylas had made it clear to her that he wanted the three of them to be a family. That’s all she wanted, too. She’d dreamed about it back in Chicago. Was Phoebe right? Was everything going to turn out right?
Her doorbell rang, startling her. She dropped the can of coffee, spilling the dark grounds on the floor.
A knock followed.
“Ashley, it’s me. Nic. Sylas is here, too. We need to talk.”
She ran to the door and flung it open. “Oh my God, you’re together. Please tell me that the intervention worked.”
Nic swept her up in his arms and swung her around. “I’m so sorry, baby. Please forgive me. I realize now that I let my past get in the way of our future. I’ve told you what my parents were like. But what I didn’t tell you was what it felt like to be in that position as such a young child. I spent years listening to my father tell me how no one wanted me, not even my mother. He told me I wasn’t good enough to love.”
Ashley’s heart broke for Nic. “I’m so sorry you had to go through all that. But you have to know it’s not true. You are one of the most lovable people I’ve ever met.”
“I know in my head that he was an awful person and that his words aren’t true, but when you told me you wanted both of us, I felt like I wasn’t good enough to have you alone. All those feelings from my childhood came rushing back.”
