Page 31 of Crush & Byte
With obvious reluctance, Crush pulled away and sat up, the sheet pooling around his waist before he swung his legs over the side.When he stood, the sight of his deliciously rounded ass with muscled hollows at the sides when he moved, made my mouth water.The morning light highlighted the contours of his back, the intricate tattoos spanning his shoulders shifting as he reached for his discarded boxer briefs.I couldn’t help but stare, admiring the raw power contained in his body.
“Enjoying the view?”he asked without turning around, somehow sensing my gaze on him.
“Very much,” I admitted, feeling my cheeks warm but not willing to play coy.“Nice ass.”I scrambled up and crawled to him before he could get his boxers on and smacked his ass.
He laughed.“So you want to play it that way, huh?”Then he lunged toward me, tickling my sides mercilessly.I shrieked and fought back weakly, but, honestly, how does one fight back in a tickle war when they’re ticklish?
The playing ended with Crush’s solid weight firmly on top of me with his hips between my legs.He kissed me with slow, languid thrusts of his tongue.When he finally ended the kiss I was moaning beneath him, eager for more of what we’d shared the night before.
“Better get dressed before I change my mind about letting you out of this bed.”His wicked grin did nothing to quell the building lust, but it did make me smile.
He pushed off me before tossing me one of Byte’s shirts.I slipped the shirt over my head and found my underwear tucked half under the pillow.As I pulled them on, I caught Crush watching me with a heat in his eyes that made my stomach flip.If we didn’t get downstairs soon, we definitely weren’t getting breakfast.
“You two get your asses down here.No hanky-panky before breakfast.Our girl needs her strength.”Byte’s voice rang clear and happy from below us in the kitchen.
“You heard the man.”Crush reached for my hand.“Food before hanky-panky.”
The cabin floor was cool against my bare feet as we descended the narrow stairs to the main level.Byte stood at the gas stove, his back to us, flipping something in a cast iron skillet.He wore only sweatpants hanging low on his hips, his hair still mussed from sleep.He turned at the sound of our footsteps, a smile spreading across his face when he saw me.
“Morning, sleepyheads,” he said, his eyes twinkling.“Thought you might sleep through breakfast.”
“Not a chance,” I replied, crossing to him and rising on tiptoe to kiss his cheek.The casual intimacy of the gesture surprised even me, but Byte just grinned wider and wrapped an arm around my waist, pulling me against his side to kiss my temple.
“Gonna have to deal with instant coffee,” he said, nodding toward the water kettle on the back burner seconds before it started screaming.Byte let me go to turn off the burner and the shrill whistle faded to nothing.“Figured we could all use the caffeine.”
Crush moved to the cabinets, retrieving three mugs and the jar of instant coffee.“What’re you making?”he asked his brother as he dropped the grounds in each mug before adding the boiling water.
“Omelets,” Byte replied, returning his attention to the skillet.“Found some ham, peppers, and cheese in the supplies.Almost done.”
I leaned against the counter, cradling my coffee mug between my palms, watching the brothers move around the small kitchen.They’d clearly shared countless meals together, developed rhythms and patterns that spoke of their deep connection.Rather than feeling excluded, I found myself drawn into their orbit, Crush handing me silverware to set the table, Byte telling me where to find the juice.
By the time we sat down to eat, the three of us had fallen into an easy rhythm that felt almost…normal.Domestic.Like we’d been doing this for years rather than hours.It should have scared me how quickly I’d slotted into their lives, but instead, it felt right.Like coming home.
The eggs were indeed legendary.Fluffy, perfectly seasoned.I devoured mine with an enthusiasm that had both men smiling.I got the feeling neither man really smiled much.If I could amuse them enough for them to let it show, it was worth looking like a pig while I ate.
“Hungry?”Crush asked, amusement coloring his voice.
“Starving,” I admitted between bites, grinning shamelessly.“Didn’t get much sleep last night.”
Byte choked on his coffee, and Crush’s slow smile was pure masculine satisfaction.
We bantered with each other all through breakfast, falling into an easy conversation.But beneath my contentment, anxiety churned.I needed to tell them what I wanted, what I was feeling, before I lost my nerve.If they laughed at me or pitied me as the weird loner their grandmother threw at them, I’d be devastated, but it would be worse to not try.
Finally, I set my fork down, took a deep breath, and jumped in with both feet.“I want to stay here.With you both.”The words tumbled out, clumsy and abrupt.“Longer, I mean.Not forever, obviously, that would be crazy, but…” I trailed off, staring down at my plate.“Even if it’s only sex, I want this time with you.With both of you.”My voice had gone small, vulnerable, and I cursed myself for not finding a better way to say it.
The silence that followed felt eternal.I risked a glance up to find both men watching me with identical intense expressions.
“River,” Crush began, reaching across the table to take my hand in his.His palm was warm and calloused against mine.“Do you honestly think this is just about sex for us?”
I shrugged, suddenly feeling foolish.“I don’t know.I mean, it’s all happening so fast.I don’t want to assume --”
“Honey,” Byte interrupted, pushing back from the table.He moved to stand behind my chair, his hands coming to rest on my shoulders.“What part of ‘we want you to be ours’ didn’t you understand last night?”
Crush squeezed my hand.“We’re not going anywhere except where you are.And this --” he gestured between the three of us --”is about a hell of a lot more than just getting off.”
“Though we are definitely looking forward to the getting off part,” Byte added with a grin, his thumbs kneading the tense muscles at the base of my neck.
A laugh bubbled up, easing the knot of anxiety in my chest.“I am too,” I admitted, leaning back into Byte’s touch while keeping my hand in Crush’s.“I’ve never done this before.Any of this.I’m used to being alone, to leaving before things get complicated.I’ve only had sex a couple of times and it wasn’t anything like what we did last night.And we haven’t even really had sex yet.”
