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Had Tanner ordered Dane to call him a title instead of a pet name? That was new. I waggled my eyebrows at Dane, who shook his head. What the heck happened after Tanner put me to bed?
“Nice save. Keep going.” Tanner grinned, then took a sip from his mug. I touched his hand to see what was written across the cup and giggled. It said, “Find ‘em hot, leave ‘em wet.”My laughter seemed to break through some of the tension.
“I might have messed this all up from the jump.” Dane blew out a breath. “I want to be with you, Tiana, but I didn’t ask if you also wanted to be in a relationship with Tanner. I was so happy to finally have you in my arms that I selfishly neglected to bring it up.”
“Reword your last statement.” Tanner nodded. A notebook laid open next to him and he scribbled something in it as he spoke.
“I don’t get flustered by anything.” Dane jabbed his fingers through his hair. “My not being able to speak right now is absolute nonsense.”
“I told Tanner last night that I can leave if I’m causing issues between the two of you,” I offered sadly. I didn’t want to leave, but staying seemed to be just as bad.
“No, sunshine.” Dane met the distance between us and wrapped his arms around me. “My frustrations have nothing to do with you. I’m having trouble getting my point across.” He blew out a breath. “I can charm an entire convention center full of business associates, but I can’t seem to talk about relationship topics.”
“Please don’t be worried about how I’m going to respond.” I leaned my head on his shoulder. “Just tell me.”
“It’s not that I wanted you all to myself, but I was overwhelmed with memories, along with regrets,” Dane stated simply. “The only caveat is that we would all be in a relationship together.”
“You’re pulling out words that are way too fancy for my caffeine deprived brain, Daddy. Er, I mean, Dane!” I wanted to crawl under the counter.
“What was that, buttercup?” Tanner pulled my attention to him. He licked his lips, and his green eyes were sparkling in amusement. “Sounded like a title to me. One I’ve never heard from your lips.”
Tanner could make my panties explode into a million pieces from his cocky tone that was somehow sexy and gentle at the same time.
“It’s a title I’m trying out,” I finally answered.
“Interesting. What about you, rebel?” Dane said nothing, casually glancing between the two of us. “Until now I didn’t think our boyfriend wanted to be called Daddy,” Tanner clarified, but still seemed to be waiting on Dane to answer.
“It was a busy day, Sir.” Dane slowly let me out of his embrace. “I’m open to the title, the role, all of it.”
“Are we settled now?” Tanner asked gruffly.
Ourboyfriend sparked something deep inside of me, and soothed away the fear planted long ago when Dane first left. I was worthy of being in a relationship with anyone I wanted. I was worthy of their love and affection. Those thoughts overwhelmed me a bit. I stared at him blankly, unsure of what he was asking. “What?”
“The three of us are together in a relationship.” Tanner drew a circle in the air with his finger. “Yes?”
“Oh! Yes, Tanner,” I agreed.
“Yes, Sir,” Dane answered at the same time.
Some of the pressure that had been mounting eased off my shoulders. Still, I wasn’t quite convinced I’d be able to handle the two of them.
“Good.” Tanner shifted so he could look at both of us. “I think you would benefit from structure, Tia.” He handed me the notebook, and had obviously been banking on my approval to continue into a thruple. “I’ve written down the rules of the house, along with a few that catered to your needs, at least what I’m guessing they are. Look over them. Write each one down twice. If you have any questions or you see—”
“Bedtime!” I squealed indignantly while tapping the page with my pointer finger. All the previous calm was gone, replaced with pure chaos. My brat was not having any of it. “I’m a grown-ass woman. I don’t need or want a bedtime.”
Tanner looked up at the ceiling, scratching his chin before slowly returning his gaze to me. “Do not interrupt me, darling. If you had let me finish, you would know I was going to ask for your feedback.”
“But I’m an adult!” I scowled. It could be said that my statement made me sound like the opposite in that moment, but I continued. “I’ve been taking care of myself for a long time.”
“And where has that gotten you?”
“Fuck you, Tanner!” I jumped off the stool, but before I could storm out of the kitchen, he caught me, his hand gripping my upper arm. He seemed to be talking about my failures in California. It was like he poured salt in an open wound, even though his reasoning for bedtime was solid. I literally sat on my bed a few days ago and told him how poorly I was sleeping.
“I will not let you spiral, Tiana. We’re going to talk through this.”
“Throwing my mistakes in my face makes you an asshole. I don’t negotiate with assholes.”
“Tiana,” Dane said gently. “You can be upset. You’ve been through a hell of a lot of shit the past few days, but do not call Tanner names.”
