Chapter 9
CHAPTER NINE
Riley
As consciousness slowly starts to creep in, the first thing I become aware of is how warm I am. There isn’t a single part of me that’s cold.
My back feels especially hot. Finn.
His vast body is still tightly pressed against my back. His muscular arm feels like a vise around my waist, but in a comforting way.
I try to blink the fuzziness from my eyes. With each blink, Theo’s face becomes clearer. He’s already awake and staring at me.
There’s a softness in his eyes. I don’t know if it’s from sleep or something else.
“Morning,” I whisper because Finn is still quietly snoring behind me, and I don’t want to wake him.
“Morning,” Theo whispers back. When he starts moving his thumb across the side of my hand, I realize we’re still holding hands.
I laced my fingers through his last night out of instinct. He told me to trust that he would keep me safe, so that’s what I did. I don’t know why he is still holding onto me, but it hits me right in the chest. It’s just so… sweet.
“Are you cold?” he asks.
I laugh, then snap my mouth shut. Theo leans up on his elbow, peeking at his brother.
“We’re good. He still looks half dead,” Theo says, laying his head back against the pillow.
I have to bite my cheek to keep from laughing again. “No, I’m not cold. Finn’s like a damn volcano back there.”
The arm around my waist tightens. Finn’s voice rumbles against my neck.
“First of all, I’m not dead. Rude. Second, if you mean I’m about ready to explode, then yes, I am a volcano.” He shifts his hips all the way into me until his very hard, very large erection is pressed against my ass.
“Fuck,” I shout, wiggling away from him. I flip over, so I’m facing him. “Are you serious right now?”
“My dick is one of the things I’m always very serious about.”
I can’t help how my eyes roll back in my head.
“It’s biology, babe.” A twinkle passes over his eyes. “Or you can take it as a compliment. Your choice.” He gives me a devilish wink that makes heat spread to my core, but a laugh bursts from my lips.
Fucking Finn.
“I’m also pretty sure if you backed your ass up a little more, you’d find another volcanic situation behind you,” Finn adds with a devious glint to his eyes.
It takes me a second to realize what he’s talking about. Theo.
Finn’s mischievous ways must be rubbing off on me because I start to close the gap between Theo and I, wiggling my hips backward.
Theo’s hand lands on my hip. Long fingers curl into my skin. It doesn’t hurt, but it’s enough to halt my movements. “No,” he says.
He leans in until he’s right next to my ear. With each exhale, shivers race down my body. When he speaks, his voice is barely even a whisper.
“If I ever get to have your ass pressed against my hard cock, it isn’t going to be because my little brother goaded you into it. It’s going to be because you want it.”
Then, he’s gone and walking into the kitchen. My skin, which felt warm moments ago, now feels icy with the absence of his touch. He moved away so quickly, I didn’t even get a chance to see if his cock was hard.
“He did it again,” Finn says, moving his eyebrows up and down.
“I have literally no idea what you’re talking about,” I say, glaring at him.
“Oh, but I think you do.” He smirks.
I smack him on the shoulder. “Shut up.”
“Why does everyone always tell me I need to shut up?” he groans, rolling over onto his back. He throws his inked arm over his eyes.
Drama queen.
“Because you usually do need to shut the hell up,” Cole says, setting a propane camp stove on the island. He must have brought it in from the garage.
“Fuck you very much,” Finn grumbles, keeping his arm in place.
I lay there next to Finn, watching Cole and Theo get a kettle of water going on the two-burner stove. They make four cups of coffee. It’s instant, but at least it’s coffee.
“Thank you,” I tell Theo when he hands me a steaming mug. I take a sip, realizing it’s just the way I like it, with just a touch of both cream and sugar.
My eyes dart to Cole, who’s sitting on the couch. I saw him add the cream and sugar to this cup.
He catches me watching him. My eyes move between the cup in my hands and him a few times. He holds my stare for a minute before looking away.
He remembered.
No. No. No. It doesn’t matter. He might remember how I take my coffee, but that doesn’t make up for the way he took something deeply personal I shared with him and used it as the knife that severed us for good.
“There are a lot of games we can play with just three people,” I say, trying to placate Finn.
“But I want to play Taboo,” he groans, hastily throwing his hair up into a messy bun.
Shadows are cast across his face from the minimal light coming from the fireplace and battery-powered lanterns scattered around the living room. We’ve all been hanging out here most of the day because it’s the only place in the house with decent heat and lighting.
“That requires at least four people,” Theo says.
