Encore: A Reverse Harem Romance

by Lane Hart

…

  Nixon

  “Fuck, fuck, fuck,” I mumble to myself as I pull my cell phone out again and try to call Kelsey.

  Like the other five times I’ve tried to call her since she “went to get some air” this morning and never came back, the call goes straight to her voicemail, so I hang up. No reason to leave yet another message asking what’s going on and telling her to call me.

  Instead of driving straight to the hotel, I decide to swing by Quinton’s house just to make sure Kelsey’s car is in the driveway. Several times in the waiting room when Quinton and the guys came by to check in on Cam I nearly broke and just asked him about her, if she was back at his house. I lied to Cam when he asked about her because I couldn’t tell him the truth — that I may have scared Kelsey off and now she won’t answer her phone.

  Sure enough, Kelsey’s blue Corolla is at home and free of any dents or scratches, so I can cross out she had a wreck on the way home from my list of reasons why she won’t return my calls. Too bad I can’t just park and go in to talk to her to find out why she ghosted on not just me, but Cam too, back at the hospital. It’s not like Kelsey to not be there trying to help and take care of him.

  I have a feeling that she’s worried about coming between Cam and me, and she may think that not seeing us anymore will repair our friendship. Maybe it will or maybe it won’t. The problem is I don’t think it’ll be that easy for Cam or me to just move on. Sure, we haven’t been with Kelsey for very long, but that doesn’t seem to matter.

  Dammit, I need to talk to her, because without her I’m not sure how Cam’s recovery will go. He’s already depressed and shit about his arm, the recovery, and his contract. The last thing he needs is to get dumped too.

  Have either of us ever been dumped? Fuck, no. So I don’t have a clue how to deal with it.

  I wish I could just go to the house and make Kelsey talk to me, but it’s not that easy. Quinton would get suspicious. And if he found out Cam and I have been seeing Kelsey, he would kill us. Wouldn’t he?

  Guess there’s only one way to find out.

  …

  “Quinton, we need to talk,” I call out as I jog toward our team captain after practice. Everyone else is walking off the field toward the locker rooms.

  “What’s up?” Quinton asks, using his hand to wipe the sweat off his forehead when he comes to a stop.

  “It’s about Kelsey,” I start.

  “Kelsey?” he repeats with a frown. “What about her?”

  “I want to date her. You mind if I come to the house and see her tonight? She’s been blowing me off.”

  Quinton’s bark of laughter is incredibly loud on the quiet field. “You’re kidding, right?” he asks me with a grin.

  “No, I’m serious,” I tell him.

  Forehead creased, he says, “But you don’t date.”

  “I didn’t date, no,” I agree. “People can change, though, right?” I ask, hoping to subtly point out that he was a huge player before he met Callie.

  Quinton considers that a moment before giving me a shrug of his shoulder pads. “Yeah, I guess they can. You know you can come to the house whenever. I’m not Kelsey’s father, so it’s really none of my business who she sees.”

  “Right,” I agree on an exhale of relief.

  “Unless you hurt her, then I’ll kick your ass,” he adds while pointing a finger at me.

  “I know,” I tell him. “But there’s something else.”

  “What? You gonna tell me that she’s been spending some of the last few nights with you?”

  “Yeah,” I admit. “Me and Cam.”

  Quinton’s blue eyes bulge. “Back the fuck up,” he says when he raises a palm to stop my words. “Did you say you…and Cam?”

  “Uh-huh,” I answer.

  “No! Fucking hell no!” he yells “That’s just wrong, Nix.”

  “What’s wrong about that?” I ask him in confusion. “No, it may not be traditional, but it’s working for us.”

  “Maybe for now,” Quinton replies. “But it’s temporary and won’t last. Then you two will end up crushing Kelsey! She doesn’t deserve that shit!”

  “That’s not gonna happen,” I tell him. “Well, at least I hope not.”

  “You hope not. Wow, that’s so reassuring,” he grumbles sarcastically with a shake of his head.

  “You’re not her father, you said so yourself,” I remind him.

