by Sloan Parker
They stared at the little boxes for a shocked moment. Then Luke opened his first.
I held my breath as I waited. Neither man said a word. For a panicked moment, I worried I’d gone too far, but then every ounce of anxiety faded away. This was something I had to do. I was being honest with them about what I wanted. I could handle whatever their reactions were.
Luke lifted his head, a huge grin on his face. “Really?”
I nodded. “I got one for me too. That’s why I put in all those extra hours at the kennel last semester. I wanted to pay for them myself.”
Richard opened the lid on his box next. He was silent, his mouth hanging open as he took in the sight of the gold band inside. Some of the best moments of my life were when I made him speechless.
I took one of Luke’s hands in mine, then Richard’s. “I love you both. And I want to spend the rest of my life with you. Will you marry me?”
“Matthew.” Adoration filled Luke’s voice as he kept his gaze locked on the ring. “Never before in my life have I ever wanted to wear one of these. But now…” He lifted his head. “I’ve never wanted anything more.”
“Really?” My voice shook with that single word.
“Are you kidding me?” He lunged forward and wrapped his arms around me, both of us laughing as we fell backward, Luke kissing my cheek over and over again.
“Is that a yes?” I asked.
He rushed to sit up, pulling me with him to straddle his lap. “Goddamn, yeah. That’s definitely a yes.”
Richard shifted closer. He said nothing as he scanned my face. I wasn’t sure what he was looking for. He seemed at a loss for what to say or how to say it.
So I said, “I know it won’t be legal but—”
He put a single finger to my lips. Then he kissed me, a deep toe-curling kiss that sent heat and passion and love racing through me. When he pulled back, he smiled at me. “Yes, I’ll marry you. Both of you.” He pressed our foreheads together. “Do you know how long I’ve been waiting for you to ask us this?”
“What?”
“I knew it was something you wanted. I wanted it for us too.”
“You did?”
“Absolutely. I almost asked you guys. So many times. Been thinking about it for months now. When I was going over the idea of getting a new house, I kept picturing a ceremony in the backyard with all our friends and family.” He looked Luke’s way. “But I didn’t want to freak you out. I never thought you’d say yes.”
Luke’s eyes widened. “Me?”
I laughed, and Luke turned his shocked expression my way.
“Hey, I’ve done everything you two have in this relationship right alongside you guys. Every step of the way.” He stopped as if he just heard his own words, then shrugged. “Well, okay. Sometimes maybe a step or two behind, but I still did it all.”
“Yeah, you did,” I said.
Richard grew serious once more. “I don’t think it’s any surprise that I already think of the three of us as a lifetime commitment. A part of me feels like we’ve already made promises to each other in every way that’s important, but I also really like the idea of making them in a formal way, to make sure you know how much I mean them.”
I reached out and laced my fingers with his. “We know.”
He lifted my hand and peppered kisses across my knuckles. When he lowered our hands, we both turned toward Luke.
He was staring down at the gold band he now had out of the box. He read the inscription on the inside. “Forever.” He grinned at the ring.
“Luke…” I said.
“Yeah?” He kept his focus on that ring as if it would disappear if he glanced away.
“I don’t just want us to wear the rings. I want a ceremony, vows, witnesses, the whole thing.”
He lifted his head, not a single sign of panic in those blue eyes. “Yeah, I know.”
“And you’re okay with that?”
“I am.” He scrutinized me. “You didn’t expect that from me either?”
“I don’t know.”
He placed the ring back into the box, closed the lid, and set it aside. He reached for me, cupping my face in his hands, tenderly caressing my cheeks with his thumbs. “What I want is to be with you, to live here with both of you for as long as you’ll have me. I want to help you, support you, be your partners. I guess that’s what it means to be married. And truthfully, I like the sound of it. I like thinking of you guys as mine forever, and I don’t want to hide that from the world.” His eyes lit up with the smile. “So let’s make it official. In front of our family and friends.”
It was my turn to lunge for him. I tackled him to the floor, laughing as the joy nearly burst from my chest. Richard joined us, positioning me between them.
I held on to both of them. “I was so afraid to bring this up. I thought asking for everything I wanted would be too much. I thought it might mess things up for us if I pushed too hard.”
Richard pressed his lips to my cheek. “We always want to know what you want. That’s not being pushy.”
“I know.” I shook my head. “I think it was just a part of me being afraid of losing the people I love.”
“Are you still afraid of that?” Luke asked.
“Not anymore.”
We lay there wrapped up in each other for several breaths. Then Luke lifted up onto his elbows. He stayed like that for a moment, staring off into space as if contemplating something. Then he sat up the rest of the way and folded his legs under him, facing us, his focus on me.
“What?” I asked him.
“I’ve been thinking about something all day. You said before that Richard was the one who held this relationship together in the beginning. Then you both said the other day that it was me. But that’s all wrong. It has always been you, Matthew. You’re the light that Richard and I gravitate toward. I think, whether consciously or not, we knew from the beginning we didn’t want to live without that light in our lives.”
Richard sat up and laid a hand over Luke’s heart. Then he pulled him forward, pressing a soft kiss on his forehead. “I couldn’t have said it better.” He reached for me and tugged me to them. “It’s that light we both fell in love with.”
I offered each a long, luxurious kiss. “You’re right.”
Luke snorted out a laugh. “Of course we are.”
“I meant you’re sort of right. We’re not together because of you or Richard or me. We’re here together because of all three of us. Not anything any one of us said or did. It was all of us. Together. It always has been. Always will be.”
Richard nodded. “Always.”
I traced his lips with my forefinger and then stroked the side of his face. “I love you.” I looked to Luke. “I love you both. I can’t wait to marry you.” I drew them to me and we kissed. Three men, three sets of lips, one beautiful kiss.
“Well, then…” Luke wrapped an arm around my waist and tugged me back down onto the floor with him. He spooned me and kissed the back of my neck. “Let’s get started planning this shindig.”
I’d never heard him sound more excited.
“All right,” Richard said as he lay on my other side, both their arms encircling me now. “Who are we going to invite?”
I couldn’t contain the grin.
I settled into their embrace, loving the feel of my men—my fiancés—surrounding me, their strong arms holding me close, their love for me as real and vibrant as ever.
No, more than ever.
* * * * *
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Sloan Parker Book List
More Series
More (More Book 1)
More Than Most (More Book 2)
The Haven Series
How to Save a Life (The Haven Book 1)
How to Heal a Life (The Haven Bo
ok 2)
Single Title Novels & Novellas
Breathe
Take Me Home
More Than Just a Good Book
Something to Believe In
I Swear to You
Friends and Lovers
Short Stories
The Break-In
Swept Away
A Lesson in Truth
Short Story Collection
For Love and Forever
Get notified of future releases and enjoy exclusive sneak peeks by subscribing to the Sloan Parker newsletter. For more information about Sloan and her work, visit www.sloanparker.com.