by Nora Cobb
“How old?”
“He’s somewhere in his forties. It’s like being an old thirty,” he replies, collecting his papers into a pile. “You’ll be a stepmother. You’ll be too busy raising six children to go online, if they have internet in his kingdom. I suggest you pack a few good books.”
My breath deepens as I start to pant. “Where are you sending me?”
“It’s a small country in Eastern Europe.”
“You can’t send me away!” I shout.
“I already have.” My father’s phone chimes. “They’ve landed. Go pack. You’ll be leaving soon.”
“Daddy?” I back away from him. “Daddy! No! You can’t!”
“Arielle, I will go bankrupt if you remain in this country.” Daddy taps his speaker, and the maid appears at the door. “Lucy, my daughter is going away. Would you pack her things?”
Finally, the bitch smiles. “Yes, Mr. Blackwater.”
I watch as she prances down the hallway and heads upstairs, no doubt, to my bedroom. My father glares at me, and I run out of his office and grab my jeans and a jacket. I won’t be sold off to a foreigner like something on Amazon.
I dress quickly, grab my purse, and run to my car. I sit there, holding the steering wheel with the car in park. Where can I go? Cora ignores me, and Mancuso hates me after I tossed her ring into that pit. Lexi’s too spineless to help. She cries whenever I call her. Lucas? Never. Troy? His father is suing mine.
My head pounds and I can barely think as I realize I have no one to run to. But there’s one person I can try.
“Anthony?” I whisper into my phone.
“Fuck … I didn’t look at the screen.”
“Anthony, you have to come and help me.”
“Excuse you.”
“Please,” I beg. “I have to run away, and I need a place to stay.”
I hear a girl’s voice in the background. To which he responds, “No one important.”
“Anthony,” I say, “are you listening to me?”
“Look,” he replies, “I’m not driving to Montlake to help you.”
My mouth tightens. “But you would for Natalie Page.”
“No,” he scoffs. “Not even for her. I owed Natalie a debt, and it’s paid in full. I’m done.” He continues, “I’m tired of being used by rich kids who think they have a hard life. Someday, I hope to have a portion of the money that you’ve wasted. And when I do, I’ll never treat anybody as badly as you’ve treated everybody.”
“I didn’t treat you badly,” I whimper. “Don’t you remember the good times we had together?”
There’s silence.
“Anthony? Are you there?” I scream into the phone.
He sighs. “Arielle, it’s over. I’m already enrolled in summer classes, and I have one goal: graduate, get a good job, and never deal with someone like you ever again.”
My heart is pounding against my chest. “Anthony, you can’t do this to me. You have to help me!”
“Help you and alienate all of my future employers? I might end up working for a Page, or a Saunders, or a Bellman one day. You think they’ll take in the person who decided to stick his neck out for Arielle Blackwater?”
The phone is shaking in my hand. I’m trapped and out of options. How could this happen to me?
“Anthony, you don’t understand, if you help me now, I’ll help you get whatever you want. I’ll be whatever you want me to be. Please!”
“No, Arielle, you don’t understand.” Anthony’s voice is seething. “I went to Montlake so I could monetize my future. Instead, I found myself selling drugs to rich kids too privileged to steal them out of their parents’ medicine cabinets. I’m hanging up now. And Arielle?”
“Yes, baby?” I whisper.
“Good riddance.”
The call ends, and there is no one else left to call. I look out the window and watch as my father walks down the driveway toward my BMW with his hands balled into tight fists. I lock the car doors. I can wait it out. I won’t go. He can’t make me.
My father holds up a key fob and the doors unlock.
“No!” I scream as he pulls me out of the car. “I won’t go! You can’t do this to me. I won’t let you!”
“Arielle!” He struggles to hold me still. We roll across the lawn, kicking and screaming like wrestlers fighting in mud. “This is my last resort. I’m doing this for your own good!”
A black SUV pulls into the driveway. My mother steps out and watches us struggling on the ground with a disgusted look on her face. She’s dressed to travel in a knit dress and low-heeled shoes. She grabs hold of my arm, and wrenches me off Daddy with one hand. Just like that, I’m being corralled toward the open door of the SUV.
“In a few hours,” she says as she drags me along. “You will meet your husband on his private plane. You will marry him when the plane lands. You will behave. You will not fuck this up. Do I make myself clear, young lady?”
I break free and run for the house, but Lucy the maid moves faster than me. She picks me up in her arms and forces me into the black SUV. I try to open the door, but find that it’s already been child-locked.
I collapse into the seat. There is no escape.
But try as I might, the tears refuse to come—not even as the SUV pulls up next to the tiny jet and I numbly walk up the steps to my future like a lamb to the slaughter.
CHAPTER 21
Natalie
Lucas and Troy haven’t visited my house in days, but Jacob spent the night here with Uncle Phil’s blessing. He’s still technically living with his mother, but the day Jacob leaves for Notre Dame, she’s filing for legal separation. As far as she’s concerned, Thomas Fleming can move in with his favorite mistress.
