“That’s so embarrassing,” Maddie says, still laughing. “If anyone says they are hip, they’re old. That’s like the fundamental rule of being hip. The moment you think you’re hip, you’re not anymore.”
“Your father is aware he’s old,” Rhodes says with a grin. “He just wanted to make sure we knew he wouldn’t have a problem with what we’re proposing.”
“Which is?” Maddie prompts.
“All of us dating you,” I simply say. “If you want to, that is.”
She bites her lip, and I can see her working through it. The anger at our betrayal is still there. It’s going to take time to fully move past that, which we understand.
“I need to know something. Is this because you feel guilty or do you really have feelings for me?”
“It’s real,” Ace answers without hesitation. “The guilt is there, and we will apologize over and over until you believe we mean it. But what we feel for you—it’s separate from all of that. We each fell for you before we decided on doing the masked men thing.”
“I don’t know if I can just jump into this,” Maddie says, but she’s not saying no. She’s saying she needs time, and that’s something we can work with.
“We don’t expect you to,” Rhodes says. “We know we fucked up and that you need to trust us again. Maddie, we’re willing to do whatever it takes to earn that.”
“Even if it means moving slowly?” she asks.
“Even if it means moving slowly,” I confirm.
She pulls her knees up tighter. “I went on tour thinking I needed space from you,” she says. “And I did—at first. But by the end, I missed you. That’s why I came back early.”
“Yeah?” Rhodes asks.
“Yeah,” she confirms. “I don’t know what that means yet or if I’m ready to jump into this completely with you. But I’m willing to try.”
Ace nods, respecting the boundaries she’s setting even as relief washes across his face. “That’s all we’re asking for,” he says.
“But I have conditions,” Maddie adds. “I need you to understand that trust isn’t something you earn back all at once; it’s something you rebuild day by day. I need you to be patient with me when I have doubts.”
“We’ll earn it back however we need to,” Rhodes says.
“And I need you to forgive yourselves,” she continues. “I can see how much guilt you carry, and I can’t move forward if you’re drowning in it. We need to heal and move on from this.”
“That’s the hardest part,” I admit.
“I also need you to understand that me saying yes to this doesn’t mean everything is fixed,” she adds. “It just means we’re willing to try. Are you ready to try with me?”
“Yes,” we all say in unison.
Maddie unwinds from her protective curl, her legs extending as she settles back onto the couch.
“Okay then,” she says with a smile. “Let’s try this. No promises, no guarantees. Just... let’s see what happens.”
“Fuck yes!” Rhodes cheers.
“But I’m serious about the slow thing,” Maddie reiterates. “I’m not jumping into anything physical. We need to actually talk, to get to know each other without the bodyguard aspect.”
“We can do that,” Ace says, answering for all of us.
“Good,” she says. “So what does this look like in reality? Do you just show up and we hang out? Do we date individually or as a group?”
“That’s up to you,” I say. “We can figure it out as we go.”
“That’s very diplomatic,” she says with a smile. “Are you always going to be this easy to deal with?”
“Probably not,” Rhodes admits, which makes her laugh again. “Honestly, we’re trying really hard not to fuck this up a second time.”
