"I love you," I whisper into his shoulder, needing to say it one more time, needing him to hear it.
"I love you too," he murmurs back, pressing a kiss to my temple. "So much. More than I know how to say."
We're still tangled together, still catching our breath, when the apartment door opens.
I don't even have time to panic before Zay's voice cuts through the quiet: "Finally."
"Jesus Christ!" I grab for the throw blanket on the back of the couch, trying to cover us both even though it's way too late for modesty. "You can't just walk in here!"
"Pretty sure we can since we have keys," Asher's voice adds from somewhere near the door, amusement clear in his tone.
"It's called knocking!" I manage to get the blanket positioned to cover the important parts, my face burning with embarrassment even as Xavier laughs against my shoulder. "It's rude to enter places without announcing yourself!"
"Why would we knock?" Zay appears in my line of sight, grinning like the absolute menace he is. "We're your boyfriends. Soon-to-be husbands, actually, if Xavier ever gets around to asking properly."
"You're not supposed to hide anything from us," Asher adds, coming to stand beside Zay, both of them looking entirely too pleased with themselves.
Xavier pulls out of me with a final kiss to my lips and somehow manages to find his boxer briefs and get them on without completely losing the blanket, his movements suggesting this is not the first time he's had to dress quickly with an audience. "You two have terrible timing," he observes, but there's no real heat in it.
"Our timing is perfect," Zay counters, already moving toward the couch. "We've been waiting for you two to finally work your shit out for months. We're celebrating."
Before I can protest, Zay is crawling onto the couch beside us, his hand finding my face to turn me toward him for a kiss that's possessive and sweet at the same time. "Missed you," he murmurs against my lips. "Both of you. Together."
"Missed you too," I admit, my hand coming up to rest against his chest.
Asher appears on my other side, his fingers gentle as they tilt my chin away from Zay to face him instead. His kiss is different—tender where Zay's was hungry, soft where Xavier's was intense—but no less meaningful.
"Happy birthday, killer," he whispers against my lips when he pulls back, using Xavier's nickname for me in a way that makes my chest warm.
"My birthday was three weeks ago," I point out, but I'm smiling despite the technicality.
"Better late than never." He reaches into his pocket and pulls out a small box—jewelry-sized, wrapped in simple paper that he clearly did himself based on the slightly crooked edges.
I take it with shaking hands, not quite believing this moment is real. All three of them here. With me. After everything.
The box opens to reveal a necklace—delicate gold chain with a heart-shaped yellow stone pendant that catches the light from my crooked lamp. But it's not just a stone. When I angle it right, I can see something inside—a photograph, somehow embedded in the amber-colored gem.
The four of us. All together. Smiling.
"When did you—" My voice breaks. "Where did this come from?"
"I've been working on it for a while," Asher admits. "Since before everything went to hell. Was going to give it to you for your birthday but then—" He doesn't need to finish that sentence.
"It's perfect," I whisper, tears streaming down my face for what feels like the hundredth time today. "I love it. Thank you."
I kiss Asher with everything I have, pouring everything I can into the press of my lips against his. Then I turn to Zay and do the same, my hand finding his hair to pull him closer while I taste gratitude and relief and home on his lips.
Finally I turn to Xavier, who's been watching this entire exchange with warmth in his eyes instead of the jealousy or possessiveness I might have expected once upon a time.
He cups my face in both hands and kisses me again—soft and sweet and full of promises we're both still learning how to keep.
"I love you," he says against my lips, the words vibrating through both of us.
"I love you too," I whisper back, meaning it with every fiber of my being.
22
ASHER