The covers have been off the pool and the patio furniture for weeks. And we decide to sit outside in the sun rather than stay cooped up in the house. We sit side by side in two chaise lounge chairs by the pool. A small table between us is crowded with cell phones, drinks, and sunglasses. Jacob has on a T-shirt and boardshorts while I opt for a sundress. Funny, how modest we’ve become now that we’re engaged. I pick at the hem of my dress as I lie stiff on the chair. The distraction of being outside doesn’t lift my blah mood.
I love Jacob, but I feel alone. We made love this morning quietly until Uncle Phil left the house for the supermarket. Once the house was empty, Jacob held nothing back. I sweated and squirmed underneath his muscular body as he grabbed my hips, moving against me in steady long, delicious strokes. I came until I was lightheaded, but afterward, in the shower alone, I worried about Lucas and Troy.
Jacob sits up with his head bent over his laptop as he scrolls through webpages on Google. “We can go to the town hall to get the license,” he says, “And then, I don’t know. I guess we won’t have a very big guest list.
I look at the blue pool. “I can’t imagine Troy or Lucas wanting to come.”
Jacob presses his lips together into a thin, silent line. He knows how I feel because my enthusiasm is low-key. I want to marry Jacob, but when I do, I’ll lose Lucas and Troy. They’re already avoiding me, barely answering my calls or my texts. I’m content with Jacob but depressed without Lucas and Troy, and it’s a weird balance. I have to convince myself that it will be okay.
“It was nice of Phil to offer me a job.” Jacob ends the awkward silence that’s lasted a bit too long. “No matter what.”
“It’s a nice backup,” I reply, “just in case you mess up your knee or something.”
He glares at me.
“Not that you would,” I’m quick to explain, but he frowns. I throw my hands up in defeat. We’re only talking about Uncle Phil’s job offer to avoid talking about our wedding. We still don’t have a date.
“I know why you’re upset, Natalie.” He puts the laptop on the ground. “We should talk about the wedding. I think I rushed you into it.”
My shoulders relax. “I want to marry you, Jacob, but this doesn’t feel right. I feel like I really hurt Lucas and Troy.”
“We both hurt Lucas and Troy.”
I twist the engagement ring around my finger. “Do you want to call it off?”
“No, but we can wait.” He leans back in the chaise. “I pulled a dick move. They’re barely speaking to me because of it. And I don’t feel good about the situation either. You love the three of us, and Lucas and Troy are like brothers. With my family falling apart, I need my brothers.”
I reach over and take Jacob’s hand. He squeezes mine, and we gaze at each other. “I would feel the same if they were here and you weren’t. I couldn’t be without you either.”
He presses my hand to his lips. “We’ll talk to them together. We’ll talk about our futures together, the way we should have.”
“There you are,” Lucas and Troy walk around the side of the house, smiling. “We saw the car, but no one was answering the doorbell.”
Jacob frowns slightly, and I try not to look too happy. I sit up, and Lucas sits on the edge of the chaise. Troy shares Jacob’s chaise.
“So, what did we miss?”
Jacob reaches down and closes his laptop while I try not to grin like a cat with a bowl of cream.
“Natalie and I are postponing the wedding,” replies Jacob. “So the three of us can talk about the future. We have to stop trying to make her choose.” He looks at Troy. “Let’s cut the shit and admit it.”
Lucas nods. “At least we can agree on that.”
“We’ve had talks about sharing, but we haven’t really been able to do it apart,” Jacob continues. “And now that we’re heading off to college, we can actually do it. We’ll be on our own with no one to judge us.”
Montlake wasn’t the place to have an unconventional relationship where one woman shared three beautiful men, but now, we’re going out into the world where no one knows us and shouldn’t be in our business.
“It’s what I want,” I say. “But I’m not sure if you’re all willing to share me.” I lock eyes with Troy. “Jacob is willing.”
Lucas’ hand strokes my knee. “That’s why we’re here, to have the talk we couldn’t have before.” He looks at Jacob meaningfully,
I can’t guess what that look means. I need to know. The thought of being with the three of them is finally real. My skin heats up at the thought of having what I want. I fidget as Lucas strokes my thigh through my dress.
At night, I think of them so viscerally that I can feel their hands on me as I writhe in my bed. My hand between my legs, having the dirtiest dreams as all three of them take me at the same time.
Jacob’s jaw clenches. “I meant what I said that day outside of the field house. I need my brothers with me now.”
Troy clamps a hand on Jacob’s broad shoulder and holds out his other hand. “We only fight to make this work.”
Jacob shook his hand, and they clasp each other in a hug.
I smile as I look at Lucas. He stands and holds onto Jacob and Troy in a group hug, and I try not to tear up.
