Three for Julie (Blissful Bets #4)

by Alaska Angelini

Taylor nodded. “I’d like that. I just need to check on her and make sure everything is okay. We left on pretty bad terms.”

  “Let’s go see her.” Londyn started walking for the door and noticed that, although he could tell it was hard, Taylor kept his pace. The closer they got the more he could sense the happiness from his brother. They sure had hit it off good. Real good.

  Taylor knocked and before he could put down his hand, Aston opened the door. A smile was radiating from his face.

  “There you both are! I thought you’d be here yesterday.”

  They walked inside and Julie came out of her room wearing a purple sundress. She looked unbelievable. Her face was glowing, and the smile she sported blew Londyn away. That was, until she looked at both him and Taylor, together.

  “Oh, hi. What are you two doing? I never thought…oh my God! Taylor. What in the world?”

  Julie came up and walked around him in a circle. Her mouth was open in shock.

  Taylor’s eyes darted to Londyn, nervously. “I’ve been…working out.”

  Julie laughed. “I’d say! Holy crap. It’s only been a few days.”

  Aston pulled her to his side. “Londyn has this great workout plan. The results are, well, you see me.”

  Julie looked at him skeptically. “What kind of workout plan? We’ve been eating nothing but takeout since you’ve been here. I don’t think you’ve done one push-up or anything.”

  “Well, the results are not going to melt away. Plus, it’s a secret.”

  “Ah, I see.” Julie stepped closer to Londyn. “I don’t recall you ever really working out or eating healthy when we were together for all those months, and yet you look the same.”

  Everyone got quiet and just looked at each other. Londyn wasn’t sure what to say, but if they didn’t get off this topic fast, he wasn’t sure how much longer they could go rounds without turning into putty in her hands. One slip and he’d end up confessing everything. “Mine are just genetics. So, tell me how things have been going over here. I take it my brother has been taking care of you?”

  The smile came back, and she looked at Aston, adoringly. “Yes. He’s taken wonderful care of me.” Aston gave her a nod and she turned to them, her face filling with worry. “Actually, I need to speak to both of you.”

  “About what?” Taylor kept shifting from one foot to the other. Londyn was going to have to get him out of here quick, or else Julie was going to think he was wired on something. Hell, she’d probably accuse him of injecting Taylor with steroids or something.

  “I have a problem. I’ve tried to hide if for some time, but it’s caught up with me and, since you two are a big part of my life, I felt you should know the truth.” Julie looked back at Aston. Londyn could tell she was drawing strength from him. Whatever it was she wanted to admit, he could tell it was hard for her.

  “I’m an…” Her eyes darted to his brother, panicked.

  “Go on.” Aston placed his hand on her lower back.

  “I have a drinking problem. Until a few days ago, I spent my days intoxicated. Taylor knows this, I’m sure. Well, since Aston’s been here, I haven’t drunk at all. I can’t explain it. The urge is just…gone. It’s like it disappeared out of nowhere.”

  Taylor walked forward and pulled Julie into his arms. “That’s wonderful news. I was so worried for you.”

  “I know you were. You deserved so much more than me. I was afraid of hurting you.”

  Taylor placed his hands on the side of her face and Londyn could tell Aston was having a hard time holding back. The bond between him and Julie was growing by the hour and getting between a bonding male and his female was a death sentence for anyone. The fact that his anger was directed at Taylor wasn’t a good sign. It only meant one thing. Taylor didn’t have the pull.

  “Is that why you were pushing me away? The drinking?”

  Julie nodded and buried her face in Taylor’s chest. “It would have ruined your feelings for me.”

  Taylor hugged her to him tighter. “No, Julie. I gave you a ring. I knew you had a drinking problem, but I thought if you could learn to trust me, then you’d let me help you through it. I never wanted you to hide away and think that I wouldn’t accept you for who you are. I wanted to marry you when I knew, and I still do.”

  Londyn grabbed Aston’s arm as he stepped forward. The look in his brother’s eyes would have scared anyone. A shake of his head, and Aston stepped back.

