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I pull my pretty blue shirt over my head, thinking about how best to reply. Maybe she is right in a way. I do like the way they are self-assured and commanding. They’re successful and motivated. These things are attractive characteristics, but they aren’t the only things that attract me. They aren’t the reasons why each of the McGregor brothers has found a place of warmth in my heart. It’s Donnie’s sensitivity and Ford’s protectiveness. It’s Elliot’s considerate nature and Antony’s wit. It’s Grant’s ponderousness and Casey’s lightheartedness. It’s Cameron’s strength and Blake’s empathy. It’s Barret’s kindness and Aaron’s fierce loyalty. These are the things that make me believe that they could make me happy.
So I tell Danna that. I tell her that if I could live ten lives and choose each of them to live a single life with me, I’d be happy.
“But we don’t get ten lives, sweetie,” she says. “We just get one, and you need to understand that it’s not your job to decide what’s good for those boys or not. By running away from them, you’re doing exactly what their dad has been doing; you’re limiting their choices because of something that you believe is good for them. They are grown men. It’s important you recognized that they are capable of making their own decisions.”
“I know,” I say. “I see that now.”
“Every choice we make in life has consequences and they are just never going to want to be free from their family in the way that you would consider healthy because they are siblings and always want to be close. I think you’ve been struggling to understand them because you’re an only child and you don’t know what it would be like to feel bonded in the way that they do, especially the twins. Do you believe what they are saying?”
“I do believe them,” I say. “I believe they have feelings for me because I have feelings for them. I know it’s all happened so fast and I supposed that’s why I was doubting myself and them. It didn’t seem like it could be real but it is, Danna. It really is.”
Danna swings her feet off the bed and walks over to join me by the window. She takes my hands and looks and me, smiling. “I know all of this feels crazy to you. We used to talk about kissing a whole heap of frogs until we find our princes. In your case, you seem to have managed to find a whole heap of princes instead.” We both giggle but when the laughter has waned, she looks serious again. “You know I’m not one to tell you how to live your life, but I’m also not one to stand by while you ignore your heart and as a result, sabotage what could be the best thing that has ever happened to you. Our hearts try to speak to us but they are quieter than our minds, and maybe a little less persuasive. We try to put practical things ahead of the emotional, but that isn’t always the right way to be, Laura.”
“What would you do if you were in my situation?” I ask her.
“I think you already know,” she says with a devilish grin. “I don’t think I’m ever really going to forgive you for taking the ten most eligible bachelors within a thousand-mile radius off the market in one swoop.”
“You’d give up a chance of having a normal life?” I ask her. A flash of my parents wedding picture comes into my head. They were so happy on that day, about to start their married life with a whole future of ‘normality’ ahead of them. It didn’t work out so great for them, did it?
“What the hell is normal?” she asks me. “Most of the married couples we know probably never have sex. Most would rather be alone or with someone else but they don’t have the guts to bother getting divorced. You think that normal relationships are some kind of panacea but they’re not. They’re as complicated as any other kind of relationship.”
“And what about what everyone’s going to say about me?”
“Most of the woman in this nation will be so green with envy we’ll all look like the statue of liberty and who cares about the men. You’ve ten amazing boyfriends to defend you in any circumstances. It’s going to be like having your own personal security firm.”
I laugh and pull her in for a hug. Sometimes friends are closer than sisters. I’m never going to know what it’s like to have a real sibling but I feel pretty blessed to have found the next best thing in Danna.
My heart swells with warmth at the thought that they’re on their way here. I remember how safe I felt in the arms of each one of them and I want to cry. I’ve been so foolish, so driven by my own expectations and limitations that I wasn’t willing to see that they might be right. We could do this. We could live happily ever after as one big amazing family. I’ll never have to worry about fending for myself. I’ll never again have that insecure feeling that comes with being an only child. My phone bleeps and Danna reaches to grab it from the nightstand to hand it to me. As I read the message, a huge smile spreads over my face.
FORD: You better get your things together, baby, because we’re on our way to get you and this time we’re not taking no for an answer. We’ll do whatever you need us to do to make you happy.
I show it to Danna and she makes a low whistling sound. “You better get your list together then, girl. Ten men who want to do whatever you need is not something that any woman should be approaching without a big long list.”
I shake my head, laughing. “They don’t need a list, Danna. That’s just one of the things that makes them so amazing.”
I grab my nicest jeans and tug them on, glancing out of the window. Danna’s street is quiet and I’m relieved that I might have time to put on some make-up and deal with my hair. I’m just about finishing up when Danna shrieks.
“There are two huge trucks pulling up outside this house,” she says, “and they sure as hell don’t belong to my neighbors.”
My heart skitters in my chest. This is it. They are here and I’m going to have to face them. However, this happens, it’s going to be awkward. I have so much I need to tell them and so much I need them to understand but I won’t be able to do all of that outside Danna’s house with half her neighbors twitching their curtains.
“I can feel you stressing,” Danna says. “You don’t need to solve everything right now, hon. Just go and see them and everything will work itself out over time.”
