Chapter 31
Goldilocks and the Three Bears
After I was discharged from the hospital, Daniel brought me home with the boys in tow.
Elijah showed up shortly thereafter, even though it was close to three in the morning.
Julien should have warned me that their version of babysitting would be more like prison.
I wasn't allowed to do anything. I shouldn't complain, however.
After a quick shower, I basically passed out from exhaustion around four a.m. Daniel said he would call Principal Stubbs to let her know I wouldn't be coming into school for a day or two.
It must be past seven in the morning when I open my eyes because sunlight is streaming in through the crack in my curtains. I try to push the bedspread off me so I can get up, but it's caught on something and won't budge. The reason why suddenly comes to me only seconds before I hear his voice.
“You awake?” Jayson asks from the right side of the bed.
I turn my head on the pillow. In the faintly lit room, I can make out his face on the pillow next to mine. “Yeah.”
I pull Ryder’s arm tighter around me as I roll over on my side to face Jayson.
Ryder repositions himself so my backside is spooned with his front.
I feel his breath on my exposed shoulder as he places a tender kiss on the side of my neck at the hairline.
Julien is lightly snoring at the foot of the bed.
“Where's Elijah?”
Ryder's sleep-muffled voice answers, “In the guest room.”
“And why are you all in my bed?” Not that I’m complaining.
Jayson pushes a strand of my hair behind my ear. “We kind of snuck in once Daniel went to bed.”
“We used to do this kind of thing all the time when we were younger,” Ryder adds.
After the way I messed up by opening my big mouth yesterday, things between Ryder and Jayson have been eerily calm.
I know they’re tabling things for now, but I also know a future confrontation is inevitable, despite their current truce.
Jayson has already declared in no uncertain terms that he’s never going to give up on me.
He’s never going to stop waiting for me.
And I’m terrified of the fight I know is coming between the two of them.
I tap Ryder’s arm to let him know I want to get up. Knowing I won’t be falling back asleep, I might as well make breakfast because I'm starving. Trying not to disturb Julien, Ryder carefully rolls over and slips out of bed. Jayson and I follow.
“Anyone want breakfast?” I yawn.
“I’ll make it,” Ryder says, quietly opening the bedroom door.
Jayson heads to the bathroom connected to my bedroom. “You want in first?” he whispers to me. Julien's snores get louder, and I cup my hand over my mouth to stifle my laugh.
I tell him no by shaking my head. He grins and I drop my hand to grin back.
When I walk into the kitchen, Ryder already has coffee brewing.
I stop and lean against the entryway that connects the kitchen to the living room.
Ryder’s bare, muscled back greets me, his sweatpants riding low and clinging to his hips.
I watch as he adds two yellow packets of sweetener to the first cup of coffee and stirs. He picks up the mug and turns around.
“Hey. Didn’t hear you come in,” he says when he sees me.
“Just enjoying the view.”
I leave my place at the entrance and saunter over to him. Ryder sets the mug down on the center island. I walk into his embrace and inhale. I love the way he smells.
“I’m sorry I woke you,” I tell him while rubbing my cheek lightly against the soft hairs of his chest.
“I was already up. I don’t think any of us slept much. Well, other than Julien, clearly.”
I smile at his joke. “I think a stampede of elephants doing a tap dance on his head wouldn’t wake Julien up,” I reply, lifting up on my tiptoes. Once I’ve raised high enough to reach Ryder’s mouth, I whisper, “Good morning.”
Ryder bands an arm around my lower back. “Good morning,” he says back and gives me the kiss I have been wanting since I walked into the kitchen.
No matter how out of control my world feels right now, this boy—no, this man—right here brings me back.
He grounds me with his love and support.
He heals me with every kiss he gives. I press closer and a low grumble of sound passes from him into me.
I could stand here and kiss him all day, but we both hear someone coming down the hallway and we know it’s more than likely Jayson.
With one final touch of our lips, we pull apart.
I lift the coffee from the counter and take a sip just as Jayson walks in.
He walks over and wraps his arms around me from behind, resting his chin on my shoulder. I don’t try to move away, and Ryder doesn’t say a word.
“I foresee a very long nap later today,” Jayson says next to my ear.
I sip more coffee and nod in agreement. “I should call Meredith and Trevor to let them know how I am.”
“If you think you’re up for it, why not invite everybody over tonight?” Ryder suggests handing Jayson a steaming mug.
“Maybe. Let me see how I feel later today.”
Julien walks into the kitchen at that moment. “Do I smell coffee?” He makes his way over to where we’re standing between the counter and the middle island. Julien pulls me away from Jayson and I get a third morning hug.
