Nowhere to Hide (Masked Men Novellas)

Chapter 13

Chapter Thirteen

Tai

The four of us sit across from Riley’s family, who haven’t said a word. We wait and let Riley take the lead.

“Why were you licking cream off of my baby girl?” Riley’s father asks Kennedy, and I kick his leg under the table. He needs to reign in his normal attitude, as we don’t need to pick a fight right now.

“Dad, can we not do this right now?” Riley pleads.

“Oh, I think we should do this now,” Braidy says. “Let’s get it all out in the open.”

“Fine,” Riley says, and I place a hand on her leg. “You are all very aware I used to have a crush on them, and, well... long story short, we are...” She stumbles over a description for us.

“They’re fucking.” We all turn and see Tillie leaning in the entryway to the dining room. “When will everyone stop treating Riley like a little girl? She is a grown-ass woman who has finally taken her sexuality by the balls.”

“You’re not helping, Tillie,” Archer snaps. “And where did you even come from? I thought you were at a party?”

“The party was lame. And I don’t care if I’m butting in. Every time Riley does something they think is not seemly, she beats herself up about it. First her nose piercing, then her tiny little tattoo, next dropping out of college. Clearly, she can make good choices on her own—she is beautiful and successful.”

“You’re all fucking my sister?” Braidy seethes, and I look to where he is sitting across the table. If it was only one of us, I doubt he would look like his head was about to explode. He sighs and pushes his chair back slightly.

“You know what? Fuck this. Yes, we are, and I’m not sorry. We are all adults and plan to give this relationship a go.”

Braidy launches himself across the table toward Kennedy and they both land on the ground. I run over, as does Archer, and we pull them apart.

“Will you boys knock it off?!” Thomas, Riley’s dad shouts, and everyone freezes.

“Tillie is right. Riley is an adult and who she spends her time with is her business.” Marion, Riley’s mom, says as she looks at us all. “Three boyfriends—wow, I think it is going to take me a while to get my head around it, but I have known you boys most of your lives. You are amazing men, even if your sex club raises some concerns.”

I snort. “There is no way Riley’s going to the sex club.”

“Good to know,” she says. “Now, you boys go outside and talk with Braidy. Us girls will clean up this mess.”

“I’m taking our bags upstairs,” Thomas huffs.

Archer steps up to Riley and puts his fingers under her chin, making her look up at him. “If you need us, we’ll be right outside.”

Riley nods, and Archer wipes the tears from her eyes, then leans down and presses a soft kiss to her lips. “Don’t worry about us, Rye. We knew we would have to sort things out with Braidy. We’ll be back soon.”

She nods, and as we walk away, knots form in my stomach. I’d hoped Braidy would be okay with this—as much as a brother could be—because I would hate to lose our friendship with him.

Braidy doesn’t say anything as he storms off toward the lake, muttering under his breath.

“If you are ready to throw more punches, bring it on,” Kennedy taunts. “I’m not sorry. You know me, I don’t do shit halfheartedly.”

Braidy turns and shoots a death glare at Kennedy. “Why all three of you?” he asks, running his hands over his face. “I expected Archer, but I figured when you and Tai started fucking you would end up as boyfriends or some shit.”

I snort. “No offense, but Riley is way hotter than Kennedy.”

“Stop fucking around. Are you all even serious about my sister? Because a week ago, none of you wanted to mention her name.”

“Because you fucking warned us away from her. We didn’t want to complicate our relationship with you,” Archer tells him.

“Have any of you stopped to think how this will make her look? You know how hard I have tried to keep her out of the spotlight that comes with being my sister.”

“Fuck what people think. For her entire life, that’s all Riley has thought about. When we first turned up here, your sister even told us how self-conscious she was about her weight,” Kennedy snaps. “She is the most beautiful woman in the fucking world and deserves to be worshipped. I don’t know how this will work or even if it will, but right now it’s up to Riley, not you or your parents or the rest of the world.”

“We like her, bro. There isn’t much more to say. We love you—you’re our best friend—but something changed, and I don’t need your blessing.” He looks at me and stares blankly. “I agree with them. We have done nothing she hasn’t wanted. I know it’s hard to wrap your head around the fact it’s all three of us, but you know us. You know we would do nothing to hurt her. It would be the same if you were with Tillie.”

That makes Braidy laugh. “Sorry, Arch. I love Tillie like a sister, but hell would have to freeze over first for me to go there.”

“As if I would touch your fancy Hollywood ass anyway. You would be so lucky,” Tillie says, appearing out of nowhere once again. “Plus, you’re too pretty for me—I like my men nerdy and dirty. Your girlfriend, though, you are punching above your weight. I think I might see how she feels about a three-way, but you can only watch.”

