by Sharan Daire
“Absolutely. Just be more natural. Looser and less stiff. Practice every day, even if we don’t shoot.”
I nodded, determined to set aside some extra time each night. Though I might have to hide in the bathroom to practice without the guys knowing and getting mad at me for “working” after hours.
Paolo focused on Chris. “We should look at the collection this afternoon and identify your three best looks.”
Chris nodded. “I have an idea which two to use in addition to the red velvet gown, but I’ll probably need to modify them. They need to be elevated even more to be ready for New York.”
“About that…” His head whipped to me immediately, making me hesitate slightly. My cheeks heated, but I needed to mention it, especially if he was going to be doing modifications anyway. “You’ll probably need to make more room in the bodice. That’s the first part of me that’ll start growing. Probably in the next week or two.”
“Hot damn,” Kaleb said.
Derek cuffed him in the back of the head. Though I didn’t miss the heat growing in his eyes either. Everett laughed at them both, but his gaze definitely dropped to my breasts, as if already mentally trying to decide how much bigger they might get.
I had a feeling that they were going to be extremely… attentive… in the next few months.
With Bubby and Allie on either side of me on the couch, I fought to stay awake while he read from the book he’d brought home from school. He paused, sounding out a word, and Allie yawned too.
“That’s enough for tonight,” I said, giving his shoulder a squeeze. “You’re doing so great. Do you still like your teacher?”
“Yeah, Ms. Tyler’s great. She said I’m all caught up already, and if I keep reading books like this one, I’ll be able to borrow from her advanced shelf. She has way more books than Ms. Brown back home. I mean in Dallas.”
One thing I’d never really understood until I was older was how much poverty affected every level of your life. Especially when you had kids. We’d lived in a pretty poor neighborhood. I worked crazy hours at a diner for a pittance. My kids never got fancy toys or brand-new designer clothes. But I also hadn’t been able to buy them books or educational games, and our school’s resources had been just as sparse. Sure, we’d gone to the public library, when I could miss enough work to take the three-stop bus trip one way from our shitty apartment.
Bubby rummaged around in his backpack and pulled out a flyer that he shyly handed to me. He didn’t say anything. He’d learned a long time ago that I’d never been able to afford any kind of extras.
The flyer listed tons of brand-new shiny books for kids of all ages. He’d brought book fair flyers home before, and I’d never ever been able to afford a single book. How much his book-loving heart must have hurt every single time all his classmates had been able to buy books, and he’d been forced to sit at his desk. Going without.
Blinking back tears, I flipped through the pages with him and Allie, listening to them both as they babbled with excitement about all the pretty pictures and exciting stories. Though neither asked if they could actually have a single book.
I could afford to splurge. I had the money Everett had deposited for me, and I certainly didn’t have any bills living here. He’d given me a new phone a few weeks ago and I’d noticed the bank app on it, but I hadn’t bothered to check it. Out of a habitual fear of bouncing payments and driving my account even more negative with crazy bank fees, I decided to check my balance. Just to be safe.
I opened the app. Looked away for a moment while it loaded, watching which books the kids were gravitating toward the most and trying to add up how much they might cost. Glanced back at the phone.
But I couldn’t make sense of the numbers. I must have made a weird sound because both kids paused their chatter and looked up at me.
Derek immediately stood, already moving toward me like there was something about to explode. “What’s wrong?”
Kaleb and Everett paused the game they were playing. Chris closed the book he was reading and tossed it down on the table, as if he needed both hands to beat the shit out of somebody.
Silently, I handed the phone to Derek.
He glanced at the screen and handed it down to Everett. “Is something wrong? I thought maybe you’d gotten bad news about your grandmother.”
“That balance,” I whispered, trying not to hyperventilate. “It’s wrong.”
Everett scanned through the activity a few moments and then handed the phone back to Derek. “We’ve been paying out every Friday. You should get another deposit tomorrow.”
My eyes were surely bugging out of my head. “No. That’s not right. That can’t be.”
“Get her a drink,” Chris barked, snapping down on his knees before me to lightly chafe my hands in his. “She looks like she’s about to pass out again.”
“I’m fine. I just… That balance is wrong. It has to be wrong.”
Chris’ jaws tightened, his eyes narrowing. “We’re paying you the full amount per day, even if we’re working a bit less. I’m not shorting you just because you’re—”
“It’s right,” Everett butted in, just in case Chris was going to blurt the news in front of the kids. “You’ll get another fifty grand tomorrow as we agreed.”
Maybe I wasn’t fine. My ears roared like a tornado was ripping across the plains headed straight toward us.
“It’s fine, Mom,” Bubby said as he folded up the flyer. “Ms. Tyler has lots of books.”
“No, that’s not…” I blinked furiously, trying not to cry and scare him. “I didn’t mean you couldn’t have a book. In fact, I want you to pick out every book on that flyer that you and Allie want. Okay? Every. Single. Book.”
His eyes widened and Allie clapped her hands. “I can have a book too?”
“Absolutely. All the books you want. Why don’t you get a pen and mark the ones you’d like to read? Then we’ll fill out the form tonight.”
