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We already had a plan for tonight. We were going to talk to her, all of us together, and tell her what we were thinking for the future. But now… I wasn’t sure how it would go. The guys could definitely feel through the bond that something big had happened.
As we pulled into the driveway, I gave her a heads-up.
“Michael’s been planning this dinner for a while.Ben decorated. We were going to give you some news about our jobs. Now I just want to carry you up to my bed.”
She laughed, her gorgeous voice making my chest light up. I couldn’t wait to make her mine. Ours.
“I’m starving, so dinner first. When do you want to tell them?”
“They’ll know something’s going on.” I smiled. “Let’s see how long we can draw it out.”
“Not long,” she mumbled.
I loved that she was just as excited as I was to make the bond real.
We both jogged up the porch steps. Ben opened the door from inside before we could reach for it. He looked between the two of us, his eyes wide and expectant.
“What is it?” he asked.
Tracy turned into an actress. She shrugged.
“What? Oh, wow,” she said, walking past him. “It’s beautiful in here.” She started wandering around our open living and dining room, checking out the strings of tiny lights and the vases overflowing with flowers.
Ben looked at me with a raised brow, and I just shook my head with a grin. He was feeling how happy I was, and it was killing him not to know what it was about. But we really did need to tell her some things before we bonded. I leaned over and spoke quietly.
“I told Tracy we’re laying all our cards on the table tonight. Let’s deal with that first.”
He frowned but nodded. Then Tracy got between us, threw her arms around Ben, and kissed his cheek.
“I love the fairy lights. This is so romantic.”
Ben smiled down at her and palmed the back of her head, bending to kiss her deeply. She sighed when he pulled back, blinking up at him.
Michael cleared his throat from the doorway to the kitchen.
“Dinner’s ready.” He looked around at everyone. “What the fuck is going on?”
“Ooh! White wine.” Tracy laughed as she broke away from Ben and went to the table. She was enjoying this, but I knew she was also anxious to tell them.
I motioned to the chairs. “We’re eating. And we’re talking.” I walked over and started filling everyone’s glasses.
Ben and Michael darted confused looks at Tracy and me as we all sat.
“Oh, Michael.” Tracy gasped as she realized what he’d prepared.
“Handmade pasta, pork belly, and fresh tomatoes with a light drizzle of pesto.” Michael smiled. “Hope you like it.”
It was a fancy version of what he’d cooked for her at the cabin. She took a bite and moaned. His foodalways seemed to get that reaction from her. It was something I’d never get tired of.
I took a sip of wine and ate a few bites of really good pasta, then started with my news.
“I’ve accepted a job with the college. I’ll be working on wildfire prevention research, and doing some teaching and speaking. There’ll be light travel, but nothing like what I’ve been doing for my postdoc. And I won’t be in the field during fire season.”
Even before meeting Tracy, I’d been debating taking a step back. Michael had been more open about his struggles, but a lot of those fires had been rough on me, too. I wasn’t willing to give it up entirely—I still had experience and skills I wanted to utilize—and this way, I wouldn’t have to.
Ben went next. “I won a grant to continue my research in the park. I’ll only be teaching one class, so it won’t be the heavy load I expected. I’ll be able to meet you for lunch.” He winked at Tracy, and she gave him a huge smile.
Michael spoke before she had a chance to respond to Ben or to me. “It turns out that my sous chef is a star. She’s agreed to share executive chef duties with me. The hours will still be awful on days when I’m doing dinner service, but it’ll be a better balance.”