  “Taylor.” Julie pulled him to the couch where they sat down. She turned toward him and grabbed his hands. “I’ve been talking to Aston and although we haven’t known each other for that long, I filled him in on everything. You see, I’m in quite the dilemma. I love you.” She looked at Londyn and smiled. “And I think I’m still in love with him.” And she looked at Aston. “And I’ve fallen pretty hard for his brother.”

  Julie turned back to Taylor. “You all mean something to me, and right now I’m just so confused. I’m not sure what to do.”

  “Be with all of us.” Londyn watched Julie’s jaw drop at his statement. Even Taylor and Aston seemed surprised he’d said it. True, the men knew it might be a possibility in the long run, at least for him and Aston, but there was no use waiting. Plus, how was he ever going to strengthen the bond between him and Julie if he was taking care of Taylor the whole time?

  “Well, I don’t know. I mean, how would that even work? Between the four of us, we have three different apartments.”

  “We get rid of them all.” Londyn put his hands in his pockets. He could feel his smile getting bigger by the second. The plan was perfect. “Let’s get a house. What’s the worst that could happen, it doesn’t work between any of us? We become roommates? That’s not too bad. But, if it does work out, Julie can be loved by everyone and we’re all happy.”

  Taylor stood. “I’m good with that. My lease is almost up anyway.”

  Julie looked at Aston, who had a smile finally on his face. “I think it’s a great idea. You’ll be more protected with all three of us watching over you, and then I have you all the time. I don’t mind if you’re with all of us. I kind of like these guys.”

  Londyn rolled his eyes and laughed. “You have to like me. I’m your brother.”

  “True.” Aston looked over at Taylor. “Can I speak with you outside real quick?”

  “Sure.”

  Londyn watched as they stepped out of the door. He looked at Julie as she stood up and came to stand before him.

  “You really hurt me when you left. I lost a piece of myself that day that I didn’t ever think was going to get replaced.”

  Londyn’s heart ached at her pain. “I’m so sorry. I wish things could have been different. I wanted to call you so bad and tell you where I was every single day. It hurt me too. More than you’ll ever know. I love you, Julie. I have from the moment you slammed the door in my face so long ago. You have no idea how much you mean to me.”

  “How do I know you’re not going to do it again?”

  Londyn looked deep into her eyes. “Because I love you too much to hurt you again. If I leave, I’ll take you with me. We’ll all go.” Londyn gestured at the door. “Your happiness is what is most important to me. To all of us, really.”

  Julie pulled his face to hers and the first contact of their lips sent a jolt down Londyn’s spine. The bond they had before burst alive with renewed vigor. The kiss deepened and he could feel himself drawing Julie closer.

  “God, I’ve missed you.” Julie’s arms wrapped around his neck and she pressed her breasts into his chest. His cock was throbbing with how much he wanted her.

  “I thought you were never going to forgive me.” Londyn kissed her again. How many times had he dreamed of this moment? Hell, every night since he had left.

  Julie broke their kiss and stepped back. “Well, it wasn’t easy. Aston and I had a very long talk yesterday. He told me everything.”

  The rate of Londyn’s heart accelerated into overdrive. “What do you mean he told you everything?”
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  Julie ignored his question and walked into the kitchen. She opened the refrigerator and took out a soda. “You want one?”

  “No.” He waved it off. “Tell me what he told you, Julie.”

  The pop from the top opening broke the silence. “You’re a wolf. He’s a wolf. You infected Taylor during a fight. We’re all four hopefully meant to be together.” She paused. “And I have to admit, I really think all of that has something to do with how my drinking problem mysteriously vanished. Maybe it took all three of you coming into my life for things inside of me to change. It’s the only solution I can come up with.”

  “So now you know…” Londyn shook his head, confused. “Then why give Taylor the hard time?”

  Julie laughed. “He likes it. Taylor’s very…” A blush came to her cheeks. “He’s very dominating. I give him a hard time, and I know I’ll eventually get punished for it. It’s the way we work. When he finds out what I did, I’ll get it good.”

  “You little minx!” Londyn burst out laughing. “So we’re good then?”

  “Well, I have to admit, I didn’t think I was ever going to stop the hurt you caused. But now that you’re back, and I know you didn’t leave me willingly, it helps. I still can’t believe Ayden wouldn’t allow you to call me.”

