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I nod. “Then you and I fell in love. But I come with two other people. Two othermen. I’m not just a partner foryou. So I messed up some of your plans.” I give him a wobbly smile and lift his hand to my lips for a kiss. “I know you love me, Michael. And I know I love you, so, so much. I’m just not who you were planning on. And so you’re having to shift around some expectations.”
He takes a breath and it sounds ragged. “You’re…exactly right. I’ve been thinking about that a lot, actually.”
“Are you thinking good things about it?” I ask.
“Just how it will all work. How Nathan and Crew fit into the picture I’ve always had of my future.”
So he didn’t say it wasgood. But he didn’t say it was bad. I chew on my bottom lip for a moment.
“Are you okay with the three of us being different intheseways?” he asks. “I know in other ways–the way we romance you, our interests, even the way we make love to you–we’re different and that’s a good thing, but is it okay with you that we’re all in different places in our lives? And that our one-on-one relationships with you are a little different?”
I think about it for a moment, but that’s easy to answer. “Of course. I need all three of you. Iwantall three of you. And it’sbecauseyou’re all different. I don’t expect any of you to have exactly the same outlook on life.”
He studies my face as I speak. He nods, seeming pleased by my answer. “I agree. Even though we’re all in this relationship together, it’s important we all continue to respect that we’re each individuals. And that we each have a relationshipwithyouthat’s different from what you have with the other two.”
I nod. “I agree.”
He smiles. “Great.” He leans in and kisses me. “I love you.”
“I love you too.”
He sits back in his chair. He seems mostly mollified by our conversation. His gaze lands on the papers on the table. "What were you reading about?"
I quickly move to cover the papers with my hand. I'm not sure I want him to know that I have absolutely no clue what any of this means.
But the title of the first article peeks out from underneath my hand. He frowns, then looks up at me. "You're reading one of my papers?"
I sigh and lean back, pushing all of the papers toward him. "Both of them. Or maybe you have even more? These are the ones that you were talking about in Vegas."
I can't read the expression on his face.
"Why?" he asks.
"Because I want to know more about what you do. Because I realize that I know a lot about what Nathan and Crew do, but I don't really know many specifics about your job. And I don't want you to think that I don't care. I want to be more involved in your life. I want the next medical conference to go better."
"Danielle," he says firmly. His full use of my name always makes me pause. "You didn’t do anything wrong. We're okay."
I nod. "I know. But I want to show you that I care."
"I know you care."
"What you do is just so far beyond what I understand. I don’t mean that hockey isn’t impressive. It totally is. It's just a little easier to understand. And Nathan is just…rich.”
Michael chuckles at that, and I smile. “I’m sure there’s more to it than that, but he sits in meetings and tells people what to do. It's basically exactly how he is at home."
Michael’s grin grows.
"I just know that you have a bigger life. And you had a lot of life before I came along."
He puts a hand over his chest. "Ouch. A dig at my age?"
I grin and lean in, grabbing his hand. "No. Except, kind of. I'm just saying that you've done a lot that I haven't. And I don't want you to think that you can't include me. That I can't keep up."
He studies me for a moment. Then he says, "Dani, you don't have to read my papers. Or listen to my lectures. Or understand everything I do at work. That's not the important part."
"But being a part of your life outside of watching you on the bench during hockey games and at home when we're all together is important."
He nods. "I understand what you're saying. It's like me being involved in your writing."
