There has to be a middle ground we can meet at… Somewhere. I just need to find it.
Jace comes in first. He doesn’t speak, doesn’t even look my way. His bag hits the floor, and he leans against the counter like the weight of it might hold him up.
Silas follows a few minutes later. His jaw is tight, hands buried in his pockets. He looks like he hasn’t slept, or like he’s trying not to feel anything. That’s how you know when something’s gotten to him… He stops moving, stops breathing loud enough to be human. It’s like he just ceases to exist until he sorts out his issues.
I let the silence sit, allowing them both time to stew in it until the air starts to feel electric.
Then I say it… What we’re all wondering.
“She’s not going to pick one of us.”
“No.” Jace’s head snaps up. “She’s not.”
“She doesn’t have to,” Silas murmurs. “Why would you even consider that?”
I nod once. “So we make a decision now, before we screw this up any more than you two already have.”
They glare at me for a solid minute.
“You mean… share?” Jace pushes off the counter. “Again?”
“It’s not new,” I agree. “We’ve done it before.”
His mouth curves, humorless. “Yeah. And that ended great, didn’t it?”
I don’t answer.
All three of us know who he means.
She had a name once.
We don’t say it anymore.
She was a beautiful woman with a soft voice and a smile like a blade hidden behind priceless stained glass. But that glass was awfully thin…
She’d said she wanted all of us, but Silas saw through her quicker than us. Really, she only ever wanted Jace.
And she made sure I knew it.
Every day.
With every look.
And every time she would withhold touch.
It wasn’t Jace’s fault. He tried to even it out, tried to keep us together, but her favoritism was poison. Normally, I think it starts slow and unnoticed… But by the time you realize it’s killing you, it’s already mixed into your blood.
She still shows up sometimes, checking to see if the door is open.
Silas always makes sure it’s locked.
“I’m not doing that again,” I say quietly. “Not unless we’re in this together. She needs to understand the offer, not just us.”
Jace looks up, his soft gaze a rare sight. “You think she could love all of us like that?”
“It’s a little soon for love,” I tease. “Let’s just make sure she likes us first, especially after she finds out the truth.”
“I think she already does,” Silas says, voice steady.
