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Tanner
Tanner wasn’t sure how he was going to be able to stay in France for much longer. The three of them had been getting both hotels up and running to their standards, hiring staff, and making sure that everything ran smoothly. But now, he was going to have to go home, and he hated leaving Declan and Shelby on their own to handle everything until he could get back.
He wasn’t ready to tell them that his mother had called or that she had bad news, but he had to. Tanner found Declan and Shelby in the office space that they were sharing until the remodeling could be finished on their new one. “Hey guys,” Tanner breathed.
“What’s up?” Declan asked. He should have known that his friend would have picked up on him being upset before he even said three words. “What happened?”
“My mom called. She’s sick and well, she needs to have some tests run. I promised that I’d run home to take her to her appointments. I can’t leave her alone right now; she needs someone by her side.”
“Of course she does,” Shelby asked. “When my mother got sick, I did the same thing—ran home and stayed with her through all of it. I don’t regret a single second of my time with her either. When do we leave?” she asked, reaching for Tanner’s hand.
“You should stay here,” Tanner said. “You and Declan can continue with the remodel and get everything in place here and I’ll run home to take my mom to the doctors. With any luck, I’ll be back in a couple of weeks.”
“That’s crazy, man,” Declan said. “You need to be with her, and we’ll be with you. We’re a team now, remember?”
“And I’m a part of your team,” Shelby insisted. “Declan’s right—you’ll need someone by your side through all of her tests.”
“But what about things here?” Tanner asked. “We don’t even have a manager for this place yet. It won’t just run itself.”
“How about if you leave that to me?” Declan asked. “You take Shelby and go home, and I’ll be right behind you.”
“How will you be right behind me if I have the jet?” Tanner asked.
Declan shrugged, “I’ll fly commercial.”
Shelby giggled, “You said that as if it was the worst thing ever. You two are kind of spoiled, you know?” she asked.
“We know, but we don’t take any of it for granted,” Tanner said. “You sure that you’re good, man?” he asked Declan. He knew that his best friend was struggling with figuring out the next step in what was going to happen between the three of them. Declan was a planner, and he would be worried about all of it—the three of them finding a place to live together, what the rest of the world would think, and even if Shelby would want long term with the both of them. Tanner had the same fears, but the difference between them was that he was determined to make this thing work between the three of them—fuck what anyone else thought.
“I’m good,” Declan lied. He knew his best friend better than anyone but calling him on his bullshit in front of Shelby might not be a good idea. “I’ll get things squared away back here and you take Shelby and go home to help your mom. I’ll be there before you know it.” He looked Declan over and he could tell that just about everything he had just promised was a complete lie.
“We’re going to talk about all of this later. For now, I’ll take your word that you’ll be home soon. Don’t disappoint her, man,” Tanner said.
“What’s going on here?” Shelby asked. “Why would Declan disappoint me?”
“I won’t,” Declan assured. “Tanner’s just being overly dramatic. You know how he gets.” After spending the past month together, they were getting to know each other’s little quirks. He had to admit, he loved just about every one of Shelby’s, he just hoped like hell that she felt the same way about them because she was about to get a crash course on Declan’s self-doubts sabotaging every relationship, they ever came close to having with a woman.
* * *
It had been two weeks since Tanner brought Shelby back to the states. He loved how accepting his mother was of their relationship once he sat down with her to spill his guts about sharing women with Declan. She invited Shelby into the family with open arms, even claiming that she already loved Declan as if he was her own son. Everything seemed to be working out for them, except that it wasn’t, because Declan had still not shown up back in their little hometown. He had even stopped calling them or returning their many calls. He hated how Declan was ghosting them, but he hated more how it seemed to be affecting Shelby.
He found her in the room that they were sharing at his mom’s house, with her laptop on her lap. “What are you doing?” he asked.
“Looking for a job. I’m hoping that someone needs a concierge in the area. If not, I’ll hopefully find a job cleaning rooms again. Either way, I need a job. My bank account is dwindling quickly.”
Tanner sat down next to her and took her laptop from her as she protested for him to give it back. “Or,” he said, “you could let me take care of you. You’ve been helping me take care of my mom and you’ve kept her spirits up through all of the tests that they are doing. I can’t thank you enough for all of your help. Let me take care of you, Shelby.”
“You can’t pay me for helping your mom stay positive, Tanner,” she insisted.
“Okay, let’s not call it me paying you. I just want to take care of you, Shelby. No strings—no services exchanged, just me and you,” he said.
She frowned at him, “What about Declan?” she asked. “I thought that it was supposed to be me, you, and Declan. That’s what you both promised me back in France.” Tanner had been worried that without Declan in the picture, Shelby wouldn’t want him anymore.
“Is it a deal-breaker if Declan doesn’t want to be a part of us anymore, honey?” he asked.
“I’m not sure,” she admitted.
Tanner nodded and stood from the bed. “I get it,” he said. “You signed up for both of us and if Declan doesn’t come home, you won’t be getting what you bargained for. But I won’t stop fighting for you, Shelby. I want there to be an us no matter what happens with Declan. I’ve fallen in love with you and not having him here will hurt like a bitch, but it won’t change how I feel. I’m in love with you.”
