“Shit.”
 
 I nodded. “New guy didn’t dump me on the spot, but he backed out of our next date with a lousy excuse.”
 
 “I’m sorry,” Freddie said.
 
 I shook my head. “It’s in the past. But it added a new fear. I moved again not long after that. I couldn’t take the chance that an angry ex would ruin a relationship before it even got started again. After that…” I sighed. “I always left after a breakup, when my lease ended anyway. Why stay and risk it when there are plenty of new places to go?”
 
 “Oh, Sweetheart,” Freddie murmured. “Nobody should ever make you feel like that.”
 
 I forced a smile. “At least I got to explore the world a bit, right?”
 
 Tony shimmied up from where he’d been resting against my legs and wrapped his arms around me, displacing Beck’s hand. “Don’t go. Even if this doesn’t work out, you’re still our friend.”
 
 Beck carded his fingers through my hair. “Thank you for telling us.”
 
 “Thank you for listening. I know it’s a lot.”
 
 “It’s good to know though,” Ian stated. “And now the door is open to really discussing your boundaries.”
 
 “My boundaries?” I asked as a knot started to form in my stomach.
 
 “Yeah,” Ian replied. “Like when we were joking earlier. You blushed a lot. I heard Freddie offer to ask us to stop, and you said you didn’t want to change us. But we want you to be comfortable. That’s more than what’s happeningtoyou, it’s also what’s happening around you. Joking is one thing, but wouldyou rather not be around when it’s real dirty talk? Do you think you’ll want to sleep in the same bed as us, or in the other room in case we get frisky and want to fuck each other?”
 
 I swallowed. “I… I don’t know.”
 
 Ian squeezed my hand. “You probably have more boundaries than just sex and have been afraid to voice them. But it’s better for us to know what they are so that we don’t cross them.”
 
 How was I supposed to respond to that?
 
 “You don’t have to tell us right now,” Freddie stated. “And we know things will change as time goes by. You might find yourself more or less comfortable with certain things, and that’s ok. Just let us know. Ok?”
 
 I sniffled. “Ok.”
 
 “Hey,” Beck said softly. “Mind if I collect on that kiss now?”
 
 I laughed. “Sure.”
 
 As our lips came together, something inside of me insisted that this was right.
 
 Chapter 8
 
 ~Mid April~
 
 “Somebody’s cheery,” Tony teased, bumping my shoulder as we got out of the SUV after game night.
 
 “That’s because he won,” Beck laughed. “Trounced everybody at the table.”
 
 Ian pulled me in for a deep kiss. “And a glorious defeat it was.”
 
 I blushed. “It was just luck.”
 
 “You keep telling yourself that,” Freddie laughed. “The rest of us know you’ve got a head for strategy.”
 
 “Huh?”
 
 He grinned. “You don’t see it, do you?”
 
 “Not really. I just make the best move I can.”