Page 37 of Cowboy Triplets Next Door

I laughed as I pulled Turtle away from him. “Sure we are. And things are always going to be awkward, Owen, because two out of three of the Hellstone triplets have been inside me. All while pretending like they’re above it all. So, yeah, it’s going to be awkward. We can just keep avoiding each other, though. That seems to work.”

Gray gripped Owen’s shoulder as he tried to follow me. “Let her go.”

I marched back to the carriage house hoping they didn’t see anything other than finality in my expression. I wanted to look strong, even if I felt weak. I’d made a real mess of things, but at least I could admit what I wanted. Well, I’d been able to before everything went off the rails. I wasn’t sure I could admit what I wanted anymore, to the guys or myself.

CHAPTER 30

Billie

“Joanie’s inside. She’s still hiding from the world. If I didn’t have work, I’d do the same.” I slowly rocked on my porch and sighed into the phone. “Are you going to the Doll’s Club meeting tomorrow?”

Eve groaned. “I don’t know. I’m not feeling very social.”

“I think I’m going to skip it and just get the rundown from Joanie. After having a battle with men in my personal life, I’ve lost the fight for the big battle. I’ll show up if the stupid thing ever happens, but I’m just too tired to give a hundred percent.”

“Same. Grandpa’s driving me crazy and my neighbors…” She grunted. “I think I want to murder them.”

I glanced up at the main house and snorted. “Yeah, I feel that.”

“We’re both terrible company right now, aren’t we?” She sighed even louder than I had. “Oh, I forgot to mention that Brad asked about you when I saw him yesterday.”

I winced. “He left me a message but I’ve been in such a bad mood I never got back to him.”

“Maybe you should.” She paused and then rushed on. “You should definitely call him. He could be a good distraction. You could get laid and forget about your bosses for a while.”

The idea did nothing for me. “I’m not feeling it. I wish I was.”

“I tried.” She groaned and lowered her voice suddenly. “I have to go. My neighbors are home and I don’t want them to hear me. I can’t face them right now.”

My attention had already been snagged by something on the balcony of the main house anyway so I mumbled a goodbye and sank lower in my rocking chair in an attempt to stay hidden. I hadn’t turned the porch light on before coming out, so I was mostly hidden in the shadows. The middle room’s light had come on and the door had opened. As I watched, the guys came out onto the balcony with a woman, a very beautiful woman from what I could tell. They laughed at something she said and Gray put his arm around her shoulders.

It was starting again, their nearly nightly tryst with different women. Worse even, they were flaunting it. They’d never spent time on the balcony with the women before. It was always straight to the bedroom.

As the sounds of their muffled voices and laughter drifted over to me, I felt my heart ache painfully. I didn’t know what I’d been expecting. Maybe just because they’d taken my virginity, I was stupid enough to get attached to them. I didn’t want them after everything, but a part of me had. It was embarrassing to admit it, even to myself, especially in the face of them connecting with another woman right in front of me.

Tears threatened to fall but I bit my lip until the burning behind my eyes faded. I wasn’t going to cry over them. I refused. I’d spent too much time focused on them. If they could move on from whatever mess we’d had, I could, too.

I opened my phone and hesitated. Calling Brad over was irrational. It wasn’t—Owen leaned over and kissed the top of the woman’s head. It was such an intimate and caring gesture that I knew the woman meant more to them than the others, more to them than me. I hit call on Brad’s contact and bounced my leg while I waited for him to answer.

“Billie! Hey. I was hoping you’d call back.” Brad’s confident voice didn’t ignite flames in my lower stomach, but maybe I just hadn’t tried hard enough.

“Do you want to come over?” I recognized that my voice sounded a little manic, so I tried again. “I have company inside so we’d have to stay on the porch, but it’s a nice night…”

“It’s a little late for a social call, isn’t it?” He sounded like he was smiling. “Should I bring anything?”

On the balcony, Gray held the woman even closer. “Um…Bring whatever you think we might need.”

Brad laughed and then cleared his throat. “Got it. I’ll be there in twenty.”

I hung up and went inside to get ready. My hands shook and my stomach turned as I fluffed my hair and put on makeup. My brain was screaming at me I was making a mistake, that I didn’t want Brad, but my heart hurt so badly that I wanted to crush it. I dressed in just a long t-shirt and nothing else, figuring I’d make it easy.

I made sure Joanie was asleep and then I snuck out onto the porch again. I turned the light on that time and the reason why made me feel even worse. I wanted the guys to know I wasn’t crying over them. They moved on, I moved on. That was all there was to it.

As I sat and waited, I told myself I’d once had a huge thing for Brad. I had wanted to lose my virginity to him at a different time of my life. Being with him would be good. I needed to do it. I needed to—

Truck lights came up the drive and my stomach dropped. I couldn’t look up at the balcony. Fear and nerves had taken over. I swallowed and nearly choked when Brad got out of his truck and walked up to the porch.

“Hey, Billie.” He leaned in and pressed a kiss to my cheek. “You look beautiful.”

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