Brown Siblings - 01 Laid Bare (35 page)

Before he’d reached the hallway though, Erin came out of the bathroom, naked and disheveled, looking beautiful and sex-tousled. She saw him and smiled, coming into his arms and everything was all right again.

“I’m sorry,” she said as Todd held her. “I know you were just looking out for me.” Todd snorted, kissing the curve of her cheek. “You stole my thunder. I’m sorry too. I know I pushed your buttons at a time you were most likely to react.”

“Mmm,” she hummed as he kissed down her neck. “I’m starving.” She eyed the pizza box and he hurried to grab the plates and some cream sodas, which she took from him and began to pass around as he got naked too.

Sitting on their big bed, naked and laughing, they ate dinner and made more good memories to ease away the bad.

31

In the month following the trial and the guilty verdict, their lives smoothed again as they moved toward Thanksgiving. The Keenans and Copelands always had a giant celebration, and so of course they’d all go to that. This year Brody and Adrian would also go, which meant Mercy and Marianne would be there too, because what young girl would miss the chance to have dinner with Adrian Brown?

Erin awoke to a cock tapping her lips and Todd looming over her. She kept her eyes closed and opened to him. The way they needed her touched something deep within her.

He groaned in that grumbly, morning way, entirely satisfied male, and it hardened her nipples.

She concentrated on the head and crown, fisting around the root. The room was cool and dark and she heard Ben shift and the soft exhale as he must have opened his eyes to take in the scene before him.

The bedding rustled as he moved to them and his hands found her belly and it was her turn to moan when he gave her mound a light slap, not hard but the way she liked it.

“Wait a sec,” Todd said, flipping on the bedside lamp. “Now I can watch you eat her pussy.” Ben chuckled as he found his way between her thighs and began to lick, slow and steady.

“I love it when you make that sound with my cock in your mouth,” Todd said, idly tugging on her nipple rings. She arched, digging her heels into the bed as Ben slid his tongue into her gate.

Todd collared her throat and her entire body shuddered in response. Her eyes fluttered closed as she concentrated on Todd’s cock and Ben’s mouth on her cunt.

More
. She needed more and Todd knew it. He slid his cock into her mouth deeper, keeping his rhythm up.

“Your mouth is so hot. I’m close. So. Fucking. Close.” One of her hands had burrowed into Ben’s hair and the other still held the base of Todd’s cock.

She let go of Ben and dipped down, past his mouth, wetting her fingers with her own juices before moving them up to play against the supersensitive skin of Todd’s anus.

He stuttered a moan as she pressed just inside, stroking. He hardened impossibly more and came, exhaling hard.

Erin had just started to come when Ben reared up, flipped her over, pushed her knee up near her chest and entered her from behind. Her nipples pressed against the blankets and the echoes of her climax rippled through her, ebbing and flowing with each thrust and retreat of his cock.

She let her muscles go and took him into herself over and over until he leaned down, kissed her neck and came.

Afterward, she rolled over, pushing the hair from her face as she caught her breath. “My! That’s certainly a way to wake up.”

Todd’s cell phone rang and he muttered a curse as he rambled from the room to grab it.

She went up on her elbow to look down at Ben. His hair was getting long and he probably needed a cut, but she really liked it this way. Brushing a fingertip over one of his nipples, she loved the way his lips parted and he sucked in a breath.

“What are you thinking? You have such a wicked look on your face.”

“I was thinking how much I liked your hair now. I love how it curls up where it touches your neck. Sort of sloppy and loose but sexy. And also how hot it would be if you pierced this nipple right here.” She underlined the sentence with a flick of her tongue, and he laughed.

“Then I’ll do it.” He shrugged. “I can’t let my hair get any longer than this, I’m sorry to say. Our clients like me more clean-cut. But no one is going to see my shirt off at work.”

“They’d better not.” She stretched, well aware he watched her. “I’ve got work to do. The work next door on the upper floor should be done by the end of the day, so I need to cook for the Thanksgiving feast all day today and then get ready to move our stuff into the new bedroom tomorrow.”

“I’m surprised you don’t want to move tonight.” Ben swatted her as she moved toward the bathroom.

“I’d love to, but they only painted in there two days ago and I want to give it one more day to dry and for the smell to dissipate,” she called out before shutting the door.