  Londyn pulled her back to the couch to sit down. “Julie, you have to know something about the world we live in. Nothing is as it appears. We have rival packs we deal with. They’re always looking for a weak links to test. Anything to somehow overthrow Ayden from power and take our territory as their own. But not only that, we have the vampires to deal with. Channing or Brandon would be able to tell you all about that. Some of them are downright evil. Sarah found out firsthand with Tom.”

  “Wait,” Julie said, shocked. “Brandon and Channing are vampires? Like…real vampires?”

  “Yeah, it’s pretty crazy. Channing is one of the most powerful vampires alive. He’s feared by everyone who knows about him. We all sighed in relief when Melissa tamed him.”

  Julie took another drink of her soda and laid it on the coffee table. “It’s so hard to grasp. So what happens now?”

  The door opened and Aston and Taylor walked back in. Taylor looked flustered, and Londyn could feel his anxiety. “You okay?”

  Taylor looked at Julie, and then at him. “I think I need to lie down. I’m not feeling so good all of a sudden. I hate to say it, but I think we should be heading back.”

  “Absolutely not.” Julie stood and grabbed his hand. “You’re not going anywhere. Come to my bed. You can rest there.” As she walked Taylor out of the room, Londyn turned to Aston.

  “She told me she knows, and that she forgives me. Thank you, brother.”

  Aston shrugged. “She’s amazing. I needed her to understand the truth of why you left, and to do that I had to be honest. I knew she’d take it okay. She’s a lot stronger than you’d think.”

  “Yeah, she is.” Londyn looked toward the bedroom. “I better go check on Taylor. He had a bad transition. He’d only just woken up before we came over.”

  “Seriously? Four days? How is that even possible? That’s twice the time it took me to transition. I could tell his body took a hell of an adjustment, but wow.”

  Londyn sighed. “I know. I don’t understand it. Look at him. We change some when we shifted, but the muscle that boy has on him now is insane. Ayden came by yesterday and took an interest. I think when Taylor learns the way of the pack, he’s going to move up in rank pretty fast.”

  “I bet. We could sure use him.” Aston rubbed his eyes and yawned. “Damn, I’m tired. I haven’t been sleeping very good at all. I’m so worried that I’m going to miss some sound or indication that this guy is trying to break in and my chance to get him will be gone.”

  “If you want to stay with Taylor tonight, I’ll gladly take over here.”

  Aston laughed. “I bet you would.”

  “I need this,” Londyn pleaded. “I know you’ve gotten close with her, but I need it too. We’re both meant to be with her, not just you.”

  Aston nodded. “You’re right. I’m sorry. You already let me stay your two days. Plus, I could use a good night’s sleep.”

  “Are you two serious?” Julie glared at them from the edge of the living room. Her hands were on her hips and she looked angry. “Y’all talk about getting a house together and all this crap and here you are about to switch shifts and go back to your apartments. Why the hell can’t we all stay here? My apartment may be small, but if we have to we’ll just drag the mattress in here and all sleep on the floor.” Julie’s lower lip quivered. “I don’t want any of you to leave. If we’re meant to be together than let’s make it happen. No more running to different apartments. No more leaving.”

  Londyn looked over at Aston and smiled. “Sounds good to me.”

  “Hell, me too.” He held out his arms and Julie rushed into them.

  She pulled back after a few seconds. “But, since I can’t leave anywhere, I need you two to both do me a favor.”

  The brother’s looked at each other uneasily. “What’s that?” Londyn asked.

  Julie gestured toward the kitchen. “We need food. My guess is we’re going to need a lot of it. Could you both run to the store for me and grab some groceries? I’m so tired of takeout.”

  “You want us both to go?” Aston looked at her worriedly.

  “Taylor’s here. I’ll be fine.”

  Londyn shook his head. “Julie, he’s really not in any condition to protect you. I guarantee you he’s already snoring logs.”

  “It’ll be fine. If anyone is watching me then they’ve seen three men come into my apartment. Only two are going to be leaving. They’ll still know one of you is here, and I doubt they would try anything. Trust me. If it makes you feel better, Aston, you can leave me your gun. I’m an excellent shot. Ask Londyn.”

