Taking Chances (Robson Brothers Book 1)

by A. T Brennan

  I started the movie back up and leaned back.

  Not even five minutes later Avery squealed and jumped. I glanced over just as she pulled her legs up and hugged them to her chest.

  “Scared?”

  “Surprised.” She glanced over at me. “I startle easy.”

  “I’ve noticed.” I grinned and before I could stop myself I held out my arm to her. “Want me to protect you?”

  She looked at my arm and bit her lip again. After only a slight hesitation she nodded and slid closer.

  As she leaned against me I draped my arm over her shoulders and pulled her closer. I didn’t know what it was exactly about her, but somehow she seemed to fit perfectly against me. Her head was on my chest, her breasts pushed up against my side and her hand rested on my thigh.

  Everything about her felt incredible.

  Her body was warm and soft against mine, her hair tickled my bare arm and her breasts pressed against me with every breath. She smelled a little like strawberries and cinnamon. It was a strange combination but it suited her.

  I tried to concentrate on the movie but spent most of it trying to stop myself from popping a boner. Every time she jumped her hands would clutch at me and during the scene where Regan spider crawls down the stairs she shrieked and buried her face in my chest, hugging me tight.

  Even as I was telling my dick to calm the fuck down I wrapped my arms around her and hugged her close.

  When I saw her peeking back at the screen I acted without thinking.

  Gripping her tight I shifted her so she was sitting on my lap with her head on my chest. This way I could feel all of her and she could turn her face into me when she was scared.

  I felt her body stiffen and was about to let her go, cursing myself for being so forward, when she relaxed and melted against me.

  We watched the rest of the movie like this, and when it was over I let the credit roll.

  “So, what did you think?”

  “Scarier than I thought.” She paused. “That scene with the...”

  “With the what?” I asked when she trailed off.

  “The cross.”

  I could feel her body temperature rise and grinned. She was blushing.

  “That part was a little fucked up.”

  “Yeah. I don’t think I’ll be forgetting that any time soon.”

  “Tired?” I asked when I felt her yawn against me.

  “Yeah. I should get going.”

  “It’s late, why don’t you stay here?”

  Her body stiffened and I shook my head. “You can have my bed. I’ll sleep out here.”

  “I’m not going to kick you out of your bed.” She sat up and looked at me. “That’s not right.”

  “You can always crawl into bed with Logan.” I grinned and tucked a lock of hair over her shoulder. “Although he usually doesn’t have chicks in his bed.”

  She giggled and shook her head. “It’s fine. I don’t mind going home.”

  “Just give me a chance to grab a sweater and I’ll walk you.”

  “You don’t have to.”

  “I’m not sending you out there alone.” I shook my head and helped her stand up. “It’s no problem.”

  She waited as I grabbed a hoodie off my bed and put my shoes on.

  “Ready?”

  “Ready.”

  The walk to her place was comfortable. She didn’t say much but I’d never been one to fill the quiet with chatter so I was happy to walk in silence.

  When we reached her building she paused and turned to look at me. “Thanks for walking me home.”

  “You think you’ll be able to sleep tonight?” I asked teasingly.

  “I think so. Hopefully I don’t wake up at 3:15 again.” She laughed and looked at the ground.

  “Can I see your phone?”

  She dug it out of her oversized purse and handed it to me.

  “If you do you can give me a call and I’ll soothe you back to sleep.” I programmed my number into her phone and handed it back to her.

  “I will.” She blushed and bit her lip again. She looked like she wanted to say more.

  “I’ll see you later?” I asked when she didn’t say anything.

  “Sure.”

  I watched as she turned and headed into her building. Just as she was about to open the door she turned and gave me a small wave.

  I waved back and waited until she was inside.

  Now that I knew she was safe I had one thought on my mind. After spending over an hour cuddling with Avery I needed to get home so I could jerk one off before trying to fall asleep.

  Chapter Four

  AVERY

  I didn’t wake up at 3:15 again because I was still awake.

  All I could think about was Matt. I’d been shocked when he’d offered to cuddle with me and even more shocked when he’d pulled me onto his lap and held me.

  Cuddling with Logan had been nice. He’d been warm and strong and comfortable, but the moment I’d leaned against Matt it was like a charge of electricity went through my body and I was hyperaware of everything.

  It was as though every touch and feeling was magnified and every place my skin had touched him was buzzing. I’d never felt anything like it before and I wasn’t sure what it meant.

  I was attracted to Matt, there was no question of that, but were the tingles and the warm feelings from the cuddling or from him? Was it just a reaction from being alone and starving for touch for so long, or was it specifically him?

  I was also trying not to read too much into things. It was true we’d cuddled and he’d held me, but that didn’t mean anything. I’m sure he cuddled with girls all the time. He probably did it with everyone so it had just been second nature for him while it had affected me on levels I never could have imagined.

  Walking me home wasn’t a big deal either. He was just being kind and making sure I was safe, and I was sure he’d do the same for anyone.

  No, I wasn’t anything special to Matt. I was just Logan’s new friend.

  * * * * *

  The rest of the week was busy.

