Page 98 of Nanny for the Mercenaries

“Of course I do!” I threw myself into his arms and held him tight.

“Not so strong, love,” he reminded me. “Bullet wound, and all.”

“Sorry!”

I glanced over my shoulder, where Harrison was still standing. His face was unreadable. I pulled away from Archer and cleared my throat.

“If we’re going to continue this, I need to be completely honest with you. With all of you. I think… I think I’m attracted to Harrison, too. Yes, I know that’s absolutely ridiculous to not be satisfied with justtwomen, but I can’t deny the spark I sense between us. If you don’t feel the same way, Harrison, then I completely understand. And if you two don’t approve of this, I also understand. But I needed to get it out, in the interest of full disclosure. I didn’t want there to be any secrets between us.”

There was a long moment of silence as they all considered this.

“Is it because he shaved?” Jordy finally asked. “I told you, dude. That beard does nothing for you.”

Harrison scowled and touched his jaw. “Fuck you.”

“The shaved beard was only a small part of it,” I admitted. “I don’t know what it is. Are you mad?”

“Why would we be mad?” Jordy asked. “I’m already sharing you with Archer. One more guy wouldn’t change much. Especially Harry.”

Harrison let out a low growl at the nickname.

“I was raised in a polyamorous family,” Archer reminded me. “I have no qualms about a non-traditional dating structure, whether that means three of us, or four.”

I breathed a sigh of relief. I hadn’t known how that conversation would go, but this was the best possible outcome.

Until Harrison spoke.

“I told you: I don’t like to share.”

All of us swung our heads toward him.

“This whole thing is weird as fuck,” he continued, gesturing at the three of us. “I don’t mind weird things. My cousin got a sex change a few years ago. It’s weird calling himBrianinstead ofBrandi, but fuck, it’s his life, and I’m glad he’s being his true self. That’s how I feel about anyone. Do whatever makes you happy, as long as you’re not hurting anyone else.

“That’s how I’ve felt watching you three. It’s weird. I didn’t grow up with a polyamorous family or whatever, so it’s taken me some time to wrap my head around it. But even though I want y’all to be happy, that doesn’t mean I necessarily want to join in. I don’t know if I could see myself sharing a woman with someone else, let alone two other men. I’d have to think about it. Get used to it. I have no idea if I’d ever want to be part of something like that.”

“That’s totally understandable,” I said, smiling. “If you don’t want to explore this, that’s okay.”

“I never said I didn’t want to explore it,” he quickly clarified. He suddenly seemed sheepish, and stared intently at his toes. “I’m just saying I might need some time. That’s all. I do kind of like you. I mean, you’re hot and all. Fuck. I don’t know what I’m trying to say.”

I hugged him to shut him up, and he wrapped his arms around me. Jordy joined in a moment later, followed by Archer. The three of them held me together, a long moment of relief and victory. It had been a whirlwind of a trip, and even though it was coming to an end,weweren’t. We were going to continue to some degree. And I was excited to find out just how much.

“I’m growing my beard back out,” Harrison said stubbornly. “My face feels naked without it.”

“You can do whatever you want,” I said. “I don’t want to make you change anything important about yourself.”

“Good. Because I’m not.”

“Okay then,” I replied.

“Fine.”

I suddenly remembered something. I reached into the front of my shirt and pulled out two sets of dog tags. “I kept these safe for you.”

Jordy stopped me before I could take them off. “Why don’t you hold onto mine? For a while.”

“They’re in better hands with you, anyway,” Archer agreed.

I tucked them back inside my shirt. Keeping their tags felt like a huge gesture, like being asked to meet their family. Or to move in together. But for some reason, it didn’t feel like it was too much, too soon. It felt right.

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