JORDEN MANN POV:
The tension eased, a fraction. Garrick, ever the leader, spoke, his voice surprisingly gentle. "Remember your part, Jorden."
I stiffened, my face a mask of annoyance. "I remember," I grumbled, the words forced. It was a stupid, brutal part.
The plan was simple, or so they thought. We, Crystal's three partners, would pretend to leave her for Andrea Harmon. We' d make Crystal feel the sting of abandonment, the harsh reality of independence, so she would learn to appreciate us, to be less demanding, more resilient. We would make her realize she needed us.
Andrea, a shrewd businesswoman, had agreed to play along. Her price? We would take turns "testing" her experimental medicines. Andrea was a genius, far beyond what any of us in the city understood. She'd studied ancient remedies, combined them with modern pharmacology, and was on the verge of a breakthrough in treating the devastating fevers that plagued our children. She needed reliable, male volunteers to test her potent, sometimes dangerous, formulas. We were her perfect test subjects.
We thought we were so clever, so strategic. We believed we were doing it for Crystal' s own good, to make her the "perfect" woman we envisioned.
Andrea had watched us, her eyes thoughtful, a slight frown marring her calm features. "You know," she' d said, her voice quiet, "what you' re doing to Crystal… it could break her. This isn' t just about teaching her a lesson. For her, it will be the deepest betrayal, the three men she trusts most, pushing her off a cliff." She paused, her gaze unwavering. "I don' t care about playing a part in your drama. But are you truly prepared for the consequences? For the potential damage you might inflict?"
We, in our arrogance, hadn't really listened. We dismissed her concerns, convinced we knew best.
The consequences were about to hit us like a tidal wave.
The morning of the drawing. It was still dark, the sky a bruised purple, when I saw him. Connor. Squatted outside Crystal' s apartment door, his head buried in his knees.
I walked closer, my heart sinking. His hair, his shoulders, were dusted with a thin layer of frost.
"Did you stay here all night?" I asked, my voice tight.
He didn't really answer, just jerked his chin towards the side. There, stacked neatly against Crystal' s wall, was a mountain of chopped firewood. Enough to last a whole winter.
Garrick arrived, his face creased with a frown. "Connor? What were you doing out here all night, chopping wood?"
Connor' s voice was hoarse, raspy. "Couldn' t sleep."
I looked at him, my expression complicated. There was a surge of anger, a flash of jealousy. "Trying to play the devoted partner now, are we?"
Connor' s gaze dropped. "I didn' t go in," he mumbled, his voice barely audible. "Just… chopped some wood. She looked so cold yesterday."
Regret, bitter and sharp, spread through me. If only I had chopped enough wood before I left. If only I had made sure she was warm.
Garrick placed a hand on my shoulder, sighing. "Enough, Jorden. Right now, we need to find Crystal and explain everything."
We stood there, three grown men who had orchestrated an elaborate deception, now paralyzed by fear. Who would knock? Who would face her first? What if she was still angry? What if she cried again?
"Fine!" I exploded, shoving them aside. "I' ll do it." I took a deep breath, raising my hand. My knuckles rapped against the cold wood of her door. "Crystal? Are you awake?"
