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“But you did.” I didn’t mean that as an accusation. He belonged where he was in our lives.
Alys shook her head. “But he didn’t. Maddox, you didn’t come between us. You didn’t push us apart.”
He jammed his hands in his pocket in a way that would’ve looked like withdrawing on anyone else, but was just Maddox thinking. Reacting. “I don’t know… I guess I saw…” He let out a noisy exhale. “It’s kind of like Xander. Not that either of you are like him. But for as long as Judith’s been in his life, there’s been this bond that no one could sever. And then Dom came along…
“I’m not comparing us to them. My point is, all of that can exist at the same time. You being perfect together. Me loving you both. There’s no rule in the universe that says we can’t have all of that, and I can’t imagine my world without both of you in it. You’re… You make me a better man.”
I had a hard time imagining that was possible. Maddox was already so good. “I love you too.”
“Well now I feel silly saying it.” Alys’s tone was light.
The laugh that rolled through all three of us was enough to ease the tension in the room, but it didn’t erase the incredible lingering feelings spilling out.
“But seriously,” Alys said. “I love you too, Maddox. I do, so much. And you don’t come between us, because you’re right, you’re part of me. Of Onyx.”
He kissed her on the forehead. Watching it was almost as good as experiencing his mouth on mine.
But only almost.
I pulled Maddox to me, cupped his face between my hands, and kissed him hard. This was so different than with Alys yesterday, and I wasn’t comparing the two to pick a favorite. That would be like choosing between chocolate and coffee. I needed them both.
With the words said, with the air cleared, my body reminded me we hadn’t had real rest for more than a day. I was too old for all-nighters. “Now can we sleep?”
Maddox grinned and pulled Alys and me toward the bedroom. “Fuck. Yes.”
It was official—waking up surrounded by the people I loved was the best way to wake up. The light streaming through the windows was an indicator we’d slept most of the day away, and I was good with that.
Next to me, Maddox rolled over with a muffled groan, but he didn’t open his eyes. “Mmm… I was having the most amazing dream.” His voice was exaggerated levels of drowsiness.
“Were you eating the world’s biggest marshmallow?” Alys asked from my other side, where she was wrapped around me and pressed into me.
“Why? Is there a pillow missing?” Maddox cracked one eye open. “Cuz I hate it when that happens.”
Yup. This was us, and it was perfect. “I’ll bite. What was your dream?”
“I don’t see how the two are related—you biting, my dream…” He cleared his throat. “Anyway, I was dreaming that you let me invest in your record store, and decided you didn’t have to move to Arizona, you could just visit a lot and take us with you, and then we all had incredible sex to celebrate.”
“Aww. I dream about things like ninjas having tea with Hello Kitty. Lucky.” Alys’s pout was clear in her voice.
I wanted a witty comeback, but I was too hung up on how good this random idea was. “Fuck me. You’re a genius.”
“I don’t see how the two are related, but…” Maddox trailed off with a grin.
Alys sat up and picked up her pillow, like she was going to toss it at him. Maddox lunged across me to grab her and stop her, and both tumbled into an awkward pile on top of me, in a pile of giggles and oofs.
Maddox paused with his face inches from mine, his laughing expression frozen in place, and his hair flopped over one eye. God he was gorgeous.
I brushed his hair behind his ear. “And then we all had sex, to celebrate?” I repeated the end of his dream.
“Yes. Or maybe I covered you with blueberry syrup and had breakfast.”
“Ooh, let’s go for pancakes after the orgasms. On one condition.” Alys didn’t extract herself from the tangled pile so much as strategically adjust herself.
“What condition?” I asked.
“You have to agree to Maddox’s dream idea.”
I liked it, but, “It needs details.”
