Page 22 of Infamous Love

Jax held her tighter as he nibbled her ear. "You've figured out our plan. If we can't convince you to come on the road with us, we've decided to resort to getting you kicked out."

He was only half kidding.

"So what exactly would I do if I went on the road with you? Hang out in the hotel room every day?"

"Not at all. You could come on set or go shopping. And don't forget, we need someone to manage our riches. You'd be perfect for the job."

"But what about my masters degree? I've already started and I don't want to be a quitter."

"You can finish with on-line classes from anywhere in the world. Next objection?"

They'd been through this argument many times. Jaxson could see progress. In the beginning she had refused to even consider leaving Wisconsin with them when they left in two weeks. He suspected she was finally giving a future with the men some serious thought.

Ironically, Jax had expected to become restless with this much time off, but between the marathon sexcapades, long runs along Lake Mendota, and binge drinking and eating, he'd accomplished the near impossible.

He had truly relaxed.

The thought of going back to the grind of their modeling schedule stressed him, but the thought of doing it without Emma with them downright depressed him. He had halfway expected to have her worked out of his system by now. He had never been known for long-term relationships. In fact, other than his long-standing friendship and now quasi-relationship with Chase, he’d never felt this way before.

The two weeks they'd spent in Madison had been some of the best of his life. It was the first time in his adult life he'd given himself permission to just be.

Before they'd come, he'd made reservations for a suite at the best hotel in town, expecting to treat Emma to a month of luxury. Instead, she'd convinced them they'd have a better chance of remaining anonymous by staying with her at her house just off campus.

He hated to admit it, but she'd been right.

For years they'd been treated like celebrities everywhere they went and while being rich and famous certainly had its perks, he hadn't realized how much he missed just being able to fade into the crowd. The men had lost touch with reality and their time in Wisconsin was restoring an equilibrium he hadn't even known was out of whack.

The fact that Emma not only understood that, but refused to capitalize on the men's fame in any way put her in uncharted territory for Jax. Only through distance could he see that the people he'd been surrounded by for the last few years had all wanted something from him. Money. Fame. Connections.

Emma wanted none of those things. She simply wanted him. The real him, and he hadn't known how important that was until it happened.

Now that they'd passed the halfway mark of their month-long vacation, Jax found himself analyzing his life in a way he hadn't in years. At twenty-six years old, he found himself examining how many more years he had left in his modeling career. The fact that he had started to dread going back on the road was revealing.

Unaware of Jaxson's inner conflict, Chase rolled over to reach for the remote control from the nightstand. When the men had found Emma had no television they'd gone out and purchased a big-ass smart TV that took up a whole section of the attic. They'd spent hours curled up watching movie after movie, taking intermissions for sex, sleep and food. As nice as the break had been, he found the tension returning in small increments with each day they marked off on the calendar.

Happy-go-lucky Chase didn't seem to suffer from the same self-awareness issues.

While Jaxson tried to distract himself on his iPad, Emma and Chase wrestled for control over the remote. Chase tickled their lover and she broke into a fit of giggles, sending a jolt of longing through Jax.

He didn't want this to end.

Hours later, Jaxson lay awake. His two lovers were each snuggled close on either side of him, their hands intertwined on his chest, linking the three together even in sleep. His mind wouldn't shut off and he hated it. He spent hours looking at his choices from every possible angle. In the end, he knew what he needed to do. He just hoped Emma would come around.

* * *

Bright light shiningin through the one window in the attic woke Jaxson many hours later. He hadn't looked at the clock yet, but knew by the angle of the sun it had to be almost noon. Emma would be done with her classes soon. He cracked an eye to see Chase sitting up in bed next to him, his body propped up with pillows, an X-box controller in his hand.

"It's about time you woke up. I never thought I'd say this, but I'm actually getting sick of video games."

"I know what you mean. It's been a long time since I've been able to sleep until I woke up without an alarm."

Chase flipped off the TV and threw down the controller to turn his attention to his full-time friend and part-time Dom and lover.

"Emma's gone. So talk to me. What's bothering you?"

The men had known each other way too long to pretend there was nothing wrong. He just didn't know if he was ready to talk about it yet.

Chase waited patiently until the uncomfortable silence pressured Jax into filling the dead air.

---