Jaden (Jaded 3)
Corrigan laughed. “I’ve never been a huge fan of your dad’s, but I think I now have a Neil Crush. Shit, Sheldon. I see where you get your love for booze.”
Bryce chuck
led. “We’ve always known. Half the time we got drunk, it was from her dad’s liquor cabinet.”
Um. I looked down. Half the time Bryce and I had gotten drunk, it was from my dad’s liquor cabinet . . . not Corrigan. Those had also been the times we ended the night in bed and some of the times during the afternoon, too. I kept quiet. I wasn’t going to clarify that for them.
Corrigan did, though. He barked out an abrupt laugh. “Right. That must’ve been your time together, the two of you. I know I usually brought my own alcohol over.” He turned to me, pinning me in place with his gaze. “Or we got booze from The Café Diner. That was our tradition, apparently.”
Bryce was quiet, and I had to admit I was relieved. Clapping my hands together, I looked around for the remote. “Well, then. How about a horror film?” I laughed. “It’d be appropriate for us.”
I said it, and then I waited. My heart dropped. The joke wasn’t a good one, and when I only heard silence from them, I knew they agreed. I shrugged. “What? Not even a pity laugh?”
Corrigan pressed his lips together and turned away.
Bryce shook his head, sighing. “Are you serious?”
“Come on. It’s fucking awkward right now.”
Corrigan looked back. “Yeah, guess whose fault that is? Not him or me. I know that much.”
Bryce jerked his head up and down, and as the two were now standing next to each other, both turned toward me, waiting for my response, I didn’t like this image. They were gorgeous. Bryce’s jet-black hair had grown out, but not much. He had it spiked up, while Corrigan’s hair had a little curl in it. Bryce was wearing a black shirt and jeans, and Corrigan had on a white polo over jeans. Both of them were lean with an athletic build, but Bryce had more definition. His soccer training had built his body into a machine that was for speed and strength, but he was so damn alert. His eyes were clear and focused solely on me, while Corrigan had a hurtful glint in his. However, they were still waiting for my response as I continued to stand and admire them.
In that moment, I felt like it was them versus me. Fuck me. I’d lose if that were the case. Rolling my shoulders back, I lifted my chin. “What?”
A wall slid over Corrigan’s face, and Bryce rolled his eyes. He muttered, “Are you kidding me?”
“Look,” I started, “I don’t want to talk about it.” I gestured around the room. “You’re here. I hate my dad, but his place is kick-ass. Can we put on a movie and forget about real life for two hours?”
“No.”
Corrigan muttered, “That’ll make it more awkward.”
“I’m not enjoying this conversation.”
“Are you supposed to?” Bryce shot back at me.
I was startled by the fierceness in his tone and saw that Corrigan seemed to agree with him. Both were staring back at me with heated expressions.
“No.” I took a breath, readying myself. This conversation was going to happen. “Okay. Fine. I don’t know what to say. Nothing’s changed.”
They glanced at each other, and Corrigan said, “I think we just want to know what page we’re all on.”
I loved them both. That was the page, but I said, “You never shared your page with me, so I have no idea.”
Bryce backed up a step.
Corrigan frowned. “And I said I didn’t want to say anything until you—”
“Just fucking tell her,” Bryce cut in. His shoulders were so rigid. “He loves you. I love you. And you haven’t picked one yet.”
Oh god. A sick sensation shot through me, all the way down to my feet. We were back to this, but who was I fooling? I needed to choose, but I couldn’t lose the other one.
They were both waiting, watching me.
I pressed a hand to my stomach. “I can’t, you guys. I can’t pick, especially now. I need both of you.”
“Sheldon,” Bryce’s voice softened, and he glanced sideways to Corrigan, “I think we’ll both agree that the other one won’t leave. We love you, and we wouldn’t want to be anywhere else during this thing. We need you as much as you need us.”