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Forty-Three
DAKOTA
I left Vale on shaky legs, but with rock-hard memories that would last a lifetime. From there we went home, back through Denver and out the opposite side. Back to the beautiful piece of property the guys had pooled their resources in order to obtain.
And ‘home’ was every bit as welcoming as anywhere I’d ever lived.
I spent the next week or more exploring the breathtakingly large house they were still in the process of finishing, while the four of us explored our budding new relationship. We talked about the past and the present. We talked about the future. We set guidelines and boundaries, eventually outlining the full scope of what it would look like for three men to date one woman.
But no matter which angle we looked at it from, the four of us were always all on the same page.
Our relationship would be exclusive; a closed circle of love and trust. There would be no other men for me. There would be no other women for Jace, for Merrick, or for Aurelius. That part made me feel warm and secure, but as the sole source of their happiness it also put a lot of weight on my shoulders. It left me with three men to satisfy, emotionally as well as physically. It gave me three times the responsibilities for building those one-on-one connections, and I vowed to give each of them equal time when it came to such things.
In the end though, I shouldn’t have worried.
As it turned out, the guys were incredibly understanding of both my feelings and fears. Between them, therewasno jealousy. There never would be. Each realized that scheduling inequities would invariably exist, and that trying to make everything ‘equal’ would only drive everyone crazy. In that respect, we decided there would never be any schedule. Anyone and everyone was welcome on every single date, dinner, or place we went to. Wherever the world might take us, there would never be any splitting of my time, my efforts, or my love.
In the week and a half I spent with Jace, Merrick, and Aurelius, there was never anything but positive vibes. I went out with each of them alone, or sometimes with two or three at a time. I slept in their beds, and they slept in mine. Our lives and schedules were interchangeable, constantly moving and always fluid. But the golden rule — the one that would become our mantra, of sorts — was plain and simple:
Whenever we could do something together, we always did.
For me, my life was about to radically change. I wasn’t just moving from one place to another, I was going from being single to having three mates. From being constantly alone to always having someone around. But it would be someone to talk to. Someone to cuddle up with. Someone to love.
And most times, more than one someone.
Throughout my entire time in Colorado there was never a dull or lonely moment, nor did the guys pressure me to make the decision to move in with them. But that decision was a no-brainer. It had been made the very second I’d landed beneath those wide, beautiful skies, only to be crushed against three strong chests and enveloped by six hard, beautiful arms.
I spent my last evening on the couch watching movies and lounging comfortably in three warm laps, mentally going through the checklist of things I needed to do once back in Minnesota again. There was a lot to clear out, a lot of loose ends to tie up. And then there were a lot of goodbyes I had to make too. Some of which I knew would prove to be the most difficult part of all.
“You sure you don’t want to go out tonight?” asked Jace. “It’s not too late. We could easily—”
“Ice cream.”
Merrick laughed. Aurelius bolted upright, like a little kid who thinks he heard Santa come down the chimney.
“I want you to take me out for really good ice cream,” I declared. “And then right back here, so I can give you all a proper sendoff.”
Jace’s eyebrow rose up on one side. It was a little trick of his that I was always jealous of.
“Aren’t we the ones givingyouthe sendoff?” he asked.
“Maybe,” I shrugged. “But a good girlfriend knows the value of tiding her man over with something to remember her by, before she goes away.”
I stood up, suddenly very excited for ice cream. The guys rose with me.
“A good girlfriend, huh?” smirked Merrick. “And what does agreatgirlfriend do?”
Without missing a beat I set my hands on my hips and winked.
“A great girlfriend does it withallher men.”
