Page 3 of Reclaiming Kendall

That's all it takes for the Rowe brothers to cry mercy. We all better hope and pray that they find themselves a good partner, because not a single one of them likes to clean or even pick up after themselves. I'm pretty sure Mav is the only reason they do so here.

"What's for dinner, babe?" I ask Goose again.

"You!" Teagan growls, pulling me away from Goose and spinning us in a circle.

I throw my head back against his shoulder as a laugh spills from my lips. Once he sets me back on my feet, and the world stops tilting, I announce that I'm going to go get changed. Their goofy banter follows me up the stairs to my room. This house is huge. I don't think there will ever be a day that I'm not amazed by it. The open floor plan on the first floor makes it easy enough to get a good gist of the layout as soon as you walk through the front door. To the left, is our formal living room. Considering how I grew up, I thought the guys were joking about needing it. My unrefined roots at their best, which I was quickly proven. Mav had decided within our second year at college that he wanted to do something that could keep him at home, but being a graphic designer for big A-list companies doesn't mean he's completely free. On more than one occasion, we've had to host clients in our ‘formal living room.’

Directly across from there, on the other side of the house is our formal dining room. I didn't argue so much on this one, because I had too much fun playing house and picking out all of the furnishings. The kitchen sits behind the wide staircase and is accessible by any room on the bottom level. At Goose's persistence, of course, we've got to what amounts close to our own theater in the basement.

Here on the second floor are the four bedrooms and master bath. Goose and Teagan share a space, leaving me, Mav, and Lucas to all have our own rooms, but we pretty much play musical beds every night, anyways. There's another door that leads up to a loft space that we've been using for storage. More recently, it's become home to one of my wedding presents. I've been strictly forbidden from going up there. Every time I walk past the door, the urge to peek is severely strong. If it wasn't for the promise that I made to Lucas weeks ago, I'd have poked my head up there a time or two by now. I don't know what they're hiding, but it must be good. I smirk to myself and shake my head a little as I think about how much they truly spoil me.

Going into my room, I don't bother shutting the door. There is a second bathroom down behind the kitchen, so the brothers won't have any reason to come up here, and privacy is a long-lost concept for the rest of us. It's hard as hell to keep a secret in this house, which is one of the other main reasons I'm surprised I still don't know what's behind that door.

I strip down to my panties and bra and toss on a clean set of pajamas from one of my drawers. Normally, I'd go down to a bare minimum before throwing them on, but we've got company. Even if it is Lucas' brothers, and I feel okay enough to be in my pjs, there's no way I'll be going down without a bra. There's only so much temptation you should wave in front of a man's face.

After getting dressed, I walk across the hall to the bathroom between Mav and Teagan’s rooms. I toss my hair up into a messy bun before grabbing my toothbrush. The minty goodness has barely registered in my mouth before Mav’s deep voice sounds out from the doorway.

“How did the dress fitting go?” he asks as I spit into the sink.

I rinse my mouth and wipe the water from my chin with the little hand towel on the sink before turning to him. He’s got a shoulder propped against the doorframe with his arms across his chest. Maverick isn’t as tall as Goose or even as broad, but he’s still stacked with impressive, lean muscles. Bare feet stick out from underneath a pressed pair of slacks that are pulled taut across his thighs. A long-sleeve button-down is tucked into his belted waist and snug enough for me to get an eyeful of what lies just below the surface. The guys always give him shit for dressing up when he works from home, but no one will ever hear me complain. I’ve yet to find Mav unattractive in anything he’s worn. My opinion is most certainly biased, though.

His left eyebrow goes up at the same time he flashes me a smile, and I remember that I was supposed to be answering a question.

“It was good,” I tell him. “Everything was perfect until Luc told Ry he was going to sneak a peek, and she threatened to shave his eyebrows off.”

Mav’s head tips back, and he lets out a deep laugh. It used to be so rare to even see a smile cross his face, so I’ll never ever take these moments for granted.

Closing the small space between us, I have my arms wrapped around his middle before he even has a chance to bring his head back down. Up on the very tips of my toes, I place a kiss against the bottom of his chin. His arms fold around me as I'm swallowed up in the smell that is all Mav. I get a full two seconds to admire the way his dark hair falls over the right side of his face as his almost-navy-blue eyes heat with the same fire I saw in Goose and Lucas before him earlier. Then his lips find mine.

I revel in the feel of his body against mine as much as I did his laugh. His hand runs through the hair at the back of my head. It yanks some of the strands out to float down against my back. Then his fingers flex, making a fist. Using it as leverage, he tilts my head back as he deepens the kiss. His taste invades my senses, and I gladly lose myself to it. With my arms locked around him, I let my hands wander. First across his shoulder blades and down the tight muscles in his back. They skim across the expensive material stretched across his well-toned ass, but I don't stop there. I cup his ass cheeks in my hands and jerk him towards me. There's a line with Mav that I have to be careful not to cross. It's not that he'll hurt me. Not in a million years, would that ever happen, but he likes to be in control. If I cross said line and make him feel like he's not, I know I'm in for a rough, but also fun night. Sometimes, I toe the line on purpose, much like now. Call me evil, but I like pushing him just so he'll let loose and let me have every single piece of him.

Mav growls and nips my lower lip before pulling back a mere inch or so, "You've been in the house less than thirty minutes, yet I already want to have you bent over in front of me. I swear to God, woman."

"You wouldn't hear me complaining if you did," I tell him as the tip of my tongue sneaks out to lick his lower lip that's swollen from our kisses.

I get another one of those ‘just for me’ smiles as his deep voice vibrates through my chest at our closeness, "Let me ask you a question, baby girl."

Mimicking his famous eyebrow lift, I nod for him to continue.

Jumping straight to it, he asks, "When we're old and been married for fifty years, do you think things will still feel the way they do now?"

"Isn't that something for the woman to be asking the man days before their wedding?" I tease him with a wink but respond. "I don't think there will ever be enough time in one life span, or even five, for me to not feel the way that I do with any of you."

Leaning down, he claims my lips again.

Until Teagan's voice has Mav turning away to glare over his shoulder, "Everything will feel the same except your old saggy balls."

Mav looks ready to punch him in the face. More than one thing will never change around here. I squeeze Mav tighter as laughter wracks my body. Once his attention is back on me, I look up just in time to see him look to the ceiling with an eyeroll. It only makes me laugh again.

I'm not the only one, either. Teagan lets out a bark of laughter in the hall before informing us, "I just came up to tell you that dinner's done.

"Come on," I tell them sliding between Mav and the door. Getting a few steps ahead of them in the hall, I turn around to walk backwards while bribing them, "If you're good and eat all of your dinner, I'll let you eat your dessert off of me."

Their faces go from surprise to hunger in as little time as it takes for me to turn back around. I skip down the stairs knowing without a doubt that I am the luckiest woman in the world.

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