Page 58 of Her Three Tech Bros

“Now’s not a good time,” I say, gesturing to the door and hoping they get the hint.

“No,” Ethan says firmly. “We’re not leaving. The three of us need to talk this out.”

I sigh, knowing there’s no use arguing with them. “Fine, come in.”

We sit down in the living room, the tension thick between us.

“Look, man,” Ethan starts. “We get that you’re upset. The whole situation isn’t easy.”

“Upset is putting it lightly,” I mutter.

“We know,” Ryan chimes in. “But we want to fix this. All of us together. Did you really not like how it was going, or did you just get in your own head about what happens next?”

I stay silent, arms crossed. As much as I want to resist, a part of me knows they’re right. I was enjoying being with Jade, even if I did have to share her. I don’t want to lose her or blow up my friendships.

“Things got messy,” Ethan continues. “But the connection we have with Jade is real. It’s worth fighting for and doing this the right way. Isn’t it?”

I chew my lip, considering his words. Underneath the jealousy, there’s a deep affection for Jade. We had something special that I don’t want to lose.

“You’re right,” I admit. “I was only thinking of myself, but Jade’s made it clear what she wants. It’s all of us or nothing. I guess it’s just hard for me to not think this is all bound to go down in flames, sooner or later.”

Ryan puts a hand on my shoulder. “I don’t think it has to, though. Not if we’re mature and communicate about this. We all made mistakes, but we can forgive each other and do better.”

I nod, feeling the bitterness in my chest start to thaw. “So what now?”

“Now we talk to Jade,” Ethan says. “We put all our cards on the table and see if she’s willing to give us another chance.”

“And if she is?” I prod.

Ryan smiles. “We take it slow. We communicate. We look out for each other. Remember, we all care about each other here, and we all care about Jade. We can do this.”

I take a deep breath and nod. As scary as it feels, I want to try again. For all of us.

“Okay,” I say. “Let’s do this.”

26

JADE

As I lay in bed, staring at the ceiling, I feel pathetic. I should be out, finding new friends and enjoying my life, not sulking in bed, but this seems to be all I have the energy for outside of work lately.

I try to limit how often I think about Logan, Ethan, and Ryan, but some days that’s harder than others. It’s been over a week since I’ve seen them, and I miss them more than I’ve ever missed anything. I miss them more than I missed Colorado during my first week here in LA, which is saying a lot because I was incredibly homesick.

My phone buzzes next to me, and my heart leaps. I grab it, hoping it’s one of the guys. My heart sinks when I see that it’s Kayla.

I stare at my phone, debating on whether or not to answer it because I know she’s going to ask if I’ve heard from them, and I just don’t feel like talking about it. I sigh, answering anyway because I know I need to talk to someone. Isolating myself from everyone is only going to hurt me more.

“Hello?”

“Hey, girl! I just got off work, how’ve you been?”

“I’m okay, you?”

“Actually, I’m fantastic. I just talked to my mom about taking some time off to come see you. It won’t be for like two months, but at least she agreed to it!”

“Oh, thank God. Let’s just hope my life is less depressing by then.”

“The guys still haven’t come through?”

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