AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Chapter 27
Dylan
The only reason I was late getting to the afterparty was because I was stuck on the phone with my family. It wasn’t an exaggeration to say that they were upset. Not to mention confused.
They were all gathered together on the call, talking over each other.
“Is that really you we saw on the news?” Levi asked.
“What is going on, Dylan?” Irene chimed in right on our little brother’s heels.
“Dude, random people are commenting on the business social media page,” Clay said, exasperated. “They’re calling us sickos, threatening to boycott our company.”
“What have you gotten yourself into, Dyl?” Brody asked next. “You’re in way over your head with all this UFC stuff. The press is going to eat you alive.”
“Are you in love with her?”
Boone’s low voice and unshakeable firmness caused my other siblings to quiet down. I held my breath, unsure how to respond. Did I love Julia? I certainly cared for her a great deal, probably more than most. But was itlove?
“I don’t see what that has to do with anything,” I replied.
“Is this like… some weird kink or something?” Clay questioned. “I can’t imagine three guys being okay with openly sharing one woman, but if that’s what it takes to get your rocks off—”
“You know polyamory is a thing, right?” Levi asked.
“The fuck is that? You kids these days with your big words…”
I sighed, pinching the bridge of my nose in irritation. “Jesus Christ, please stop.”
“I’m just kidding! I know what it is, I just didn’t think…” Clay trailed off, unable to find the right words.
“This is serious, Dylan,” Irene said, a little softer. “The things they’re saying on the news…”
“I don’t give a flying fuck what they have to say. My personal life is nobody’s business. We’re happy. That’s all that matters.”
“You’re happy?” Brody asked.
“Yes. Unbelievably. I mean, not so much in recent days given the whole shitshow we’re dealing with, but yes. This arrangement, us being together… It works for us. We care about her and we want to be with her. To answer your question, Boone, yeah, I think I am in love with her.”
The silence that followed was long and uncomfortable. I was the first to speak again.
“Look, I don’t need to justify my feelings. We’re all adults and it’s all consensual. Everyone else can fuck right off with their opinions.”
“Easy, Dyl,” Levi said. “We understand.”
“You do?”
“Yes,” Irene replied. “We just want to make sure you’re okay. It’s going to take some getting used to the idea, but it sounds like what you have is really special.”
“You’re right,” Clay added. “It’s nobody else’s business what you get up to.”
“But the sad fact of the matter is,” Boone started, “that now that it’s in the public eye, this will take some time to all die down. You need to be careful. There’s no shortage of assholes out there looking to stick their noses where they do n’t belong.”
Somewhere behind them, the office phone started ringing. It didn’t sound like anybody made a move to pick it up.
“Probably one of those pesky reporters again,” Brody grumbled. “They’ve been harassing us for information about you.”
“You haven’t told them anything, though, right?”
