________.

Zack stepped back and squinted at the framed picture on the wall. He reached out and adjusted one corner to make it perfectly straight. There.

That was the last one. All the pictures he'd had framed now hung on the walls in Aidan and Maddie's condo.

His condo. He lived there too, now.

His home.

He waited for the fear to rise up in his throat. It didn't.

He felt a blessed sense of peace and acceptance. The absence of fear in his life had made him realize what a huge dark presence it had been.

Not the fear of danger or being hurt or killed. Yeah, sure, he'd felt that kind of fright, many times. And when he'd been taken captive, he'd been fucking terrified.

The fear he was now missing was the one that had been with him most of his life. The fear of hoping for something, wanting something he could never have. The fear of being different and never fitting in anywhere. The fear of caring for someone and being betrayed or rejected.

Aidan had told him he didn't have to be afraid any more.

Those words had hit him like a punch. It had taken a while for them to fully sink in. It had also blown him away that Aidan had understood that about him.

Now he could be the kind of man he wanted to be without the fear. He could let himself feel, knowing he was safe. He could hope and dream. Loving someone didn't make you weak. It made you strong.

The fear hadn't disappeared overnight. In fact, when Maddie had suggested last week they should hang all those pictures, cold dread had squeezed his intestines. But he was getting past it.

The door opened and Maddie breezed in. "Hi honey, I'm home!"

He grinned. She dropped her purse and briefcase onto a chair and launched herself into his arms.

Something warm and sweet shifted in his chest as he wrapped his arms around her.

"You're so nice to come home to." She planted a kiss on his mouth. "Guess that's going to change, huh?"

"Yeah." He started teaching next week, and the G7 Summit was coming up which would definitely keep him busy. "No more coming home to dinner already made, with your slippers and newspaper waiting."

She choked on a laugh, squeezed his neck and released him. "Well, it was nice while it lasted. Oh hey, you got all the pictures up." She walked around the condo, studying them.

They'd decided on placement together, a grouping of images on one living room wall, more in the dining room and some lining the hall. The one he'd taken of Aidan and Maddie together all those years ago was in the bedroom, along with a new one.

Somehow Maddie'd convinced him to take a picture of the three of them. He'd set it all up, tested the lighting and flash, and then used the timer to get himself into the picture, him and Aidan flanking Maddie, arms around her but also each other, heads together.

That one also hung in their bedroom. It was private, not something they wanted to have to explain to the world. Not that the entire world visited their condo. And those who did were friends who would just have to accept their unusual relationship.

"Aidan should be home soon," Maddie said. "For our 'meeting'."

"Only Aidan would call a meeting for us." Zack shook his head.

"We have a lot of things to discuss."

"You mean argue about."

She frowned. "That's why we're having a meeting. So there won't be an argument."

"Like last week."

She nibbled her bottom lip. "Well, yeah."

Last week's argument had been about money. Zack wanted to contribute to their living expenses. It was only fair. He wasn't going to be a mooch. But the argument had really been about more than money. He had money, Aidan had money, Maddie made decent money.

No, the argument had really been about him being a part of their relationship. Did he really want to own one third of the condo? No. Did he give a shit that if something happened and this all imploded, he'd be out on the street? No. He just wanted to be on an equal footing with them.

But that discussion had opened their eyes to a whole lot of other things they were going to have to deal with.

Their other recent argument had been about leaving the toilet seat up. His lips twitched remembering Maddie's ire at nearly falling in the toilet in the middle of the night. He'd taken responsibility for that, had groveled and was now doing his damnedest to remember to lower the seat when he was done.

Who knew that was so hard to do?

Also, who knew that was so important to women? But compared to some of the issues they were going to face, that was miniscule.

"I'm going to change." Maddie kicked off her high heels and bent to pick them up, giving him a sweet view of her ass in a snug pink pencil skirt. "Be right back."

Zack headed to the kitchen where he had a pot of chili simmering. He wasn't much of a cook but found he kind of enjoyed it. Aidan and Maddie had suffered through a few unfortunate results of his efforts, but today's creation seemed to have turned out okay. He dipped a spoon in to taste the chili. Yeah, that was good. Then the heat kicked in. Whoa. That was...spicy.

He'd joked about being a 1950's housewife for them to come home to. He didn't mind doing things around the place, but he was eager to get back to work, excited about the new challenges he was facing in his career. He was ready.

Aidan blew in then, full of energy, slamming the door behind him. Today instead of his usual impeccably tailored suit, he wore dusty jeans, work boots and a plaid shirt over a crew-necked white T. Apparently he'd been at a construction site today. This look was possibly even sexier than his tailored suits.

"That smells fucking fantastic." Aidan strode to the kitchen and lifted the lid to peer into the pot. "Chili? You made this?"

"Yep."

"Awesome. I'm starving." Aidan dropped the lid, moved into Zack and pressed him against the counter. He too laid a kiss on his mouth, a long, hard kiss, one hand stroking over Zack's hair. "How was your day?"

Once again emotion swelled inside him at Aidan's touch. "Busy. I was at the university this morning, picked up some groceries, made chili, hung the pictures."