Before I can think about leaving I grab her and pull her into a fierce hug. I need her to know how much her friendship means to me. Who else would put up with my crazy life? Who else would give me such amazing advice? She’s really something else. “You guys are going to be amazing together,” she tells me. “And if you get sick of them, you know where I am.” We both laugh and hug a little tighter.
When I pull away, I say, “You know they’ve got cousins.”
Danna’s eyes light up. “Yeah, how many?”
“Enough,” I giggle.
“How do you know how many is enough for me,” she says and I have to shake my head because all I can think is, if I can handle ten, Danna could handle a whole football team.
There are ten amazing men waiting for me. Ten men who are going to change my world forever.
It’s time to face the music.
31
When we’re young we dream about our futures; ones we create in our minds from the examples we have from real life and the stories that we’re told. Fairy tales are filled with happy-ever-afters; princesses who are swept off their feet by dashing princes.
I’d always hoped to meet my prince, but I didn’t want him to save me. That wasn’t what my fantasy future was about. I wanted a man who would walk by my side through all of the joy and pain that life has to offer and I wanted to stand on my own two feet, too.
When I met the McGregor brothers, everything I’d ever imagined for myself was overwhelmed. They had the money to support me so that I’ll never need to work. They wanted to take care of me in a way that felt alien. I worried about getting swamped by the sheer number of them and force of their characters, but in getting to know them, I realized that they didn’t want to overpower or overwhelm me. They wanted to support my ideas for how I wanted to live my life. They wanted to find a way that we could all be happy together.
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br /> I don’t know what I did to deserve these amazing men.
Ten men.
Even as I think it I can’t stifle my smile.
Ten princes, each with his own way of making me feel like the most special woman on earth.
I gather my things and walk with Danna to the front door.
“Don’t be scared,” she says to me, giving my hand a squeeze. “Every big step we take in life feels like the one that we are going to stumble on, but just remember that you have plenty of arms to catch you now.”
I hug her again and then she opens the door. As soon as they see me the doors of the trucks fly open and they all get out. I feel like I’m in a movie, in the final scene where the characters have overcome all their troubles and are now in that sunlit frame where everything is perfect.
Ford is there, plaid shirt stretched tight over those biceps that make me want to melt. Donnie smiles shyly, pushing his floppy curly hair back from his face. Elliot’s eyes meet mine and are filled with warmth. Casey and Cameron have opposing thumbs hooked into the pockets of their jeans. Aaron and Antony grin with equally dazzling megawatt smiles. Grant’s expression is serious, as though he can sense how overwhelming this must be for me. Barret and Blake are there, standing close, a sign that their bond might have repaired just a little through all of this strife.
And I know I’m doing the right thing.
They are willing to do whatever it takes and that means everything to me. It means I’m sure that they aren’t just complying with their father’s wishes, whether to please him or to inherit the business. This is about more than that. It’s about each of our individual relationships and their bonds as brothers.
It’s about creating one big happy life for all of us.
It’s Blake who reaches me first. His brothers seem to fall in behind him, allowing his slower steps to be the pace they all walk at. He pulls me into his arms so fiercely, I feel all the breath leave my lungs in a whoosh.
“You can’t do that to us again,” he says firmly.
“I know,” I say, pulling back and putting my hand on this cheek. He steps away, allowing Barrett to take his place and so each of them take their turn to fold me into a welcoming and reassuring embrace.
I can’t imagine what this must look like to Danna’s neighbors. It’s early enough that there’s no one in their yards yet and I don’t know who’s observing from the windows, but do I care? Not really, because this is my life now. These men are more important to me than people’s perceptions of me or my reputation.
Ford is last to pull me into an embrace and by the time he does, I’m in tears. They are tears of relief and happiness but he still looks so concerned. “Princess,” he says. “Why are you crying?”
I pull him to me and breathe in his warm familiar scent. “I just realized that I found my happy ever after,” I say and he laughs.
“Yeah you did, baby girl. Yeah you did.”
The boys take me back to McGregor mansion. Mom and Roderick are there to greet us. Mom is so happy to see me back but cautious, too. She wants to know for sure that this is right for me.
“It is, Mom,” I tell her.
Roderick’s face is darker. “You walked away from my family, Laura. You must promise that you won’t do that again.”
“Dad,” Aaron says in a warning tone. “No one should be asked to make that kind of promise. You need to accept that we’re not just plastic characters you can place where you want. We’re all people who have needed to go through a whole lot to get into this position.”
“She almost broke up this family,” he says.
“No, she didn’t.” Casey steps forward. “She tried to keep this family together. She tried to walk away because she didn’t want to put herself between us and you. Laura knows what family means to us all. That’s part of why this is going to work and exactly why you need to be getting over yourself now.”
Roderick nods. “Laura, this is only going to work if you can promise me that you will always try to seek help for any difficulties within the family. Running off doesn’t help anyone.”
“Danna is family,” I tell him. “But I understand what you’re saying. I didn’t give you all a chance to explain and that was wrong.”
