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“I’m okay. I guess I’m just anxious to get it over with,” I said.
Jared had arranged for a press conference to have Crawford & Beam represent themselves with the truth and to have me set things straight. It should’ve been simple, but the reporters out there were just ready and waiting to rip me to shreds, twist something I said, take a single word or phrase out of context. It was nerve wracking knowing that I had to make sure that every word that left my mouth was what I meant to say and was carefully thought about.
“What about you?” I asked Anthony.
He held my hand that reached up to stroke his face, holding it against his chest as if he couldn’t bear the brush of my fingers against his facial hair. “I’m okay.” His voice rasped.
“Where have you been?” The bags under his eyes told me he hadn’t slept well in days.
“Out and about. Why? Are you jealous?” he asked as I pulled my hand from his.
“Would it be so criminal if I were?” I asked.
He exhaled in a rush, running his hand through his hair and gripping it in frustration.
“Tiff…” he started.
“No, don’t worry about it,” I responded, walking away from him to get control of my breathing. My headspace didn’t need to be filled with images of Anthony pleasing some other woman while he treated me like some type of fungus.
“Hey, you all right?” Jared said, looking like such a snack in a simple black and white suit, pocket square, and black tie. The uncomfortable need returned, gripping me. Frustrated, I turned away from him and almost ran into Mario, dressed in a blue pinstripe suit with an inside vest and everything. His hair was perfectly coiffed as always, face freshly shaved. He was standing in front of the mirror with the vanity lights shining on his face as he checked to make sure that nothing was out of place. Of course, nothing was. He looked delicious. I groaned. My sexual frustration was at its peak.
“Okay, they’re ready for you.” Melissa’s heels hurried across the floor toward Jared as she checked his collar and his tie, patting him on the back and sending him out there. Steadying myself, I stepped out along with the other guys.
The clicking of cameras set off like fireworks around me, followed by flashing lights. By the time I got to my seat behind a wide rectangular plastic foldout table with black cloth covering it, I was dizzy. Off the stage in front of us were bright-eyed reporters with their mouths hanging open, pointing their microphones and recorders at our faces, ready to capture our first breath. There was no turning back now.
A red light blinked in the corner by the door to let us know we’d gone live. My parents were about to be hit with the vision of me sitting amongst my men, about to speak out against them. My palms were drenched in sweat.
As soon as they got the go ahead, a reporter came out swinging right at me with the first question. “Tiffany Levine, are you safe? Do you need help?”
Any doubts that existed in me before this moment just melted away as pure anger burned a fire within me. Narrowing my eyes at them, I spoke into the projected microphone before me.
“No, I am not in danger. All accusations made by Valerie and Benedict Levine are completely FALSE, and it is disrespectful to the relationship I’m in, to the choices I make for myself and to actual victims. Please do not make me out to be a victim when it’s clear that my parents and much of society can’t handle the idea of a woman in a polyamorous relationship with three men.
“Well, let me introduce you to my men: Mario Sharpe, who is sweet, caring, and dashingly handsome. Jared Crawford, who is hard on the outside but soft on the inside. He’s my very special candy; it takes a while to get to his sweet center, but he’s definitely worth the wait. And Anthony Whitlocke, the out-of-the-box, intense, funny hunk with sexy gray eyes that magnetize anyone in his presence.
“You can note this in your notepads, that I, Tiffany Levine, am proud to be with these three men and would appreciate it if people could keep their noses out of my sex life.”
Silence fell over the room. Even I was stunned silent by my speech. Who knew one question could set me off that way? That sort of word vomit wasn’t the speech I had planned, but it was out there, and there was no retracting anything I said. Which was just as well since I meant every single word.
My skin heated and flushed as I turned to my left to see all three men staring at me in shock. Everything we had rehearsed was just flushed down the drain, yet they didn’t look at me with anger or disappointment. There was nothing but hunger in their eyes. Man, my body ached for them and hoped that hunger would still be there when we left this room.
Another reporter directed a question at Jared, but he didn’t seem to hear them. None of the guys were focused on anyone else but me. After fighting for their attention for so many days, this felt electric. I almost didn’t want to break it, but the sooner we could get done with this press conference, the sooner we could leave this room. The sooner I’d know whether those looks were ones of hunger that could be staved off or starvation. If they’d feast on me as if their lives depended on it.
Smiling at Jared, I tilted my head in the direction of the reporter staring at us in confusion, hanging their recorder awkwardly in the air. He cleared his throat and straightened his tie. His skin was a deep pink.
Knowing that my men still burned for me made my toes curl.
“What was the question?” he asked, his husky voice bouncing off the microphone, heating everyone’s skin in the room.
“What do you think about Mr. Levine’s statement about a defamation case?” the female reporter asked, blushing.
“In response to Mr. Levine’s statement, I say, be careful what you wish for. You asked for a defamation case, knowing you have no legs to stand on? You’ve got one,” Jared said. “If you don’t mind, I think we’d like to cut this press conference short. Something’s come up. Right, guys?” he asked Mario and Anthony who shifted in their seats.
“Oh, yeah. Definitely,” Mario said as Anthony laughed softly into the microphone.
“What do you say, Tiff? Want to cut this short?” Jared asked me.
I smiled. “Yeah, I think we’ve said everything we needed to say.”
