She jerked away. “Are you sure you’re not bringing this stuff up to push me out, without actually saying the words? Is this your roundabout way of telling me you don’t want me?”
“Ophelia, I don’t want you. You have no place in my life or my relationship with Stretch, so we end now.”
Her mouth dropped open and her heart slammed against her chest at Cash’s harsh words. Her breath came in short pants. She’d risked everything in fairness to Stretch, but she found out what she needed to know. She sagged, feeling as if her stomach had bottomed out.
“See how easy that was?” Cash glared at her. “If that’s what the fuck I meant, I would have no problem saying those words to you.”
“Jesus, Cash,” Stretch said in disbelief.
“You know what?” Fee jumped to her feet, overwhelmed by the ease in which Cash locked her out of his life. She searched for her purse. “Fuck you. I don’t need this. You’re so right. It was quite easy to say those words. Too easy.”
Seeing her purse on the shelf near the door, Fee hurried to it. She scowled at the metal detector that Cash used before he allowed new people into his house. It showed the depth of his trust issues.
“Fee, I don’t want you to leave,” Cash said, from his spot on his chair. “I’m trying to open your eyes.”
She whirled to face him. “By throwing all these roadblocks at me?”
“You wanted honesty. I’m giving it to you. Or was it only for you and Stretch?”
“It was for all of us, so we could work through our insecurities and mistrust.”
Cash drank from his bottle for the countless time that night. “Work through this. I don’t always want to fuck both of you. Sometimes, I only want you and other times I only want him. Not all the time, but it does happen. Before either of you give me fucking bullshit, be honest with yourselves. Think about when I went to the kitchen. Tell me you couldn’t have ended up giving Stretch pussy if I wasn’t here. Then tell me you still wouldn’t want us to be together. That you’d see nothing wrong with fucking him without me, and swear it didn’t change your feelings for me or the desire to fuck both of us at the same time.”
At the time, she hadn’t thought about sex with Stretch, but she’d felt so at ease with him, if he’d wanted her, she wouldn’t have denied him. Afterwards, she would’ve still expected things to go on as normal. Nor would sex with Stretch alone had changed her feelings for Cash.
“Where’s your fucking logic? You two live on emotion,” Cash continued. “You don’t reason shit out, which inhibits your objectivity and rationality. Both of you believe love conquers all. I don’t.”
Stretch shifted in his seat. “You’re right, Cash. I could’ve made love to Fee, without you, and I wouldn’t have felt any differently about our relationship.”
Fee’s body flushed at Stretch’s admission. “We’re playing by your rules, Cash. You threw us together and we’re just adapting.”
“That’s one of the biggest fucking lies you’ve ever told yourself. I threw you two together, but if we aren’t all attracted to each other individually, and as a triad, then it wouldn’t work.”
“I didn’t know how deeply I was attracted to him without you, until that day in the park. Before, you encouraged it or I was trying to get a reaction from you.”
The admission sounded awful.
Instead of censure, understanding lit Stretch’s face. “Don’t feel bad, Fee. That day in the park was the first time I wanted to be with her for her. It had nothing to do with you.”
“Unlike the other times me and Stretch were together,” she added, all their admissions weaving their bonds ever closer. “What now?”
Cash sighed. “What else do you want me to say, Ophelia? That I’m willing to stay in our relationship, for as long as I can? As long as Outlaw doesn’t find out? I am, but the longer you’re with us, the more you’re going to want.”
“Kids can be easily solved,” Stretch said hesitantly. “She could have a baby for me and one for you. They’d be half-siblings, but still related. Outlaw would beat us within an inch of our lives and kick us out the club, but if we went that far, I don’t think we’d be so quick to throw each other away. But, sweetheart, I agree with Cash about the wedding stuff.”
“We could always go through the motions of a wedding but don’t sign the license.”
“I’m willing to do it, if it makes you happy,” Stretch said, “although I don’t understand your reasoning. The point of marriage is for legal reasons.”