Roderick turns to Mom and he seems to soften before our eyes. She nods and his shoulders drop. I didn’t realize how much anxiety has been driving Mr. McGregor until this point but I see it now. He’s scared. Scared that all that he’s built – family and business – can be taken away from him. He’s just a frightened little boy with his arms wrapped around his toys, terrified to let go and share with anyone else.
He turns back to us all and pauses. I can see him taking time to choose his words carefully and that feels like a good sign. In all my dealings with Roderick so far he’s been impetuous. “You know that all I’ve ever wanted is what’s best for you all,” he says softly. I can hear the emotion in his voice.
“We know, Dad,” Cameron says.
“I’m sorry if anything I’ve said or done has made you feel like I don’t respect the men you’ve become. You have to understand, I’m just used to things being a certain way, but I’ll try.” He turns to me. “Laura, I know you’ve thought that I’m crazy for wanting this for my sons and that maybe I’m more controlling of their lives than I should be. It’s been hard to watch you drawing my sons away from me but I see why you did it and I hope you can see that in the end, we both have a shared goal here and that is the happiness of my ten boys.” I nod and Donnie slides his hand into mine. Grant takes my other hand. “All I want is for you to all be happy,” he finishes.
“I’m hoping that we will be,” I say. “And I will do my best to make this work for all of us.”
Roderick nods, seemingly satisfied with my response.
“So you’re back, are you?” Mom asks.
“Yes.”
“For good,” Antony adds, winking at me. He knows what that does to me and I smile broadly.
Mom steps forward and draws me into a ferocious hug. It seems as though all her plans for us and the McGregor’s have come to fruition. “Maybe we should start planning a double ceremony,” she laughs.
Roderick’s eyes light up but I put my hand up. “Not so fast,” I say. “I’m looking forward to living in sin for a little while before we get onto that, and I wouldn’t want to take anything away from your special day, Mom.”
“You wouldn’t, sweetie,” she says, taking my face between her hands and kissing my cheek, “but I know what you mean. You go and have fun with your boys.”
I can’t believe that Mom just said that and I blush profusely. I suppose I’m going to have to find a way to be less embarrassed about references to the ‘group aspect’ now it’s going to be part of my normal everyday life.
I let go of Donnie and Grant’s hands and turn, finding myself surrounded by my men. Wow. This really is something else. There are plenty of smiles and that makes me warm inside. I wish I had twenty arms so that I could give them all a hug simultaneously. This will definitely be a frustration, but I’m really going to have to find a way to share myself out.
“Come on then,” Aaron calls impatiently. His eyes are twinkling, though. I think he’ll always hold that position as organizer of the group.
“Where are we going?” I ask.
“It’s a surprise,” Ford says, throwing his arm around my shoulders. The boys start walking and I’m drawn along. There’s plenty of chatter and some jostling that is just typical of brothers. We head to an area of the house that I haven’t been to before, up more stairs to a higher level.
“Wow,” I say as we enter a large room. There are sofas and rows of cupboards. There are also doors on each side. “What is this place?”
“Dad had it designed before he told us about the plan. I guess it was to show us how things could work,” Cameron says.
“Come this way,” Elliot leads me towards a door at the back. When it opens I am stunned.
Inside is a massive vaulted-ce
ilinged room with a huge white crystal chandelier hanging in the center. The walls are painted a navy blue with gold accents and in the middle is a bed that must be fifteen-feet square. If it wasn’t dressed with sumptuous velvet and covered with cushions I might have questioned what it was.
“Amazing isn’t it?” Donnie says. He’s looking up at the ceiling and I notice for the first time the skylights that are creating the amazing warm feeling in the room. It is beautiful.
“Wow,” I say, feeling pathetic for not being about to come up with a better word.
“I know. Kind of takes your breath away, doesn’t it?” Grant says.
“It’s big enough for all of us,” Ford says happily. He really is very cool with all of this and jumps onto the bed as if to illustrate this very fact. “Get your sexy ass over here,” he says, laughing.
I know that it’s stupid for me to feel shy with them but I do. I may have had sex with nearly every man in this room but not all together. Is that what this is going to be? A mass consummation. A sealing of our bond. My pussy clenches at the thought. I walk slowly over to the bed, slipping off my shoes and kneeling to make my way into the center. I lay back, spreading my arms like a starfish, gazing up at the gorgeous blue sky and imagining what it will be like to rest here, looking at the stars, surrounded by these ten amazing men.
The room seems to quiet as each of the brothers slips his shoes off and finds his place around me. I feel like the sun at the middle of a new universe with the planets aligning. Grant is the first to make contact with me, taking my hand and bringing it to his lips. It feels right that he is because he was the first to touch me, the first to kiss me, the first to show me passion and pleasure like I’d never felt before.
“How are you feeling?” he asks.
“Ready,” I say, because I know that’s what he needs to know. What they all need to know.
He rolls closer, placing his lips on mine, sliding his hand over the bare skin of my belly and up under my shirt. There’s a murmur of approval in the room. I close my eyes to focus on his touch, but then there’s movement on my right and another hand following a similar path. More hands peel away my socks and begin to unbutton my trousers. I don’t know who is who but I find that I don’t care. I trust each of these men to put me first, to treat me with respect and handle me with the gentlest touch.