25. Meggie

25

Meggie

" M om! She's here!" My sister hollers before even saying hello. "And she's brought snacks!"

She's not talking about the leftover blue raspberry slushie in my hand, but the two men behind me.

"I told you," I whisper to Ellis and Dante. "You shouldn't have come with me."

After walking in on McQuinn and Nils in the shower, and kissing Oz, I wouldn't have minded some space from the guys for a day to let things cool down. But Ellis and Dante insisted, and having them with me did make the drive to my mom's a lot more enjoyable.

Ellis holds out his hand to my sister. "You must be Victoria."

"You can call me Vickie." She takes his hand and bats her eyelashes, which is hysterical coming from a thirteen-year-old. She's right at that age where she thinks she's more mature than she is and wants to prove it to everyone. Mom's gonna have her hands full with her.

"Okay, that's enough, runt." I ruffle my sister's hair, then maneuver past her, feeling oddly possessive as I pull Ellis and Dante along with me. "Hasn't mom ever taught you it's rude to not invite someone in?"

Just as the door closes behind us, my youngest sister comes barrelling down the stairs and flies into my arms. "Meggie!"

"And here's the birthday girl Lily!" I spin her in a circle. "How's it feel to be twelve?"

"Eh." She shrugs when I put her down and looks shyly around me at Ellis and Dante.

"Is that Meggie?" My mom comes out of the kitchen, wiping her hands on a dish towel. She smiles extra wide at Ellis and Dante, bypassing me to wrap them each in a hug. "It was so nice of you boys to drive Meggie down. I worry about her when she makes the drive herself."

"We'd have worried, too, ma'am." Dante's eyes catch with mine for the briefest moment before he looks away.

' Ma'am ,' my mom mouths, not trying to be subtle. It's clear she's impressed by his manners. "Well, come in. Come in."

She ushers us all into the backyard, where the party is already in full swing.

It's comical when Lily's friends look up and see Ellis and Dante. Their mouths all drop open at once, and then they turn to each other and whisper, breaking out in little giddy giggles. Can't say I blame them. These men are gorgeous.

"Hi," three girls say at once, then break into a second fit of giggles.

"Your sister brings home such better presents than mine," says a brunette who blushes at her own words.

"Can we take a selfie?" asks a redhead, already pulling her cell phone from her back pocket.

Dante and Ellis are good sports, but I'm glad when mom swoops in and redirects the girls to a scavenger hunt she's set up throughout the neighborhood. She always plans the best birthday parties.

"Why don't you three make us adults some mojitos," Mom says. "I think we're gonna need it." She winks at us before shooing us into the kitchen.

I point out where the glasses are, then climb up on the counter to reach the small selection of liquor mom keeps in the top cabinet over the microwave.

"What are you doing?" Ellis sounds panicked, which is pretty cute.

"It's fine. I've done it a hundred times." Of course, just as I stand up, I slip and lose my balance.

Dante is there in a heartbeat, catching me around the waist and slowing my fall so that I end up sliding down his hard body rather than falling on my ass. His worried eyes capture mine, his scent more intoxicating than the alcohol my mom keeps on the top shelf.

His throat bobs as he swallows. I drag my hands over his shoulders, breathless. "Thank you."

"Nice save," Ellis says, grinning like sin from behind Dante.

Dante steps away from me. And easily opens the top cabinet. "What is it you were trying to get?"

There's an awkwardness in his tone that I try to ignore.

"Just the rum. Thanks." I shift another step away. "And sorry about that."

Ellis chuckles. "Oh, don't apologize, sunshine. He liked it."

Dante casts him a sharp glare, but Ellis just saunters closer to us, grabs the rum bottle out of Dante's hand, and whispers in my ear. "We both liked it."

My body flames at his suggestive tone and the thick scent of the two men. I look away and busy myself with getting limes and mint from the fridge.

"So, um, I need to warn you about the birthday cake. Vicki made Lily's birthday cake, because she's been watching a lot of baking competition shows and is way too confident in her own abilities." I ramble to dissipate the charged energy in the room, and thankfully, the guys let me. "My mom said there's more than one egg shell that ended up in there, so eat with caution. Vicki, Lily, and their besties are trying to be vegan to save the animals, so the frosting is probably gross."

"Wouldn't eggs make it not vegan?" The threat of a smile tugs at Ellis's lips.

"She's thirteen," I smirk. "I think their understanding of ‘vegan' is very much a teenage interpretation of the diet, but my mom is nothing if not supportive."

"She seems like a really great mom. Will we get to meet your dad, too?" Ellis asks.

"Oh," I look from Ellis to Dante. "My dad died when I was Vicki's age, thirteen. My mom raised us on her own."