  Logan had a date on Saturday so I took the opportunity to work on some paintings I had to do for my impressionism class. On Sunday he texted and asked me out for coffee so he could tell me all about his date and then took me shopping to buy some new clothes.

  It had been fun to have someone to shop with and have a second opinion on things, but he’d convinced me to buy some stuff that had been way outside my comfort zone. He’d talked me into jewel tones and had even convinced me to buy a few skirts, dresses and some skinny jeans. I’d never worn anything like them before and wasn’t sure I could pull them off.

  I also had three tests and a major assignment due that week so I was swamped.

  By the time Friday rolled around I was really looking forward to the weekend.

  Logan: what are you up to tonight?

  Avery: no plans

  Logan: party at Kappa Phi?

  Avery: sure. Sounds good :)

  Logan: I’ll come get you at eight and we can walk down

  Avery: okay. I’ll be ready

  Logan: you mind if we meet some of my friends there?

  Avery: that’s fine

  Logan: see you then. AND WEAR A NEW OUTFIT

  At ten minutes to eight I was standing in my room staring at the pile of new clothes still sitting on my desk.

  I had no idea what to wear, but he was right. I needed to stop trying to hide.

  After a long time of just staring I grabbed a royal blue shirt and a pair of skinny jeans. I put both on before I could talk myself out of it and quickly brushed out my hair and slipped into a pair of flats. I didn’t want to bother with a purse so I put my phone and ID in my pocket and went to wait for Logan in the lobby.

  He showed up right on time and we walked over to the frat house.

  “There’s Jax and Jay.” He nodded to a corner and grabbed my hand.

  I followed him through the crush of people and almost did a
double take when we stopped in front of two guys.

  They were the most different identical twins I’d ever seen in my life.

  Both men were tall, around Logan’s height, and had dark brown hair, olive skin and soulful brown eyes. They had the same strong shoulders and trim waists, and every feature from their full lips to their high cheekbones were exactly the same.

  Then there were the things that were completely different. One of them wore his hair short and neat and his bare arms were free of tattoos or marks. The other wore his hair longer and had two half sleeves of tattoos showing under his shirt. The short haired one was wearing a green shirt and light jeans and the longer haired one was in black shirt and dark wash jeans.

  “Avery, this is Jaxon and Jason,” Logan introduced.

  “Your younger brothers?” I asked after they’d shaken my hand. It would seem Jaxon was the tattoo-free twin.

  “Yup. Jax is studying mechanical engineering and Jay is in civil engineering.”

  “Logan tells us you’re studying art?” Jaxon asked with an easy smile.

  “Fine art.” I nodded.

  “Please tell me it’s true you met him while he was posing naked for you.” Jason grinned.

  “That is true.” I laughed and felt myself relaxing. It would seem all the Robson boys were incredibly friendly.

  “Where are your dates?” Logan asked as he nodded to the twins.

  “Came stag. Figured we’d pick up here.” Jaxon shrugged and took a drink from the red cup in his hand.

  “You want a drink?” Logan offered.

  “Thank you.”

  While he went to grab us some drinks I noticed the twins were scanning the crowd. I guessed they were looking for someone to pick up?

  I couldn’t help wondering how that would feel. To have a guy come up to me and flirt with me. To know he wanted me and to have that kind of attention. As I was thinking about it Matt’s image suddenly replaced the generic handsome stranger I’d been envisioning and I cursed under my breath as I felt myself blush.

  It didn’t matter what I did I couldn’t stop thinking about Matt. He was off limits and I would bet a crap load of money he hadn’t spared me a second thought since dropping me off after movie night, but I couldn’t forget how it had felt to be in his arms or even how he’d smelled like a mix of clean laundry and fresh rain.

  “Just a tip. Red cups are beer or mix and white cups are soda.” Logan appeared at my side, knocking me out of my reverie as he handed me a white cup.

  “Not drinking?” Jaxon asked.

  “Not tonight.” I shook my head and took a sip of my soda.

  I was too embarrassed to tell anyone the truth, but I’d never had a drink before. I’d had sips of wine here or there but never an actual drink and I was worried I’d make a fool out of myself. As much as I wanted to know how it felt to be drunk I wasn’t going to risk humiliating myself.

  MATT

  “What the fuck am I doing?” I muttered to myself as I stared up at the Kappa Phi building.

  When Jay had texted me that he and Jax were going to a party I hadn’t been interested. Normally I’d be all over the invitation because there was no better hunting ground than a frat party, but I wasn’t feeling it.

  I had no idea what I wanted to do, but the idea of going to a party to pick up some random chick wasn’t it.

  In all honesty there had been a part of me that had hoped Avery was coming over for another movie night. It would be fun to eat junk food and see her freak out again. I’d never gotten that text, or any text, from her so I knew she wasn’t thinking about me, but for some reason I couldn’t shake her.

  But, instead of getting into his sweats Logan had pulled on one of his fancy shirts and his way-too-tight skinny jeans. He was going out.

  I’d causally asked where he was headed and he’d told me he and Avery were meeting up with Jax and Jay at the Kappa Phi party. He’d invited me along but I’d turned him down.

