Page 23 of The Fated Mate Bandit

“We could put it in your room,” Link says.

Silver shakes his head and laughs. “No, absolutely not.”

“We could vote on it,” Tin suggests.

Coin points at him. “That’s brilliant. Who votes for the turkey to go out in the garage while we eat?”

Every brother but Link raises their arms. They wait for a long beat before I realize they’re waiting for me to vote, too. I raise my arm hesitantly.

“Fine,” Link relents. “But if it melts, ya’ll are buying me a new taxidermy turkey.”

“Says the millionaire pro football player to his poor brothers,” Coin quips.

Silver elbows him. “Speak for yourself. I’m not poor.”

“I am,” Quin says, beaming.

“So am I,” Tin chimes in.

This time when the silences comes, I recognize it for what it is. They’ve effortlessly added me to the rhythm of their conversation. All I have to do is join in.

“I am too,” I admit.

“Fine,” Link relents. “You don’t have to buy me a new taxidermy turkey. But you do have to help me decorate the one I buy so it looks like Terrance.”

“Terrance?” Coin teases. “You named it?”

“Yeah. After a guy on my team.”

Silver throws back his head and laughs.

11

LUCAS

Iwait until the chatter in the living room has silenced and the moon is high in the sky before I sneak out of the guest room. I pause outside Silver’s bedroom door, not sure if he’s still awake. Maybe I waited too long. But I only get to have a month with him, and I don’t want to waste a single night of it.

Knocking would be a bad idea because his brothers might hear. I slowly open the door unannounced, hoping that Silver won’t mind. The lamp next to his bedside is on, and he’s sitting in his bed shirtless. He smiles at me from across the room. “Hey.”

“Hey.” It’s just a whisper, but my voice feels incredibly loud.

He holds out his arms to me. My heart thumps in my chest. This afternoon, all we did was cuddle. Tonight, Silver might want more than that. I walk across the room and sit next to him on the edge of the bed.

He lowers his arms. “No cuddles for me, huh?”

“I want to. I’m just… nervous.”

“It’s just me, baby. You don’t need to be nervous.” He turns his palm up and slides it closer to me in a silent invitation. I place my hand on top of his, my skin buzzing from the contact.

“What are we… I mean, you said you wanted… Whatdoyou want?” I ask, not daring to look him in the eye. I’m the one who came in here. I have no right to ask him what he wants, but I’m not brave enough to ask for what I want.

I’m not even brave enough to admit it to myself.

He pulls my hand closer. I watch as he guides my palm down onto his thigh. There’s a thick blanket between my hand and his leg, but I can still feel the warmth of his skin through the fabric. He brings my hand between his legs, pressing my palm onto a firm bulge there. My mouth goes dry.

“That’s from just thinking about you sleeping in the other room,” he says.

My fingers tremble as I cup him over the blanket. “Really?”

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