Fated To Three, And I Broke Them All

Gigi:

Tonight was special for me.

Good things were happening to me.

And even better things were happening for Oliver.

He was finally getting what he had wanted for so long.

Verity.

It was happening in the best possible way too.

Now he could sleep with her without having to marry her or make her his girlfriend.

The fact that he had ever considered either of those as an option was already mind-boggling.

I would never let Justin’s sister have any real place in my life.

”Instead of a movie night, we’re playing truth or dare,” I announced to Jaguar excitedly, all while waiting for Theodore to show up.

If I knew him at all, he was probably getting ready to catch us having a pleasant night without him.

”Um, that sounds fun,” Jaguar replied, but something was missing from his reaction.

It was the kind of enthusiasm he usually showed whenever it came to spending time with me.

”If you don’t want to play, you can just tell me,” I remarked, my mood souring almost instantly.

He looked up from his plate and shook his head at once. Even the smile he gave me looked fake.

”That’s not it. It’s just business and deals. Those things have been occupying my mind,” he explained in one breath, as though any further delay would only upset me more.

That was what I admired about him. He never let me stay mad at him for more than a few seconds.

”Oh, hello. Seems like I missed the invitation.”

Just as expected, Theodore arrived, sounding sarcastic and almost offended as he walked in.

I acted as though Jaguar and I had been caught doing something inappropriate, while Jaguar shot him a look that clearly meant, Don’t start.

”Oh, I didn’t know you’d want to be invited.” I feigned confusion before smiling at him. ”Come on, join us.”

I gestured toward the seat across the table instead of the empty one beside me.

”Um, why not? Or maybe I’m just not close enough to be invited,” Theodore muttered as he began filling his plate.

He did everything with such authority, as though he had some kind of claim over me.

And that was exactly what I liked about it.

”Theodore, cut it out,” Jaguar hissed when I lowered my gaze miserably.

”So, what’s the plan after dinner?” Theodore asked, still refusing to let go of that sarcastic tone.

The more he behaved that way, the more it seemed like my plan was working.

”We’re playing truth or dare. You can join us if you want,” I told him, watching Theodore swallow with difficulty.

”Um, no thanks.”

He surprised me by suddenly dropping his fork onto the plate.

Even Jaguar seemed caught off guard. Usually, the two of them fought for my attention and competed playfully over my time.

But this time, something was different.

Theodore seemed far more emotional than usual, enough that he had suddenly decided to leave.

”You two have fun,” he muttered, pushing himself up from the chair.

I figured he had come in hoping to make me feel guilty for leaving him out, only to end up hurting his own feelings instead.

”Come on, Theodore,” Jaguar called after him as I quickly rose from my seat.

I gestured for Jaguar to stay where he was and finish his dinner while I dealt with Theodore.

He knew I would be more comfortable making amends alone, so he let me follow Theodore by myself.

”Theodore, wait!” I called, hurrying out of the mansion after him.

The weather caught me by surprise.

The forecast had predicted clear skies for the next two days, but the sudden arrival of a storm had changed everything. The wind had turned bitterly cold.

”No, it’s fine. I shouldn’t have come here and bothered you two,” Theodore complained as he reached his car.

”Stop. Talk to me!” I yelled, rushing forward and slamming his door shut before he could get inside.

”You know, it really hurt when I heard you telling Jaguar to keep things from me.”

An emotional Theodore was like a ticking bomb.

At any moment, he could start spilling secrets without even realizing it.

”But then I came here and saw you with him, and I realized you two don’t even care. It feels like I’m only bothering you. So instead of forcing myself into your company, I decided I’d just remove myself,” Theodore admitted emotionally.

The veins in his neck stood out as his face turned red.

For a moment, I almost wished my life were some kind of live documentary, with women sitting at home watching everything unfold on their television screens and growing jealous as they watched me receive all this attention.

I always said that to Rochelle.

I took a deep breath before tilting my head.

”That’s because I noticed you’ve been acting really awkward since that night.”

The moment I said it, he looked away.

”This is exactly what I’m talking about,” I pointed out.

”Well, it was awkward, but I was worried about you. I thought you might be upset,” he confessed, finally facing me again.

”You don’t have to worry about me. Mistakes happen. That doesn’t mean we have to stop trusting each other.”

He looked genuinely stunned by that.

”Look, I’m not saying this is the kind of relationship we should have or anything like that. No. But when mistakes happen, we should be able to let them go. I mean...”

I paused and glanced toward the mansion.

”Jaguar and I have a pretty close relationship. We’re even closer than you and I are.”

The words had barely left my mouth when his eyes widened.

”What do you mean?” he asked, a quiet breath slipping from his lips.

”Well, for starters, we don’t embarrass each other,” I replied, lifting my chin as I slowly leaned back against his car door.

He stood directly in front of me now, his hands tucked into his pockets.

”But what happened between us must have never happened between you and him. That’s why this is different.”

He gave a nervous laugh, but it quickly disappeared when he noticed I hadn’t even blinked.

”Wait. Has something like that happened between you two?”

He stared at me as though my answer could change everything.