Chapter 25
CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE
Cam
I stretch my legs over his muscular calves. Smiling without opening my eyes, I burrow against Fletcher. He’s warm and his right arm is wrapped possessively around me. It tightens as I move.
“Ten more minutes,” he groans.
I giggle. “Five more minutes,” I protest.
“Please tell me you aren’t some annoying morning person,” he murmurs.
“I’m a morning person and it’s already…” I trail off and realize I have no idea what time it is.
“Gretchen, what time is it?” Fletcher says loudly.
Gretchen? Who the hell is Gretchen?
“The time is nine fifteen,” an automated voice answers.
“You named it Gretchen?” I ask as I start to attempt to sit up, but he pulls me back against his chest.
“Yes. Do you have an issue with that?” he asks.
“Uh, no, I guess not,” I answer as I contemplate this. “What else does she do?”
I refuse to have one of these at the apartment, but Bray has one and loves it. I think he renamed his something funny like Mrs. Doubtfire, from a film that Ava loves.
“Oh, you know, the normal stuff, thermostat, preheating the oven, changing the floor temperatures, starting the shower, turning on appliances, and stuff like that,” he says as he yawns.
I raise my head. “Floor temperatures?”
“Yes. The floor is heated,” he explains. “Are you hungry?”
I nod. “Famished.”
“Gretchen, order a half dozen assorted bagels with regular cream cheese and two cappuccinos from Mo’s Bagels on Fifth Street,” he says.
“Ordering a half dozen assorted bagels with regular cream cheese and two cappuccinos from Mo’s Bagels on Fifth Street,” she repeats in her computer voice. “That total will be fifty-two seventy charged to the card on file. The order is estimated to be delivered in twenty-seven minutes.”
He looks over at me. “I wonder what we could do for twenty-seven minutes?” he ponders with a smirk.
“My God, does your dick ever rest?” I ask, raising an eyebrow.
“Olympic gold medalists have to work constantly,” he replies as he waggles his eyebrows and I giggle.
“You mean Trevor?” I tease.
“Not his name,” he replies with a grin.
“Cesar?” I ask.
He shakes his head and rolls me beneath him. Then I hear a door opening.
“Flucker! Where are you?” a voice calls out.
“We were going to grab Mo’s and then go to Mom and Dad’s house. Oh wait, they are coming over here,” another voice says.
“Seriously? Why?” the first voice asks.
My eyes widen. Shit? Are these his brothers?
Please be his brothers. Oh, wait, fuck, no, no brothers.
Oh God, am I about to meet the other McDowell brothers?
I was supposed to make a good first impression when I was going to sabotage their new store.
And now, I actually do want to make a good first impression. Shit!
“Get dressed,” Fletcher says as he gives me a quick kiss. “Coming!” he yells to his brothers.
I smirk and mouth, “You wish.”
He glares at me and I make a sad face. And step toward his bathroom with my overnight bag.
He takes three strides and cages me against the wall. I look up at him and see the heat in his eyes.
“Oh, I will come, Tanner,” he whispers against my lips. “And so will you.”
“Promises, promises,” I tease.
He presses his hand between my legs, sliding a single finger inside me, and groans as he feels how wet I am. “You want me to make you come like this?” he asks, his deep voicing practically making me convulse on the spot.
“What the fuck are you doing in there?” a voice calls out.
“Or who are you doing?” a second voice says with a chuckle.
I feel my cheeks heat as I keep my gaze on Fletcher.
His jaw tics as his brothers speak, but instead of leaving me, he adds a second finger. I feel my body begin to tense. I’m not sure if it’s the thrill of nearly being caught or the intense way he’s watching me come undone against his wall, but I’m hurdling toward my release.
As if he senses it, his fingers work me faster, his thumb caressing me just where I need it, and I come hard. A silent cry escaping my lips as I ride the wave.
He kisses me gently and pulls his fingers from me, licking them clean in a seductive way that has me nearly coming again.
“Go get dressed,” he whispers as he places a gentle kiss on my lips and smacks my ass.
I manage to stay standing when he steps away and I hurry to shower and put on my clothes. I silently curse myself for not bringing a nicer outfit. Am I ready to meet the other McDowell brothers?
I know the oldest is Dalton. He has a reputation of being cutthroat. Spencer is the middle brother. In photos, he looks like a hot, nerdy version of Fletcher.
But what will they think of me?
I tie my hair back and slick it with some water, hoping to keep my unruly curls from escaping, a near impossible task.
Walking out, I hear some hushed voices. I strain to listen but can’t make out what they are saying. As I turn the corner into the living room, I can see Spencer standing in front of the windows, his hands in his pockets. Dalton and Fletcher seem to be in an argument.
Fletcher’s eyes meet mine and Dalton turns to look at me.
“Hi,” I squeak, sounding like a total idiot.
Spencer turns and surveys me like I’m a car he’s considering purchasing. Dalton just gives me a look that says he trusts me about as much as I trust my two-year-old Wi-Fi router.
“This is Camryn Tanner,” Fletcher introduces me and wraps a protective arm around my waist. I lean into his shoulder and his hand squeezes my hip in a reassuring manner.
“Nice to meet you both,” I say nervously.
Dalton extends a hand and I shake it. Spencer gives me a nod from the window.
“So, you two are…dating?” Dalton asks.
“Yes,” Fletcher says without missing a beat. His hand squeezing my hip again.
