Page 236 of The Fake Date Agreement

Because after I graduate, I’ll find a teaching job in Virginia. “You’ll be the best players in the NHL.”

“And you’ll be the best teacher,” Caleb says.

We spent a lot of time in Mexico talking about the future. We all want kids. Just not yet. Marriage isn’t going to work for us, and that’s okay. What we have is more than I ever believed I would have.

I remember saying those exact words to them on the private plane back from Mexico.

And then Caleb, Reid, and Javier told me about part three of the plan.

A different kind of marriage.

A commitment ceremony with all of them and me. Maybe we could do it in the backyard of our new Virginia home when I’ve finished with grad school. Just us and the people we love most in the world. What did I think?

I cried for nearly an entire hour. I was that happy.

“Do you want to take all these books?” Javier asks, standing in front of my bookcases. “There’s space in the condo for them.”

Speaking of condos…

“You don’t need to buy me a condo, Javier. I’ll only be in Ann Arbor for a year.”

When he doesn’t immediately respond, I sigh. “You’ve already done it, haven’t you?”

“I found the perfect place when we were in Mexico,” he says, drawing me into a hug. “It’s in Angell and close to your school, so it’s convenient, and it’s safe.”

None of those amenities make me think this condo is cheap.

Over his shoulder, my gaze clashes with Reid, who mouths, “Three bedrooms with a gym in the building.”

I open my mouth to tell Javier it’s too much, but this is Javier, and he loves me. This is how he shows his love for the people he cares about.

“Thank you.” I kiss his cheek. “Maybe we could keep the condo after. Ann Arbor is really pretty.”

His smile is everything. “Anything you need,Gatinha. It’s yours.”

We soon resume packing up my life in Lawrenceburg.

“We didn’t decide on a prize,” I say.

“Huh?” Reid pauses his packing.

“When you bet that you’d have Marc on his knees begging to take me back, we didn’t decide on a prize.”

Caleb smiles at me. “We have you. What other prize would we want?”

My eyes prickle with tears. “And I got you.”

I’m probably taking more than I need, but I won’t be coming home as much as I did when I was in Lamont. My life will involve bouncing between Ann Arbor and West Virginia, at least for the next year, and it still feels so surreal. “I keep thinking you’ll stop me.”

Caleb studies me from my closet. Serious. But beneath that gruff exterior lies the heart of a soft and squishy man who loves me. “Do you want us to stop you?”

I shake my head. “This is something I’ve always wanted.”

“It’s a year,” he says. “You’ll kick ass.”

“You won’t replace me, will you?” I ask, voicing a secret fear.

“We could try,” Reid says slowly.

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