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When the new week started, and Jake and Miles had meetings they couldn’t get out of, we knew we had to face reality, which meant I had to go back to work. The boys dropped me off at Caged, and despite both of them offering to cancel their plans, so they could stay with me, I declined.

I’m a big girl, and I can handle myself…even if Marcus scares me a little.

I kiss both of my men and wave them off, making sure they actually leave, before I straighten my spine and lift my chin, focusing on my breathing.

If I appear confident, maybe I’ll feel it too, I think to myself as I hold my head high and walk into Caged.

It’s a couple of hours before we’re due to open, so there’s only a few members of staff around, other than security and the supervisor of the day. I head straight into the locker room, putting away my things before checking my appearance in the mirror.

I almost jump out of my skin and let out a startled yelp when I see Marcus standing behind me in the mirror’s reflection. His face is a blank mask, not giving anything away, with his arms folded in front of him.

“Can you come into my office for a quick chat?” Although he phrases it as a question, Marcus’ tone makes it clear there’s only one answer. In fact, he doesn’t even wait for me to respond. He simply turns on his heel and stalks out of the room, not even looking back to make sure I’m following him.

I have to practically run to keep up, and by the time I make it to his office, he’s already sitting behind his desk, his hands resting on the arms of his chair. I shut the door behind me, but it’s not until I move to take a seat opposite him that I see Chloe standing in the corner.

Although she’s not smiling like she usually does, there’s slightly more friendliness to her expression than Marcus’. Seeing me falter when I catch sight of her, Chloe points to the chair I was about to take. “You can have a seat.”

I slide into the chair she’s pointing to, my gaze flicking between the two people who mean the most to the men in my life. My heart is pounding so loud, it’s a miracle they can’t hear it, as the silence in the room grows alongside my anxiety.

The silence does nothing for my nerves, and the words tumble from my lips before I can stop them. “Are you firing me?”

I don’t fucking blame them if they are. I mean, one of the first rules they told me about is that I’m not allowed to date anyonewho works here, and Jacob was even named specifically as part of that rule.

Marcus shakes his head slowly, his blank expression never wavering. “No, not if you continue to do your job to the high standard you have been.”

I let out a sigh of relief. “Oh, thank you. I promise, nothing will change.”

Chloe scoffs. “That’s not true, everything will change.”

My brow furrows as I try to understand what she means. Her tone isn’t unkind, but I’m not entirely sure what it is she’s trying to tell me. “I don’t…”

Marcus looks over at his girlfriend, and then turns back to me, letting out a sigh. “What Chloe is trying to say is that when your relationship with both Jacob and Miles becomes public knowledge, lots of things will change, for many different reasons.

“There are more than a few of your colleagues who won’t be happy to know that Jacob has settled down, or that we allowed you to break the rules to date him. There will also be many people who don’t like the idea of Miles and Jake together, Chloe’s parents included.

“In our line of work, we have a lot of enemies, and now those enemies have two targets depending on who they want to go after instead of one. We just want you to know that dating someone in our line of work can be hard, but dating two men will be even harder. Not everyone will be understanding.”

Nothing Marcus just said is new, it’s all things we’ve been over between the three of us when we’ve talked about what telling people about our relationship will look like, but hearing someone else voice our worst fears somehow makes them even more real.

Chloe takes a step closer to her boyfriend as she says, “You have a history of running away when things get tough, and wewant to make sure that the people we care about aren’t going to get hurt if you decide it’s too much for you to deal with.”

Although there’s no nastiness in her voice, the stern, unwavering tone speaks of how much she cares about her brother, and how badly she wants to protect him. This isn’t her having a go at me, it’s a sister looking out for her brother, and I can’t blame her for that.

“I know you’re only trying to look out for your brother, but I can assure you, I didn’t run before because things got too hard. I ran because I was afraid for my life. If I wasn’t, I never would have left.

“I’m well aware of everything Marcus said, and probably a million other reasons he missed. Miles, Jake, and I have been over every possible scenario, making sure we’re strong enough to face what’s coming.

“We know it will not be easy, but speaking as someone who has lost the person they love once before, nothing hurts more than that. We won’t let anyone destroy what we have.”

As soon as the last word leaves my lips, Chloe’s lips tilt into a bright smile, her whole face lighting up. “That’s exactly what I wanted to hear. I love both Jake and Miles, and I don’t want either of them to get hurt. While you’ve not exactly chosen the easy route, I know they’re strong enough to handle whatever is thrown their way. Their only weakness is you, and so I felt it was my job to make sure you were just as all in as they are.”

I nod quickly, letting her see just how fucking serious I am. “I’m not just here because they’re helping me with my past. I really like both Jake and Miles, and I’m willing to fight for them. I wouldn’t ever hurt them on purpose.”

While Chloe continues to smile at me, Marcus’ face remains emotionless. “Do you love them?”

“Marcus,” Chloe screeches, slapping him on the arm. “You can’t ask her that.”

Marcus doesn’t pay his girlfriend any attention. His fierce gaze remains fixed on me, watching every microreaction, analysing my every move. Although my heart is racing, thanks to the intensity of the situation, the question itself doesn’t make me nervous.