“And what about your businesses?” Spencer asks as he leans against the windows and crosses one leg in front of the other.
“We’ll figure it out,” Fletcher responds.
I feel as if I’m in hostile territory. I’m about to excuse myself when there’s a knock at the door.
A moment later, Dalton opens it to allow Fletcher’s parents to enter.
I only know who they are because I’ve seen them online.
Holy hell! If I didn’t give off deer-in-headlights vibes before, I most certainly do now.
“Mom, Dad, this is Camryn Tanner, my girlfriend,” Fletcher announces.
I feel the color drain from my face as I stand in front of a very well-dressed middle-aged couple.
“Oh? Girlfriend? Why didn’t you tell us?” his mother says as she pulls me into a hug.
“I’m Christine and this is Eddie. It’s so nice to meet you,” she says as she pulls back. She smells amazing. Do all rich people smell good? What’s up with that?
His father holds out his hand and shakes mine with a death grip. “A pleasure to meet you, Camryn,” he says holding my gaze. It’s like the words don’t match his actual feelings but he’s fighting his instincts to show me how he truly feels.
“Nice to meet you, too,” I reply as Fletcher tugs me back to his side. I’m not sure if he’s using me as a protective shield or if I’m using him as one.
“Shall we go to brunch at Mo’s or are we having bagels here?” his mother asks as she eyes the bagels that have somehow magically appeared on the kitchen island. Clearly, communication is a weak point for the McDowell family.
“I wanted to check on the new store. Why don’t we go to that restaurant over by it,” his father says. “Your grandparents can join us and meet your girlfriend,” he adds. He doesn’t exactly emphasize girlfriend, but I feel like he does.
“On it,” Dalton says as he pulls out his phone. “Gran Ha, can you and Pop meet us at the restaurant over by Al’s place? In like”—he covers the phone mic and looks at his parents and, without a conversation, nods at his father—“thirty minutes? Great. See you then.”
He puts his phone back in his pocket.
“I guess let’s roll out,” Spencer suggests. Everyone makes their way to the front door and then we smush into the elevator before I have time to consider my wardrobe or whether I can get Drew to call me with an emergency that gets me out of this incredibly awkward situation.
Fletcher’s hand is on the small of my back, making little comforting circles but I am a ball of nerves. Under the best circumstances, meeting the parents seems nerve-wracking but this…this is truly a nightmare situation.
We pile into a limo that is parked out front. Everyone is talking and I’m just sitting there like Fletcher’s accessory.
Eventually, Christine turns to me. “So, tell me all about you,” she says, and she seems honestly interested. Have I misjudged this entire family? Possibly. I mean, Al is friends with Fletcher’s grandfather. Oh shit, I’m about to meet him, too.
I rattle on about my family and schooling for the one minute that it takes. And then we are pulling up near my apartment building. I step out and two things happen at once.
My phone buzzes with a text and Hutch comes galivanting out of the woods excitedly waving his camera.
I look down and see a text from Drew.
Drew: Uh, so, your parents just dropped by with Winston. They just got back in town and wanted to grab lunch with you. I told them there was a coffee emergency and you had to talk with a vendor. They are still here. What do I do? SOS
Holy fucking shitballs!
“The motion-sensor camera picked up something, but I can’t tell what it is,” Hutch says as he approaches me in full camo.
I can see Fletcher’s entire family out of the corner of my eye and to say they are both intrigued and horrified by the Viking of a man that just ran at me is an understatement.
“Oh, uh, that’s great, Hutch,” I manage. Hutch looks around and nods at Fletcher.
“Hey,” he mutters.
“Hello,” Fletcher replies. I see Fletcher go to open his mouth probably to introduce Hutch to his family when I hear a voice.
“There she is,” my dad says from the front door of the building.
No. No, no, no. This can’t be happening.
“Dalton?” my brother’s voice says. I turn to see Dalton and my brother, Winston, bro hugging. What in the actual fuck is happening?
“Hi, darling,” my mom says as she hugs me. “Everything OK with the café?”
“What’s wrong with the café?” Fletcher interjects.
“How do you know each other?” I ask Winston.
There is a burst of discussion from about every person there.
I pick up something about Winston and Dalton being in the same fraternity when Dalton was a freshman and Winston a senior.
How did I miss that connection when scouring the internet?
And my parents are introducing themselves to Fletcher’s parents.
And Hutch is telling Fletcher about trying to catch the person leaving flowers on the bench every day.
All of a sudden, Drew flies out of the front door and stops in his tracks.
“Oh, great. You found her,” he says and gives me a small I’m sorry shrug. I glare at him.
“It’s settled, then, we’ll all go together,” Eddie McDowell states.
“You kids got here quickly,” an older woman says as she emerges from the building, followed by Al and another older man. She eyes me up and smiles broadly. “This must be Camryn.”
And just like that, I’m pretty sure I have met Fletcher’s entire family. Dear God, I don’t know if I can survive this brunch.
“Blink twice if you are not dying of a stroke,” Fletcher whispers in my ear.
“I don’t think I can,” I reply.
He wraps an arm around me. “Well, this is one way to rip off a bandage,” he says as we assess the large group of our family members and friends.
“Not funny,” I hiss.
He chuckles. “It’s a little funny.”
I glare at him, and he smirks. “Come on, it can’t be that bad.”
I hope he’s right.