Rhythm of Three (Rule of Three) (13 page)

This probably wasn’t covered in any of the wedding etiquette guides.

Her insides tightening, she sucked on her bottom lip. It was Thursday night and she was blessedly home alone for a little while, Chris having taken his parents to Navy Pier. They’d been busy every night this week, and although it had been nice getting to know Chris’s parents better, there was always a tension there, knowing that they weren’t being completely honest with his folks. She felt like she could never totally let her guard down or be herself around them, and it was exhausting.

She’d been poking through some papers, tidying up, and found the wedding invitation she’d been putting off dealing with. She’d pushed that whole problem out of her head, but now she had to do this.

She mentally sorted through her options. She could add a big
3
to the card and send it back. That was probably a bit forward. Maybe rude even. She could put
2
and take one of the guys. No. That was not an option. How could she do that? Leave Dag at home while she and Chris went to the wedding, or vice versa?

Was this what her entire life was going to be like? Making difficult choices? Denying the reality of their relationship? Always dealing with awkward situations like this? Because this wouldn’t be the only one they’d ever have to deal with.

She picked up her cell phone and called Danielle.

“Hey,” her friend answered.

“Where are you? Can you talk?”

“Yeah, I’m at home.”

“Okay, good. Listen, I just went to RSVP to Taisha and I-I don’t know what to do.”

“Did you talk to Chris and Dag about it?”

“No. I just thought I’d figure it out myself. And Dag’s been gone all week.”

“Ah.” Danielle let out a soft breath.

“I was all excited to go to the wedding, and I didn’t want to deal with this. I guess I assumed both guys would go with me, which was stupid. Stupid! How can I do that? But I can’t take just one guy.”

“Huh. I dunno… Geez, Kass.”

“Yeah.” She sighed and poked at the card.

“Hey…I don’t have a date for the wedding yet. How about you mark down two and I’ll mark down two? We’ll go together, and that way both your dudes will be there.”

Something went soft in her chest. “I love you, Dani,” she said softly. “That’s so nice of you. But you don’t have to do that.”

“I don’t mind. If I had a boyfriend, obviously it wouldn’t work, but we can do it. Otherwise I don’t know what to do. I suppose you could call Taisha and explain the situation to her and see if she’d be okay with you bringing one more person.”

Kassidy’s stomach cramped. That did not sound appealing to her. On the other hand…Dag going to the wedding as Danielle’s guest didn’t appeal to her either. Even if it
was
just for show. People would think Danielle and Dag were together. She imagined everyone asking about how they met, how long they’d been seeing each other… What would they say? It just made things even more complicated.

“Or I guess the other option is not going at all,” she said.

Danielle made a noise of protest. “Oh no! You have to go. You already bought that dress and you’re looking forward to it so much.”

“I know. Seeing old friends…Taisha…” She sighed. “Well, I’ll think about it.”

“Let me know if you want me to take Dag. I mean, I assume it would be Dag.” Danielle hesitated. “You’re not turning down the idea because I had that little crush on him, are you? Because I totally know he’s yours, and this would just be to help out.”

“No! That’s not it. I know, Dani. I just…don’t like the idea of him feeling…I don’t know. Superfluous. Tagging along as your fake date…I don’t want that for him.”

“I understand. But if you change your mind, let me know. How’re things going with the in-laws?”

They chatted a little longer. When Kassidy hung up, she looked at the card, then the phone in her hand. She swiped the screen to find her contacts, pretty sure she had Taisha’s phone number in there.

Yes. There it was. What time was it in LA…? Earlier…okay. She tapped to call Taisha. She nibbled her bottom lip as she waited for her to answer.

“Hello?”

“Taisha! Hi! It’s Kassidy Langdon.”

“Kassidy! How are you, girl?
Where
are you?”

“At home, in Chicago. I’m calling about the wedding.”

“Yay! Tell me you’re coming, right? I can’t wait to see you!”

“Well, I need to ask you a question.” Kassidy’s insides squeezed and she took a big breath. “I can bring a guest, right?”

