Chapter 22: Theo

Saturday, July 18th

I lifted my bike onto the rack on the Subaru, fatigue seeping in after a morning of mountain biking with Jackson. The adrenaline rush was a healthy outlet for my pent up energy and anxiety, especially when compared to some of my old habits. The past few months had definitely tested my limits, but Haley’s little vanishing act earlier this week resulted in a flip out of epic proportions.

I wasn’t the only one concerned by the deviation from her fairly set schedule, and the five of us agreed to send Liam up there to investigate her disappearance in person. Afraid Haley decided to run again, or worse, my relief was palpable when Liam soon assured us she had returned to Portland and resumed her regular activities. I still wondered where she went, and my imagination ran wild with the possibilities.

Noah’s smug face often came to mind, making me even more determined to bring Haley home. I had always known that she was special—beautiful, genuine, smart, sweet, funny—and it wouldn’t take long for someone to scoop her up if she showed a bit of interest. There was nothing I wanted more than for Haley to be happy, but with us, not in dreary Portland with that twit Noah. Unfortunately, Douglas and the issue of the “one of Haley, five of us” situation still stood in the way.

Thanks to my recent outing to the bar with Knox, I had an idea for the latter, though it was rather extreme and I was nervous to even voice it out loud. But I had given it a lot of thought, and Haley’s latest disappearance convinced me to mention it to Jackson. Normally, I would have run something like this by Knox first, but I thought Knox might be more receptive to the idea if it came from Jackson. If Jackson doesn’t think I’ve completely lost my mind, I thought, knowing I was about to suggest either the best idea ever or the worst.

I met Jackson in his backyard, taking a seat at the outdoor table as Penny approached me.

“Hey, girl. You want some sugar?” I asked, rubbing Penny behind the ears. She panted happily until I stopped, then sat at my feet while Jackson took a seat across from me.

“Knox tells me your internship is going well,” Jackson said as he dug into his lunch.

“Yeah, I’m optimistic,” I responded, opening my box of takeout. “Douglas and Jim are constantly meeting with donors right now, so I don’t think it will be too long before we have the evidence we need.”

“Excellent. I’m guessing that’s not what you wanted to talk to me about, then.”

I shook my head, wondering where to start.

“Theo?” Jackson prodded.

I inhaled and forced myself to speak slowly instead of blurting out my idea. “So, you know how we’ve been discussing what to do about Haley after we get her back?”

“Yeah,” he said almost glumly.

“Well, I have another idea I want to propose, but it’s . . . it’s what you might call unorthodox,” I finished anxiously, my palms sweating. I knew a big part of my motivation for this unconventional arrangement was selfish, but it seemed better than Liam’s idea of “may the best man win.” I could easily imagine Haley choosing Liam, Chase, Knox, or Jackson, and I secretly feared that she wouldn’t choose me.

“Okay,” he said, perking up slightly.

“I haven’t told any of the others, even Knox, because I wanted to run it by you first.” Jackson nodded, which encouraged me to continue. “I don’t know about you, but I’m not thrilled with any of the current options. I think I have a solution where everyone wins—Haley wouldn’t have to choose, and none of us would be put through the pain of losing her to another member of the group or risk fracturing the team further.”

“This sounds almost too good to be true,” he said wryly. “So what’s the idea?”

I took a deep breath. “Did I ever mention Jason and his relationship?” Jackson shook his head. “He’s a friend of a friend and is in a committed relationship with several people. I can’t remember the details of whether it’s Jason and another man and woman or him and two women, but they’re a unit, all equally invested in the relationship.”

Jackson didn’t immediately respond, and I tried to gauge his reaction, but his face remained unreadable. If he was surprised by the underlying suggestion, I couldn’t tell.

“Do you really think you could share Haley with four other guys?”

“I know it would take some adjustment, and I’m not exactly sure how it would all work, but I think it’s something to consider. I want what’s best for all of us.”

“You didn’t answer my question, though,” he said, and I could tell he was hiding a smirk. “Perhaps you’ve been spending too much time in a politician’s office.”

“Very funny,” I said sarcastically, before adopting a more serious tone. “It would be difficult, but I wouldn’t have mentioned it if I wasn’t willing to try.”

“And Haley . . . how do you think she would handle this type of situation?”

“Honestly,” I sighed, “I don’t know. But clearly she cares about all of us, and I know she would struggle with choosing. I’d like to think that given this option, she’d realize that everyone wins. Assuming the others agree, of course.”

Jackson nodded, his expression pensive. “You’ve certainly given me something to think about,” he said with no trace of mockery. “Let’s keep this between the two of us for now as we consider it some more.”

I felt myself relax. While Jackson’s response wasn’t overly positive, he hadn’t outright rejected the proposition either; maybe there was hope for my off-the-wall idea yet. Did I want to share Haley with anyone else? Not particularly. Was I willing to if I could have a chance with her and it would make her happy? Abso-frickin-lutely.