Christmas with my Three Best Friends (Lucky Lady Reverse Harems)

Chapter 12

12

Shay

I give Marius the nod he needs to move this uncomfortable moment along. I hate having to do this, but the company, the gym comes first above everything else. We’ve worked hard to raise it from the ground up, and we’re so damn close to success despite the hiccups. If it means I have to tolerate Vincent, of all people, then so be it.

“I think I definitely need a personal trainer,” Vincent says. “It’s been a while since I’ve set foot in a gym, and I’m behind on the technique. Besides, like I said, I’m determined to get the most out of my workouts.”

“Okay, well, I can definitely recommend a trainer,” Marius replies.

Alice, bless her nimble brain, perks up, eyes glowing for both of them. “Why don’t you take him on, Marius? You did say you could use a couple more clients.”

“I’d like to work with you, yeah,” Vincent chimes in.

I could puke. Right now, in this moment, I could turn my stomach inside out and puke. Of course, Alice doesn’t know my history with Vincent and she certainly hasn’t got a single clue about me and Marius. And Jax. And Richard. She’d blow a fuse if she ever got wind of it.

Marius lifts an eyebrow at me. All I can do is offer a subtle smile of reassurance as I take a seat at one of the lounge tables in the corner. Next to me is the glass door leading into the martial arts room, where Jax is busy with a client. I catch glimpses of him showing the guy how to maintain his guard during a fight.

“Alright, well, I’ve got an open hour in the evening at six. Would that work for you?” Marius asks Vincent, who keeps stealing glances at me. I try hard to pretend he’s not there, but the mere sound of his voice is enough to push me closer to an uncomfortable edge. I guess Cassandra was right. Some traumas never fully heal, but we learn how to live with them. We must also learn how to prevent them from affecting our present and our decisions for the future. “Three times a week would be a good frequency for you during the first few months," Marius adds. “Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays.”

“What about the weekends?”

“I don’t work on the weekends.”

“That’s cool. Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays at six, then,” Vincent says. “I’ll make the payments now.”

“Alice will help you with that,” Marius says.

I take a long sip from my coffee, watching Marius as he gets behind the reception desk to grab some of his things from one of the cabinets. Alice handles Vincent’s payment with a bright smile and plenty of giggles. It’s enough to make me roll my eyes.

Focusing on Jax for another second or two, I barely register Vincent approaching. As soon as I see him standing closer, a soft smile streaking across his face, my nerves tighten, my resolve trembling before him. He still makes an impact, as much as I hate to admit it. I only need to figure out if it’s just a ghost from the past or some form of lingering emotion his absence failed to reveal.

“How’ve you been, Shay?” Vincent asks.

I look up and raise an eyebrow. “Do you even care or are you just making conversation? There’s no need for the latter.”

“Shay, I was an idiot. I know that now, I see it,” he says. “I’m just trying to apologize.”

“It’s a little too late for that, Vincent. How about you go on with your stuff, and I go on with mine, huh? Wouldn’t it be better?”

“Better? No. I can’t live like this. It’s been torture without you.”

I laugh out loud. “Could’ve fooled me. Please, just stop. I’m not interested in anything you have to say. You said everything that needed to be said the day you ghosted me.”

“I’m deeply sorry for the way I left, Shay. I got scared.”

“And my tolerance for bullshit is at an all-time low.”

“I’ll earn your forgiveness,” he says, shaking his head. “I’ve come a long way in the last six months. I’ve had time to reflect, to deal with myself, to understand why I pulled back when you needed me the most.”

I roll my eyes. “You go do you, Vincent. I couldn’t care less.”

“You see, I’m not sure I believe you,” he replies, a smile teasing the corner of his mouth.

“Again, I’m not interested in your opinions or your beliefs. I will say this for the last time, Vincent. Mind your business, and I will mind mine.”

Finally, he understands this isn’t a good moment for him to keep pushing my buttons. His return alone is enough to make my skin crawl. The last thing I want to do is revisit a most painful breakup simply because he wants to feel better about himself. Screw that. He didn’t give a crap about how he made me feel when he vanished like a coward. Why should I care about how he feels now?