  “I’m not, but she’s my friend and I don’t want her to get hurt!” he exclaims. “That wedding and shit with Lathan was tough on her, but she did it for him because she’s a nice person. And if you haven’t figured out how Lathan’s actions unintentionally hurt her, then you’re fucking blind!”

  “Oh,” I mutter. I didn’t even think about Kelsey and Lathan’s relationship being a big deal since it was a short one. I didn’t think their marriage was ever legal, so I didn’t expect it to be a big deal to her when it ended.

  “Kelsey’s vulnerable right now, and you two jackasses are taking advantage of her!” Quinton yells even louder when he shoves my chest. “Cameron better be glad he’s in the hospital or I would fuck him up! How can you two be so goddamn selfish? Always thinking with your fucking dicks and never thinking about how your actions will hurt her!”

  “It’s not just sex,” I tell him honestly. “I care about Kelsey. Cameron does too,” I admit even if I fucking hate it.

  Poking his finger in my chest pads, he says, “If you care about her, then you’ll end this shit now before it goes any further.”

  “I know,” I agree. “We should. But I can’t walk away, and I don’t think Cam can either.”

  “Then I’ll just need to talk some sense into Kelsey and try to convince her that she can do better than you two.”

  “You seriously think that?” I ask, hurt by his brutal words. Maybe he’s right. Cam and I were both assholes before when it came to sleeping around with random women, but we’re not like that anymore.

  “Until you prove any differently, then yeah, that’s what I think,” Quinton says with his hands on his hips. “And I’m serious about talking to Kelsey. She needs to get out before she gets hurt.”

  “So, you would rather she end it, hurting me and Cam instead?” I ask.

  “Yes!” he exclaims. “You two will be fine and move on. Kelsey won’t.”

  “Whatever,” I grumble as I start walking away from him to go to the locker room.

  That conversation sure as fuck didn’t go like I thought it would. I assumed Quinton would be happy for the three of us, and then we wouldn’t have to keep sneaking around.

  The truth is, I don’t think Kelsey wants anyone to know about us because she’s worried what they will think about her, or she thinks it just won’t last, so she bailed to avoid getting hurt in the future.

  I plan to prove to her and Quinton that they’re both wrong.

  Chapter Thirty

  Kelsey

  There’s a knock on the bedroom door, and then I hear Quinton’s voice. “Kelsey? Can we talk a second?”

  Great.

  So not only am I dealing with heartbreak, now I’m probably about to be homeless. With Callie and Quinton engaged, it’s only a matter of time before they get married and the baby is born. I’m certain that however helpful I try to be around here, it doesn’t make up for their lack of privacy.

  Swiping my fingers under each of my eyes to dry the tears, I climb off the bed to go answer the door and face the music. Before I turn the knob, I force a fake smile on my face.

  “Hey, Quinton,” I say when I pull the door open and see him standing on the other side in his sweats.

  Eyes narrowing, he asks, “Have you been crying?”

  Crap.

  Before I can answer, he mutters, “I’ll kill both of them.” Then he turns around and storms away down the hallway.

  “Wait, Quinton!” I call out to him. “What did you want to talk about?”

  “I knew this would happen!” he says when I catch up to him pulling
his coat from the closet.

  “Knew what would happen?” I ask.

  “That they would fuck you over,” Quinton answers when he spins around to face me. “You’re upset because of Cameron and Nixon’s dumb asses, aren’t you?”

  My jaw drops as I stand there frozen under his angry gaze. How the hell does he know? Did he figure it out when I went to the hospital yesterday?

  “Wh-what are you talking about?” I ask as I cross my arms over my chest, wanting his response before I admit anything.

  “I know, Kelsey. After practice today, Nixon told me what’s been going on between you three.”

  “He told you?” I exclaim before I can catch myself. “I mean, what did Nixon tell you that has to do with me?”

