Keeley
sixteen
The boys had wanted to come over tonight to celebrate news—I still had no idea what the news was—and instead, they were here looking after Hannah and me.
Thankfully, things weren’t quite so overwhelming now.
I’d hit a brick wall earlier today. My energy was completely sapped, and I was so tired, I couldn’t think straight.
Hannah being sick always took its toll, but this time I was responsible, and the guilt was riding me harder than the exhaustion.
I should have realized that if Simon was sick, he’d pass the germs onto Hannah when he touched her. I shouldn’t have let him anywhere near her, and especially not kiss her. After he left, I should have bathed her and washed every inch of her body with antibacterial soap.
I could have told Simon to come back another time too.
But I’d been thinking about myself. I didn’t want to put it off any longer, not after being with Brayden and Spencer.
I wasn’t cheating on Simon—we weren’t together.
I had never cheated and never would. But even leaving the potential open—even if it was only in his mind—for us to get back together for a second longer than necessary went against everything in me.
Thankfully it was done now, and I could move on.
Of course, moving on wasn’t supposed to be as complicated as I’d made it.
I should have followed Mom’s example and had a one-night fling with a hot guy who was great in bed.
It wasn’t supposed to be a hot guy who was great in bed who was married to a gorgeous rockstar, both of whom were sweethearts.
It certainly wasn’t supposed to be two people I couldn’t walk away from even if I wanted to.
I was falling hard and fast for them. My freak-out when we were together should have sent them packing.
Instead, they showed me exactly who they were—respectful, caring, considerate, and generous.
I’d been insecure and panicked that I was letting them down.
They’d been worried about me. They not only offered to stop but wanted to know if I’d been pressured into sex with my ex.
They were genuine. After living with Simon’s lies, I didn’t expect them to behave like such gentlemen.
I’d expected them to push me out of my comfort zone.
I probably would have gone with it too. But they hadn’t, and now that I knew them better, knew they never would. Talk about total green-flag guys.
Then there was the way they’d dropped everything to help.
Brayden only had a few minutes to stay with me before he was due on the ice, but instead of leaving me to my own devices, he’d called his husband and asked for help.
Spencer had dropped what he was doing, braved the paps outside the hotel, and come straight to my office.
I hadn’t been able to settle Hannah, but he’d taken her and cared for her like a pro.
He was still himself—grumpy, snarky, and blunt—but with Hannah he was a different person.
Gentle and smiling, he sang to her and played games, always doting on her.
Then when she’d grown tired, he held her.
He’d comforted her as she cried out the last of her energy.
When she’d finally started to settle and the other staff were still trying to talk to him, I’d heard him growl at them.
I’d also heard him tell Mike, our HR manager and a nice enough man, to fuck off when his booming laugh had cut through the office and Hannah started crying again.
Brayden had been just as incredible. He’d rushed back here as soon as he was free and brought lunch for the three of us.
He was the first to jump in and clean up, even putting a load of Hannah’s laundry in the machine for me.
I didn’t have to ask either one of them to help.
They just did it. There was no itemized list of chores that needed doing, no instructions on where to find the vacuum cleaner or the mop, no shopping lists with the brand and size of the item I wanted as well as the aisle number.
They acted like fully formed human beings with brains they were perfectly capable of using.
I still couldn’t believe they were real.
Between Brayden’s sass and Spencer’s scowl, people didn’t know how to take them. But not me. I wanted to sit with them and watch as they held my baby girl. Then I wanted to pull both of them on top of me and use them as a weighted blanket I could snuggle into.
Maybe then this headache would let up. I pressed my fingers to my temples and groaned.
“Hey, y’all’re in pain,” Brayden said, gently stroking his hand over my temple. “Headache?” he asked.
“Mm-hmm.” I nodded, and he held out his hand to help me up off the sofa. When I was standing, he pulled me into his arms and slid his fingers into my hair, gently massaging my scalp. I rested my forehead in that perfect space in the crook of his neck and sighed.
