355 The Talk
355 The Talk
I breathed in deeply, pressing on. “You all give me something different. That’s why I need you all.” My eyes fell on Lennox. “You make me feel protected. Safe. That’s why whenever I’m down, I find myself pulled to you. It’s not because I love you more–it’s because my soul craves that shield you give me. And maybe that’s why Louis and Levi think I favor you.”
1
Louis, who had stayed quiet the longest, finally spoke. His tone was calm, almost grounding.
“My jealousy made me blind,” he admitted, his voice softer than I’d heard all day. “It twisted things, made me think and say nonsense. Olivia…” His eyes lifted to me, full of regret. “I’m sorry for the stress I’ve caused you. For making you feel like you had to carry all this alone.” His gaze then turned to Lennox. “And I’m sorry to you, too. For what I said earlier–accusing you of trying to hurt me. I know you’d never. You’re my
brother. I should’ve trusted that.”
“I’m sorry, Olivia. I should never have let things get so far with Levi. We should have talked it out like brothers, not fought over it. That was reckless.” His eyes flicked toward Levi. “And I’m Levi. I know I can be possessive. Maybe my actions made it seem like I wanted Olivia all to myself, but that’s not true. She’s ours. I don’t ever want you thinking otherwise.” 1
“Then let me apologize too,” he said, his eyes sweeping over the both of them before settling on me. “On behalf of my brothers. They’re still learning, Olivia—we all are. Learning how to love you the right way. None of us are perfect, but we’ll keep trying. You deserve that much.” 2
I swallowed hard, my voice lowering. “Don’t you see? I need all of you. Not one. Not two. All three. Because without one, I’m incomplete.”
Levi’s throat bobbed as he swallowed hard. His eyes stayed on the floor for a moment before he finally spoke, regret clear in his face,
I let out a shaky breath, my eyes burning as I looked at them again. “I’m sorry,” I whispered, my voice breaking. “If I’ve ever made any of you feel like I loved one more than the others… it wasn’t my intention. I don’t. I can’t. It’s just… sometimes I feel pulled in three directions at once, and it’s hard. It makes me stumble. But my heart-
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355 The Talk
it’s the same for each of you.”
Their silence pressed in on me, and my throat tightened. I pressed a hand to my chest, right over the pounding of my heart. “Please… I need you to stop this fighting. I need you to stop tearing at each other. Because every time you do, it hurts me. It tears me apart more than you know.”
Then I turned to Levi, my chest tightening. “But when I need to feel heard… when I need someone who understands me without question, someone who never says no to me–it’s you I go to. You’ve always been the one I could cling to when I felt unseen. And maybe you don’t notice it anymore, maybe lately I haven’t shown it the same… but think back, Levi. Remember how much I leaned on you before. That was real. It still is.”
Levi’s eyes flicked up at me, guilt breaking through his guarded expression.
The`room fell into silence again, my words hanging in the air.
“Sit,” I said softly, but leaving no room for argument.
I turned to Louis, narrowing my eyes. “And you… you’re different. You’re not soft like Levi. You’re not protective like Lennox. You don’t spoil me… you don’t let me hide. You challenge me, push me, make me face things I’d rather run from. And I hate you for it sometimes… but I love you for it too.” 2
I swallowed hard, waiting for them to speak.
No one spoke for a moment. The room was so quiet it hurt. Finally, I took a deep
breath.
Lennox and Levi exchanged a glance, then both lowered themselves onto the edge of the bed. Louis stayed quiet against the wall until I gave him a pointed look. With a sigh, he finally pushed off it and joined his brothers.
Lennox was the first to move. He leaned forward, elbows digging into his knees. He rubbed his face with both hands, dragging them down before lifting his eyes to me. His voice was low, strained,
“You are all mine, I began, my throat tight. “And I am yours. Each of you. I love you all equally. Maybe my actions sometimes don’t show it… maybe they’ve made you doubt it. But I know my heart. And in my heart, I could never choose one of you over the others. Not now. Not ever!
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355 The Talk
When Lennox came back from his bath, he looked calmer. His eyes still held pain, but the anger was softer now.
“This has to stop,” I said, authoritatively. I looked at each of them–Lennox, Levi, Louis. “The fighting, the anger… it’s breaking us apart. And it’s breaking me too.”
They stayed silent, watching me. Lennox’s jaw was tight, Levi’s eyes lowered, and Louis was unreadable.
My voice wavered, but I pressed on. “You’re like a strict father with me. When I want a yes, you give me a no. Not because you don’t love me–but because you know saying yes isn’t always good for me. It’s a different kind of love… but it’s love all the same. A love that keeps me strong when I want to be weak.”
I blinked back the tears threatening to fall and shook my head. “I don’t want to lose any of you. I don’t want to choose. I don’t want this bond to break. I want you–all three of you. Not half, not pièces. All of you, together.”
Levi looked down at the floor. Louis leaned against the wall, silent but watching. Lennox just stared at me, his eyes full of emotions I couldn’t even name.
The room grew heavy with emotion, but not the sharp, angry kind. This was different— like something long overdue finally cracking open.
Olivia’s POV
“I’m ready,” he said quietly. His voice was steady, but I could feel how heavy his heart
was.
I took the chair opposite them, my hands clasped tightly in my lap. For a moment, I just stared at the three of them–my mates. My heart. My chaos.
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