  “I told him that this was a bad idea and would only end up with you getting hurt, and I was right!” Quinton answers. “You should’ve come to me with this. I would’ve warned you to stay away from Cameron and Nixon both. Those two aren’t capable of being with one woman –”

  Rather than argue that he’s being a judgmental jerk, I simply say, “I ended it, so there’s nothing for you to worry about.”

  Dark eyebrows lifting, he asks, “You ended it?”

  “Yes.”

  “So then why are you crying? Did they do something stupid to upset you?”

  “No, they didn’t do anything,” I reply while lowering my eyes to where I’m wringing my hands, trying to come up with an explanation. “I realized how much I was coming between their friendship, so I’m done. It’s over”

  “Do they know that?” Quinton replies. “Because I’m pretty sure Nixon was saying he wanted to date you or some shit.”

  “I should probably tell him,” I admit, since I can’t keep avoiding his calls forever. I would want him or Cam to explain to me why they were ending our threesome or whatever you want to call it, so I owe that much to them. I also want the chance to yell at Nixon and ask him what the fuck he was thinking, telling Quinton about us. God, that’s embarrassing.

  “You’re doing the right thing,” Quinton assures me. “The longer it goes on, the worse you’ll get hurt by them.”

  Right, because like Mr. Hines said, I’m nothing special, so there’s no reason they would ever want to stay with me.

  “I’ll go text Nixon right now and see if we can talk,” I tell Quinton before I escape to the privacy of the bedroom, avoiding any further discussion with him on this incredibly awkward topic.

  …

  Nixon

  My phone dings with a new message as I’m driving over to the hospital to pick up Cameron and bring him home. When I nearly run off the road and into the ditch trying to get it out of my jean pocket to see if it’s Kelsey, I decide I better pull over.

  As soon as my Audi comes to a complete stop, I have the phone in my hand. Just seeing her name on the screen makes my heart race.

  Where are you?

  I quickly type back my response, Why haven’t you answered my texts or calls? I’m on the way to the hospital. Cam’s getting discharged. You should come.

  Meet me in the parking lot.

  Good, so she’s coming.

  I send back, See you soon.

  After I check traffic, I pull back onto the road, excited to finally see Kelsey and hopefully get an explanation about her disappearing act yesterday.

  Instead, when she pulls up and we both get out of our cars, I can tell by the pinched look on her face that she’s angry.

  “You told him? You fucking told Quinton about us?” Kelsey asks when she comes up to me and pushes against my chest. “How could you?”

  Miffed by her unexpected attack, I say, “Maybe because you wouldn’t answer any of my texts or calls and I had no fucking idea why you walked out of the hospital and never came back!”

  “Did you ever think there was a reason I was avoiding you? I can’t believe you talked to someone about us, especially Quinton!” she exclaims.

  “I only told him because I care about you and I’m tired of hiding this from him and everyone else. I wanted to prove to you that I want us to be more, and I’m pretty sure Cam does too. You’re not gonna ruin our friendship if we can figure this all out. Isn’t that why you’ve been avoiding me?”

  “No!” she yells.

  “So, I don’t understand. And why are you mad? Because I told Quinton or because you wanted us to stay a secret?”

  “Both,” she answers without hesitation. “What we do in the bedroom is private!”

  “You’re ashamed of being with us,” I challenge.

  “Of course I am!” Kelsey easily agrees. “Now he’s gonna think I’m such a naïve slut.”

  “You’re not a naïve slut,” I assure her.

  “That’s what everyone will still think, though. And if everyone thinks that, then maybe they’re all right, not us,” Kelsey declares.

  “Your logic is fucked up,” I tell her as I grab either side of her shoulder. “Didn’t the majority of the world used to think that being with someone of the same sex was wrong? Now people barely blink at gay couples.”

  “That’s not exactly true,” she argues with a shake of her head. “If you think it’s all fine and great for people to be out and gay, you should talk to Lathan and Paxton to see if they agree with that sentiment.”

  “Fine, so maybe some people will never approve of what we’re doing, but that doesn’t mean that they’re right or we should end things,” I argue.

  “It’s different for you,” Kelsey disagrees. “Guys can be with a ton of women and everyone thinks they’re heroes. But if a woman is with two men, she’s a whore!”

