Page 45 of Fanboy in the Falls (Devon Falls #3)

I know what I need to do next. —Tom Evers

We get all the way to the door of the winery event space before Gabe sags against his crutches, breathing hard.

“Holy shit,” he whispers. “Holy shit, holy shit, holy shit. I can’t believe I just said all of that.”

Colin helps him ease onto the edge of a nearby Adirondack chair—I swear, those things propagate on this property—and I hand him a small bottle of water from my pocket, watching carefully as he sucks it down.

I run my hands through his hair and he leans into my touch, hopefully away from the shock he’s feeling right now.

Colin kneels down in front of him and props his crutches up against the back of the chair. “You were fucking phenomenal, little fox. That was a goddamn masterclass in taking apart an asshole.”

I nod in agreement. “That was inspiring, Gabe.” I rub at his cheek gently with my thumb. “You should be so proud of yourself.”

Gabe takes in a long breath, then lets it out. “But what if saying all of that was the wrong choice?” he finally whispers. “What if Dave takes Lou away from me for good now?”

Colin makes a low, growling noise in his throat. “I’d like to see him try,” he says, his eyes narrowed and his gaze dead ahead. Gabe’s eyes widen, and he looks over at me.

We both burst out laughing.

“What?” Colin asks as he straightens up.

I snort. “Nothing, love. I just forgot, until quite recently, that your pre-racing face translates a little oddly into the real world.”

Gabe grins. “You sort of looked like a cross between a mafia henchman and a cartoon character.”

Colin rolls his eyes, but he’s laughing. “I’m just saying we’re not letting that fucker win,” he finally says.

Gabe sighs and shakes his head, then looks back and forth between us. He turns his head slightly to look over at the long, tall building behind us. “Sometimes I still can’t believe we fixed this. Together. The three of us,” he says softly.

The three of us. Colin looks over at me, and the two of us lock eyes in a conversation with no words.

“We did,” I answer, and my voice is possibly a little hoarse now. I clear my throat. “I need to talk to you two, actually. When Colin first kidnapped us into the mountains—”

“Yeah, because hot tubs and faux fur rugs just scream kidnapping,” Colin says drily.

“They do when they’re on the right movie set, love.

Anyway, when you first stole us away from reality after Gabe’s accident, we said we’d try this out just while we were there, while Gabe healed and we waited to see what came of everything with Dave and Lou.

But the leaf festival’s tomorrow, and we’re about to step into a room with the entire town.

Our relationship has also recently gone viral.

So I have to ask: are we all ready for this?

To be fully out, in person, in public? The three of us, together? ”

I find I can barely finish the sentence.

Because I’m fairly sure I know what their answers will be.

After all, the three of us really did go viral across the entire internet together.

But then again, all of us know too well exactly how people like to cast cruel and unnecessary opinions onto others.

And it’s a great deal easier to hide the comments section of an article than it is to hide from angry or suspicious faces in a public place.

Devon Falls is one the kindest and most accepting towns I’ve ever lived in, but there’s still nothing inherently easy or guaranteed about how any group of people will perceive the three of us moving forward.

Two celebrities and their much younger boyfriend being out and about in the world is always likely to attract some kind of attention, either positive or negative.

Gabe pushes himself up, off the chair, and Colin hands him one crutch while I hand him the other. “I can do hard things,” he says, his voice low and light.

Colin smiles. “Of course you can, little fox.”

Gabe shakes his head. “That’s been one of my affirmations for a long time.

Something I always said to myself. But the truth is that I didn’t always really believe it.

” He tilts his head slightly to one side as he studies us.

“But then we rebuilt an inn and an event space together, and I told off Dave, and we’re going to keep Lou safe, no matter what, and I just feel like… ”

Colin looks to me, and I nod.

“We can do hard things together,” I say out loud.

Gabe smiles. “Yes. That’s what I want. I want to keep doing hard things. But those hard things never seem quite as hard with you two around.”

Colin and I both move to kiss him, and soon the three of us are connected in an extremely sweet and hot, albeit somewhat awkward, makeout session, with Colin and I both supporting Gabe on his crutches.

Colin pulls away first. “That’s what I want, too,” he whispers breathlessly into the chilly air.

I nearly blurt them out, then. The three words I really want to say. But it feels too soon, too early, especially against the backdrop of everything else that’s already happened tonight. So I just nod as I lean over to kiss them each on the cheek. “Me too,” I whisper.

Eventually, I’ll say the rest of the words hidden in the back of my throat right now. I’m sure of that.

“Wow,” Gabe whispers as we step into the event space.