“This relationship is all about Natalie,” says Jacob. “If it makes her happy, it makes us happy.”
“I guess we have to get along,” laughs Troy.
Jacob and Lucas give Troy a long hard look. “Every day,” he says. “I will work as hard as I can, not to fuck this up. My days of fucking up are coming to a screeching halt.”
Lucas disentangles himself first, and steps in front of me. My gaze locks on his gorgeous hazel eyes with long lashes that make girls sigh. He kneels down on one knee in front of me and takes a ring out of his pocket. I gasp as he holds it toward me.
“Natalie, will you marry me?”
It’s a beautiful rose-gold ring with a diamond set in the band. My smile lights up until I look over at Jacob.
“Tell him yes.” Jacob grins. “You know you’re not happy without him.”
I look at Jacob and Troy for reassurance that this is really happening.
Troy nods. “Natalie, let your heart lead the way.”
I bounce onto my feet and bend to hug him. “Then, it’s yes.”
Lucas stands and kisses me. “Stay right where you are,” he says.
Lucas and Troy switch places. Troy pulls me into his strong arms and holds out another ring.
“Natalie, will you marry me?”
This time, Jacob laughs when I look at him, and I say yes immediately.
I hug Troy, and we kiss as Lucas and Jacob give a round of applause. Troy holds me in his arms as if he’ll never let me go until Lucas taps him on the shoulder. I sit down on the chaise on Troy’s lap in between Jacob and Lucas, hoping the chaise won’t break under our weight.
“So, what’s the plan?” asks Jacob, holding my hand.
“Before we discuss that, I have an announcement,” Troy interrupts, “Natalie, you’ve been accepted to Columbia.”
I jump up, and Troy catches me before I tumble over the other chaise. I hug him again as the captains clap, and their applause is louder than before. Troy swings me around in a circle before Jacob and Lucas hug us in a tight circle.
“Congratulations, Natalie.” Lucas kisses my cheek, and Jacob does the same.
“My dad has enough pull that we can all be approved for a transfer after next year,” adds Troy. “Provided we keep our grades high.”
“Those nerds have a football team?” asks Jacob.
“Yeah, they do,” replies Troy. “Ivy League is still a sports league, dumb-ass.”
“Well my plan is still to attend Notre Dame for a year, at least.”
“So,” Lucas holds me tight. “Do you think you might change your mind about Tampa?”
As much as I want to go to Tampa, I want to be near the captains. Things are falling into place, and I want to enjoy our newfound freedom from Montlake. It will be a hard decision, and I glance over at Jacob. We know what the other is thinking.
“I’d like to give Tampa a fair chance,” I smile. “It would suck not to swim with the dolphins at least once.”
I kiss Lucas, and his mouth is soft and gentle as the wind picks up around us, pushing the hem of my cotton dress against my legs as I lift myself up on my tippy toes to take more of his mouth. I sigh against his parted lips as I lean against his strong body. My mind floats into a dream that’s becoming my new reality.
“I love you, Lucas,” I whisper.
“I love you, Natalie,” he whispers, “I’m glad you’re mine.”
“You’re okay with it?”
“I can only be happy when you’re happy.”
Lucas nods and lets me go.
I twirl around at the edge of the pool with my arms extended, and my face pointed toward the bright sun as it touches my skin. I stop in front of Troy and kiss him, feeling the electricity that flows through me when we touch. His mouth caresses my lips as my hands stroke his soft hair.
“I love you, Natalie,” he whispers, “If it weren’t for you, I would have become something I didn’t want to be.”
“You would have found the strength to change, Troy,” I stroke my hand along his cheek, “But I’m glad you decided to do it on your own.”
He lets me go, and I dance over to Jacob. He’s an animal as he grabs me by the waist and pulls me into a deep, sensual kiss. My body responds to his as if we’re linked, because we are. I laugh as his mouth nips at my neck.
“Jacob, stop,” I gasp from laughing so hard.
“I can’t. I love you.”
I open my eyes, holding onto his broad shoulders. “I love you too, even more than before.”
Someone clears their throats. Holding a bag of groceries, Uncle Phil is standing at the patio door, watching with a confused expression on his face. Jacob lifts me upright until I’m standing on my own then lets me go. I skip toward my uncle.
“Uncle Phil,” I smile innocently, “I’ve been accepted into Columbia.”
Uncle Phil cheers and pulls me in for another hug. He’s wanted me to go to college from the start. The talk we had is very much in my mind. I’m ready to tell him everything. No secrets.<
br />
“And I’m engaged to Lucas, Jacob, and Troy.” I hold up my hand with all the rings.
Uncle Phil takes hold of it and looks at the three rings, as individual as the men who gave them to me. His stern look scans the captains, but they’re not shy, ashamed, or backing down. The relationship we have is the relationship that we all want.
Uncle Phil nods his head. “Let’s have a talk.”
We sit down at the patio table.