Caleb’s reply was simple, but it was genuine. “Yes.”
And Everett, who’d witnessed how much he’d changed since Jayne had come into their lives, believed him.
* * *
The next morning,when their three paths crossed, Caleb initiated the conversation that changed their lives.
“Hey.” Caleb slipped a hand onto the small of Jayne’s back as he sat at the kitchen island. Jayne looked up from his overnight oats and narrowed his eyes.
“Caleb?” he asked. “I’m pretty sure it’s before ten. What are you doing awake?”
“There’s a conversation we needed to have.” Caleb caught Everett’s eye as he folded his arms on the island and settled into a comfortable lean. “Something important. Do you have a second?”
Recognition sparked in Jayne’s eyes. He set his spoon down, folded his hands on his lap, and lifted one corner of his lips in such a subtle way, it was almost undetectable. “Sure.”
“So, Everett and I have been talking.” While Caleb spoke, he maintained eye contact with Everett, love shining through his expression. “We’re ready to take things to the next level with you.”
“If you’re ready for that, of course,” Everett added. “Just because we are doesn’t mean you have to be.”
Caleb nodded. “Oh, yeah. That’s a given.”
“And what,” Jayne said in a deliberate way, “exactly is the next level?”
The question was buffered by a moment of silence before Caleb replied. “We’re ready to pursue individual relationships with you while still rocking the whole threesome thing.”
To Everett’s surprise, Jayne chuckled. “And here I thought you meant fluid bonding. Yes, of course that’s fine with me. All I ask is that if either of you have second thoughts, you need to talk about them, okay? No matter what it is, or when it happens, or why it’s a thing, I won’t think less of you for it. If we’re going to make this work, all of us need to feel heard.”
“No festering,” Caleb promised, and while Everett once wouldn’t have held him to his word, he believed him now. Since Jayne had come into their lives, Caleb had proved he was willing to commit to change not through empty words, but through his actions. There was no better proof than that.
Jayne was the one for them, and in all the ways they could, Caleb and Everett let him know it.
39
Jayne
GlitterDoctor: llllplllllllll;
TeenDad2: Oh god, it’s another stroke.
TeenDad2: GLIT, YOU’RE A DOCTOR! SAVE YOURSELF!
KnotMyProblem: I actually spat up my drink
KnotMyProblem: TD, is that self-referential humor?
KnotMyProblem: because that’s really fucking funny
TeenDad2: Um, yes?
KnotMyProblem: You have no idea what self-referential humor is, do you?
TeenDad2: …
TeenDad2: maybe
KnotMyProblem: That makes it even funnier.
While TD and Knot duked it out, Jayne freed his phone from Parker’s grabby hands and booped his tiny button nose with his finger. “Scamp.”