A look that's more understanding than pitying crosses Ellis's face, and I remember that Emily and Ellis lost their mom when Em was in high school.

He clears his throat, but his words still come out a little tight. "Should we get these drinks out to your mom? She looks like she could use it."

I follow his glance and see my mom shoo two of the girls away from the air conditioner as they look for something on their scavenger hunt list. Deciding now's not the time to ask about family histories, I open the rum while the guys get the glasses so we can whip up these drinks and head outside to help my mom with the hooligans.

***

"Absolutely not. Under no conditions am I letting you drive back home tonight! It's almost midnight!" My mom puts her hands on her hips and blocks the entryway. "You're staying here. You can drive back in the morning."

The girls giggle from the family room, and I'm pretty sure my mom just doesn't want to deal with the sleepover all on her own. I look at Dante and Ellis apologetically, but they're both smiling.

"I give a mean manicure," Ellis says, holding up his nails. Today they're a deep navy blue.

"Are you sure you don't mind?" I touch Dante's arm and he surprises me by taking my hand. The warmth from his touch extends well beyond my fingers.

"Positive."

After giving all the girls manicures and pedicures, my mom shows Ellis and Dante to the room my sisters share. She originally planned to put them in my room with me, but I suggested they use Lily and Vicki's room. My sisters are sleeping down in the family room with their friends, and I can't exactly be sharing a bed with two alphas. Even if they don't seem to object to the idea.

"I'll be right on the other side of the jack-and-jill bathroom if you need anything," I say once my mom leaves.

We've been sharing a house for a while now, but saying goodnight to them like this somehow feels more awkward.

"I'm just gonna…" I cross through their room towards the bathroom. "There should be extra toothbrushes for you in…"

Digging through the cabinet, I find two unopened toothbrushes and place them near the sink.

"Thanks, sunshine." Ellis steps into the bathroom behind me and it suddenly feels too small. "Thanks for letting us tag along with you today."

My laugh is light but it wobbles a little from the look in his dilated eyes. "Why are you thanking me? It couldn't have been fun to have pre-teens pestering you with questions about being an alpha and mooning over you all night."

"I'd face a hundred teenage girls in order to spend the day with you, Megs." A sensuous smile on his lips, he steps closer, crowding me against the counter.

My pulse does crazy things when he's this close to me. Being in my mom's house adds an extra dose of taboo that doesn't help my body calm down. His hands land on either side of me, our noses almost touching. His salty ocean scent floods over me like a crashing wave, and a current of slick arousal answers in response. With my scent neutralizing underwear on, it's not enough to smell, but I should step away. I should, but…

He's got me pinned between his body and the counter, so there's nowhere to go without pushing him back, and I don't want to do that. Not right now. Right now, this is the only place I want to be. I want to lean into him, get so close that his scent becomes my own.

Would it be that bad if I kissed him? It's just a kiss, and my blockers are working. There's no apple or cinnamon fragrance in the air. All I smell is him.

And Dante.

Summer air and oak trees. A game of tag that turns into rolling in the grass, limbs tangled, lips brushing. The combination of their scents makes me want to melt like a popsicle on the Fourth of July.

Ellis brushes his nose against mine. "May I kiss you, Meggie?"

I look past him and my eyes lock with Dante's. He's leaning against the door frame, watching us. I can't read his expression, but it's intense enough to burn.

"Are you coming to bed?" He asks, and for a moment I'm not sure if he's asking Ellis or me.

Ellis. Of course he's asking Ellis. But he's looking right at me in a way that makes my heart stutter and my skin tingle. I want to say, ' yes .' I want to surrender to this desire, crawl into bed between the two of them, and see where the night takes us.

Ellis grins, looking at his bonded in the mirror. "I was just going to kiss Meggie goodnight first."

"Do it," Dante says through tight lips.

Ellis's hand cups my jaw. He pauses for a second, enough time for me to pull away, to stop it, but I don't. I've been fighting my attraction to Ellis for too long. I'm exhausted. And what harm could one small kiss do?

His lips on mine are soft, the gentle tug of a wave at low tide. But when his tongue brushes the seam between my lips and I part for him, the pressure builds until I'm pulled under. My mind goes completely blank, no longer able to remember why I'm fighting this. Dante's scent grows and mingles with Ellis's, a subtle reminder that we're being watched. My back bends over the counter and I moan. Right when I'm ready to wrap my legs around him and give in completely, Ellis pulls back.

Eyes dark, his pupils are blown and his smile is seductive, but playful.

"Goodnight, Meggie." He gives me one more peck before turning, wrapping his arm around Dante's waist and disappearing into the other room.

I stare at the closed door for a long time before I whisper, "Goodnight."