by Sam Crescent
“Not going to happen.”
“You’re an asshole,” Beau said, making his way inside.
“I’m not denying it.” Scott shrugged.
They locked the doors, finding Connie in the main sitting room. She had the bag emptied on the coffee table.
“How many tests did you need to buy?”
“I didn’t know which one worked.”
“They all work.” Connie shook her head.
Beau sat with her, looking through them. “Do you see any you like?”
“No. I don’t know if I can do this,” she said. “Pregnancy, a kid, that’s permanent. There’s no getting away from that.” She took a deep breath.
“You’re going to be an amazing mother,” Beau said.
“You don’t know that.”
“I do.” Beau took her hand and kissed her knuckles. “You’re nice. You’re wonderful. I’ve seen you with your customers. You are caring.”
She laughed. “Beau, they’re customers.”
“You have a naturally caring and loving nature,” Scott said. “Any kid would be proud to have you as a mother.”
“I don’t know if I like you right now.”
“Don’t worry, you will.”
She blew out a breath. “There’s no point in putting this off.” She picked up one of the boxes. “I’m going to do this alone. I don’t need you guys to be in there with me.”
Beau walked with her as she went into the bathroom. Scott stood with him.
“Do you think she’s going to try to escape?” Beau asked.
“No. She’s going to be nervous though.” Scott ran his fingers through his hair.
“Do you think she’s pregnant?”
“I hope so.”
Silence fell between them.
The door opened and Connie stepped outside. “I don’t know if I’m pregnant. I’ve left it on the counter.” She held her cell phone up. “Two minutes wait.”
They stood, watching the time count down on her cell phone.
“This is really scary,” she said. “It’s like I’m waiting for the decision that could determine the rest of our lives.”
Beau held her hand and Scott took her other. She didn’t pull away from either of them.
The time got to ten seconds.
Nine.
Eight.
Seven.
“A few seconds isn’t going to count.” Connie opened the door and walked into the bathroom. He and Scott were hot on her heels to know the news.
She picked up the test. Grabbed the box.
There it was.
Two blue lines.
Connie was pregnant.
“Wow,” she said.
Beau looked at Scott, who had the biggest smile on his face.
“I didn’t even think I was pregnant. I didn’t put two and two together. Does that make me an idiot?”
Beau pulled her into his arms. He had to hold her. To offer her comfort. “You’re not an idiot but you’re going to be a mother.”
She was going to have their kid. He wasn’t sad. No, he was over the fucking moon.
Now he just needed to make sure she was okay and she could handle this, them, and forever. He couldn’t accept anything less. Not from her.
****
Pregnant.
Connie was pregnant.
There was a baby growing inside her.
A boy?
A girl?
Beau’s child or Scott’s? She didn’t know.
Taking a deep breath, she touched her stomach.
What did this mean? There were no answers.
They’d told her they loved her but now she wondered if it was for the baby. No, she had to stop doing that. She had to stop seeing the negative in anything. Just because she was pregnant didn’t mean they only wanted her for the kid.
Sitting on the sofa, she kept her hands to her stomach.
“What have you eaten today?” Scott asked, his hands going to her knees.
“Ice cream,” she said. She wasn’t angry with him anymore. What was the point? He was one of the two fathers to her child..
“Talk to me,” Beau said. The other father of her baby.
“I don’t know what to say right now.”
Both men took her hands and pulled them away from her stomach.
“I have a baby inside me and a town who thinks I’m a whore.”
Scott was the first one to kiss her hard and deep. Next, Beau took his turn.
“Then we’ll be known as the triple whores,” Scott said. “I’m not giving you up, Connie.”
“Neither am I.”
“We love you. We want to make this work.”
“We can’t live together. We can’t all marry.”
“We can live together,” Scott said. “Beau’s house is shit, and you can rent this place out. You can all move into my place. I’ve got a nice yard. You can marry Beau or me. We’ll have two ceremonies. One that makes it official for the person you marry, and one that makes it official for all three of us. We’ll all wear a ring. Declare ourselves whole and exclusive to each other. This can work.”
“You have put a lot of thought into this,” Beau said.
“Yes. I didn’t start our relationship for some fun. I wanted forever. I knew I did from the start.” Scott cupped her face. “I love you more than anything in the world. I want to be your husband. The father to our baby. I want to wake up next to you and next to Beau, which is fucked up, but that’s the way it is. I love sharing you. Knowing you’re with me and Beau, you’ll be safe and loved. You will never go without love. We’ll take care of you for the rest of our lives, no question.”
Tears fell down her cheeks.
“I feel the same way, but as usual, Scott has the best words right now and I’m dead in the fucking water.”
They had declared their love for her and she had yet to tell them how she felt.
“I love you both as well.” She sobbed out the words and sniffled. “I know I didn’t say this before and I’ve been a bitch tonight, but I don’t mean to be. I don’t want to.” She covered her face. “I’ve never felt this way about anyone. I can’t believe I’m pregnant. I don’t want you to love me because of the baby. I’m going to get really big and not be able to see my feet.”