I’m in awe myself, actually. I knew we had done a strong job of fixing up the damaged areas of the large, old shed that was set to become the winery’s event space, and we were nearly finished when Gabe fell off that ladder.

So logically, I understood before we walked through this door that the space would be done, perfect, and beautiful.

Evelyn and Bethany never would have opened it otherwise.

But still, there's something about standing here in the middle of the cacophony of music and the lights that really brings everything home.

We did it, the three of us. We fixed the inn. We fixed this event space.

We saved Gabe's job.

And we made this shed into something that will be used for treasured Devon Falls moments for years and years to come.

Birthday parties, baby showers, and weddings will be held here.

Sam’s wedding to Malachai will be celebrated here soon, and that’s able to happen because of me and Colin and Gabe.

I take hold again of Colin and Gabe's hands as I look at the space around me, at the beams covered in fairy lights (I manage not to glare at the offending string that tried to kill Gabe), at the large potted trees in each corner of the room that are covered in red, yellow, and orange lights shaped like maple leaves, and then over to the long tables covered in white table cloths and trays of food.

In the corner, Bethany is pouring glasses of wine at a large freestanding bar, and people are milling about the space, talking loudly, excitedly with one another as they relish in the spot that we have created for them.

And then, Bethany looks up from the wine bottle she’s holding and spots us. She lets out a long wolf whistle. “Look who’s here!” she shouts. “The three heroes who made today possible!”

The entire room bursts into loud applause, and I feel Colin’s hand squeeze so tightly against mine it almost hurts.

I've never really imagined that Devon Falls wouldn't accept us exactly as we are, and yet now, as I stand in front of this crowd, I realize just how much this means to me: to stand in front of a place full of people I respect and care about and hear that they know all the truths there are to know about me and my boyfriends (and it still feels strange to feel that word move through me when I refer to them), and to know the three of us belong here, fully, in the midst of all those truths.

Sam, Jack, and Benson are standing off to the side of the bar, cheering and clapping as loudly as everyone else. Sam nods and sends me the slightest wink, and I shake my head as I nod back. Colin clears this throat.

“You know,” he whispers. “My brother always said there’s something about the air in Devon Falls.”

The party is long, beautiful, and entirely perfect.

Amelia magics up a wheelchair that we help Gabe into so that he can “dance” with all the rest of us as Elijah and his band move through and across different decades of music, playing everything from Bowie to Gaga.

I’m on my way back from the bar with a glass of wine for Colin and a sparkling cider for Gabe, who’s still on painkillers, when I notice the long line of framed certificates sitting above lined pages with dollar amounts next to them.

I have always adored a silent auction. “What’s this for?

” I ask Sam. He’s been almost quietly clingy tonight, hardly leaving my side since I arrived.

I’m not sure if that’s because he’s without Malachai, who is apparently very happy to be home in a quiet house with Lou at the moment, or because his natural big brother mode requires that he be there to protect me from anyone who might decide not to wish me, Gabe, and Colin well in our polyamorous pursuits.

So far he’s had absolutely nothing to worry about.

“Oh.” Sam frowns. “Devon Falls has an old opera house. It’s a few streets down from Lancer Family Medicine.

It used to be one of the best performance spaces in the state, but it hasn’t drawn a crowd in a long time.

It’s a historical monument, so the town wants to save it, but it’ll take one hell of an infusion of cash.

This is the third or fourth fundraiser we’ve done this year. ”

I wonder if he even realizes he’s just used the pronoun we. Devon Falls has clearly stolen my brother from the rest of the world, and I’m not at all upset about that.

I’m studying a package for a winter sleigh ride, and then another one for a bespoke knitted hat collection (and am I dreaming, or is Sam’s name attached to that prize?) when my phone dings with a text.

Sam’s been pulled into a conversation with Jack’s mother, so I step off to the side to set down the drinks I’m holding and see who it is.

I’m glad I’m not holding any glasses of wine when I glance down at the name across the screen.

Dellie Shepard.

Dellie and I spoke before either of us spoke to Max, and I texted them after the articles came out, but I haven’t heard from them since then. I immediately unlock my phone.

Dellie

Wanted to let you know I just scored a massive part.

Feels so good to find my voice in Hollywood again and to know I have voices like yours behind me.

Hope you’re looking ahead to more success too, Tom.

Enjoyed reading that article about you and your boyfriends and hearing how happy you are right now in Vermont.

Just like that, it’s as if my entire world comes into focus, and I know what I need to do next. I pick up the pen next to the silent auction table, and I smile.