Loaded to the gills with antinausea and antianxiety meds, Gwen sat, terrified, between Jack and Tim in the boarding area at the departure gate at the Rapid City airport. Liam watched from the other side of the aisle with amusement on his face.
“Don’t hurl on me, sis. Please?”
“Shut up,” she growled.
He twirled his cane around. Specifically opting not to bring his wheelchair was a calculated risk Gwen hadn’t interfered with. She felt a little guilty not trying to persuade him to bring it, but knew he was an adult who could make his own decisions.
He was ready to make his final stand against their parents.
In the past month, one thing had become perfectly clear to her—that Jack and Tim were her home, and the thought of living anywhere else filled her with dread. She could handle brutal winters with two hunky, loving men to warm her bed every night.
True to his word, Jack had made every effort to open up. Sometimes either she or Tim had to prod him to not hold in his feelings, but his every action spoke of his dedication to proving his love for her.
They had Pete over for dinner several more times, the two men mending fences and at least regaining their friendship. Pete also helped Ed with Helen, taking some of the burden off Jack and Ed and giving them much needed respite. Tim gave him a job at the store at Jack’s suggestion. Tim and Liam usually rode to work together, while Gwen enjoyed having the house to herself during the day for writing.
When the gate agent called their flight, Liam stood. “Don’t let her get away,” he snarked. “She’ll bolt if you give her half a chance.”
“I think even you could outrun her, as loaded as she is right now,” Tim joked.
Gwen didn’t think the meds were helping her at all. She still felt terrified, although she didn’t feel an urge to yak all over her men. She settled into her seat on the plane between Tim and Jack, with Liam in the row behind them. She fastened her seatbelt, laid her head back, and closed her eyes.
Minutes later, Jack gently nudged her. “You going to fly to Florida, or are you coming with us?”
She groggily lifted her head and realized people were getting off the plane. Tim had already stood and gathered both his and her carry-ons. “What?”
“We’re here. Time to change flights.”
“Huh?” She’d only closed her eyes for a minute. “Quit screwing with me.”
Liam reached over the seat and tapped her on the shoulder. “Better living through chemistry, sis. Get your butt moving.”
Emboldened by this development, she didn’t feel nearly as scared as they boarded the connecting flight. Ruthie, who had passed her driver’s course with flying colors, even if her budding relationship with the instructor flunked, would pick them up upon their post-midnight arrival. Gwen dozed off on that flight, too, and felt remarkably calm when they emerged from the terminal and found Ruthie waiting on them with her new SUV.
She squealed and threw her arms around Gwen, then Liam. “So you going to introduce me, girlfriend?”
Gwen blushed as she did. She’d overcome most of her initial discomfort after Tim’s disclosure to his staff that Gwen was now officially part of the family.
They still hadn’t told her parents…or Amy.
Jack and Tim loaded their luggage while Liam stiffly climbed into the front passenger seat. When he caught Gwen’s worried look, he smiled. “Don’t worry. I’m fine.”
Ruthie had been sworn to secrecy about their plans and drove them back to what would soon officially be her house, once the sale paperwork went through. Tomorrow they would pick up a large rental truck and a rental car and packing supplies.
All their parents knew was Liam and Gwen were visiting for a few days.
No reason to bring trouble earlier than necessary, she’d thought.
Rather than evict Ruthie from what was now her bed, Liam opted to sleep on the comfortable couch so Gwen and the men could have his former room.
Exhausted, they fell asleep nearly immediately. When Gwen awoke the next morning, she felt a brief moment of disorientation before she remembered where she was. Home.
No, not home anymore. Home was in Rapid City, with her men and Liam.
The two men didn’t awaken when she carefully extricated herself from between them. She made her way out to the kitchen to start coffee, only to find Liam had beat her to it.
She wrapped her arms around his waist as he stood at the counter and waited for the coffee to brew. “How you feeling, bro?”
“A little stiff, but not bad.” He turned in her arms, smiling. “Going to stand tall and strong when we go over there for dinner tonight.”
She groaned. He’d talked to their mother and handled the arrangements for them going over for dinner that evening. “Do we have to?”
He kissed the top of her head. “Yep. We’re done hiding, remember? What, they going to disown us or something?” He laughed. “The guys wubs us. They especially wubs you. We’ve got a home.”
“I was just thinking that. This isn’t home anymore. Being here doesn’t feel like being home.” She pondered that. “I didn’t expect that.” She’d spent so long convincing herself she’d made a horrible mistake falling in love with Tim and Jack, and that she’d never see them again, that to have her future laid out so brightly before her felt as surreal as her first night in their bed.
“But it makes things easier, doesn’t it?”
She nodded. “Sure does.”
Ruthie walked in, looking barely awake. “God bless you, my son. You got the coffee started.”
While Gwen and Ruthie chatted via webcam several times a week, the dramatic changes in her friend still startled Gwen, in a good way. Ruthie looked healthier and more vital than she had in years. She acted more confident, walked taller, much the way she’d been before the attack that ruined her life. She even had a telecommuting customer service job where she could work from home.
“So how are you doing?” Gwen asked her. “Really?”
Ruthie laughed and pointed to her counter. “How many pill bottles you see?”
Gwen counted only two. “What are those for?”
“One’s for cholesterol, the other’s a very mild antianxiety med, and they’ve stepped my dosage down on that one. Doctor says I might be able to start tapering off it completely next month.”
Gwen squealed and hugged her. “I’m so proud of you!”
“I’m proud of me, too.” She shrugged. “I figured if you and Liam could stand up to your parents, then it was time for me to try to take my life back, too. I got tired of being scared of everything. I like having a life again.”
By noon, the men had picked up the moving truck, rental car, and cleared out Liam’s storage unit, while Gwen and Ruthie organized the packing of Gwen’s house. Gwen was leaving most of the furniture for Ruthie, but she had three rooms full of floor-to-ceiling bookcases she needed to empty and pack the contents.
By four that afternoon, they were halfway done with the house and Liam declared them finished for the day. “We need to get ready for dinner.”
Gwen’s stomach tensed as the reminder threatened to do what the flight from Rapid City hadn’t. “Can’t you go? I’ll stay here with Ruthie.”
Tim pulled her to him. “We’ll be there with you, honey. Strength in numbers.”
Jack jumped into the shower with her. He wore a playful smirk. “Think of it this way, either they’ll accept the situation, or they won’t. Either way it doesn’t matter, because it doesn’t change a thing between us. Right?”
“Right.” She let him gather her into his arms. “I just want peace.”
“Honey, honestly? When have you and your brother ever had peace with your parents?”
She sighed. “Never.”
“Right. That’s what Liam told me, too.” They heard the bathroom door open. “Tim, come here.”