“Where does it hurt?”
“Temples down to the base of my skull,” I mumbled against his throat.
His deft fingers shifted down to my neck and shoulders, easing the pressure with each squeeze and push of his thumbs into the many knots that had built up in the past few days.
I relaxed against him and wrapped my arms around his waist, holding him close.
He hummed and pressed a kiss to my hair.
There was something about them—both of them—that made me comfortable in their presence.
I always feel safe with them, as if nothing could hurt Hannah or me.
Where my whole body had revolted at Simon for touching Hannah, it was completely different with these two men. Instinctively I knew she was safe, so much so that I’d crashed out and slept like the dead while Spencer looked after her.
I stretched my neck side to side, and it cracked. The pain immediately eased. “Thank you. That feels so much better,” I whispered, my eyes slipping closed and a relieved sigh falling from my lips.
“Anytime, darlin’.”
I cupped his cheek and rested my forehead against his other.
Then I kissed that perfect square jawline of his.
His freshly shaved cheek was smooth, and he smelled divine, like something fresh and citrusy.
Brayden dipped his face, bringing our lips together.
He kissed me slow and sweet, our lips pressing together and retreating over and over.
He swiped his tongue across my bottom lip, and I opened, meeting his slow slide with my own tongue.
I pressed my body against his, needing to get closer, and he slid one hand from my hair down my back to my waist. I swallowed his soft moan and floated in the dizzying butterflies that had taken flight in my belly.
When we broke apart, my cheeks heated, and he grinned shamelessly. “Hi,” he whispered.
“Hi.” I couldn’t help my giggle—I was acting like a thirteen-year-old meeting their superstar crush—but it only made Brayden smile wider.
“Let’s eat. Y’all must be starving.” My stomach growled at the mere mention of food, and he shook his head. “Y’all need to eat, darlin’. You can’t look after Hannah if y’all’re sick too.”
He led me to the kitchen, and it was immediately obvious from Hannah’s still-drying hair that Spencer had bathed her as well as making her lunch.
Hannah was normally loud in the tub, but I hadn’t heard a peep.
She looked happy, though, stuffing her face with strips of toast dipped in soft-boiled egg, the remnants of avocado smeared on her tray.
Her smile stretched across her face when she saw me. “Mamá,” she cooed.
“How are you feeling, sweet girl?” I asked and bent to kiss her head. “Is that yummy?”
“Yas,” she said around another mouthful of food. It was the first time she’d eaten anything in two days. Her throat must be feeling better, and her fever was definitely down.
I turned to Spencer and wrapped my arms around him. “Thank you for coming and looking after both of us. I don’t know what I would have done without your help.”
He gently gripped my chin and pressed his lips to mine. His kiss matched his husband’s—soft and gentle. Loving. I fell into his touch and moaned when Brayden caged me in from behind, enveloping us in his hug.
***
Lunch was a delicious Italian sub with peppers, prosciutto, fresh mozzarella, basil, and semi-dried tomatoes. Hannah’s and my bellies were full, and I had a glass of Tamarindo made to my abuela’s recipe next to me. The television was down low, but Hannah was still mesmerized by Toy Story.
The guys were in the kitchen, having insisted on tidying up.
I felt awful. Brayden had a game tomorrow.
He rarely got time off. He was flying out first thing in the morning, headed for San Francisco, then onto New York, and after that Winnipeg.
He didn’t need to be hanging around us, especially when Hannah was still likely contagious.
I sighed and rubbed my temples again. I’d taken some Tylenol, but my headache was still there, thumping across the whole back of my head.
I couldn’t even switch off and relax either.
I had too much work to do to ignore it. We needed another person on the PR team, but management wouldn’t approve it.
The team owner loved my idea of organizing events with an LGBTQIA+ focus in mind, but she didn’t give me the staff resources to pull it off.
My assistant was overworked, and Tim, the other PR team member, was pushing back on anything else being added to his already busy workload.