Page 23 of My Three Mountain Men

He returned my smile, relief coloring his expression. “You should probably get dressed. It’s only a matter of time before one of the others walks in here.”

I didn’t need to be told twice. I was already on Knox and Ryder’s shit list. This probably wasn’t going to make things any better.

“Good idea,” I agreed, sliding off the table. I scurried around to find my discarded clothing. I pursed my lips, feeling like I should say more to him, but what else was there to say?

Still, I uneasily dressed, stealing sidelong looks at Brooks as I did, but as I turned to leave, he stopped me, reaching for my arm. Startled, I met his gaze.

“Where are you going?” he asked.

“I-I thought I’d just go back upstairs,” I mumbled, looking away uncomfortably.

“Why? You haven’t eaten or finished your coffee.”

Helplessly, I looked at him, unsure of what he wanted from me.

“Sit down. Why don’t I make you that omelet now? I can wow you with my cooking skills.”

I didn’t know how to respond. “Are you sure?”

“What are you going to do in your room?”

I bit on my lower lip, conflicted as ever, and Brooks sighed softly, pulling me closer, his bear-like body overpowering me.

“I meant what I said, Simone,” he told me softly.

I raised my head warily and peered at him. “About what?”

“You’re safe here. Sit down. Food won’t take a minute.”

“Let me just clean myself up,” I said, stepping back, wanting a minute to myself to take this all in.

When I came back from the bathroom, he led me back toward the table, this time sitting me in a different seat, winking at me suggestively. A strange, unfamiliar warmth washed over me, and I swallowed the unexpected lump in my throat and allowed him to guide me.

“I’ve got you. Nothing bad will happen to you here,” he promised.

It was easy for him to say that, but when had I really ever been safe anywhere in my life?

CHAPTER11

Ryder

Oh, Brooks. How can you be so stupid?

I pulled away from the doorway, shaking my head in dismay, my erection making walking a chore as I stealthily stole away from the dining room toward the main stairs, careful not to let Simone or my cousin know I had seen them.

I should have walked away the minute I’d seen him pinning the blonde to the table, but like a rubbernecker to an accident site, I’d had to sit and watch the entire event, their naked forms grinding and twisting until the very end.

My impulse had been to put a stop to it, but I couldn’t bring myself to do that. When would I ever see Brooks or Knox experiencing anything like this for themselves again? Maybe Simone’s arrival hadn’t been the curse I had initially prophesized it to be.

At the same time, Brooks couldn’t afford to get involved with her. She wasn’t staying. She couldn’t.

I raced quietly up the steps and let myself into the bedroom as the smell of frying eggs wafted up from the kitchen, Simone’s giggle following me through.

Not for the first time, I was consumed with shame for having kept Knox and Brooks here with me all these years.

No,I corrected myself, flopping onto my bed, belly up, eyes trained on the ceiling.I haven’t kept them here. They chose to be here.

But to what other alternative? They had come as teens, and although they were men now, they had never been on their own without me.

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