  I needed to shake my slump and the best way to do that was to get my dick wet. After he’d left I’d scrolled through my phone, looking for someone to call and hook up with, but after reading through my contact list three times I’d given up. Every chick in my phone had been fun for the night, some more fun than others, but that’s all it had been. One night of sex and now that the night was over I didn’t want to repeat it.

  After pacing around the apartment for an hour I’d tossed on some clothes and headed out the door. I’d told myself I was going to meet up with Jay and Jax since they’d invited me out earlier, but I knew it was because I was hoping to see Avery again.

  I took a deep breath and headed into the house. I was here now, I might as well go in and find my brothers.

  The place was packed and loud but I managed to find Jay right away. He was on the dance floor attached at the pelvis to a hot blonde. A few minutes later I found Jaxon making out with a spicy little redhead in the corner. It looked like they were done for the night.

  I was looking for Logan when I spotted Avery.

  She looked amazing. The bright blue shirt she was wearing clung to her body and showed off her curves while her jeans were practically painted on. It was a far cry from the sweatpants and loose shirt I’d seen her in last week.

  Even as I was checking her out something caught my eye.

  She was standing with some random guy blushing and smiling. The fact that this asshat was chatting her up pissed me off, but it was the scene behind her that set alarm bells off in my head.

  There was a guy standing a little behind her looking around, like he was making sure no one was watching him. After a moment he put his hand over the cup he was holding and dropped something in it. After checking the cup he walked over and gave it to the guy talking to Avery.

  I watched in horror as the guy took the drink and handed it to her.

  Before I could even think I was running across the room, pushing past people so I could get to her before she took a sip. I was a few feet from her when there was a lull in the music and her would be rapist spoke up.

  “Drink up, doll face. When you’re done I’ll take you upstairs and give you a tour of the house.”

  “Avery!”

  She jumped and looked over at me, her mouth dropping open. “Matt?”

  “Don’t drink that.” I knocked the cup out of her hand as soon as I was close enough to reach and grabbed her around the waist, hauling her up against my body protectively.

  “What the fuck, asshole?” The guy who’d given her the drink glared at me.

  “I’m the asshole?” I gripped her tighter and tried to force down my rage. I was so angry I was seeing red and my fist was clenched and itching to be let loose so I could pound all of their faces in. “You fucking give her a laced drink and then what? You going to take her upstairs and rape her?”

  I heard Avery gasp at my side and I unclenched my fist. I needed to hold her, to make sure she was okay and get her as far away from them as possible.

  “You’d better watch it—”

  “If you ever even look at her again, I’ll kill you.” I looked down at Avery and saw her staring up at me, her eyes wide and fearful. “Come one, let’s get you away from here.”

  She nodded and let me pull her away from the small crowd that had gathered around us. I didn’t stop until we were out the door and down the street. I needed to calm down before I tried to talk to her, otherwise I just might go back and beat every last one of those fuckers.

  Taking a deep breath I stopped and turned her to face me.

  “Are you okay?” I asked.

  Her eyes were still wide and full of fear and I hated to see her so upset.

  “You really saw him put something in the drink?” she asked in a small voice.

  “I did.” I nodded. “The douche who gave it to him did it.”

  “And you think they would have...that he wanted to...”

  “I do.” I nodded. “I’m sorry.”

  “I didn’t see anything.” She shook
her head and blinked back tears. “I was just happy someone was talking to me and I wasn’t paying attention. If you hadn’t seen them, if you hadn’t been there—” she cut herself off, biting her lip as a few errant tears slipped down her cheeks.

  “Shhhh, it’s okay.” I pulled her against my body and held her tight. I was trying to comfort her, but I also needed to feel her, to make sure she really was okay.

  “Thank you.” Her voice was muffled in my shirt and I held her tighter.

  “Where’s Logan?” I asked when I realized I hadn’t found him. I had to tell him she was safe and with me.

  “He met someone.”

  “He left you there?”

  “I was with Jaxon and Jason, but then they met people...”

  “Do you want me to take you home or do you want to come to my place?”

  She paused for a long time, and when she did speak her voice was small and hesitant. “I don’t want to be alone.”

  I gave her one last squeeze and then pulled away. I kept one arm around her and turned to head back to my apartment. I didn’t want her to be alone either.

  AVERY

  I was in shock the entire way to Matt’s apartment, and when he led me inside and sat me down on the couch I was a little numb.

  I felt so stupid. Logan had reminded me not to accept a drink from someone I didn’t know. Matt had told me to never touch one if it had been out of my sight for even a second, and I forgot their advice the moment a handsome stranger talked to me.

  “Here.”

  I looked up and found Matt in front of me holding a pair of sweatpants and a shirt.

  “You’ll be more comfortable in these.”

  “Thank you.”

  “You can use my room.” He pointed to the door beside Logan’s room and smiled. “You want a drink?”

  “Yes, please.”

  I took the clothes and went into his room while he went into the kitchen.

  I don’t know what I was expecting, but his room was not it. It was small and clean. He didn’t have a lot of stuff, and there were almost no personal items around. Most of the rooms I’d seen had posters on the walls and piles of books and crap all over the place. Matt’s walls were bare and his bookshelf was neat.