Allie jumped up and down as Bubby flipped through the pages. “I want the princess one.”
He looked up at me, a worry line between his eyes. “That one’s a set, Mom. It’s more but it has three books in it.”
“That’s okay,” I whispered, clearing my throat. “Get it.”
Derek offered the phone back to me. I stared down at the screen, my bottom lip trembling.
I’d never seen so many zeroes before. Like in real money. In my bank account. And they were depositing more on Friday…
I already had over one-hundred-THOUSAND dollars.
Enough to buy a fucking house. A new car. Pay for my kids’ college without even breaking a sweat. I could do anything with this much money, and it was actually going to keep growing, because I didn’t have expenses. I didn’t have to pay for the roof over my head.
Until I actually saw the balance with my name on the account, it hadn’t really sunk in how much this modeling job would change our lives. Even if I lost the guys, I would be okay. Even if they kicked me out and told me everything was off, I had options. I’d actually be better off—incredibly well positioned for anything. I would never again have to put our meager possessions in the trunk and start driving on fumes, hoping to land somewhere safe. I’d never have to wait tables again or put food back on the shelf because I didn’t have enough tips to cover the grocery bill. Or come home to the power turned off.
I looked up at each of them. Derek, still guarding nearby, ready to leap to my defense or hurry to take care of anything that might have upset me. Chris, scowling like always, probably planning to throw more money in my bank account out of spite, just because he could. Everett, calm and coolly assured that everything was in order, correct, and all of us were well protected by his contracts. Kaleb, already scooting around to help the kids fill out the order form, smiling and giggling with them like he was just as excited as they were over a few books.
They were mine. All of them. My family.
How could I even begin to thank them?
11
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Derek
I had to be up early for work tomorrow, but it’d been incredible to sleep in with her this morning. I didn’t begrudge her splitting her time among all of us. That was the point after all. We wanted to share her in every way possible.
But on occasion, it was extremely nice to have her all to myself.
Since I’d slept in with her this morning, I fully intended to bow out of sleeping in her bed tonight. We had a rather loose arrangement where one of us three cycled through the guest room upstairs by the kids’ rooms. It was nice to have someone up there in case they needed something, and it gave a more reasonable body count in her bed. It was a giant bed, but with five bodies smashed together, it was difficult to actually rest.
Especially for her, and now, more than ever, she needed her rest.
We’d come to an unspoken agreement that we’d allow her to initiate sex as much as possible. We might be full-grown horny men, but over the years, we’d learned all too quickly how difficult it was going to be to find a woman who wanted our kind of relationship. We’d been forced to be extremely patient in that regard. Sex was great, don’t get me wrong, and I’d be more than happy to fuck every single night. All night. Bring it on.
But in reality, we had one woman we all four loved more than anything else. She would say how often and who and when, and there wouldn’t be a word of complaint from any of us.
Besides, now that we knew she was pregnant, we weren’t even sure what was allowed in that department. If we had to wait until November to make love to her again, then so be it. We’d still be right here, holding her, cuddling with her, sleeping with her, however she wished.
Since I had to be up early, I went ahead and showered before bed. They’d mentioned an Epsom salt bath this morning for her sore muscles, so I decided to start the water in the tub for her. I had to guess on the heat. Warm but not too hot, what the fuck did that mean?
I sprinkled in a couple of cups of salts, since the bathtub was closer to a small pool than a regular size. Hopefully that would work. It smelled nice. Some kind of lavender, I thought. Everett’s new spa people had sent it over, so it had to be good.
I heard someone in the bedroom, so I raised my voice, “Tell Shelby the bath is almost ready.”
The door opened and she came in, smiling. “Aw, thank you. That’s so sweet of you to start it for me.”
Thankfully I had a towel around my waist. I didn’t want her to feel any implied pressure if she had to see blatant erections walking around her all the time. She’d already undressed, though she wore a silk robe. Untied so it gaped down the front. Because of course she did.
I dragged my gaze down, all the way down, that lovely view.
Chris was right behind her. “Not too hot, right?”
Dragging my hungry gaze away, I checked the temperature again. “It feels fine to me. What do you think?”
She dipped her fingers in the water. “Maybe a bit hotter. As long as my skin doesn’t start turning red, it’s not too hot.”
I could feel Chris’ scowl burning holes into the back of my head as I carefully turned the faucet a bit hotter. He’d blister my hide if her skin even thought about turning bright pink, but I couldn’t resist trying to please her too.
Silk slipped to the floor and she grabbed my arm as she stepped into the tub. Chris hovered like a watchful hawk until she sat down comfortably. “Watch her. I’m going to take a quick shower first.”
Trying not to hover like him, I moved over to the sink to finish my nightly routine. She turned in the tub so she could watch as I brushed my teeth and smeared lotion on my face. I could feel her eyes on my back, so I took my time. Letting her get a good long look.
“Do you ever shave your beard completely off?”
“Sometimes, in the summer especially, though I always keep it trimmed. I don’t like it to get itchy. Though if you don’t like it, say the word and I’ll shave it. My cheeks will be as smooth as a baby’s butt.”
