“I’m so sorry,” I said in a rush. “I’ve been a nervous wreck. I spent all week freaking out about my job, and I felt powerless, so I did something hasty. And yes, I now realize it was a terrible idea.”
“Jerry didn’t know anything,” Cam said, nodding his head. “He literally emailed every professor with the same vague accusation. Not just here, but also at Nashville State College and the University of Tennessee.”
“I realized that after talking to him,” I replied in a small voice. I felt like such an idiot now that it was over. Like one of those people who fell for a phishing email from their bank. “Listen…”
“You don’t need to explain anything,” Jace said.
I shook my head firmly. “There’s something I need to say. To all three of you. And you need to let me get it all out.”
The three of them grew quiet, with serious expressions falling across their faces one by one.
“I’ve spent the week freaking out about everything. Second guessing every decision I’ve made this semester, and everything between the three of you. This whole thing has given me a new perspective.”
Jace tensed like he thought I was going to break up with him. But that wasn’t what I was doing.
“The three of you aren’t liabilities,” I said firmly, pausing to look at each of them individually. “For about an hour on Thursday, I wasn’t sure about that. I was spiraling pretty hard. But I know that it’s not true. You’re the opposite of liabilities. Each of you is a pillar in my life, holding it up. Making it stronger than it otherwise would be.”
Cam perked up at that, and even Jace’s expression softened.
“I care about you. All of you. Even though it’s jeopardizing my career and my professional standing, I can’t lie about what’s inside here.” I tapped my chest.
“Your boob?” Cam asked.
Jace lightly smacked him. “Her heart.”
“My heart,” I confirmed with a chuckle. “Each of you has burrowed your way into my heart. We can argue about whether or not that’s a good idea, but the fact is that it’s too late. I…”
I hesitated. This next part wasn’t easy for me, hadneverbeen easy.
“I’m falling in love with you three,” I said. “And I’m sick of pretending that I’m not. Also, I’ve only said the L-word to one man before, so this is kind of a big deal right now.”
Next to me, Brock squeezed my thigh. “Technically, you didn’t use the L-word.”
“What? Yes I did!”
“You said you’refallingin love with us,” Jace added. “Technically not the same thing.”
“Spoken like a future lawyer.”
Jace smiled. “I learned from the best.”
“Still though, it’s not easy for me to make an admission like that,” I continued. “But it’s true.”
“I’ve been falling for you since the first day of class,” Cam announced. He immediately blushed when the three of us looked at him.
“I think that’s true for all of us,” Brock said.
“I started falling for herbeforethe first day of class,” Jace bragged. “And everyone here knows it.”
“She’s not a Caribbean island,” Cam said. “You don’t get to plant your flag on her just because you got there first.”
“Anyway, as I was saying,” I cut in. “I’ve been thinking a lot about what’s going to happen when this semester ends. And I’ve decided that I really want to keep seeing each of you. I know that’s unorthodox, and you guys might judge me for it, but there’s no way I can choose between the three of you. I want you all.”
“Let me stop you right there,” Jace held out his palm. “We don’t judge you. Not even a little bit.”
“Hell yeah,” Cam said. “This thing we have going is amazing. I was intimidated by it at first, sharing you with two other men, but now I’m fully on board.”
“Our dynamic is stronger, not weaker, because there are four of us,” Jace emphasized. “This semester has proved that over and over. Especially considering what happened here today.” He patted the booth table.
