Page 127 of Van Cort

“You’ve already done that. I remember it from the other night. I’m the one without the scratches, by the way.”

Those eyes of hers turn to slits, and her shaking hand goes for the decanter to pour another one. “You’re both fucking assholes and what you’ve been doing to me is completely unacceptable. I should call the cops. That’s what I should do. This isn’t normal.” She points at both of us in turn, now gripping her glass like it’s a lifeline. “How did I not know?” She stares at one of us, and then the other. “I should have known. I did know something wasn’t right. But this?”

She turns around, as if lost, and takes another mouthful of alcohol as she faces us again. Time stalls. Everything fucking stalls. Until she launches the tumbler right at us. It smashes on the wall to the side of me, glass shattering at my feet.

“Urghhh! How could you? How could you proclaim to love me and do this?”

She stands waiting for an answer, but neither of us replies.

Her body slumps down on the sofa, the venom seems to have left her face. Although it now seems to have been replaced with a calculation I’ve not seen from her before.

“Two of you,” she says as she takes a deep breath. “I’ve been having two relationships at the same time.”

I lean on the wall. “Technically, you’ve been having one relationship with two people. Who, if we’re honest, are pretty different but exactly the same. And considering the gene situation, the same person in reality.”

Rhett sighs beside me and walks towards her slowly. “Not a great answer, West.”

“Well, why not?” she says. “This couldn’t be any more fucking unclear, so why not add another layer of complication to complete this madness?” She looks past him to me. “West?” I smile.

“That’s the first time you’ve called me that.”

She throws her hands up in the air. “Maybe because it’s the first time I’ve known you exist!” Fair point. “West and Everett Van Cort?”

“Technically, I come first,” Rhett says.

“Also, his name is Rhett,” I offer.

“Not to her it isn’t,” he cuts into the air. “I’m Everett for her. I always will be, whether she wants this or not.” He holds his undrunk tumbler of liquor out to her. “Sit, River, please. Have another drink if you need it. I realise this must be a shock.”

“Shock?” A hysterical burst of laughter flies out of her. “This isn’t shock, this is… I don’t know what it is, but it’s more than shock.” She frowns and takes the drink from him, choosing to create distance again by moving back to the sectional.

Quiet settles in the room, and, unsure whether to fill the air or not, I watch Rhett try his hardest to contain his emotions instead. They’re volatile and probably screaming at him to take control and order us around and make us happen, but he’s right; he’s not the boy he once was. Part of him just proved it by not drinking a damned drop of alcohol. And none of this is on us now, anyway. It’s all in her hands. No one’s forcing anything.

The thought makes me walk to the window to stare out over the city rather than concern myself with his behaviour. She can choose whatever she wants now. Him. Me. All of us. Or none of us, I guess.

“I don’t understand why I’m still in this place,” she murmurs. “I should leave.”

“What’s out there that isn’t in here, Andie?” I ask.

“Sanity.”

I laugh lightly. “Why would you want any of that when you’ve got more here than you could ever dream of? We both adore you. We both love you. We both want to spend the rest of our lives with you.” I turn to look at her and see Rhett standing behind her, arms crossed and stoic as always. “I know it’s unusual, Andie, but this is what we want, and whilst we can’t explain that, we can show you if you’ll let us. We want to love you in ways you can’t imagine. We want everything you can give us, and we’ll give everything we have in return.”

She looks over her shoulder at Rhett. “And you agree with that?”

“Every word. You just have to accept the facts and trust us.”

“And how does that even work? You asked me to marry you, Everett? Just you? What about him?” He looks at me. Considering we haven’t discussed the details of that part, I answer with what I know we’ll both want.

“You’ll marry both of us. Be with both of us. Sometimes we’ll be together, and sometimes we’ll be separate as just a couple.Dynamics will develop as we go along now we can be honest, but as long as you want us, we’ll make it the way you want it to be. Three rings, though. Two husbands. One wife.”

CHAPTER FORTY - TWO

RIVER

Ineed to leave.

I need to leave and get some space from Everett. From West!