He Will Be Mine (New Horizon Book 1)

Third Wheel

Matt

Saturday night has been date night for Jess and me for years. I feel the loss of the security of that relationship every time Saturday rolls around, and I have no one to spend it with. What really doesn’t help is that Tyler and Aly seem to be back full force, so they’re back to having their movie nights on Saturdays while I just hang out in my room, trying not to fall apart every time I hear Aly giggle at something Tyler does.

Admittedly, he has been generous this week, even letting me tag along when they go to work out. I went with them Tuesday and both he and Aly were kind enough to help me find some low-impact activities to get me started. It’s been many years since I have done anything even resembling a workout, so I’m quite out of shape. After only twenty minutes, my body was screaming at me and I was out of breath. I spent the rest of the time watching Aly, which I’m sure made me look like a creep, but I couldn’t help it. She’s a force of nature, and quite a beast in the gym.

Thursday I wasn’t feeling up to another workout yet, so Aly offered to walk with me through the nature park instead. There’s never anyone there since the weather turned cold and snowy and it feels a little bit like our special place because of it. There was freshly fallen snow Thursday morning and the whole place felt a bit like a magical wonderland lightly dusted with sparkling confetti. I lost count of how many times I wanted to kiss her that day, partly because I always want to kiss her but mostly because it felt like it would be the perfect thing to do in that setting.

But now, it’s hitting me all over again that I am alone, and she is better off with him. I know it’s mostly my fault that I’m alone. I could just break it off with Jess and then pursue Aly more seriously, but I’m scared. Aly seems content with Tyler, and I know he is crazy about her. Not only do I still have trouble believing that she would really pick me over him, but I would feel like a monster ripping them apart. I can’t stand the idea of breaking up with Jess and just being single either, so as always, I am putting off making my final decision and acting on it.

One thing that I have come to realize, though, is that if it comes down to a simple choice between Jess and Aly, I’m going to pick Aly. I keep thinking about how they each treat me and make me feel, and I’ve realized that Jess doesn’t appreciate me. She expects everything and doesn’t give much in return. Our relationship has gotten to a point where I basically am walking on eggshells always trying to keep her happy.

With Aly, on the other hand, it’s easy. It feels natural, and what she said to me the other day has stuck with me. She sees me, and appreciates the person I really am. There would be no pretending with her. Only problem is that it’s not simple because she’s not actually available, even if she says she is. She’s with Tyler in every way but the terminology.

As I’m lying in my bed staring up at the ceiling and thinking about Aly, something strange comes over me and I have the urge to just go out there and sit next to her and see what happens. Before I know it, my feet are carrying me to the living room.

“Hi, Matt,” Aly greets me, seeming happy to see me, and at the same time Tyler says, “Hey, man.”

This is a good start, I guess. They don’t seem to be bothered at my intrusion, so I go over to the couch and take the place on the other side of Aly.

“Hey, guys,” I return their greetings. “Hope you don’t mind, but I don’t really know what to do with myself anymore on a Saturday night, so I was wondering if I could join.”

“Of course,” Tyler responds. “Not sure if you’ll be into our movie selection, though.”

I look at the TV and recognize some of the actors, quickly realizing they’re watching one of those movies about the weird vampires. Not really my thing, but I didn’t come out here for the movie, anyway. I just don’t want to be alone.

“It’s fine, I’m not picky,” I say.

Aly offers me the bowl of popcorn she’s been holding, and I take some, then reposition myself to get comfortable. Eventually she rests the bowl on her leg near me so we can share. A few times, I deliberately wait to get some until she is reaching in, so that our hands brush against each other. I think she catches on at some point judging by the way she giggles when it happens again, but she doesn’t say anything.

At least not until she giggles again and blurts out, “I think Matt wants to hold my hand with how much he’s reaching in here and grabbing me instead of the popcorn.”

It surprises me that she would just say that with Tyler here, and I feel my face turning red. He leans forward and smirks my way, reaching over and grabbing the popcorn bowl away from us.