She laughed softly. “Don’t you dare. I like it just the way it is. Have you ever been hurt in the line of duty?”
“No, luckily. The most hazardous thing I’ve done recently is cleaning up puke out of my car after taking a drunk in to sleep it off. It’s a pretty quiet area, which is one reason I wanted to come back and work here.”
“Ugh. Don’t talk about puke or we may have to clean up some now.”
I couldn’t dally any longer without being obvious. I turned around to leave, but my gaze collided with her very hungry eyes, and I didn’t have the willpower to walk out. Not when she looked at me like that. I leaned back against the counter and crossed my arms casually over my chest. “Angela was sick for months.”
“I was pretty lucky last time. I only threw up once with Allie.”
“Did you have any other symptoms or issues?” I winced a little, kicking myself in the ass because the last thing I wanted to do was take the heat of her eyes and replace it with worry. “Sorry, I was just thinking about Angela. She has something going on, but I’m not sure what it means. Marlo seems pretty worried.”
“I didn’t have a chance to ask her that night, but she did say something about possibly going on bed rest. She could have gestational diabetes or preeclampsia.”
“The last one. That’s what she has.”
“High blood pressure. That’s pretty dangerous. I’m guessing because she’s carrying twins, they may hospitalize her early and maybe even take them by cesarean to avoid making Angela carry them full term. Her blood pressure will continue to rise as long as she’s pregnant, and it can get to very unsafe levels.”
“Motherfucker,” Chris growled, shaking water from his head like a wet dog. “What are the chances you’ll get the same thing?”
“There’s no way to tell, but I was fine before. I didn’t have any complications.”
I watched a moment longer as Chris climbed into the tub with her. Enough torture for the night. I pushed upright and headed for the door. “Good night.”
“Where the fuck are you going?” Chris asked.
Surprised, I hesitated, looking back over my shoulder. “I figured I’d sleep upstairs tonight since I have to get to work early.”
Chris snorted. “I didn’t say anything about sleep. Are you telling me that you’re going to leave when she’s looking at you like that?”
I glanced at Shelby again, not surprised to see her blushing at his words, but also still looking at me with those hungry eyes. The barest glimpse of her tongue flicked across her luscious lips, making the towel bulge more obvious. I liked big bath sheets, and I’d wrapped that sucker around my waist plenty tight, but if she kept looking at my dick like that, the poor towel was going to be shredded.
“That’s what I thought.” Chris laughed softly. “I think it’s time we show her how a quarterback and a linebacker can tag team for a touchdown.”
SHELBY
All the men were absolutely gorgeous to look at, but Derek was something else with all that powerful muscle. He was the biggest of the four, both taller and wider and stronger than the others, though Chris was more ripped and deadly. I couldn’t help but ogle him while he stood there looking droolworthy in the towel that quickly hit the floor.
Oh my. Yeah. The towel had valiantly contained his impressive erection. I shivered a little despite the warm bath water. Remembering the feel of him inside me. Remembering Chris in this very tub.
I shivered again, my pussy clenching with anticipation.
“Enough water,” Chris muttered, shutting off the faucet. “I haven’t had a chance to get the architect to figure out how to fix the overflow issue yet.”
Derek settled into the massive tub across from us, his long thigh brushing mine. “Are you sure this is a good idea?”
“You too arrogant to work with me to give our woman double the pleasure?” Chris’ voice was flat, seemingly emotionless. Which told me that he was actually pretty angry or upset. Grumpy, scowling Chris was normal. This was not.
; Worried, I looked up at him, not surprised to see his mouth in a harsh slant.
Derek huffed and flicked water up at his friend’s face. “Not at all. I’m talking about her being pregnant. How much sex is even safe right now?”
Now it was my turn to splutter. “It’s always safe, though when my belly is huge, it’ll be harder for me to be comfortable on the bottom. As long as we don’t get too rough, we could have sex right up until the baby’s born. In fact, some women swear that having sex helps contractions start if you’re over your due date.”
Derek stared at me, a dazed look in his eyes.
“What’s wrong?” I asked.
He shook himself a little and gave me a big enough smile that I saw the rare dimple in his cheek. “Nothing, sorry. I was just imagining you riding me, while I stroked your stomach and breasts.”
“Now we’re talking,” Chris said in his usual grumble. “What kind of trick play should we pull out of the playbook this time?”
“Flea Flicker. Obviously.”
I prided myself on learning some of the rudimentary football while married, and then later, because Bubby had loved the sport so much, but I had no idea what that meant.
Chris chuckled, shaking his head. “That’d work better with a third, and then you’d end up intercepting my pass anyway. How about a fumblerooski gone wrong?”
I looked back at Derek, trying to read his body language to gauge what they were even talking about. He laughed, catching my gaze. “Sugar, we’re just bullshitting you. We’ve never had the chance to tag team, let alone name it something like a football play. What do you want?”
Relieved but also irritated, I elbowed Chris in the side. I thought about kicking Derek with my foot, but I didn’t want to accidentally kick him in the crotch. Or slip deeper in the water and have to be hauled back up. That’d be embarrassing.