  “She can shoot pretty good. I’ve seen it,” Londyn assured him.

  Aston growled. “I don’t like this one bit, but fine. I’ll leave you my gun. Do not open the door for anyone. Promise me.”

  Julie nodded. “I promise.”

  “We’ll try to hurry. Before we go to the store though, Londyn and I are going to have to make a pit stop by the apartment first and grab us all some clothes.” Aston pulled her close. “Are you sure you’re not going to open the door?”

  Julie kissed him softly on the mouth. “I promise. Now go. I’m starving.”

  Londyn went to turn when Julie grabbed his hand. “Forgetting something?”

  He laughed and pulled her into his arms. “Absolutely not. You seriously think I’d leave without kissing you good-bye?” His lips pressed into hers, and Londyn wasn’t sure he was going to be able to stop. Julie sucked his lip into her mouth, and he felt his knees grow weak.

  “Tonight.” She broke away slowly, leaving Londyn in a daze.

  “Yes, tonight.” Aston pulled him toward the door. “We’ll be back as fast as we can.” He pulled his gun out and handed it to her. “Safety is here. Pop that off and it should be ready to use.”

  Julie rolled her eyes. “This is Texas. I know how to shoot a gun. Now go.”

  Londyn followed Aston out of the apartment and they waited until they heard the lock on the dead bolt slide over. He looked at his brother. “Whose ride are we taking? Yours or mine?”

  Aston laughed. “Mine’s faster.”

  “Agreed.” Londyn walked in the direction of Aston’s car and felt nervousness overtake him. He didn’t like leaving Julie for one second, but if they were going to set up here for the time being, they needed everything possible to make it to where they didn’t have to leave often, and that would mean food and clothes.

  Chapter 10

  Julie crawled into the bed softly, so as not to wake up Taylor. He had felt slightly feverish earlier, and he didn’t look any better now. Truthfully, although she had accepted the fact that they were wolves, it scared the shit out of her. Had anyone ever died through the transition? What if i
t was making Taylor sick for all the wrong reasons? The thought of losing him was unbearable. Not again. Never again.

  “Julie?”

  “Shh.” She kissed his forehead. “I didn’t mean to wake you. Try to go back to sleep. You need all the rest you can get. You don’t look so well.”

  “Must be the flu or something.” Taylor cleared his throat and closed his eyes.

  “Flu, my ass. We both know you’re a wolf now.”

  Taylor’s eyes flew open. “You know?”

  “I’ve known since yesterday.” Julie smiled as his eyes narrowed. Before she could blink, he’d spun around and pulled her underneath him. His hand quickly pinned her arms above her head. The weight of his body pressed against her, making it impossible to move. Seeing him shirtless was enough to make her wet. To have his hips pushing into her inner thighs was asking for trouble.

  “You’ve been a very, very bad girl, Jules. If I knew my own strength, I’d give you a good spanking. Being that I don’t, I think I’m going to have to find other ways to punish you.” The weight of Taylor’s hard cock rested against her stomach, and Julie moaned as he bent down and licked over her lower lip.

  “Taylor, you need rest. We have plenty of time for this.” Sweat was beginning to collect on his forehead. It was evident that no matter what he wanted, his body wasn’t ready to let him carry on with his regular routine.

  “I hate the way I feel, Jules.” Taylor collapsed next to her. “One minute I’m fine, the next I feel like I’ve got the worst flu in the world. Why is it lasting so long?”

  “I don’t know.” Julie stood from the bed. “Let me get a wet washcloth and wipe you down. Maybe we can try to break the fever.”

  Julie opened the adjoining bathroom door and paused as her cell phone began to ring. Dammit. She had to get it. It could be Aston or Londyn wanting to check in on her. “Hold on, Taylor.” Julie jogged to the living room and grabbed her phone. Melissa’s number was on the caller ID.

  “Hey, Mel.”

  “Jules, I wanted to see how you were doing.”

  Julie smiled. “I’m beyond great. I’m actually looking over Taylor now. He’s pretty sick.”