“I’ll see you around, Shay. And you’ll see for yourself. I’ve changed,” he says, then politely backs away and goes into the locker room.

Only when he’s out of sight can I breathe again. I look over to the reception desk and find Marius watching me intently while Alice taps away on her work computer. I smile at Marius, hoping he’s able to read it the way it’s intended. He mirrors my expression and nods slowly. There are times when he and I can understand each other in the absence of words.

I’m not sure how this whole thing affects me. I’m with three wonderful men, and I’ve come a long way from the past version of myself. Yet I worry that the past version of myself isn’t dead but simply lurking in the shadows of my mind. I worry she was merely waiting for Vincent to return. He did seem a tad different. Less domineering than he used to be. Perhaps even meek, at least where our dynamic was concerned. I don’t know what to make of it.

Marius walks closer to me, coffee cup in hand as he takes a seat beside me on the sofa. “How are you feeling?”

“I’m okay, I promise.”

“It couldn’t have been easy seeing him again.”

I shrug and focus on my tepid coffee. It’s still good. “I don’t know what to say,” I tell Marius. “But I do know he’s part of a closed chapter. I don’t make a habit of revisiting my past, particularly parts of it I associate with pain and uncertainty.”

“He seemed pretty… meek. What do you think he’s after?” Marius asks.

“I don’t know, and I don’t really care.”

“Maybe he wants you back.”

I can’t help but laugh, yet I can tell it’s not my usual laughter. It’s more of a bitter cackle. “He can want me back. It doesn’t mean I want him back.”

“You don’t?”

“How can you even ask me that?” I reply, giving him a hard look. “Marius, I’m with you. I’m with you, with Jax, and with Richard. Whatever this… this thing is between us, I’m infinitely happier and healthier with you three than I will ever be if I were to be stupid enough to get back with Vincent. He made his choice a long time ago, and I’ve accepted everything that happened.”

Marius nods and stares at his coffee for a while. “I wouldn’t blame you for considering it,” he says. “I do know what it’s like to be tempted to go back to something familiar, even if it hurt you.”

“Marius, I don’t ever want to go back there. I’ve grown more in the past six months than in the past five years,” I remind him. “There is absolutely nothing waiting for me beside Vincent. Nothing except more confusion, gaslighting, emotional manipulation, and all the lies I can eat.” I pause and shift in my seat so I have a better look at him. “Do you think I wanna go back to him?”

He shakes his head. “No, but like I said, I would understand the impulse.”

“You shouldn’t,” I shoot back. “None of you should.”

“Do you want me to transfer him to another personal trainer? Lyle could easily fit him into his schedule,” Marius sighs.

“You’re free to do whatever you want, Marius. He’s your client. I can’t have a say in that.”

“I could drop him, too. Tell him something came up.”

“We need clients. Even him. I don’t think it would be a good idea for you to drop him, but if you want to hand him over to Lyle, again, that should be your choice, your preference, not mine,” I say. “We agreed from the very beginning that we would do our best not to mix our personal and professional lives, yet this is precisely what we’re doing here.”

He thinks about it for a moment, briefly scratching his trimmed beard. My fingers tingle with a muted desire to run through those black curls of his. I’ve grown accustomed to touching him, to feeling him close to my body and my heart. Maybe that’s why this conversation is so irritating. I’d rather focus on what I have with Marius, Jax, and Richard than linger over someone who is no longer a part of my life. I actually feel like Marius is probing my resolve, wondering how long before I cut everything off and go back to Vincent.

“You’re right,” Marius finally says. “I may not like it much, but you’re right. Vincent’s money is still money, and we need as much of it as we can possibly get.”

“I’m glad we’re on the same page here.”

Neither of us likes it, but Richard’s impulsive business nature is still a risk to us, despite his reassurances. I know how his mind works, and despite his honorable intentions, he may still decide to flip the switch. We need more income for the gym, more clients, and better PR in order to put Richard’s mind at ease—at least until the gym is able to stand on its own. It’s only a matter of time.

And a matter of putting up with people I would’ve otherwise turned away.