When she came out, teeth brushed and cleaned up, Ben had left, so he’d probably used the other bathroom. She rustled through the dresser and found clothes and pulled them on.

In the living room she rounded a corner to catch Todd jam a finger on his phone to disconnect a call.

“Is everything okay?” she asked, following him out into the kitchen.

“I need to go deal with a client.” He sighed. It was an unofficial holiday, the day before Thanksgiving, and she knew he’d wanted to stay home all day and laze around alone with her and Ben. But she also knew what it was to run a business.

“Here in downtown?”

He nodded.

“Go. It’s still early. I’m going to be around all day cooking anyway. Go deal and finish.” She shrugged and hopped up on a bar stool.

“You want some help?” Ben asked him, putting a hand on Erin’s shoulder to stay her, before moving to make the coffee.

“Nah, thanks. It’s Harris. You know how she is.” Todd kissed Ben’s temple and then put his arms around Erin, pulling her back against his body as he stood behind her. “I have to go, reset her system, explain it to her yet again and then I’ll be back. No use you having to deal with her.”

“
Hmpf.
She likes looking at you. Tell her your wife will scratch her eyes out if she touches. A little eye candy won’t hurt though. Look at you.” Erin laughed, entangling her fingers with his.

“Ha. She’s in her seventies. Not my type.”

“I believe the proper answer is
anyone but Erin and Ben are not my type
.” Erin smirked his way.

“You two keep me busy enough I don’t have time anyway.” Todd kissed the top of her head.

“I’m going to shower and get over there. Text me if you need me to bring anything home.” He disappeared and the workers showed up next door.

“I’m going to be glad when they’re finished.” Ben pulled eggs from the fridge. “Sit. Let me make you breakfast for a change.”

“Thank you.” She smiled at him and watched him work.

Todd left and, within minutes, Cope showed up.

Ben let his brother in, and Cope rubbed his hands together at the sight of food on the table.

“You have radar.” Ben frowned, but Cope shoved past and gave Erin a hug before sitting at the table.

“I like to smooch up on your woman. Plus,” he said, shoving two pieces of bacon into his mouth at once, making Erin wince, “Mom is coming by today. Just thought I’d warn you.”

“She’s never dropped by here before. I’m seeing her tomorrow. What’s the deal?” Ben asked, pouring another cup of coffee since Cope had stolen his.

“She’s invited a
friend
for you for tomorrow.” Ben and Erin both froze.

“What?”

Cope laughed. “What? Come on, Ben. She wants you to be married. She wants grandkids. She had her hopes pinned on Caroline and then she moved. You haven’t found anyone suitable to breed with. So there’s some daughter visiting a neighbor”—he snickered—“and she’s coming tomorrow.”

“This is insane.”

“It’s what moms do, Ben. Just flirt and make her happy.” Erin didn’t want any discord between Ben and his family. Having such a big secret was difficult.

“Tell her you’re gay.” Cope looked up from shoveling food into his mouth.

“Then she’ll hook me up with nice single boys from the neighborhood.” Ben glared at Erin.

“And I’m not pretending to be interested in some random woman when the one I’m in love with is four feet away. It’s stupid.”

“Yes, it is.” She moved closer, to touch him. “But what are you going to do? This will only get worse the longer you go unmarried. We’re going to have to find a way of dealing with it in the long term, but let’s get through tomorrow first.”

Cope reached out and squeezed Ben’s forearm. “Hey, I’m sorry, man. I just wanted to give you a heads-up and get some food. I didn’t mean to upset you.” Ben sighed and kissed Erin’s forehead. “Eat. You’re right. We’ll get through tomorrow and the holidays and then we’ll figure out what to do.”

“I’m going to start cooking. Take your mom next door to your rooms.” Erin shrugged, getting up. “It’ll be a nice tour and she can get you alone.”

“I’ll just stay here to help lick the spoon.” Cope grinned, looking like a miniature version of Ben.

“Don’t lick anything else.”

“As if.”

The two brothers bickered as Erin began to chop the vegetables for the stuffing and tried not to think about what a difficult thing Ben faced.

She was laughing and sipping her second cup of coffee when Todd came through the door, talking loudly to none other than Annalee Copeland.

“Look who I found downstairs.” Todd looked around quickly, relieved nothing naked was happening, and ushered her in.

