Total pages in book: 101
Estimated words: 96112 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 481(@200wpm)___ 384(@250wpm)___ 320(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 96112 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 481(@200wpm)___ 384(@250wpm)___ 320(@300wpm)
That juice contains too many chemicals. I didn’t drink it anymore. You look wonderful in blue, honey. The year after my parents died, I only wore blue. Don’t take that street; it’s not safe. I didn’t even let Vincent drive there. T-shirts aren’t—wait. No. That was me. I had stopped wearing tees of my own volition because they’d exposed too much of my skin. I’d forgotten. That one wasn’t on Mom.
“You know who would be happy to help you?” Lucas murmured. “Colt and I.”
I glanced up at him again and furrowed my brow. “Why? You’ll get sick of my baggage in no time.”
“Don’t say that.” He frowned. “The work would be your own. We would just give you a nudge here and there—and be there for you when you need it.” He paused. “Some decisions, you have to make on your own. As boring as adulthood can be.” He lightened the tension a bit and kissed me on my forehead. “And some, we can make for you.”
Uncertainties came at me quickly. Moving forward with anything Lucas and Colt offered would mean I was shattering the carefully crafted life of monotony I’d assembled for myself. I hated it with every fiber of my being, yet it was safe and comfortable. I knew my place. At night, when the house was empty, I sat at my computer and talked to online friends. In the morning, I took an extra-long shower so that I knew Rosa would’ve arrived by the time I got downstairs. When the loneliness was particularly overpowering, I fell asleep with my headphones playing music my dad used to listen to.
I’d learned to cope.
God, what was wrong with me? They were literally offering for me to be part of something—which I’d fucking cried myself to sleep that I was missing—and I was hesitating?
Nausea and anxiousness swam higher up in my chest. It was time to take a leap. It was freaking terrifying, but it was time.
“I’ll gladly accept any help,” I croaked.
Lucas hugged me to him, a hard squeeze that put me back together as much as it threatened to tear me apart, and all I could do was hang on for dear life.
Eight
“Time to wake up, sweetheart.”
Nooo.
I hadn’t truly been asleep. I’d been dozing on and off, which meant I’d constantly felt the comfort of Lucas next to me on the sunbed, the softness of the blanket, and the slight breeze that drifted under the roof every now and then. But I’d been out of it enough to miss the moment Lucas told Colt about my rambling. I hadn’t wanted to do it all over again, so I’d asked Lucas to do it.
“I wanna nap more,” I mumbled.
Lucas chuckled softly and brushed some hair away from my forehead. “Colt’s about to fire up the grill and wonders where you keep the lighter fluid. He found the briquettes.”
“Oh.” I scowled sleepily and lifted my head, then waved in the general direction of the door leading inside. “There’s a cupboard in the laundry room in the hallway—wait. I’m being lazy. I’ll get it.” I yawned and stumbled out of the sunbed.
They both looked sinfully sexy wearing only boxer briefs, and I could see what Lucas had said about Colt getting a nice tan. The waistband of his underwear rode an inch or two low today, revealing he’d already spent time in the sun this year.
He stood nearest the door and stopped me on my way inside.
He didn’t say anything at first. He just wrapped his arms around me and hugged me hard.
I closed my eyes and let out a shaky breath.
“We’re not goin’ anywhere, all right?” He kissed my temple.
“Okay,” I whispered. Beyond thankful for what they’d already done for me, I stood up on my toes and popped a kiss to his cheek, and then I headed indoors to get the lighter fluid.
I would have to show them how grateful I was.
On my way back to the terrace, I was just past the living room when I heard Colt outside.
“I’m this close to throwin’ in the damn towel.”
My steps faltered, and I entered the dining room at a slower pace.
“I know, baby, me too,” Lucas sighed. “I don’t know how many times I’ve stopped myself from just fucking announcing he belongs to us now.”
Oh. My heart jumped up into my throat.
Colt chuckled.
“Everything about him calls out to me,” Lucas said.
“I know,” Colt replied quietly. “And Christ, seein’ you with him, darlin’… I know you’ve been yourself with me, but there’s somethin’.”
“Because we can finally be Daddies.”
Colt hummed. “That’s it, isn’t it? I feel it too. Problem is, I’m like a kid on Christmas. We haven’t been able to live this way to the fullest yet, and now we get a taste of it… Whatever we’ve tried out with others doesn’t fuckin’ compare.”