Hammer chuckled and lifted his tumbler.
“I guess we know that she’s serious now about opening herself.” Liam stared at the fire licking over the logs, recalling how Raine pushed ahead and persevered to meet their every demand.
“I’ve got to tell you, I thought we’d spend at least the first few days trying to pry most everything out of her.”
“I thought the same.”
“Just because she’s done well so far, we can’t give her any wiggle room,” Hammer warned. “Now we’ve got to make sure she leaves her defenses down for the rest of the tasks.”
“Agreed. Otherwise it will be too easy for her to slip back into old habits. But it’s a hell of a start.”
“It gives me hope, man. Definitely gives me hope.”
“Christ, I’m sorry about the photos. I didn’t mean to walk right into that one.” Liam grimaced.
“Don’t sweat it. She needed the truth sooner or later. But fuck, I hated hurting her that way. Betraying her wasn’t at all what I’d intended. I should have told her about them long before now.”
Liam sent Hammer a speculative look. “Why haven’t you ever told her that you’re in love with her?”
“Where the hell did that come from?” Hammer barked.
If they were mending fences, Liam was tired of tiptoeing around his friend. The time had come to lay everything out in the open.
“Seriously, mate. You should have told her. She’s never held back how she feels about you.”
“Everything that happened today tells me that you’re right. I should have confessed my feelings a long time ago. I just let all the other fears and bullshit get in the way. Fuck me.” Hammer shook his head. “Now that I’m ready to say it, it’s not the right time or place. There’s no way I’ll distract her from what we’re trying to accomplish here. Besides, her telling me that she loves me is only a recent thing. I may have suspected but…”
“I’d give anything to hear her say those words to me.”
Hammer’s mouth hung open in shock. “She never has?”
“Not once.”
“Just because she hasn’t said the words doesn’t mean… Christ. You’re joking, right? Can’t you see the way she looks at you? You have to know she loves you.”
He hoped. Wanted. Pined, even. But he didn’t know.
Liam stood and walked to the windows. “She feels something for me, but I still need to bloody hear it.”
He felt Hammer stroll up behind him and put a hand on his shoulder.
“I can see it’s tearing you up. But trust me, she’ll tell you. Be patient. She’ll sort things out and say the words you want to hear.”
“I wish I shared your confidence. I sure as hell don’t want her learning how to share her heart by your example,” Liam poked.
“Fuck you, asshole.” Hammer laughed, then sobered quickly. “I did the best I could at the time with both you and Raine. The hiding and evasions snowballed somehow. The truth hurt too much. Before I knew it, the avalanche of hurt and confusion buried me.”
“Don’t shut me out again, Macen. I would have been there for you. I still am, you bloody wanker.”
“I know, man. Thank you.” Hammer gripped him in a brotherly hug and smacked him on the back.
“So, are we done measuring our cocks now?” Liam asked. “Because mine is still bigger than yours.”
“In your fucking dreams.” Hammer chuckled.
“See, I told you they were idiots,” Seth grumbled as he and Beck strolled into the room. “They’re even talking about whipping them out and comparing.”
“Obviously, there’s nothing wrong with their size or mojo. I think everyone who lives on the mountain overheard Raine’s screams.” Beck smirked.
Liam and Hammer exchanged a smug look of pride.
“Which brings me to my next question.” Seth groaned and adjusted the swell beneath the zipper of his jeans. “Are there any available women at this godforsaken altitude?”
“Oh, bugger off. There’s a bottle of lotion under the sink in your bathroom. Have a grand time with your fist.”
“Just jack off quietly,” Hammer instructed.
“And clean up afterward. I don’t want Ngaire having to mop up behind you.” Liam laughed.
“You two made a Raine sandwich, I take it?” Beck asked with a leering grin.
“You perverts.” Hammer scoffed. “We didn’t fuck her. We rewarded her for a job well done.”
“Like it’s any of your bloody business,” Liam growled.
“Well, technically it is. You brought us up this mountain to help, so…yeah, we need to know if you gave her a good reward or a mind-blowing one. By the sound of her screams, I’d say she definitely got her mind blown.” Seth grinned. “Wish I could have seen it.”
“Shut the fuck up and get a drink,” Hammer grumbled. “We’ve had a hell of a breakthrough you need to hear about.”
As the four men settled in near the fireplace, he and Macen told the others about the inroads they’d made with Raine. Liam was still in awe at how she’d burst open and shared her soul with them both. They’d worked as a team, like they had in the past—but better, more naturally. It reassured him that he and Hammer were on the same page. Same page, nothing. It felt as if they’d started writing a new chapter in their friendship. After the chasm that had so recently divided them, mending the fracture felt damn good.