“I hope we didn’t wake you.”
“Nah,” he says and grabs my coffee from where I put it down.
“Hey! Hands off.”
Julien takes a long sip, grinning the entire time. He finishes and licks his lips with a smack. “It’s eight in the morning. Everybody’s up but Elijah and Daniel. Want to help me wake Elijah?” Julien waggles his eyebrows at me in a mischievous way.
“Race you,” I call out, already dashing out of the kitchen to the guest bedroom.
The guys easily catch up with me. Julien holds his finger up to his lips as he cracks the bedroom door open just a crack and peeks inside.
“Let me make sure he’s decent,” Julien whispers and quietly sneaks over to the bed. Elijah doesn’t wake up as Julien lifts the corner of the sheet up before giving us a thumbs up. Backing away, Julien rejoins us.
“Ready?” he asks quietly, and we nod.
The four of us then shout as loudly as we can, “Wake up, Elijah!”
Elijah yelps, arms and legs flailing as he topples off the side of the bed. “You assholes!” we hear him holler from the floor.
Julien takes a running dive over the bed in an impressive belly slide, landing on top of Elijah with an umph.
I try to leap on top of the bedcovers, but Ryder tackles me from the side.
I’m close enough to the edge of the bed to see Elijah and Julien wrestling on the floor between the tight confines of the bed and the wall.
Elijah’s attempts to push Julien off are accompanied by a mixture of half-hearted bouts of cursing and laughing.
Jayson lands beside me and starts to tickle my ribcage as Ryder holds me down. I’m flailing and shrieking in fits of giggles.
“Say ‘flubberjizz.’” Ryder laughs down at me.
“What does that even mean?” I snort because I’m laughing so hard, but he and Jayson don’t stop. I shriek again just as Jayson finds the place under my knee where I’m most sensitive.
“So cute,” he says and attacks the other knee.
“Julien, help!” I screech while trying to squirm away from Jayson’s fingers, but Ryder’s hold on me is too strong.
“Julien’s not going to save you, princess.”
Ryder bends down and zerberts my neck under my jaw. “Say ‘flubberjizz’ and we’ll let you up.” He zerberts me again and Jayson does a dual attack on the soles of both of my feet.
“Flubberjizz! Flubberjizz!”
“Good morning you loud, crazy kids,” Daniel says at us as he passes the doorway on his way to the kitchen.
“Good morning, Daniel,” all five of us shout back.
Still breathless and a little sweaty from being tickle-attacked, I roll to my stomach and poke my head over the side of the bed. Elijah and Julien are no longer wrestling; they’re making out.
Jayson smacks my butt and I look over my shoulder to stick my tongue out at him. He pops up from the bed. “Who wants pancakes?”
Four voices yell “me.”
I roll over the side of the bed and fall on top of Julien and Elijah. “Good morning, Elijah,” I say cheerily. He’s on the bottom of our people sandwich. Elijah shifts his head to the side so he can see me. “Good morning, Liz.”
I pinch Julien’s backside and he jumps, causing Elijah to cry out, “Watch the balls!”
Ryder lifts me off Julien’s back and tosses me back on the bed. Jayson’s already left the room to start making pancakes.
Ryder is hovering over me with his elbows on either side of my face. Then he lowers down and kisses me.
Elijah's head pops up like a whack-a-mole. “Wait. You guys are hooking up?”
“They are,” Julien replies to his boyfriend.
“When did this happen?” Elijah looks from us to Julien, his expression almost comical. “Does Jayson know?”
“He does, but don’t mention it around him,” Julien says and kisses Elijah. “Come on. Let’s go help him make breakfast. I promise to explain everything later. For now, mum’s the word.”
Elijah still has a confused look on his face as he gapes at me and Ryder. “Okay,” he says, then, “Where the hell have I been lately?”
“Shh. I said I’ll explain later,” Julien reiterates and drags a reluctant Elijah out of the room.
Ryder looks back down at me when they’re gone, and I smile up at him.
“Poor Elijah,” I say.
“He’ll live,” Ryder replies and drops down so that our bodies are touching.
He kisses the tip of my nose. “I know Jay is being cool about everything, but I have a feeling if I try anything more than to hug you around him, he’s going to rip my head off.
Then again, I did have to sit by and watch him kiss and hug you before, so… ”
Taking a lock of his hair that has fallen over his brow, I push it back into place. “That was before with the Old Elizabeth. I’m not her,” I tell him. “I love you, Ryder. Right here and right now. You.” I lift up and plant a hard kiss to his soft lips. “Now let's go eat some pancakes.”