Page 113 of Touch Me Not

“Fuck,” Nikoli muttered.

“All she said when I talked to her last night was that I was to get my ass here.”

“Mama sent you here?”

Mason nodded. “Yeah, why?”

“No, I mean here, specifically, and not with Kade and Angel?”

“Uh, they’re in a hotel, man. I can’t stay with them.”

“You can’t stay with me either.”

“Why the fuck not?”

“Because…” His gaze drifted to the staircase. “Because you can’t.”

“Dude, I’m a broke college student trying to earn a living making YouTube videos. Do I look like I have money for a hotel?”

“I’ll pay for your room. You can even order as much room service as you want.”

“You’re not really trying to throw your little brother out in the cold, are you?”

“I’m offering to put you up in a hotel. Lily’s got enough to worry about without having you underfoot.”

“She doesn’t have to worry about me. As long as I have pizza and beer, I’m good.”

“Dude, it’s not even about that.”

“Dude, Mama will beat me if I leave. She said I was to plant myself on your couch and not leave until you do in the morning. Something about unmarried couples shacking up before the wedding or something. She was rambling in Russian so fast it was hard for me to keep up.”

Fuck it all to hell. Mason really was a cock blocker.

Lily would never have sex with his brother next door listening.

His mother was a devious woman.

Fuckity, fuck, fuck, fuck.

“You okay?” Mason grinned wide, coming to the same conclusion as Nikoli.

“Fucker…”

Mason burst out laughing. “Don’t blame me. I’m following Mama’s explicit instructions.”

Nikoli groaned and fell down on the couch, throwing an arm over his eyes. “Shit.”

He felt the couch give as Mason sat. “In all seriousness, what didn’t Mama tell me about Lily?”

“She has a form of PTSD.”

“Like Papa?”

He sighed and sat up. “Yeah, but hers manifested differently. She has a fear of being touched. She’s a lot better, but it’s not completely gone. Strangers touching her is what sets her off. With her family and friends, it’s not so bad.”

“But we’re strangers to her.” Mason nodded thoughtfully. “I get it. I was there when Papa had his attacks. I’ll make sure to not touch her until she gets to know me. We all will.”

“She’s afraid she’ll embarrass me when it comes to my family because of her phobia.”

---