Finn turns to look at Cole, who’s sitting on one of the barstools in the kitchen, hunched over his phone. He’s been doing that a lot.
There isn’t even any cell reception with how bad the storm is, so I don’t really know what he’s doing. Whatever he is, though, it has him… worried.
Their business? He was always a bit of a workaholic when it came to running things. I was shocked when Theo told me the three of them still run the business entirely by themselves—it’s a three-man show.
Their business has obviously expanded over the years, so I assumed they’d hired other people to handle some of the load. I guess not.
If I had to put money on it, I’d say Cole’s need to have his hand in everything has probably played a significant role in that.
It isn’t like I can judge. It took me a long time to trust anyone to help with my podcast. I did everything on my own for far too long.
While I sometimes miss having complete control, it is nice to have an entire team behind me to help things run smoothly. It also helped me feel sane after years of working myself into the ground.
“Cole, come play with us,” Finn says.
I blink a few times, bringing my head back to the here and now.
“No,” Cole says, like the grump ass he is. He doesn’t even turn around to face any of us.
“I’ll do all the laundry for a month,” Finn says.
This gets Cole to peek over his shoulder. “Why do you want to play Taboo so badly?”
“Because it’s a lot more fun than Monopoly. I will fall into a coma of boredom if that’s what we play,” Finn says.
Cole drags in an exasperated breath. “Fine, but I’m going to need a fucking drink.”
“Done,” Finn says as he pops off the couch like a jack in the box. Theo and I both laugh as Finn marches into the kitchen. “What’s your poison tonight, brother?”
“Something strong,” Cole says dryly.
“Theo? Riley?” Finn asks, disappearing into the pantry.
Theo and I share a look. I guess if I’m going to play a game with Cole, I’d better get a drink or three in me. “Sure,” we say in unison.
Finn pulls out four glasses and starts pouring. Cole walks in behind him, snagging a bottle of whiskey.
“Hey,” Finn hollers at him.
Cole takes a long pull of the amber liquid… then another without even acknowledging his brother’s protest. He sets the bottle down before moving into the living room. He sits down as far away from me as he can.
“Thank fuck my hands are so huge,” Finn laughs. He’s somehow managing to carry all four glasses at the same time.
“The one time in your life having mitts for hands comes in handy.” Theo laughs, grabbing two of the glasses from him. He passes one to me.
Finn hands Cole his drink and sits down beside him. “I’ve never had any complaints about the size of my hands or the things I can do with them,” he says, smirking.
I laugh along with Theo and Cole, but my mind is anywhere but a funny place. I’m imagining all the things those hands could do.
The things they could make me feel.
Fuck… stop. I haven’t even had a single sip of alcohol, and I’m already lusting after Finn. I bring the glass up to my lips, taking a swig.
I have no idea what the concoction is, but it’s strong as fuck.
“What the hell is this?” I ask, coughing.
“Don’t ask,” Theo says from my side. “It’s usually better not to know.”
Finn smirks again as I take another sip, managing not to cough up a lung this time. “So, do we actually have a Taboo game to play, or….”
“It’s in the hall closet,” Theo says.
“I’ll grab it,” I say, already standing from the couch. They start debating who is going to be on which team.
I’m about to say something about not wanting to be Cole’s teammate, but I’m pretty sure none of them are stupid enough to make that mistake. At least one of us wouldn’t make it to the end of the game still breathing.
There are three shelves filled with games. I have to dig through to find the purple box I’m looking for. Bingo.
“Found it,” I say, joining them again in the living room. “I know Finn is kind of a man-child, but what’s with all of the kids’ games?”
They’re all quiet as their eyes bounce between each other.
“Okay… what am I missing?” I say, sitting down.
“They’re Mav’s games,” Theo says.
I try to remember ever hearing that name, but nothing rings a bell. “And who’s Mav?”
“My son,” Cole says.
Son?
“You have a son?”
He nods once.
My mind reels, trying to align this new realization with the image of Cole I have in my mind.
“Wait… where is he?” I ask. My eyes roam around the area, like the kid might appear out of thin air.
“With his mom in town,” Cole says.
I guess they aren’t together if they don’t live in the same house. I know I should just shut my mouth, but I can’t seem to stop.
“So, he stays here with you sometimes?”
I half-expect him to ignore me, but he surprises me. “He spends one week with his mom, then one week with me.”
I nod, secretly loving that he’s so involved in his son’s life. I shouldn’t care. I really shouldn’t, but that fact alone doesn’t deter the warm feeling that seeps into my heart.