“Of course! I saw on Facebook you and Chris moved in together.”

“Yes, that’s right.” She swallowed. “But we have another person living with us…” Jesus, she didn’t know how to say this. “The three of us live together.”

“Oh. Um…”

“As in, he’s my boyfriend too.”

Silence.

Kassidy licked her lips. “So, I know it’s a little out of the ordinary, but I wondered if it would be okay if I brought two guests.”

More silence. “
Two
boyfriends?” Taisha said, disbelief clear in her voice.

“Yes,” Kassidy whispered.

“Um. Wow. That
is
out of the ordinary.” Taisha paused. “Uh…the thing is, we’ve already invited more guests than we originally planned, and somehow the guest list keeps growing, between Mark’s parents and my parents, and…adding one more is really kind of—”

“I understand,” Kassidy interrupted. “Totally. I shouldn’t even have asked. I’m really sorry.” She blinked at the sudden sting in the corners of her eyes. “I’ll let you go.”

“Okay. See you soon though! The wedding’s not far away now.”

“You bet.”

Kassidy ended the call and set down her phone.

Once again she stared at the small white card with embossed script. She traced over it with a fingertip. Then she picked up a pen and wrote in a
0
for the number of persons attending, and slipped the card into the accompanying addressed and stamped envelope.

She swiped a tear.

Then she pasted on a smile as she heard Chris and his parents arrive home.

Dag’s flight got in around four on Friday afternoon, so he’d told Chris and Kassidy not to bother picking him up. He was going to stay that night at a hotel, but he had to go to the condo first to get his car. So he might as well stay there for dinner and go to the hotel after. Kassidy was making dinner for Chris’s parents for their last night in Chicago and insisted he be there.

He’d met Chris’s parents a few times back in college but obviously hadn’t seen them for a long time. He’d been gone from Chicago for six years. He’d liked them well enough when he’d met them, but he had to say that he wasn’t looking forward to seeing them—in particular, Mr. Manness, after hearing how he’d fucked up his son.

Whatever. He’d smile and talk nice and then wave goodbye to them tomorrow and get back to fucking Chris up in a good way. He grinned.

He paid the taxi driver and hauled his luggage into the building, let himself into the condo with his key and shut the door behind him. Home.

Damn that felt good.

It wasn’t just the place. It was the fact that Chris and Kassidy were there. Or would be soon, anyway, once they got home from work.

“Chris…?” A woman appeared. Whoa, Mrs. Manness. “Oh. Oh, it’s Dag. Hello!”

“Hi, Mrs. Manness.” Shit. For some reason he hadn’t expected the parents to be there. “Nice to see you.”

“I didn’t realize you were coming this early.”

“Uh, yeah.” Again, shit. “My flight just got in. I left my car here ’cause Chris drove me to the airport last weekend. So I came here, rather than, uh, the hotel.”

“Chris told us you’ve been staying with them since you came back to Chicago. I feel terrible that we displaced you from the guest room,” she said. “Do you really need to go to a hotel tonight?”

He shrugged, still smiling, resisting the urge to head to the bedroom and change out of his jeans and into a pair of loose athletic shorts, then grab a beer and kick back on the couch. “No worries. It’s not a problem.”

He would have stayed in San Francisco one more day, but because he’d booked last minute his choices of return flights were today or Monday, so he’d chosen to fly home today.

Chris’s dad appeared behind his mom.

“Dag’s here, Hub,” she said.

Dag moved in to shake Mr. Manness’s hand. “Good to see you, sir.”

“You too, Dag, you too. Come on in.”

Dag bristled. The guy was inviting him into his own home. Fuck this shit. He swallowed his annoyance and moved his suitcases to an out-of-the-way corner in the foyer.

“Can I get you a drink?” Mr. Manness said. “But you probably know your way around pretty well. How long have you been back in Chicago?”

“A couple of months.”

“Looking for a place of your own?”

Dag gritted his teeth. “Oh yeah.” He headed to the fridge. He was definitely having that beer.

