“It keeps me disgusted. You know there are better things to drink.”
Ambrose ignored me as he held up his bottle. “To the two of you and to giving LePlatt what he deserves.”
I fought back tears as our bottles clinked. I took a sip and realized the burn of the ginger was nearly as potent as the burn of his moonshine.
Travis coughed and waved his hand in front of his mouth. “You didn’t tell me it was”—he paused to cough some more—“lethal.”
Ambrose grinned. “I like it spicy.”
He drained his bottle, but Travis and I only made a small dent in ours. After he was finished, Ambrose rose to take the bottles to his wash basin. “The two of you should stay here for the night.”
The invitation surprised me more than the ginger ale. “I thought you didn’t believe in overnight guests.”
“I don’t believe in any kind of guest, but you’re not a guest. You’re my brother.” Damn him for bringing me close to tears. I needed to remember to thank Remington for insisting we talk to Ambrose in person. I glanced at Travis and saw him smiling. He knew what I was feeling, and if anyone would understand the significance of Ambrose’s offer, it was Travis.
What had come between me and Ambrose wasn’t something he or I had done, but Travis knew the pain of losing the closeness and comfort a brother could provide.
Having apparently had enough conversation and certainly enough sentiment, Ambrose rinsed the bottles with a jug of water he kept by the basin. “See you in the morning. Breakfast is at first light.”
When he closed the bedroom door behind him, I could tell Travis was trying hard not to laugh. “He’s so…”
“Fucking insufferable?”
“Not exactly. It’s like he’s the same as he used to be, just magnified.”
I considered Travis’s observation. “He’s ruder, more difficult, more abrupt.”
“I heard that,” Ambrose called.
Of course he had. “Well, it’s true.”
“Fuck off and go to sleep.”
Travis glanced around the room, then mouthed, “Where do we sleep?”
I held up a finger, telling him to wait. I opened a cabinet that was hard to see if you didn’t know about it since it faded into the wall. Inside were sheets and blankets for the couch bed.
I stripped down to my underwear and Travis did the same. He almost fell over getting out of his pants because he couldn’t seem to take his eyes off me. I ate up every bit of the attention.
Travis looked nervous as he climbed into bed with me.
“Is something wrong?”
He glanced toward the bedroom, then whispered. “Your brother is right there.”
“My brother knows I’m not a virgin.”
Travis covered his mouth as he laughed. “Yeah, but—”
“He knows you’re not one either. “We’re adults. You’re mine, and you’re sleeping in this bed with me.”
“Sleeping.” Travis emphasized the word.
That had been my intention until he said it so definitively. Right then, I decided I didn’t care about Ambrose’s proximity or how well developed his hearing was. Travis and I were both coming before we went to sleep.
19
Dax
I slid my hand down Travis’s stomach and pushed his briefs out of the way so I could grip his rapidly hardening cock. His eyes went wide, but he didn’t say anything to protest because Ambrose would surely hear that.
I worked him slowly up and down, brushing my thumb over his slit. He crammed his fist into his mouth to quiet his moans. I loved how turned on he was, how quickly he lost control. I let go of him, scooting slightly away.
He looked at me questioningly.
“More?” I asked barely giving the word voice.
He looked so damn conflicted. I considered sliding under the covers and sucking him off, but I didn’t think he could keep quiet for that, and I didn’t really want Ambrose listening in. Travis’s cries were only for me.
“Yes,” he finally said like I’d pulled the word from him.
The monster in me needed to push him. “Ask nicely.”
His eyes widened at the demand, and I waited, holding his gaze and trying my best not to let him see that I was about to lose it, pounce on him, and fuck him hard enough that the whole bayou would hear.
“Please,” he whispered.
Jesus, could anyone be sexier? I pushed my underwear down, freeing my own cock, then I gripped his hips, roughly pulling them back to me. I rubbed my cock against his, and his teeth sank into his lower lip. I wondered if he’d really be able to hold in the sounds he wanted to make. I loved how fucking loud he’d been the night before.
I slid my hand under his head and pulled him close so I could whisper against his ear. “I intended to take my time with you tonight, to play with you, to please you, to take care of you. I didn’t mean for us to be stuck here on this pathetic excuse for a bed, but no way in hell am I letting you go to sleep unsatisfied. We’ll save everything else for tomorrow.”