  “We don’t think you’re a whore,” I say again, speaking for me and Cameron. “And the people who matter in your life won’t either, so fuck everyone else.”

  “Fuck everyone else?” she repeats as she jerks away from my reach, causing my hands to fall away from her. “Easy for you to say. My parents will never speak to me again if they find out. Also, I’m trying to find a job! I only have a semester of school left, and then I’m going to be looking for a job as a preschool worker. Do you think anyone will hire me if just one person in the media finds out that I’m fucking you two? No, they won’t! All that time and money I spent on a degree will be wasted because it’s only a matter of time before you two get tired of me.” Looking over toward the hospital, she says, “Cameron’s dad was right. I’m nothing special, and you’ll both figure that out soon enough.”

  “Wait. What?” I ask her in confusion. “I get the part about your parents, teaching little kids, and having your lifestyle be out in the public, but what does Cameron’s dad have to do with anything? You barely met him.”

  “Oh, that brief encounter was enough to last me a lifetime,” she mutters sarcastically.

  “Explain that. Did you talk to him after I introduced you or something?”

  “Yes, when I was getting off the elevator…” she starts.

  “So? What did he say? I told you he was a dick, so don’t think twice about anything that came out of his mouth.”

  “Maybe he is a dick, but he only spoke the truth.”

  “Truth about what, Kelsey?”

  “About me not being good for Cameron, distracting him and whatever else. His dad was right. I didn’t ruin his football career, but I did ruin one of the most important relationships in his life.”

  “If you’re referring to me and Cam, then that’s not true,” I tell her.

  “Isn’t it? He kicked you out of his house because of me. You two argue all the time competing over me, and why, I can’t figure out…”

  “Yes, Cam and I argue, but that’s what we’ve always done. We challenge each other, and it’s fun most of the time,” I explain. “Look, why don’t we go up to his room and talk about all this there?” I ask. “He misses you and wants to see you.”

  “I can’t,” she tells me with a shake of her head.

  “Yes, you can. Just give me your hand, and we’ll go inside –” I start but she inter
rupts.

  “No, Nix. I can’t,” Kelsey replies when she wraps her arms around herself. “His dad told me to stay away from him.”

  Hearing that makes me explode. “That asshole had no right to tell you that!”

  “Maybe he’s right,” she whispers.

  “No, Kelsey, he’s not!” I say when I step forward and grip her face between my palms. “Cameron needs you right now and so do I. Look me in the eye and tell me that you don’t care about us and I’ll let you go.”

  “Nix,” she starts when she reaches up to grasp my hands and try to pull them away.

  “I’m not letting you go until you say it,” I warn her.

  Chocolate eyes meeting mine, she says, “You’re both better off without me.”

  “No, we’re not, and that’s not what I asked,” I tell her as my thumbs wipe away the moisture on her cheeks. “Say it.”

  “I don’t think I can do this, be with you both, and then get tossed aside after everyone finds out.”

  “You’re not getting tossed anywhere except on a bed, preferably soon,” I assure her.

  “See, that’s what I’m talking about,” she replies. “It’s nothing but sex…”

  “It’s more than sex!” I tell her. “I care about you and want to be with you. Cam does too. And deep down you know that, but you’re scared and trying to make excuses so you can run. But guess what. Cameron and I are two of the fastest men in the world. So if you try and run, we’ll catch up, tackle you and never let you go.”

  Eyes locked with mine, she says, “I want to believe that, I do. It’s just…impossible.”

  “No, it’s not.”

  “Then why aren’t there more threesomes in the world if it’s so easy?” Kelsey asks.

  “I didn’t say it would be easy,” I explain. “We’ll probably have twice as many problems as most couples; but if the three of us stick together, we can figure it out.”

  “You can’t promise that you won’t change your mind or Cameron won’t change his,” she says.

  “You’re right,” I agree. “I can’t promise that for Cameron, but I can for myself. There’s no one else I’ve ever wanted the way I want you, and that’s not going to change.”