Page 116 of Unforgettable

He shrugged, but it was Josh that said, “Because I think we’re both on the same page about you. It’s you that seemed confused by us calling ourselves your boyfriends.”

I looked at Reed, but he was wearing the same unaffected expression. Taking a deep, steadying breath that did nothing to actually help me, I decided to lay it all out there as I usually did. Above all else, they were two of my best friends and that had to be worth something.

“I didn’t think this was actually a possibility or that you would both agree to it.”

“What is it that we’re agreeing to exactly?” Reed asked, and I knew he wasn’t just being dense, he wanted to hear me say it. To put a name, a label on us. To define it the way I wanted to, so we were all on the same page.

Whether I actually said the words didn’t make them any less true. But either way, nervous nausea coiled in my stomach.

THIRTY-FOUR

Amanda

Coherent sentences meantcoherent thoughts and as both Josh and Reed stared at me, I had none.

Not believing that there was even the slightest possibility that they would agree to something like that meant I hadn’t given it too much thought. And defining it or labeling it seemed more daunting than I thought it would be.

What were we? Polyamorous? A throuple? Did we have to label it?

Frustration was seeping out of my pores, and I scrubbed a hand through my hair that seriously needed to be washed.

Before I could attempt to clear my head, I stopped and looked at them both. Patiently they waited for me to think it all through, and I knew that the first question I needed to answer was if I wanted it. If the three of us together, in a relationship, was what I truly wanted, and the answer was an unequivocal yes.

There was no decision to be made because there was no choosing. Even with a gun to my head, I could not, and would not, choose between the two of them.

“You’re agreeing to both being with me… at the same time. Because I’m not going to choose between the two of you. I can’t.”

My words hung around us like my confession altered the chemical makeup of the cold air.

Only a second elapsed, barely giving either of them time to respond, but I couldn’t take it. “Right? Or am I going crazy? Because you used the plural boyfriends. Not one, but more than that—in this case, it would be two. And if I’m totally off base, I need you to tell me now because—”

“Whoa there, babe,” Josh said, hopping out of his seat and rounding the island to stop in front of me. Reed also slipped out of his barstool, but rather than crossing to me, he leaned against the counter with his arms and ankles crossed.

“You’re not crazy and that’s exactly what we want. Right, Reed?” Josh asked without tearing his eyes from mine.

“Abso-fucking-lutely,” Reed responded, and I couldn’t help but smile.

Josh’s palms cupped my cheeks, and I blinked up at him, losing myself in his ocean eyes. “This—the three of us together—is too good for it to be anything but right.”

“Wait a second. When did you have time to discuss this?”

“When you were greeting your maintenance guy at the door.”

Quickly I did the mental math and turned back to them with an incredulous look. “I was gone for all of thirty seconds before the two of you barged in. There’s no way that conversation happened in that small amount of time.”

Reed shrugged. “There wasn’t much to say when we both agreed that you’re ours and neither of us is letting you go. The rest of it can be figured out as we go. What else is there to say?”

He stepped forward, the two of them crowding around me and inhibiting my ability to talk or think. Their presence was intoxicating and wasn’t conducive to making clear, smart decisions.

Before either of them could stop me, I slipped under Josh’s arm and hurried across the kitchen, putting the large island between us. The more space, the better.

“Both of you stay over there, and I’ll stay over here.”

They wore twin devilish grins, which did little for my ability to think straight. To what deity did they sacrifice to look so damn good?

“Guess not much has changed in the past few weeks, huh?” Josh remarked, and I rolled my eyes.

“I just want to talk it all out before we decide anything because what we’re talking about—the three of us—isn’t going to be easy or simple. It’s going to become complicated and people are going to have their own opinions that we have to be prepared for.”

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