Aidan brushed his thumb over Zack's bottom lip. "You're really getting into this domestication, aren't you?"

Zack grinned and sank his teeth into Aidan's thumb. Aidan jerked it back but laughed.

Maddie appeared. "Oh good, you're home too."

Aidan stretched an arm out and pulled her in between him and Zack.

"Mmm. Manwich." She rubbed herself against them.

Zack choked. "Manwich?"

"Yeah. Me in the middle of my two men. Maddie Manwich. It's my favorite thing."

He shook his head, unable to stop from smiling.

What should be weird and fucked up felt fun and perfect and right with these two.

But he knew they were about to have a discussion about how to make the rest of the world see their relationship as perfect and right. There was a sobering thought.

"Let me go change." Aidan squeezed Maddie's hips then stepped away. "And I need a quick shower. I'm covered in dust."

A while later, they sat at the dining table with bowls of steaming chili. Zack set a pitcher of ice water in the middle of the table. "You might need this," he said with a wince.

They all dug in.

"It's spicy," Maddie agreed. "But it's really good!"

"It's making me sweat." Aidan gulped some water.

"Sorry." Zack forked up more chili. "I might have overdone the spices. I remembered you like it hot and spicy." He winked at Maddie. "Actually, I kinda like it."

"I do too," Maddie insisted.

"I love you."

She laughed.

They all finished it, and it wasn't that bad.

"Okay." Aidan rose and walked over to his brief case. "Let me get the agenda for the meeting."

"You've got a fucking agenda?" Zack leaned back in his chair.

"Yeah. I printed it off at work."

Zack met Maddie's eyes and their eyebrows rose. "He ever done this before?"

She bit her lip. "Oh yeah."

"Oh my fucking god. Seriously?"

Aidan shrugged, taking a seat. He laid a piece of paper on the table in front of him. "Okay. We've argued about money, the toilet seat being left up, what movie to watch, toe nail clippings and whether vegetables should be crisp or cooked until they're a mushy mess fit for either a baby or a ninety year old with no teeth."

Zack couldn't stop the laugh that burst out of him. He and Maddie exchanged another amused look.

"Now shit's about to get real," Aidan continued. "We're talking...in-laws."

Zack reared back. "Fuck me." He stared at Aidan as if he'd produced an M24 sniper rifle and was aiming it at him.

"You met my parents," Aidan said. "When we were in college."

Zack shifted in his chair. "Uh, yeah. Couple times." He remembered going out for dinner with them once when they'd visited the campus. "Nice people."

Aidan snorted. "Sure. They're nice. They also don't give a shit about my life. So I don't anticipate much of an issue with them when we tell them what's going on with us."

"We're gonna tell them?" Zack's eyebrows shot up into his hairline. "What the hell are we gonna do that for?"

Aidan's lips twitched. "You think we can keep it a secret forever?"

"Sure." Panic flared inside him. Jesus, just when he'd thought things were going so well. "Why not?"

"Actually, with my parents, that could work. They're so self-involved, they may not even realize what's going on. Maddie's parents will be a different story, however."

"They are going to freak the fuck out," Maddie stated.

"Jesus." Zack moaned and slumped lower. "How often do you see them?"

"A few times a year, at least."

He knew they lived in Springfield, not that far away. Aidan's parents in Pittsburgh probably didn't visit often. "Christmas? Thanksgiving? Birthdays?"

"Um, yeah. Are you okay, Zack?" She reached out to squeeze his hand. "You look pale."

"I'm okay." He rubbed his face.

"I don't think my sisters and brother will be too much of a problem," Aidan added. "They're pretty open-minded."

"You're seriously going to tell them?" Zack gaped at him.

Aidan met his eyes. "Yeah. I am."

"You don't have to do that." What the fuck were they going to think about their straight-laced big brother in a relationship with another man? Jesus fuck. "Maybe I haven't thought this all through."

Aidan's eyes narrowed. "What the hell does that mean?"

"I mean...I don't want to mess up your perfect life." He switched his gaze to Maddie, then back to Aidan.

"Zack." Maddie reached out to squeeze his hand again, and this time her other hand reached for Aidan's, joining all three of them. "We've already figured out-our life wasn't perfect. Even though apparently our friends thought we had the perfect relationship, we didn't. We weren't being completely honest with each other."

Aidan nodded, his eyes on Maddie, the corners of his mouth lifted in a wry smile. He covered her hand with his other one and patted it. "She's right." He turned his gaze to Zack. "We needed you."

Zack swallowed and nodded.

"Look, we're either all in this or we're not." Aidan's eyebrows lowered. "Love is great and all that shit, but life is hard. We have to be together on this. There are going to be rough times. There are for every couple, never mind a threesome. Big decisions to make about money and careers and kids."

"Kids!" Now Zack did choke. Maddie patted his back as he bent over, coughing. He caught her smile, though.

"What our lives looked like on the surface may be some people's idea of perfect." Maddie rubbed his back. "But beneath the surface is where the important stuff is. We all need to be on the same page-do we want to adhere to what society thinks is perfect? Or do we want what we think is perfect?"

"Nicely said, sweetheart." Aidan nodded.

Well, that about summed it up. Terrifyingly.