Her hands were taken once again.
“I’m going to feed you and I’ll look at your feet,” Scott said.
He got to his feet and her stomach growled.
Beau laughed. “I’m starving as well. You know he’s going to be feeding you his vegan stuff.”
“I don’t care.”
Beau pulled her into his arms and she held onto him. “What am I going to do?” she asked.
“You’re going to let us take care of you. You’re going to trust us with your heart and know we’ve only got your best interests at heart.” Beau pushed some of her hair off her face. “We love you.”
She smiled. “I don’t know if I’m ever going to be able to get used to that.”
“You will.”
“Me and Scott, all the way.”
“Did you really tell the town about us?” she asked.
“Actually, Scott told them. Me, I looked like a groupie, following him everywhere. He’s good with the words.” He shrugged. “I didn’t know what else to say. I could have said, ‘She’s mine too, yay.’”
She laughed. “I love you, so much.”
“I know and I love you too. We’re going to make you so happy. You know that, right?”
“I didn’t think it was possible to ever be this happy.” She sniffled again. She took a deep breath. “I can’t think right now.”
“What’s there to think about?”
“If we should move in with Scott. The baby. Everything.” She blew out a breath. “Marriage?”
“Do you want to get married?” Beau asked.
“I don’t want to come between you.”
“You’re not going to come between us. We want you. Sharing you is going to be o
ur thing.”
Scott came into the sitting room. “Don’t doubt our feelings for you, Connie, not ever. In fact, I know what I’m going to do, you’re going to marry me, you’re going to live with me. We’re going to have a ceremony to bind you to both of us. I’ll pick the rings as well.”
“You’re being bossy,” Beau said.
“Someone has to take charge. We’ve got a pregnant woman and a future to plan. I can get my lawyer to form some kind of contract that says we’re all equal and stuff like that.” He shrugged. “We don’t need to complicate matters.”
Connie pointed at her stomach. “Don’t you think this is complicated enough?”
He wrinkled his nose. “Nah, that’s not even a little hiccup.” Scott leaned over the sofa and put his hand on her stomach. “Little guy or girl, you are going to be so loved.”
“It may not even be any sex yet,” Connie said. “It’s not even a bump.”
“It will be. Now go and shower. I’m making food and you’re going to be cared for whether you like it or not.” He kissed her again.
Connie, against all the odds, did think it was going to be okay.
Chapter Ten
“You cannot terminate my membership. I paid upfront,” Mrs. Dale said.
“As I have told you multiple times, your membership and the advance fees have all been refunded to you.”
“This is bullshit.”
Scott sat back and stared at the woman who visited him daily, believing she could get him to change his mind. It wasn’t going to happen. She had caused his woman no end of problems and now that Connie was pregnant, he wouldn’t allow anyone to even think of hurting her.
“No, what’s bullshit is your disgusting mouth spreading horrible gossip about my woman. I don’t agree with that. You will also find that you’re going to have to go out of town for your car as well. You mess with me and Beau, you’ll pay for it. Simple as that. You thought you could spread vicious rumors and look what has happened.” He smiled.
Mrs. Dale looked like she wanted to say more but instead turned on her heel and left.
Good. He didn’t want to have to deal with her. Taking a deep breath, he saw it was nearly time for lunch. Beau had promised him he would bring Connie to the diner and even though he didn’t like eating there, he’d have a black tea.
Locking his office, he left Chloe at the desk in charge. She knew to call him if necessary.
He walked the short distance to the diner and he saw Connie already there.
Smiling, he entered the diner, made himself a black tea, paid for it, and took a seat beside her. He pressed a kiss to her lips and Connie’s face went a nice bright shade of red.
“You’re doing this on purpose,” she said.
“Nope, not on purpose. I want the town to know we love you and always will.” He stroked her hair.
The waitress brought over Beau and Connie’s lunch.
No one called out names. No one gave them any hassle.
He had no doubt they all had their opinions on what was going on but he didn’t give a shit. This was between him and his woman.
Sipping at his drink, he watched as Connie ate.
Morning sickness was already a problem. He hated to see her sick, and so he’d looked into foods that would help her during this time. Dry crackers, water. He’d already booked an appointment with the doctor.
She got halfway down her food and shook her head. “I can’t eat anymore.”
“Good, maybe this will help.” He took her hand and slid the ring onto her finger.
“Scott?”
“Beau and I picked it out for you. This wasn’t just my suggestion but the two of ours. We love you. We want to make it work.”
She didn’t pull the ring off or throw it in his face. He considered that a success.
“You’re constantly smiling,” she said.
“I can’t help it. You make me the happiest man in the world.” He kissed her again.
Beau wasn’t the kind of man to be left hanging and so he kissed her as well. In the middle of the diner, with people watching, they claimed her as their own. He was never going to get tired of her. He was completely addicted to her.
Once Beau finished his breakfast, they made their way outside. Each of them taking her hand. At first, she did try to pull away, but neither of them would let her.
