Page 42 of Lies We Tell (Thistle Cove 3)

Ozzy slows his thrusts as my body comes down, but then rearranges, lying flat over me and driving into me quick and fast. His face buries into my neck and he groans, muffling his noise, his back tensing.

After a moment he pushes up on his elbows and kisses me before rolling off to clean up.

“Beds are nice,” I say after we’re both redressed and warm under the covers.

He threads his fingers with mine. “It helps not having a door handle in your back.”

I laugh, because yeah, space makes things a little bit easier. I shift to my side, spooning into him and I feel his lips on my neck. “You sure you’re okay?”

“Yeah.” Ezra isn’t far from my mind, not even during all of that, but I do feel better. We’re missing a limb, but we’ll fix it. Together. Soon.

Voices wake me and at first, I panic, thinking Ozzy and I are about to get busted by his mother or maybe worse, his sisters. I feel the bed next to me, realizing Ozzy is gone.

“Yeah, I dropped him off. He thinks he’s doing the right thing…trying to keep her safe.”

Finn’s voice travels from the TV room, and I lean over to see him and Ozzy standing just outside the doorway.

I get out of the bed, my feet touching the cold floor. I’m only in the Foo Fighters shirt that grazes my upper thighs. Finn sees me first, eyes dropping down to my legs, then back to my face.

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to wake you up. I was waiting for you to get back home and when you didn’t…I well, came to check on you.”

“How is he?”

“I don’t know.” He looks tired and his hand tugs at the ends of his hair. “Kind of an ass, really.”

Sounds right.

“Well,” he looks between me and Ozzy, “I’ll leave you guys alone.”

Before he moves, I reach out and grab his hand, looking at Ozzy. A ripple of communication passes through us. It’s been a rough night for all of us. We got in this together—and what Ezra has done—it affects all of us.

“Do you want to stay?” I ask. I glance back at the rumpled bed. “There’s room.”

Finn’s eyes dart to Ozzy’s, who nods. We may be splintered, but we’re still strong.

None of us speak as we head back in the darkened bedroom. I get in first, finding the warm spot I’d just left. Ozzy comes after settling in beside me, head already on the pillow. I watch Finn in the faint light; he removes shoes, then his jacket and sweatshirt. Then his jeans.

He tosses them all in a pile on Ozzy’s desk chair and looks over at me.

I stretch my hand out to the empty side of the bed. I know this has to be weird for him. Being in a bed with another guy—a friend. But I want to take this to a new level, if they’ll go with me.

Finn sits on the edge of the bed and slides his legs under the blankets. He takes my hand and scoots down, filling up the space with his big frame. I rest my hand on his stomach, feeling his body heat, along with the stiffness of nerves. I snuggle into the pillow, pulling Ozzy’s hand over my stomach and press my nose into Finn’s shoulder before letting my eyes close, and falling into a comfortable sleep.

22

Finn

I sense the bed shift and open my eyes, blinking at the early morning light. Ozzy’s quietly crossing the room, looking for his wallet on the desk. He sees me.

“Hey,” I say, stretching in a way that doesn’t wake up Kenley. Her body is warm and still in the middle of the bed. It’s not helping my morning wood in the slightest.

“I’m going to go grab some coffee.” He picks up her keys. “If she wakes up, tell her I took her car.”

I nod and rub my eyes. He pulls on his hat and shuts the door behind him with a quiet click. Leaning back into the pillow, I reconcile the fact I just spent the night with Kenley in Ozzy’s bed—while Ozzy was here, too.

I shift and look over at Kenley. For so many years she was literally and figuratively just out of reach. But now she’s right next to me; her eyelashes long and soft, her cheeks tinted, and her hair…I push a strand off her forehead. It’s twisted in a tangled nest and she’s never been more beautiful.

I start to turn away because my body is so riled up already that I can’t just lie next to this girl and not have an increased reaction. It’s one thing to wake up with a normal body function—it’s another to have the girl of my fantasies next to me.

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