Page 76 of Sharing Shadow Secrets (High Five Novella #6)

“ H e’s so cocky,” I whisper into Taylor’s ear as Kyle leaves the room. “He could at least ask us on a date before trying to make it official.”

She giggles, but then her expression softens. Her eyes search mine. “But what do you think about it? The three of us?”

I don’t hate it. That’s the truth. But I’m also not ready to leap into something new without thinking it through. I’ve never envisioned my life having two full-time partners.

“I need to ruminate on it,” I say, pulling her against my chest. “And talk to my therapist. But if you want to go on a date with him, I won’t stop you.”

“Yeah?” she asks, a flicker of surprise in her voice.

I smirk. “I saw how much you enjoyed it. Him. All of it, girlfriend.”

“Same here, boyfriend.”

She’s perfect for me. And maybe Kyle fits too. But today isn’t about figuring all that out. It’s about being with Taylor.

“Are you ready for a day of sloth?” I ask.

“Very much.” She laughs, reaching for the water on the nightstand. “It was nice of him to leave us snacks,” she adds, picking up a bag of trail mix. “I should check in with my friends.”

“Text them. I want us to stay in bed for a while.”

“Same,” she murmurs, already typing. “So … are we staying in bed until Sunday?”

“I’d like that.”

“Me too.” Nothing sounds better than resting, replaying everything that happened, and talking about everything too.

Her phone buzzes, and she gasps.

“What?”

“Morgan just texted, ‘I saw your vampire spent the night, naughty girl.’”

I chuckle, watching a flush rise to her cheeks. “How does that make you feel?”

“I don’t know yet,” she admits, her voice quiet but thoughtful.

“If you’re going to have two boyfriends, you’ll have to be cool with everyone knowing,” I tease, nudging her.

She hums, a slow smile spreading across her face. Then her phone buzzes again.

“Looks like Gwen spent the night with a cowboy.”

I lean over and kiss her cheek. “Before you put your phone down, go to socialexperiment.com.”

Her head snaps toward me. “Brandon!” she squeals, already typing in the address.

I rest my head on her shoulder as the page loads.

“The best social media agency out there,” she reads, then turns to me, eyes wide. “I can’t believe you did this.”

“I can.” I cup her face in my hands. “I’m so proud of you.”

We kiss—deep, slow, unhurried. A celebration. A promise.

“Can I please check TikTok for a couple of minutes?” Taylor asks, breaking from our kiss. “I should engage with posts that were made from last night.”

“Of course, baby.”

I love my motivated, driven girlfriend.

“What. The. Fuck!” Taylor screams.

I lean over, looking down at her phone’s screen, watching a video of Kyle teasing Taylor with his fangs, the scene I walked into.

“It has a million views! Holy fucking shit!”

“Well, you two look hot together,” I say, pressing a kiss to her neck.

Taylor moans as I brush my tongue across her skin. “Kyle doesn’t want kids and stuff,” she says, pulling back, staring into my eyes. “So that’ll be our thing.”

It hits me all at once. She’s my forever person.

I want to spend the rest of my life with Taylor Williams.

Sunday, November 2nd

“ D id you decide yet?” I ask, watching her apply mascara after our shower, still wrapped in a towel.

“It feels really douchey to take a helicopter back to the city,” she says, then meets my gaze through the mirror. Her eyes flicker with excitement as we begin to close out our Wisconsin weekend.

“There are perks to dating me,” I say, shrugging.

She turns toward me, leaning against the sink. “But if we take a car back, we can be all over each other …”

“You haven’t had enough yet?”

She smirks. “I’m so fucking sore from this weekend. My body can’t take any more.”

I step in, pressing a kiss to her lips. “Those fang marks make me smile,” I murmur, brushing my thumb along her neck. “Any regrets?”

“Not a single one.”

“Same.”

I’m happy we invited Kyle back. I like him.

I know that and am done beating myself up about being attracted to him and any other guy for that matter.

At this point, Kyle knows me better than most people in my life.

He knows what’s happened, knows what I like.

I’m looking forward to spending more time with him in and out of the bedroom.

Taylor slides her hands around my waist as I cradle her face. “What was your favorite part?”

“Why pick favorites?” she asks with a laugh. “All of us in the bath was unreal. I honestly thought I was dreaming it was so amazing.” Taylor bites her lip. “What about you?”

“The office,” I say, chuckling. “From now on, that’s what I’ll picture when you mention High Five.”

“So, it’s no longer a bad place for you?”

“You made it better.” I lean down and kiss her again, this one slower. Softer.

“What was your favorite part of all three of us?” she asks, slipping her hands under my shirt.

I hum, replaying the memory. “When we took you to Paris.” Her eyes twinkle, and I lick my lips, leaning down to whisper, “We could do that, you know … in Paris.”

“I’ve always wanted to go … especially when it’s lit for the holidays …”

“Tell me when.”

The excitement is all over her face, and I love it. But then her expression shifts. “After you decide if you want a boyfriend or not. I want us to all be on the same page about what we are to each other.”

Taylor is the exact type of person I should be with. She thinks things through. Being impulsive is not her default setting.

“I have an appointment tomorrow with my therapist to share what I have been up to. But … I think I want to explore that side of me more, and with him.”

“You owe him your ass,” she teases.

“Do I?” I flirt, leaning down to kiss her.

Taylor sees the whole me. She wants me to be me, my whole self.

“I love you,” I breathe between kisses. “Also, what do you think about a double date with Dani and Declan on Wednesday?”

“Sounds fun,” she says, tugging my shirt up.

“I thought you can’t take any more?”

I lift her onto the bathroom counter, settling between her legs.

“I don’t want to leave just yet.”

“We won’t leave until you’re ready.”

“For Wednesday, what do you think about cooking together at your place? I want to see it, and it will be casual and simple.”

“If you insist.”

“I do.”

“I love you, Taylor.”

“I love you.”

I take a deep breath. “Before we start exploring more with Kyle … do you see us together … forever?”

Taylor nods. “But don’t propose to me for at least a year. And I don’t want a huge ring. Maybe just a band.”

I press a kiss to her lips thinking about November 2nd of next year.

I’ve never looked forward to something more.

I know in my soul that Taylor is my person.

And exploring doesn’t make me question that.

It only solidifies it. She accepts and supports my whole self.

And same with her. I’ve never felt this solid with another person, this safe and secure.

“Let’s take the helicopter,” Taylor says, beaming. “After I spend some more time with you in bed.”

“Deal … and how about you go on a date with Kyle tomorrow or Tuesday? And then I go out with him on Thursday or Friday?”

“And we can debrief at brunch after yoga on Saturday.”

I smile, pressing my forehead to hers. “I love you, girlfriend.”

“I love you, boyfriend number one.” She laughs, and I’ve never been more content.