She’d thought about it before, of course. Back when she was a teenager. How could she not? She’d kissed the other two Healy brothers, but not the third. The most mysterious.
In some ways, Shay was more her type than the other two. On paper, at least. He was quiet, reserved. If a matchmaker was going to team her up with one of them, surely it would have been Shay.
But imagine having all three. The fun of Conor. The soul of Finn. The seriousness of Shay.
Tammy rolled over in the super-comfortable bed and was surprised to see a stuffie — a tiny little owl wearing a mortar-board cap. What a cute little guy.
‘Archimedes,’ she said, without even thinking about the name. She had a vague memory of a cartoon owl from some movie or other called Archimedes, but she couldn’t pin it down. ‘I wonder if you’ll get on with Goldie.’ Hmmm. Goldie wasn’t one to share her affection with other stuffies, but surely she wouldn’t mind hanging out with someone as cute as Archie.
‘Hey, sleepyhead.’ A familiar voice — Finn. ‘We’re waiting for you downstairs. Breakfast’s ready.’
It was the first time Tammy had ever had breakfast in a pub. The boys had done their best to make the place seem homely, even going so far as to set the table with a red and white checked tablecloth, and upon it was a little glass jar with a cut flower in it. She recognized it as one of the yellow wildflowers that grew outside The Den.
On the table sat three steaming hot bowls of oatmeal.
‘Porridge: just like in the story.’ Finn smiled at her. He was wearing a thick-knit gray cardigan this morning — it looked so snuggly and warm that she wanted to crawl into it with him.
‘After your little Goldilocks routine last night, we thought you might appreciate achoiceof oatmeal this morning. Hopefully one of these will be just right for you.’ Conor grinned, his blue eyes sparkling.
He looked about as different from Finn as he could manage this morning. He was wearing what she knew to be a rugby top (it was some kind of soccer-like sport they played back in the UK). The top was green and had a gold collar, and it was so tight that she could see the shape of his body clearly beneath it. He always oozed sexuality, but this morning she was so damn horny that she just wanted to rub up against him for a couple of hours while his brother smacked her behind ’til it was raw.
Last night had been a transformational experience. When Finn had started to spank her, it had felt at first as though all the baggage of the last ten years was falling away. The relief of the pain — the shock of it – was unlocking it. The knot that had slowly been tied in her stomach by time and heartbreak was being untangled.
But when Conor had struck her, the tears had started. It had taken her a little while to work out exactly why she was crying. Until last night, she hadn’t even realized that you could cry without knowing why. But now, the reason was obvious. They were tears of hope. The hope of never being left behind again. But along with hope, there came fear. Fear of just how much there was to lose.
She still wasn’t quite sure how she felt about Finn’s explanation of why they’d left her when they were kids. He said that they thought she was too good for them. Didn’t sound like the kind of thing that would make the Healy brothers leave town without a word. But they’d been young, and young people did stupid things. God knows she’d done her fair share of dumb stuff. She was willing to look to the future now.
And right now, the future seemed very oatmeal-filled.
‘So, what are my options?’ she asked, focusing on the bowls.
‘Salty. Sweet. Plain,’ Conor said simply.
Tammy was unsure.
‘Well, there’s a little more to it than that,’ Finn admitted. ‘The sweet one is finished with pecans, dates, and maple syrup. Just how I like it.’ He showed her the glistening, sticky-looking topping on the sweet oatmeal.
‘The salty one’s how I take it,’ Conor cut in, poking a second bowl toward her. ‘Topped with diced bacon, a little Parmesan, and a mushroom or two.’
She’d never had savory oatmeal before. It sounded weirdly delicious, kind of like a pasta dish. And it looked even better than it sounded, finished with exotic-looking mushrooms and gently melting shreds of salty Parmesan. But she wasn’t sure how well it would sit with her for breakfast. It sounded so rich.
‘What about plain?’ she asked.
‘That’s how Shay takes it,’ Finn snorted, offering her a look at the final bowl. ‘It’s just oats, milk, and a fuck-ton of Irish butter.’
Her tummy rumbled. ‘Call me crazy,’ she said, ‘but I’m going with plain. Ilovebutter.’
‘Hey,’ Conor said. ‘That suits us. Plenty for everyone.’ He put the buttery oatmeal down in front of her and grabbed the salty bowl for himself.
As they ate, the light in the room changed. The sun rose, and a wonderful, white light filled the space. It almost felt as though her soul was relaxing, becoming more itself with every bite.
‘This issotasty,’ she said as she practically inhaled the food.
‘Hearty, too,’ Conor said. ‘It’ll fill you up ’til lunch. Then I’m gonna throw together something really healthy for us. I’m not as good a cook as Shay as, but I’ll make it tasty, I promise. We want to make sure you’re looking after yourself, Tam-Tam. You’ve got an important job to do, and we want to make sure you’re properly fueled to do it.’
Gah. No snacks? Tammyalwayssnacked. Otherwise, she’d crash by eleven o’clock or so, and she couldn’t afford that.
‘Mmm-hmm,’ she murmured noncommittally.