“Nah, I would have found a way eventually. You’re my little sister, Kat. I’ll never let you drown, kid.”
My eyes snap to his and he smiles, and I smile back.
And for the first time in a long time, I feel like maybe, just maybe, everything is going to be okay.
“So what now?” I ask, knowing there’s still one secret between us. One I’m not sure how he’ll react to.
But if he means what he said, then he’ll have to accept it.
He’ll have to accept that my heart belongs to two men.
36
RYDER
“Do you really think this is the best way to play this?” Kat asks from her position on Styx’s—our—bed.
I might have moved in and have my own room, but since Kat forgave us, I can count on one hand the number of times I’ve slept in that bed. All of them with her when Styx has worked late and I tried to steal myself a little kitten time alone. It worked until he returned, then each time he’s scooped her right out of my bed from my arms, and returned her to his. The only good thing about that situation is that Styx’s bed is bigger, and he doesn’t seem all that bothered when I also trail behind him and join them.
“Is there a best way to tell any big brother that his little sister is banging his childhood best friends… at the same time?”
“Ry,” she groans, dropping her head into her hands while I steal Styx’s hair wax.
“I know what you’re doing, darlin’,” I tell her.
“Oh, yeah?” she asks, resting back with her palms on the bed.
There’s a crash out in the living room that startles both of us, we relax when it’s followed up with, “I’m back. I’m back,” as Styx rushes through to his room. “You fucking lost again, bro?” he asks, finding me first before his eyes land on our girl. “Oh fuck, what did I miss?”
“Nothing,” I grunt irritatedly.
“Aw, man. Our girl not putting out without me?” Styx teases, pulling his shirt from his body, much to Kat’s delight.
“Nope, apparently neither of us are getting anything until we’ve finally confessed our sins.”
“Our sins?” Styx barks. “D knows I’m fucking his sister six ways from Sunday any opportunity I get. You’re the only one with secrets right now, Ry.”
“If you believe for even a second that you’re not going to get some shit for this then you’ve got another thing coming. He’s barely holding himself back from breaking every bone in your body.”
“Nah, big brother loves me again. Doesn’t he, Kitty Kat?”
“Uh…”
“Exactly. Now, why are we standing over here having a conversation when our girl is sitting there in the sexiest lingerie I’ve ever seen?”
Kat smirks.
“I think she’s trying to distract us.”
The two of us close in on her. She tries to plaster an innocent look on her face, but I see right through it. Her lingerie might be angelic white lace, but it’s anything but modest.
“You guys don’t have time for this. You’re meeting D in like ten minutes.”
“We don’t need any more time than that to have you screaming, Kitten,” I tell her honestly.
“I told you not until—”
I wrap my hand around her throat and lift her from the bed. “We never said anything about us, darlin’. We wantyouscreaming.”