Page 68 of Unforgettable

She rolled her shoulders and pushed her hair behind her.

“Okay.” Reed took a step back and tucked his hands into his pockets as Amanda eyed us both warily.

“Okay, first, I wanted to say thank you both for giving me space this week. I really appreciate it, and you don’t know how much it means to me that you listened when I said I needed space. That couldn’t have been easy, so thanks.”

I caught Reed’s glance in my direction and knew he was also freaking out about where this was going. We were both terrified she was going to say we were done—like a breakup without ever having been together.

“And this week has really given me time to figure out what’s going on in my head. Since all this started, I’ve been really confused and frustrated at myself for being confused. We’re all such good friends, and the last thing I want to do is fuck up our friendship or our entire group dynamic. Friends like y’all are hard to come by, and that’s why—”

“Are you saying you’re done? That it’s neither of us, and we should stop?” Reed interrupted her, saying out loud my exact thoughts. Each time she said “friends,” my chest tightened, and I felt like we were inching closer and closer to her final confession that that’s all she’d ever want to be.

Amanda whipped her head in Reed’s direction and glared at him through lowered lids.

That’s my girl.

“If you would let me finish, I promise it will all be crystal clear.”

Reed huffed and shifted his weight on his feet but didn’t say anything more.

“Like I was saying, you both are my best friends, which makes all of this incredibly difficult.” She took a deep breath, closed her eyes and grounded herself. My anxiety shot to new heights before she continued, “But I can’t pretend that I don’t have feelings for you both.”

The smallest sliver of hope wiggled between the fear and anxiety in my chest. But I didn’t let it blossom into more, and I wouldn’t until I heard all she had to say, especially since her eyes had once again cast down to the floor.

“And that’s fucking insane.”

“Is it, though?” I asked.

She sighed and threw her arms out to her sides. “It is. I know you’ve both come to terms with all of this, but I’ve spent the last year and a half trying to ignore and forget what happened. But it’s not fucking working, especially with the two of you being so insistent. So, here I am.”

There was a tense silence between the three of us.

“Here you are?” Reed questioned.

“Yes. What I’m trying to say is that the way things are going isn’t working for me. All of the rules and time limits and other shit just don’t work.”

“Okay then, what do you want?” I asked. At the same time, Reed said, “Tell us what you want.”

“I want to be done with the time limits. I’m in no position to make a decision and even thinking about doing that makes me sick to my stomach,” she said emphatically. She’d begun pacing the length of the room, her heels clicking against the wood. When she reached one end, she would turn slowly and head back in the other direction, talking to her hands.

I wished she would look at us.

“So, I don’t want that hanging over our heads. And I know that’s a lot to ask, and I promise I won’t keep you both in this in-between period for too long. But the idea of trying to sort out my feelings while also having this decision hanging over my head is impossible.”

Finally, she looked up, her deep-blue eyes brimming with hope. But there was still fear lingering there. And seeing it and hearing her be so open and honest after closing off from us completely broke what little self-control I had left.

In a few strides, I ate up the space between us and gripped her face in my hands. At first, she was startled by my quick approach but easily melted into my touch in the next second. My thumbs rubbed against the smooth skin of her cheeks, and I watched the tension release from her features.

It felt right to touch her again.

“We’ll give you anything you want.” My voice was steady, although I was waiting for her to pull away any second. Her words were one thing, and it was great to hear that she wanted more. But it was another to see it firsthand. To talk and touch and feel without the pressure of her holding back her feelings. Reed and I had both felt it—it was hard to miss her uncertainty and the way she questioned every interaction.

“You want to date us both without the rules and pressure?” Reed added, approaching Amanda from behind and pressing himself against her. She shuddered as he ran his hands down her sides and gripped her hips.

“Yes,” she breathed out and relaxed further into both of us.

I caught Reed’s eyes over Amanda’s head and the devious smile tugging at his lips was enough of an agreement.

Amanda’s eyes never strayed from my face, and when I looked back down at her, she’d pulled her bottom lip between her teeth. Using my thumb, I pulled it free and covered her mouth with my own.

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