“But?” She obviously sensed there was more to the story.
“I kissed two of them,” I blurted out. “Cory and Donovan.”
Meara bit her lip, letting me get to the end of the story before chiming in.
“I kissed Cory right after our meeting with Chad, here in the bakery. And it was wonderful, but I’m not sure if I want to be exclusive. Donovan and I were alone at a bar last night, and one thing led to another.”
“You go, girl!” Meara punched me in the arm, pretending to be a guy egging another guy on.
I blushed, turning away to look at the sidewalk outside my window. “I don’t know what to do now. I like them both, and I don’t want to give either of them up.” After a moment’s consideration, I threw in the final consideration. “Then there’s Gavin.”
“Who’s Gavin?”
“He’s the third partner, the one I haven’t kissed yet.”
“But you like him?”
“I guess so. He has these tattoos on his chest that I can’t see at the moment. Something like a dragon or a serpent.” I waved my hand around my breasts to indicate the general location of Gavin’s tattoos.
“You know what I’m going to say,” Meara prefaced her remarks.
“That I don’t have to choose,” I offered myself her advice.
“You don’t,” she agreed.
“But I don’t know if I’m cut out for the arrangement you have,” I argued.
“Before I met Damien, Sean, and Kent I was a one-man woman,” she told me. “They swept me off my feet and were openminded enough to let me date all three.”
“Do you think Donovan and Cory would act the same way?”
Meara shrugged. “It’s worth asking. There’s no need to limit yourself to half of your heart if they would be comfortable with a polyamorous relationship.”
“Polyamorous?” I repeated the word. It sounded daring, luxurious even. I didn’t know if I had the courage to buck convention like that, but the fact that other people did it was encouraging. There was even a word for it, and the word didn’t sound that bad.
“That’s right,” Meara instructed. “I can help walk you through it, if you like.”
I took another sip of my coffee, checking my phone for the time. I only had five minutes left. “How did you approach them with the idea?”
“It took a lot of courage,” she admitted. “But they were all excited once I brought up the possibility.”
“I have to go back to work,” I said reluctantly.
“Call me anytime.” She reached over for another hug. “It’s scary at first, but you got this.”
“I don’t know,” I hesitated. “It seems like a really big deal.”
“It is,” she agreed. “But you can do it.”
I opened the door and stepped out into the street.
“Don’t forget your coffee,” Meara called.
I reached back in to pluck the cup from its holder. Standing back, I shut the door. Meara drove away, giving me a lot to think about. Could I really date all three men at the same time? Would they even agree to that? I would have to be up front about what I wanted and make sure everyone knew where they stood.
Sipping my coffee, I walked back into the store. I tried to function for the rest of the day but found my mind wandering. Making cinnamon rolls, I molded one of the bricks into the shape of a penis. Startled, I mushed the dough back down to start over.
I was clearly very tired. My one-track mind had descended into considerations about the investors and nothing else. I couldn’t concentrate. After another few minutes trying to force myself to behave, I gave up.
“I’m going home,” I announced to the other kitchen staff.
No one said anything, so I just hung up my apron and walked out the door. If Chad had a problem with it, he could come find me. I would leave my phone on just in case. Dreaming about my nice, soft bed, I climbed into my car and started the engine. A nap was just what I needed to reset my brain. A nap and a conversation with my three handsome investors, a sinful part of my mind whispered. Now that the seed had been planted, I couldn’t shake the desire to have all three of them. If Meara did it successfully, why couldn’t I? A smile on my face, I pulled out of the bakery parking lot. Things were about to get interesting, that was for sure.