“What —?” I can’t manage more than a single word.
Barrett takes my hand in his, sending a shiver of nerves throughout my body. As he opens his mouth, I shake my head quickly. “No, no…”
Bronson’s hand grips my knee, seemingly with the intent to steady me.
“Caz, we’re in love with you,” Barrett says, his eyes locked on mine. “We’ve always loved you as a sister, but now we know you as a woman, and we know we want to be with you.”
“Always,” Lincoln adds.
“We know we’ll never meet anyone like you. You’re the only woman we want, and the ring is a sign of our commitment to you,” Lennox says, his eyes conveying the love behind his words.
Bronson squeezes my knee again, the warmth of his fingers registering, despite my shell-shocked state. “We never want to be away from you again, Caz. We want to spend the rest of our lives with you.”
My mouth is hanging open; my eyes are wide. “Why … why are you doing this? We can’t —”
Through my peripheral vision, I become aware that Rachel is in distress. I turn her way and see clearly that she’s crying. Her head is bent and she’s wiping her eyes with the back of hand.
“Stop!” I tell the men as I rise from my chair. My movements are awkward because the older twins are so close that I don’t have much room to move. “How could you — why would you do this?”
The four of them stand to meet me face-to-face, and I want to run, but there still isn’t room. Lennox pushes past his brothers to put a hand on my shoulder, but I twist away. “We can’t — you can’t do this. What are you thinking?”
“Caz,” he says soothingly. “Why can’t we do this?”
My mouth and my brain are out of sync as I try to state the obvious. “Your mom — we can’t — it’s not right.”
My eyes flicker to Rachel, who’s now watching us with alarm.
“Caz,” Lennox says. “Mom knows how we feel about you. We told her a few days ago, but she already knew.” His eyes are warm and almost smiling. The men’s behavior is bewildering.
“She knows?” Did they tell her we’d been together? Oh no — her sister probably told her about finding me at their house. I feel like I’m caught in a nightmare.
“Caz,” Barrett says, “she knows, and she approves.”
My mind is shifting into fight or flight, so it takes several long moments of me still protesting and trying to get away before the words sink in. Once more, I turn to Rachel, who’s still looking concerned, but she’s nodding her head.
“Our mom approves,” Lennox says, “and she wants us all to be happy.”
Rachel catches my eye and nods again. “Caroline, I’ve always known how my sons felt about you. When they lived in New York, they asked about you every time I saw them, and when they returned home, I could see it plainly on their faces whenever your name was mentioned.
“Sure, a relationship between the five of you would be unconventional, but if you all make each other happy, then why shouldn’t you be together? Your love is your own business, and you wouldn’t be hurting anyone.”
“And we do want to make you happy,” Lennox says, sliding his hand along my upper arm.
Bronson cups my cheek in his palm, turning me to look at him. “If you’ll have us, we promise to work to be the men you need.” The corner of his mouth curls into a grin. “I’m not always as stubborn as I’ve seemed these past few weeks.”
“I guess I bring that out in you?” I say.
As Bronson shrugs, still grinning, Barrett says, “You bring out a lot of good qualities in us, too.” He raises my hand, which is clutching the jewelry box, and plucks it from my palm, opening it back up, offering it to me. “What do you say, Caz? Be ours?”
“We love you, Caz,” Bronson says.
“We love you,” his brothers echo, each of them looking into my eyes.
I glance down at the ring, which is truly spectacular, before my gaze flickers to Rachel, who’s smiling as she watches us. Finally, I look back at the Stone brothers, the four men who have always been in my heart, whether or not I’ve been able to admit it to myself. “I love you too,” I tell them. “And I want to be with you always.”
In the next moment, I’m overwhelmed in the very best way possible as the four of them surround me with kisses, hugs, and warm caresses. When we part, Bronson takes the ring from its cushion and slides it onto my finger, where it fits as if it was always meant to be there.
“Let me see your ring, dear.” The men step aside so that Rachel can come closer. She admires the ring for a moment before pulling me into her arms. “I love you, Caroline,” she says as she hugs me close. “My boys are lucky to have you.”