“Chris tells us you’re starting a new business,” Mr. Manness said. “How’s that going?”

He made conversation with them as they waited for Chris and Kassidy to arrive home, which was about forty minutes later. When they walked in, he jumped to his feet, unable to stop himself. Then he shoved his hands in his jeans pockets and tried to smile casually at them.

Kassidy walked into the living room first, dressed in one of her prim little business outfits—a tight, knee-length skirt in dark gray, a silky blouse in gray and pink, a pale-pink cardigan and a pair of high heels. Her shiny hair slid over her shoulders and she stopped dead when she saw him. He watched her suck in a breath and her eyes go shiny. Chris walked up behind her and set his hands on her hips. His eyes met Dag’s.

The three of them stood looking at each other. It was a wonder Mr. and Mrs. Manness couldn’t feel the sparks snapping, the emotions swirling.

“Hey,” Dag finally said, smiling. “How’s it going?”

Chris’s eyes heated in a sexy way that made Dag want to jump him. “Good. You?”

Kassidy smiled slowly, her own eyes making him promises of how she would greet him when she had the chance.

“Good.” Banal. Innocuous. Just words, when what he really wanted was to grab them both, kiss them and hug them and tell them how fucking glad he was to be home.

Instead, he reached for his beer on the coffee table and took a couple of healthy swallows.

Kassidy bent her head for a moment, clearly trying to get her emotions under control. It took everything Dag had not to go to her and take her in his arms.

“So,” Chris said, giving Kassidy a squeeze with his hands, then releasing her and walking into the living room. He loosened his tie with a sexy tug. “How was San Francisco?”

“Good. Got lots done this week.”

“I’m gonna go change,” Chris said.

“Me too,” Kassidy said, and with one last longing look at Dag, they both disappeared into the bedroom.

Dag sat back down on the couch, trying to control the adrenaline rush that made him antsy, made his heart thud.

Chris emerged first, dressed like him in a pair of faded jeans, a
Dr. Who
T-shirt and bare feet. He too grabbed a beer from the fridge. “Mom, Dad…you want something to drink?”

“I’ll make myself a rum and Coke,” Mr. Manness said. “Kathy, you want some wine?”

“Yes, please.”

Dag had had to stop himself from offering them a drink. Fuck.

When Chris returned, he took the chair adjacent to the couch where Dag sat. “She okay?” Dag asked Chris in a low voice.

Knowing who and what he was talking about, Chris nodded, eyes warm. “Yeah.”

Once again, Dag wanted to touch him but restrained the urge.

Kassidy came out wearing a pair of short-shorts and a loose camisole top. “Oh good, you all have drinks.”

“What would you like, sweetheart?” Chris started to rise.

She motioned to him. “Sit, sit. I’ll get it. I’m going to get dinner started.”

“We should have gone out for dinner,” Mrs. Manness said. “After a long week, you’re probably tired.”

“I’m fine.” Kassidy smiled. “We’ve been out for dinner every night this week. I like cooking.”

“She’s a good cook,” Dag offered. Kass smiled.

“What can I do to help?” Mrs. Manness asked.

“Nothing, nothing. I got some stuff ready last night.”

Dag watched her, the way she spoke to Mrs. Manness so politely, the way she smiled, the graceful way she moved. Gorgeous. Sweet.

Fuck. He hadn’t even been away a full week and he was all “absence makes the heart grow fonder” sappy.

He heard about the sights the Mannesses had taken in, the game Chris and his dad had gone to, Navy Pier, the boat cruise they’d taken, the trip to the top of the John Hancock Building and the deep-dish pizza they’d enjoyed. They’d taken Chris and Kassidy out for an outrageously expensive dinner at Bijoux to celebrate Chris’s thirtieth birthday.

He and Chris got up to help set the table before Kassidy even asked, and he didn’t give a shit what Chris’s parents thought about his familiarity with where the place mats, dishes, glasses and flatware were stored. Fuck ’em. This was bullshit.