“I’m thinking a wedding by the end of the month,” Scott said. “We can have a simple ceremony. A couple of people. What do you think?”
“You really meant about us all getting married?” Connie asked.
“You’re not used to people following through on their promises, are you?”
“I guess not.” She nibbled on her lip.
“The one thing you need to realize about Scott is he never says stuff he doesn’t mean. He’s all over you and he wants what is best for you, for us, all the time.” They stopped outside the gym.
“What are you doing today?” Scott asked.
“I’m going grocery shopping.”
“I’ve got an engine that needs repair.” Beau kissed Connie and shook Scott’s hand. “Make me something awesome for dinner.”
Scott watched his friend go, leaving him alone with Connie.
They had already moved her out of her apartment above the bar and were in the process of finding someone to rent it out.
She wasn’t entirely comfortable living with him and Beau. He saw it with how she acted. She didn’t see their place as home. Beau, on the other hand, had settled right in. He’d taken the necessary closet space, helped himself to food, and didn’t complain one little bit.
He was right at home.
“It’s probably best we go shopping together. You know what you like.”
“It’s no longer about what I like, Connie. It’s about what we like as a family. As a unit.” He took her hand and he walked her to his car. “I’m going to force you to realize what you want and need is important to me as well.” He helped her into the passenger side of his car, buckling the seat belt.
After climbing behind the wheel, he buckled in and drove to the supermarket.
For the entire two hours they were there, he made her put into the cart exactly what she wanted. When they got home, he didn’t put the groceries away. He let her do it as he dealt with the laundry.
Little by little, he was going to break her down and make her realize he wasn’t going to let her down. He was only ever going to love, support, and cherish her.
She was his woman, their woman, and together, they were going to build this life with her.
On his return to the kitchen, he saw all the groceries were put away and the fridge was open. “You heard what Beau said. I can’t wait for dinner.” More importantly, he couldn’t wait for dessert.
****
One month later
Beau had watched the most beautiful service. They only allowed a couple of people from their employ to be part of it and their families, who loved Connie. Scott had been there and he’d been with them as the best man.
They’d played their part for everyone, husband and wife.
He’d gotten to dance with Connie, and then he’d watched his best friend with her. This was what he’d wanted for so long and his dream was finally coming true.
At long last.
By the end of the ceremony, he was tired, but Scott wasn’t willing to let him go to bed with his wife, not yet.
They drove back to Scott’s house, which was now theirs. In the past month, he and Connie had each rented out their places. This was now their family home and Beau, for one, couldn’t wait to actually fill it with children.
Their appointment with the doctor was only a couple of days away and they weren’t going to have a honeymoon, all three of them, until they had the confirmation that she was okay.
On arrival, Scott made them all pause. “Come on, Beau. It’s time for us to carry our woman across the threshold,” he said.
“Without hurting me in any way.”
“As if we’d ever hurt you. Come on.” Scott lifted her up underneath her arms and Beau couldn’t help but laugh as he grabbed her feet.
Connie burst out laughing. “Seriously, this has to be the most unromantic way a woman’s been escorted into her wedded home.”
“I’m sure a few men have carried a drunk woman over the shoulder,” Beau said.
Once inside, he put her on her feet and she stood up, blowing some of her hair out of her eyes.
Beau pulled her close. “This is what I’ve been wanting to do all day.” He sank his fingers into her full hair and pressed his lips against hers. “Precious. That’s what you are to me, baby.”
She smiled. “I love you.” She reached out and pulled Scott close. “This day has been the best one of my life.” She sighed. “I love you guys so much. Thank you for not walking away and not giving up on me.”
“You’re our woman and we’ll love and take care of you for the rest of our lives,” Scott said.
“Until death parts us,” Beau said.
He lived for her smile.
Scott grabbed his and Connie’s arms.
“What are you doing?” Connie asked.
“Making this complete once and for all.” They walked outside to see the porch lit up, looking beautiful, sweet, and charming. He and Scott had been preparing this for the past few weeks so Connie had somewhere to sit. “I think it’s only fair we make this official once and for all.”
Scott pulled out a ring, presenting it to them.
“You already picked the ring?” Beau asked.
“I didn’t want this moment to prolong. We all agreed to love and cherish each other. To be loyal. You’re my best friend, Beau. We were going to fight over this woman, but that changed and now, we’re working together and are united in our love of one woman. What is mine, is now yours. I have made sure if there is anything that happens to me, everything I own will be given to the two of you.”
“Aw, come on, man, this is a wedding. Don’t be talking about that shit,” Beau said.
“It’s because of my love for the both of you that I am. I wanted you both to know that I love you more than anything in the world. You’re my life and I’ll do whatever it takes to keep us together.”
Connie walked up and kissed him. “And I will do everything in my power to show you that I love you. That I want this to work, and I belong to you, just as you two belong to me. We’re in this forever, together.” She took Beau’s hand. “We’re a team. I didn’t think it was possible to feel this way about anyone, but I find myself for the first time ever in my life excited about the future about what it will mean.”