“Hello, Mrs. Copeland. Can I get you a cup of coffee?” Erin called out from her place in the kitchen.

“This is such a big, lovely place!” Annalee, all nearly six feet of her, came in and gave Erin a hug. Her hair was dark like Cope’s, but they both had her blue eyes. She was a seamstress and had a small shop in Ballard that her family had operated for two generations. Erin liked her a lot.

She was open and generous, funny like Lorie, and she loved her family.

“Andrew, what are you doing here?”

Erin laughed, pouring a cup of coffee for Annalee, who thanked her.

“Free food, Mom.” He shrugged, and she rolled her eyes at her son before looking at Erin.

“He was already at my house to eat breakfast first thing.”

“That was before I went on my run.”

Annalee sighed. “I raised them all to cook, goodness knows.” Ben came through from the rest of their newly enlarged place. He smiled when he saw his mother. “Hey!” He hugged her. “Fancy seeing you here.”

“I haven’t seen you in a while and I wanted to see this place.

Lorie said the renovations were finished?”

“I just had dinner with you on Monday.” Ben put his arm around her shoulders.

“Still.”

“You want a tour?”

Her face lit up. “Yes. Show me the place.”

Cope stood. “Me too. I haven’t seen the office space yet.”

“Come on then.” Ben looked back at Erin, who smiled, and he wondered just what he would do about the situation brewing. He’d lived with Caroline, and as far as his family knew, Greg was a tenant who lived in their mother-in-law unit. But this was different. They knew Todd and Erin were married. They knew Todd. He wasn’t sure how to broach it, not that he hadn’t thought about it nearly constantly.

“Wow, they’ve done a great job.” Cope turned around as he took in the space.

“The expanded kitchen is here.” He pointed to a state-of-the-art kitchen with marble counters, fridge drawers and all the bells and whistles you could imagine. “We’ll all move here and they’re going to rehab the rest of the apartment next. Erin will keep her music room and expand into the bedroom next door. The kitchen in there will be removed and that entire living space will be a media room with a home theater. There’ll be a library back where the master bedroom is now and a guest room.”

He had to admit the renovations had gone exceptionally well and their new living space was more incredible than he could have ever imagined. He did get the occasional twinge at how much it all cost and what a large portion of it all Erin paid for, but she’d been so excited and then had given him and Todd the
if it were reversed, you’d want me to take it
speech. So they’d given in but volunteered to pay for the new furniture.

“Our living room will be small for now until they’re done next door.”

“Where’s your room going to be?” his mother asked with perceptive eyes.

“Here.” He opened up French doors leading to a small living area with a couch and a television and into a bedroom with an en suite bath. They’d moved his bedroom furniture into it the day before, and he’d dashed in to rumple it a bit before his mom came in.

“Wow. Do you need a roommate?” Cope asked.

He snorted at his brother.

“This is very nice, Ben. Not as big as your old apartment or even your house with Caroline.

Aren’t you a little old to rent a room in someone’s house? How are you ever going to find a woman if you live here?”

“I like it here. I love the building.” He ushered them out and across the apartment to another set of French doors. “This is our office space.” The workmen were nearly finished with it. “We’ll all work in this space instead of having to lease space downtown.” He backed out, waving at the workers.

“The main bedrooms are upstairs. A master and a room just off of that that can be a nursery someday, along with another bedroom.” The place was huge and he loved it. They’d all worked on the plans together, made their future together.

“Oh! You’ll like this, Mom.” He led them outside to the very large deck. “Erin had them build a modified greenhouse. The hot tub is in there, so the heat stays in, but the walls slide back for when the weather heats up too.”

“This is all very extensive and expensive. I guess when you’re a rockstar you can do that.” His mother smiled tightly.

“Cope, I need to talk to Mom.”

His brother’s eyes widened a moment. “Are you
sure
about this?”

“Yes.”

“Okay then.” Cope left them alone on the balcony, and he took his mother into the greenhouse, where it was still very warm.

“Spit it out, Mom.”

“Ben, this isn’t right for you. You’re hanging on to Todd and his wife as a way to keep from moving on. You’re hiding from your future. I know this breakup with Caroline was hard. You’ve been different in the year since she left. But you can’t think living here is going to solve that.”