Chapter 6
Chapter Six
ALEX
Iwill not be a Debbie Downer today.
I’m not going to talk about the shithole I grew up in, or the reason I’m terrified of animals, or anything else that will make these two men look at me with anything other than affection and lust.
I won’t tolerate pity. I’ve worked too hard with my therapist to pull myself up, to heal from severe trauma and abuse, and I’m doing well. I can enjoy a day out with these sexy men without having a meltdown.
“Silver Springs is a cute little town,” I comment as we drive through. “I haven’t spent any time here in years.”
“It’s grown,” Gabe agrees, and we settle into a comfortable silence. Adam’s holding my hand, his thumb making circles on my knuckles, and it feels like heaven as I sip my iced coffee.
This is going to be a great day.
It already is a great day. Breakfast with the guys was so fun. I wasn’t kidding about Adam’s pancakes. I could eat them every morning.
And the way Gabe danced me around the kitchen? It was sexy and silly and fun.
When Adam turns onto the road that leads to the resort, my stomach knots up a bit. I’ve heard things about this resort on Seymour Lake. It’s where the wealthy play when they aren’t up on the ski resort.
I have no business being here.
But if these two gorgeous men want to hang out on the lake with me today, I won’t say no. Unlike my sister Dani, who hates the water, I love it. I can swim like a fish, and a day on the lake sounds like the perfect way to spend a Sunday.
But I am going home tonight. As tempting as it is to want to stay with them for as long as they’ll let me, I don’t want to get used to it.
I love my independence.
Adam pulls up at the valet, and my door is opened for me. The guys pull our things out of the back of the Porsche, and Adam takes my hand again, leading me into the building.
“We’ll make a stop upstairs before we head outside,” Gabe says as he walks on the other side of me and brushes his hand over the back of my neck, sending a little thrill down my spine.
I love being sandwiched between these two giant men. I’m tiny next to them, and it makes me feel … safe.
“Upstairs?” I ask, and Adam’s lips twitch as he looks down at me.
“Trust us,” he says.
He’s been quiet today. Maybe it’s just who he is as a person.
After all, I don’t know these men well, so perhaps Adam is reserved.
A little broody. But a part of my brain is wondering if I did something wrong, or if he really wants me here, despite his actions showing me the opposite.
He’s held my hand and even told me to pack for the night.
But he’s holding himself back from me. It shouldn’t bother me, but it does.
Should I just ask him about it?
We ride an elevator up to the third floor, and Gabe pulls my back against his front as he leans on the wall. He wraps his arms around my chest and plants his lips in my hair, and I close my eyes, soaking in his warmth. This man is incredibly physically affectionate. Always touching me, hugging me.
It’s freaking blissful.
I open my eyes when the door dings, and find Adam looking at both of us, his face sober, gray eyes wide.
I offer him a smile, and those eyes soften, making the knot in my stomach loosen just a little.
“Come on, Princess.” Adam takes my hand and leads us down the hall, opens a door, and we walk into a gorgeous condo with views of the lake that take my breath away. The entire place looks like something out of Rich People Magazine.
If there were such a thing.
“Holy shit. Did you rent this?”
“I bought it,” Adam says as he walks straight into the kitchen and opens the fridge. “Excellent. Cassie dropped off our lunch.”
“I’ll grab the cooler.” Gabe marches down the hallway, then reappears carrying a red cooler big enough for anything we might need to take with us. The guys start to fill it up.
This condo is ten times the size of my apartment.
What am I even doing here?
When I was a kid, there was a TV show that would instruct me to choose which one of the items didn’t fit in with the others.
It’s me. I’m the oddball here.
But I’m the oddball everywhere, so why should this be any different?
“Question,” I say, holding up a finger.
“Ask anything,” Gabe says with a grin.
“Who’s Cassie?”
Both men stop what they’re doing, and Gabe surprises me by pulling me into a hug.
“I mean, I know it’s none of my—”
“She’s the chef,” Adam says, kissing the back of my head. “That’s all, Princess.”
I feel silly. It really isn’t any of my business. As long as they’re not fucking her with me in the room, I don’t have any claim on these men.
“I shouldn’t have asked.”
“Hey.” Gabe cups my face, and his brows pinch together. “You ask anything you want, Shorty. We’re getting to know each other. Be nosy. For the record, I’ll lay it out for you. Adam and I are together. Always will be. There is no woman in our lives except for you.”
I wrinkle my nose, then bury my face in his chest, embarrassed that I asked in the first place.
“Do you like cheese?” Adam asks, and I chuckle as I nod. “Good. We have lots of cheese here. Christ, does Cassie think we’re mice?”
I glance up into Gabe’s eyes and feel better.
“Okay?” he asks, brushing my hair behind my ear.
“Yeah. Okay. Do you need help with this?”
“We’ve got it,” Adam says. “Go get yourself ready for the boat, Princess.”
Shorty and Princess. I never thought I really liked nicknames.
Turns out I was dead fucking wrong.
I change into my swimsuit as the guys pack the food and drinks, then we’re off again, walking down through the resort and to the marina. The boat is not what I thought it would be. I was expecting a small speedboat, big enough to pull a skier and have fun on.
This is not that.
It’s bigger, sleeker, sexier than what I’d pictured. But as we’re about to get on this boat, someone else is coming off theirs, along with their giant fucking dog.
And I freeze.
Fuck.
The little dog at the coffee shop was easy enough to skirt by, but this dog is fucking huge, and the dock is not big enough for the two of us.
“Hey, Harvey,” Gabe says and reaches out to pet the beast, but I’m backing up, my heart pounding in my chest, my throat constricting. “Did you go out on the water today?”
“Hey, guys,” the man says. “Don’t worry, he won’t hurt you.”
I’m shaking my head, still slowly backing away. I can’t take my eyes off the animal.
So much blood. He’s laughing, and his sick smile makes my tummy hurt. He’s enjoying how much he’s torturing me with the poor cat that wandered through the yard this morning. Why is he so horrible? Why does he laugh so much when I scream?
“Alex.”
I think that’s Adam’s voice, but it sounds like it’s coming down a long tunnel.
Suddenly, I’m swept up in strong arms, and I bury my face against a firm chest, willing my breathing to slow the hell down as I cling to the man carrying me.
Christ.
I feel the earth shift beneath us, then he sits and nudges my face back so he can look at me.
Gabe.
“Is it gone?” I ask. My voice is so small, and it pisses me off, but I can’t help it.
“It’s gone, Shorty,” Gabe says, his nickname for me helping to lighten the mood.
I take a trembling breath and look around, and when I don’t see the massive dog anywhere, I swallow hard and nod.
“Let’s get out on the water,” Adam suggests. He’s already started the engine, pulled the ropes in and pushed us away from the dock. Next thing I know, we’re zooming away from the resort, shooting across the lake. The wind feels fantastic, as if it’s blowing all of the anxiety I just had away.
I smile up at Gabe, and he covers my mouth with his, kissing me sweetly before licking across the seam of my lips, and I open for him, loving the way he takes the kiss from calm to hot in a nanosecond.
I shift and straddle him, wrap my arms around his neck, and continue kissing him, until Adam slows the boat and we’re drifting in the middle of the lake.
He pulls the sunshade over the top, then tugs me out of Gabe’s arms and into his own. Cupping my chin in his fingers, he says, “Talk to us, Princess.”