Page 37 of Mayhem
“I…I,”Erin’s eyes met Paetyn’s before she looked up at Cruz and bit her lower lip. She wanted to. Paetyn could tell, but she’d have to say it and consent to it. “Goodnight.”
It came out on a breath like she’d had to force herself to say it, and Paetyn gripped her chin, pecking her on the lips softly. “Goodnight, Angel.”
He took a few steps back, allowing her to breathe in something other than their cologne. Cruz turned her, kissing her also.
Paetyn watched her open the front door and pause briefly before going inside. She turned to look at them, and he wondered if she’d changed her mind.
“Goodnight,” she stated again, and he knew she was more reaffirming to herself than them.
“Goodnight,”they responded in unison, and Erin closed the door.
“Our little tease is going to give me blue balls,”Cruz spoke on the way back to the car.
Paetyn agreed, and she’d definitely been teasing them. He was sure it wasn’t anything they couldn’t handle for now. However, their small amount of control would wane, and when it did, they’d be apologizing to her for days for the way they’d have her sore.
9
Erin didn’t recognize the number that flashed across her screen as her phone rang. She debated answering but remembered Chayse asking if she could give her number to some co-workers who were interested in getting tattoos. She hadn’t minded since it was business, and she’d given it to a couple of people at the convention, but she planned to get a separate line soon. She’d had one in Florida but had gotten rid of it since she wanted a local number.
“Hello,” she answered, phone between her ear and shoulder as she looked through her drawer for the lounge set she wanted. “Hello?” she questioned when she didn’t hear anything.
She hung up when no response came before pulling out what she’d been looking for. A two-piece, periwinkle blue lounge set. The strings, once tied, would be the only thing holding the top together, and Erin knew what she was doing, but Paetyn and Cruz had teased her the last time she saw them, wound her up, and she felt it only fair she reciprocated even if she’d started it that night in the hallway.
She’d invited them over, telling them to dress comfortably because she wanted to stay in. Erin wasn’t joking when she asked them if she could take up their Sunday. However, she knew it wasn’t fair of her to do, regardless of what they said. So, Erin asked them to come over at four.
She slipped into the outfit and sprayed on perfume with a scent similar to her moisturizer. She had about twenty minutes before they were due to arrive, and she’d noticed they were always on time when they went somewhere, if not a little early.
Erin turned off her bedroom light and entered the living room. She made sure her blackout curtains over the two windows were pulled almost completely closed, leaving just a little sliver on each side. She’d gotten two battery-operated lanterns and placed them beside the television for later when the sun went down if they hadn’t moved along on her list of things to do.
Erin took down a wine glass for herself and two tumbler glasses for Cruz and Paetyn. Well, they were technically breakfast glasses, but they looked similar enough. She’d gotten a bottle of wine and even picked up a bottle of scotch for them.
She then turned on the television, went to her upload list, and started the soft sounds of nature playlist she’d found the night before. It was an hour and a half long, but she made sure to put it on repeat. Erin then blacked out the television screen so it appeared off.
Finally, she lit all the candles she’d picked up earlier when she’d gotten the lanterns. She closed the curtains completely to see the effect. It lit the room well and allowed them to see fine, but it didn’t take away from what she was going for.
With all that finished, Erin grabbed the glasses, scotch, and wine from the refrigerator, placing them on one side of her coffee table before returning to the kitchen and taking out the fruit charcuterie board she’d put together before getting in the shower. She grabbed the little containers with honey, caramel, and chocolate and carried them into the living room, placing them on the other side of the coffee table. It would be a nice snack until they ordered dinner later in the evening. She tookthe lid off the containers and dropped them over the bar into the sink.
Erin stood at her door and took in the room. It looked nice, and she was happy with the outcome. She wanted to do something nice for them. They’d helped her move when they didn’t have to. Cruz had allowed her to use his plane to fly to and from the convention, and while she protested because she felt like it was too much for them to do, she’d been thankful for it. She hadn’t wanted to drive six hours, but she only had enough points for a one-way ticket and didn’t need to spend too much.
A knock on the door startled her, and she turned to look at the panel, seeing Paetyn and Cruz on the other side. Erin opened the door and took them in. When she told them to dress comfortably, she hadn’t expected them both to show up in sweatpants. Paetyn wore sand-colored sweatpants and a matching long-sleeve shirt with white shoes. Cruz wore black sweatpants, a black short-sleeve shirt, and white shoes.
Fuck gray sweatpants; Erin was sure these were worse. They’d done this on purpose, but she really couldn’t be too upset because they had the same idea she did. And if they hadn’t done it on purpose, Erin would have to resign herself to the fact they just looked good in everything.
Paetyn’s finger under her chin pulled her attention back to their faces, and they both smirked at her.
“Hello, Angel,” he greeted, leaning down to kiss her before moving aside and allowing Cruz to follow suit.
“Hi,” she greeted, unable to stop herself from looking them over again before stepping aside and letting them in. Erin closed the door and locked it.
“What’s all this?” Cruz questioned.
Erin walked around and stood in front of them. “Okay, hear me out. I thought we could put our phones away, act like we livedbefore devices and electricity, and hang out. You can teach me how to play poker.”
She thought about her comment and realized that asking them not to use their phones may have been a little unreasonable since they both had businesses to run. However, Cruz pulled his phone from his pocket, put it on silent, and handed it to her. Paetyn handed his over as well. She hadn’t meant they had to give them to her, but she was happy they were willing to indulge her.
“You didn’t have to do all of this,” Paetyn stated, looking around as Erin placed their phones on the bar.
“I wanted to.” She refrained from telling them it was a thank you, that she wanted to repay them for their help because she knew they’d say she didn’t have to. So, instead, she left it at that.
