Page 25 of The Brothers Next Door

Chapter 11

Layla

What an evening. I looked down at the massive teddy bear and smiled. Picking it up, I cuddled it to me and carried it into my bedroom, depositing it onto a chair in the corner by the closet. I had just finished stripping down to my panties and was in the process of pulling my canary yellow satin teddy over my head when there was a knock at my door.

Shit.

I wanted to spend some time taking a soak in the tub with some lavender scented oils, some mood candles, and reading before bed, bringing myself down from the high of the evening. Maybe it was just a pizza delivery guy with the wrong apartment number, wouldn’t be the first time that happened. It was such a big building it normally happened a few times a month from what I was told.

Grabbing my yellow satin robe which matched the teddy, I pulled it on and secured it with the little ribbon belt as a second round of knocking began. Reaching the door, I looked into the peephole and my stomach did a little flutter. One of the brothers was on the other side, and after another moment of evaluating him, I determined that it was Nate.

Opening the door, I smiled at Nate despite the peculiar look on my face wondering why he was there. “Hey, Nate. This is a surprise.” I halfway expected him to pull me into his arms and kiss me. The kiss both brothers had given me earlier had been chaste. A part of me hoped he would, but he didn’t.

“Hi.” He shifted from one foot to the other as if nervous.

Was he angry and didn’t want to see me anymore? Maybe it was for the best anyhow. The whole situation had gotten awkward. A girl couldn’t have two men, it was one or the other, and I didn’t think I could make the choice.

“Can I come in?”

I tightened my robe around me and nodded, taking a step backwards and motioning for him to enter. “Of course.”

I’d only gone on a date or two with Nate. Sure, I was smitten and the attraction I was feeling towards them both was intense and undeniable, but I’d move on if he was here to dump me. It wouldn’t be the first time I’d picked myself up and dusted myself off after a break-up and no doubt wouldn’t be the last.

Closing the door behind him, I motioned for him to follow me to the living room. “Take a seat.” I inhaled deeply and sat down next to him, slowly exhaling and waiting for the let down.

“Look. I think we need to come to a decision on how we should proceed considering the circumstances. This wasn’t something any of us anticipated, but here we are.”

“Yes.” Placing my hands on my lap, I waited with bated breath to hear what he had to say.

“What would your thoughts be on dating us both?”

Cocking my head to the side, I eyed him, trying to guess his angle. Was he joking? To hell with it, I’d assume he was serious even if I made an ass out of myself. “There’s a whole lot of pitfalls to this. I’m not even sure where to start… Like how would the sex even work?”

He ran a hand through his hair and I could see his confidence and comfort level had taken a nose dive. Maybe he really was serious. I couldn’t let my excitement over the idea get the best of me—yet.

Trying to calm myself, I continued, “Do you have a plan?” I stared at him a moment. “I can see in your eyes you do, so let’s hear it, because I’m a little confused as to the ins and outs of this.”

“Have you ever been with two men at the same time?” His question made me blush and I adverted my gaze.

“I’m not so sure how that would work…”

“You haven’t, then?”

“Not too many women have.” There was a defensiveness in my tone that I didn’t mean to add. It felt as though I were defending myself and why would I need to defend myself over that? There was no shame in not being double teamed.

Nate laughed and held his hands up in front of him. “Whoa, just back it up a minute, I’m just asking a question. Is that something you think you could get comfortable with?” His laugher, followed by his smile, faded and he stared at me, his expression genuine.

Holy shit! Dude was serious. Where was Darrin? If his proposition was sincere then shouldn’t his brother be here to have a say in the matter?

As if reading my mind, Nate continued. “Darrin is quite skeptical over it, but his main concern is you. He’s on board with the idea if you are.”

“Wow, you guys actually had a conversation about this?”

“A short one. It had to be discussed.”

“I see. This is a lot to digest. When you walked in here, I honestly didn’t think you were serious.”

“You did say on the Wonder Wheel that you’d like us both, so we’re offering up the opportunity.”

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