“You should probably give the man what he wants, Aly,” he shocks me by saying, and then to me he says, “Don’t be embarrassed, Matt. I get it. Vampires are scary. Aly will protect you.”

“Har har,” I reply sarcastically, though I can’t help smiling, especially once Aly does reach for my hand and hold it.

Tyler seems to be really into the movie and Aly keeps looking at us to check our reactions to it. I don’t know what she sees on my face. I haven’t paid much attention to the movie because I’m too distracted by the feel of her next to me and the way she keeps moving her thumb across my fingers. I lean my body toward her some more and rest my head against the back of the couch, feeling comfortable and relaxed for the first time in a while.

Next thing I know, I’m waking up in a strange bed and Aly is lying next to me, sound asleep. I don’t get a chance to be too excited about it, though, because then I realize this is Tyler’s room and his bed, and he is sleeping on the other side of her. I’m confused as to how I got here and why they wouldn’t just leave me on the couch if I fell asleep watching the movie, but I quickly decide to stop looking the gift horse in the mouth. I haven’t been sleeping well and having Aly here next to me feels nice. I decide to just enjoy it and go back to sleep.

-

-

Aly

I notice Matt lean his head back part of the way through the second movie, and before long he is sound asleep.

“We’re a man down,” I tell Tyler quietly.

He leans forward to look around me at Matt and smiles. “Poor guy. This whole thing with Jess has been eating him up, or at least I think that’s what’s up. I hear him and Trevor talking about it a lot. He can’t seem to bring himself to pull the plug and move on.”

“He’s not been sleeping well?”

“Not from what I can tell, but I don’t know the whole story.”

“Poor guy,” I agree. I’m still holding Matt’s hand, and I have to wonder if that is partly why he seems so content right now.

After the movie finishes, Tyler and I agree it’s time to head to bed. He stands up and stretches, looking at Matt.

“We could probably just lay him down on the couch and let him keep sleeping,” he suggests.

I have a better idea.

“I know this is going to be a little weird for you, but I’m going to suggest it anyway. The mate bond that Matt and I have is probably helping him relax and rest right now because we are in physical contact. I could carry him to bed and lie down with him to help him sleep.”

Tyler looks conflicted for a moment and then shrugs. “I get what you’re saying, but I still want to cuddle. There’s only one night a week that I really get that with you, and I don’t want to give it up, so screw it. Just bring him to my bed so we can share you.”

The idea of that sends a jolt of excitement through my body. That’s perfect. Trevor might think it’s weird if he comes back and peeks in on us, but who cares. Everything he does is weird.

I gently unwrap my hand from Matt’s and hold him up while I slide out from beside him. Then I scoop him up and carry him to Tyler’s bedroom. I'm a little clumsy about it, considering how tall he is, but he's not as heavy as I'd expected. Tyler goes ahead of me and pulls back the blankets so I can lay Matt down on the bed. I adjust the pillow under his head until it looks comfortable for his neck and pull the blankets over him.

“I’ll never get tired of seeing how strong werewolves are,” Tyler remarks from next to his bed where he has been watching me, and I smirk at him.

After we get changed and ready for bed, I climb in first and tuck myself in next to Matt, positioning myself with my back against him as though we’re spooning. I figure that should be enough contact for him to feel the effects. Tyler slides in next to me on his back, and I drape an arm over him.

“Have I told you how amazing you are for being so cool about all this?” I whisper to him.

“Only all the time,” he retorts, and I can hear the smile in his voice. “I like hearing it, though. It hasn’t been as hard as I thought it would be because you still pay plenty of attention to me.”

“It’s hard not to because you’re so pretty,” I tease him, and I can feel the vibrations in his chest as he chuckles.

I don’t know at what point we fall asleep, but I do know that the feeling of being tucked between these two amazing men makes me not ever want to leave this bed. Out there, Matt is still technically engaged to Jessica and I am going to have to pick one of these guys eventually. In here, they're all mine, and we're all comfortable and content.