“Yeah.” Kassidy moved her head, eyes still closed. “Yeah. Okay.”

She told Hailey about her and Chris and Dag. Hailey listened and didn’t say much, and Kassidy appreciated that. She did not want someone judging her or telling her what a stupid idiot she’d been—because she already knew that.

“So Dag’s in love with Chris,” Hailey repeated slowly. “And Chris has no idea?”

“Nope. Never has. And Dag doesn’t want him to know.”

“Well. That sucks for Dag.” She eyed Kassidy curiously. “So why are you so upset?”

That was the big question, wasn’t it? Kassidy drew her shredded dignity around her as best she could, tried to gather up her running-wild thoughts. “I think I…sort of fell in love with Dag.”

Hailey’s mouth opened. Closed. She blinked.

“Not like you think,” Kassidy added. “I still love Chris. I think…oh god, this is crazy. I think I love both of them.”

Hailey blinked again. “Oh.”

Kassidy licked her lips, looked at her hands, her fingers twisting together. “But it hurts. I thought Dag cared about me too, and it hurts to think he was just using to me to get to Chris.”

“Ah.”

Kassidy lifted her head. Once again, Hailey had a holy-fucking-shit look on her face, though she said only that one word.

“And I’m terrified. Because I think Chris might have feelings for Dag. He won’t admit it. He’s such a stubborn ass.”

“What makes you think that?” Hailey’s words were a bare whisper, her eyes wide.

Kassidy couldn’t tell her what had happened last night. It was too personal. Too secret. Chris would kill her if Hailey knew about that. “I just…have a feeling. Some things…that happened.” She shrugged.

“I can’t believe that, Kassidy. Really. Chris loves you. He’s crazy about you. It’s so obvious, always has been.” Hailey gave a short laugh. “It’s enough to make me jealous.”

Jealous? Kassidy peered at her sister through gritty, swollen eyes. Hailey jealous of her? Yeah right.

“That’s not to say he doesn’t care about Dag. But…”

“Would a guy let another guy suck his dick if he wasn’t into that?”

Hailey didn’t even flinch. She met Kassidy’s gaze steadily. “I’ve met people who are…just…attracted to other people. It doesn’t matter if they’re male or female. It’s just some kind of chemistry or attraction.”

Kassidy nodded. Was that Dag? Mind-bogglingly, she was grateful for Hailey’s experience and her acceptance of the question for what it was. Jesus, her world had turned upside down and inside out.

Then, her body trembling, her stomach in knots, she spoke aloud the words that scared her the most, the ones she had to drag from way down deep inside, hoping that saying them aloud would take the fear out of them. “If Chris cares about Dag…and Dag cares about him…where does that leave me?”

“Oh Kassie.” Hailey swallowed. “You’re fine. I told you Chris loves you. Go home to him. Talk to him. Dag’s leaving and you two will be fine.”

“Can I just let Dag leave? Can I just let that happen, knowing they might…never see each other again? That they might…”

Hailey’s face flickered with emotions. “Are you asking for my advice?”

“No. I don’t know. I don’t know what to do! How can I live with myself if I never tell Chris the truth…about how Dag feels for him? What if that makes a difference? I’m so afraid! What if he really wants to be with Dag? Can I spend the rest of my life wondering that, keeping that secret inside me?”

Hailey bit her lip.

“But if I tell him, what if he decides he’d rather be with Dag than with me?”

“He wouldn’t do that.” Hailey leaned forward. “Chris loves you, Kass. You know that.”

Kassidy nodded, twisting her fingers together so tightly they hurt. Her eyes stung with more tears. “I just don’t want to lose him! But…maybe I already have.” The agony inside her burst out then in harsh, painful sobs and she bent over the arm of the chair, crying in breath-stealing, gut-wrenching gusts.

Why had they done this crazy ménage thing? How could they have blindly thought they could just all have sex together without any of this happening? They must have been out of their minds. The enormity of it rose up inside her, terrible, unbearable, painful.

They’d messed up their lives so thoroughly Kassidy couldn’t see at that point how this was ever going to be okay. And maybe that’s what she deserved.

“I’m sorry,” she gasped long moments later. Hailey handed her tissues. “Thanks.”

“It’s okay. I’m sorry too. I wish I could do more to help.”

She shook her head, mopping up. Her face felt hot and tight, eyes burning. “I got myself into this. But thanks.”

Stunningly, Hailey reached out and took her hand. “Kassidy. I…” She looked at Kassidy and nibbled her bottom lip again, her eyes dark with anxiety. “I…know we haven’t been close. It’s hard to be your sister.”

Kassidy’s eyes flew wide. What?

“You’re so goddamn perfect,” Hailey continued in a low voice. “I couldn’t ever be as good as you. So I didn’t even try. I just tried to be bad. But I want you to know I never would wish this on you. Truly. Your perfect life, your perfect job, your perfect boyfriend. I envied you. Even when I discovered you having a hot threesome with two gorgeous guys, I was envious. But I never… I hate seeing you like this. I really do.”

“Oh Hailey.” Kassidy stared at her, mouth open. Hailey was jealous of her? That was just freaky. Because she’d been jealous of Hailey.

Life was so strange. When you could be jealous of the things someone else had at the same time they were jealous of what you had. Why couldn’t everyone just be grateful for who they were and what they had without comparing it to others? Why was she like that with Hailey? Just because they were sisters? Was it because Kassidy really did deep down inside love her and that’s why she had the power to make her so angry, so frustrated, the power to make her feel so insecure and inferior? But then Hailey must care about Kassidy too, if she made her feel the same way. They made each other feel bad even though they never intended to, even though you were supposed to make the people you cared about feel good. There was something wrong with that, but she couldn’t figure it all out at that moment; it was beyond her.

Hailey reached for Kassidy’s hands and they sat there for a moment, all four of their hands clasped together.

Kassidy sighed. “Oh Hailey. How can you be jealous of me, for being so good? When all I wanted was to be bad for once. That’s what got me into this mess. I was tired of being the good girl. You made me feel like some kind of boring prude, and I wanted some adventure, I wanted to do something naughty.”

“That’s why you did that?” Hailey’s eyebrows flew up into her hairline.

“Well. That was part of it.” Kassidy paused. “Thank you,” she finally said. “For being here for me. I still don’t know what to do, but thank you.”

Hailey nodded, her mouth soft and trembly, her throat working. “And just for the record, I think Dag cares about you too.” Hailey met her eyes. “That night at Mom and Dad’s, he was acting very protective of you. And I’m telling you Chris loves you too. I don’t think you have to worry about your relationship with him.”

Kassidy blinked wetly at her. She swallowed. And at that moment, even though Hailey didn’t say it, Kassidy thought that maybe Hailey loved her too.

Dag had said you didn’t have to love family. He’d said you loved the people you chose to love. But Kassidy wasn’t so sure it was a choice–her feelings for Hailey were there.

Was it a choice to love Chris? She’d always thought falling in love was something that happened to you, not something you chose. Did she choose to love Dag? Maybe you could love more than one person, if you chose to. Could you?

Could Dag? Could Chris?

Chris sprawled on the couch, bare feet propped on the coffee table, a baseball game on the television. He had no fucking clue what the score was, in fact, he didn’t even know who the hell was playing. He just stared at it while his mind churned.