Braidy flips her off. “If she was under any threat, I would protect her with my life, but if Tillie gets any closer to me, I will drown her in the lake.”

Archer laughs, and Tillie mutters about going back inside to hit on his girlfriend. She wouldn’t really, but it’s always been their thing, pissing each other off. For a while, we expected them to hook up, but they never did.

“If you hurt my sister, I will kill you guys. I know people.”

I laugh, and so does Archer.

Kennedy doesn’t find it amusing. “I plan to worship the ground your sister walks on, not hurt her. Out of respect for you, I’ll leave out the finer details.”

That went a little better than I expected, and we all head back inside, where the girls have cleaned the kitchen and are now seated in the living room with glasses of wine.

Braidy sits next to his girlfriend, and we all gravitate toward the three-seater sofa Riley is perched on. Archer and I take a place on either side, and Kennedy drops to the floor, sitting in front of her. I catch a glimpse of her mom smiling.

“Well, kids, I’m off to bed,” Marion says. “We have a few big days ahead of us to prepare for Thanksgiving, and Archer and Tillie’s parents get in tomorrow. I think maybe we should brainstorm some ways to break this to them.”

“Please let me do it,” Tillie offers. “I want to see the look on their faces when it’s not me in the firing line.”

“Let’s not do that,” Marion quips as she stands. “I will see you all in the morning.”

She leaves to go upstairs, and Tillie disappears without a word.

“I’m tired as well, babe. Can we head up to bed?” Sienna says to Braidy, and when he looks over at us, Sienna winks at Riley.

“Sure, I’ll grab our bags. If I so much as hear one moan, I’ll kill you all.”

Kennedy snorts. “What do you think we are, cavemen? We have gags in our luggage.”

Braidy freezes, and Riley laughs loudly. “He’s fucking with you. Go to bed!”

Braidy takes Sienna’s hand, and they leave the room.

All three of us look at Riley. “Do you think you can be quiet?”

We all look at her and wait for her to answer Kennedy’s question. “Yes, but I need to shower first. I think the cream is curdling.”

“You go up and shower, and we’ll take turns after you.”

Riley jumps up and heads upstairs, then we all look at each other.

“Well, that went better than I expected,” Archer says.

“It did, but I don’t know if she will be able to be quiet,” I add, and Kennedy laughs.

“Someone will just have to keep their cock in her mouth.”

Kennedy has a good point; it will keep her quiet.

“When we leave here, I plan to spend time with her alone also—we all should. The whole group thing is good and all, but...”

“Archer, we get it, and agree. We can share while we’re here; it’s only a few more days. We can sort out the rest later.”

Kennedy is right. I’m not sure how it will work when she is almost an hour from where the club is based, but we’ll figure it out.

“I’ll head up now and get my shit ready for a shower,” I say. Kennedy says he will get us a few bottles of water and Archer explains he wants to talk to his sister quickly.

I lied. I have no plans to get my stuff. Instead, I use my thumbnail to unlock the bathroom door and slip inside before locking it behind me. Riley stands naked in the shower under the spray of water, and noticing my arrival, she wipes a circle in the foggy glass and smiles at me as I undress.

As I discard my clothes on the floor, Riley opens the shower screen, and I step inside, pulling her body to mine.

“What did Braidy say to you outside?” she asks quietly, looking up at me.

“He threatened to kill us if we hurt you, but I think he’s okay. The shock of his sister with three men hit him hard, though.”

“I can imagine it did, but he knows you all, and I wouldn’t stay away even if he didn’t approve.”

She smiles up at me. “You’re so handsome,” she says, changing the subject and making me grin down at her.

“Why thank you. And you, Riley Jacobs, are breathtaking.”

She snorts, and I cup her chin and look deep into her eyes. “I mean it. I know it’s hard for you to hear, but you need to learn because none of us will stop saying it until you believe it.”

“It’s not that simple, Tai. I was big my entire life—you were there, you saw me. And now I have three of the hottest men telling me what I have wanted to hear my entire life. It’s hard to wrap my head around, and I keep thinking I will wake up and it will all be a dream.”

“You’re not dreaming, Riley Bear. You have us all. We’ve no idea how we will manage this once we leave here, but you bet your fine ass we will find a way. Otherwise, the only option is to kidnap you and keep you as ours, but I’m not seeing a downside to that idea—especially if you’re naked.”

She giggles, and we wash each other until eventually someone knocks on the door. I can’t wait to sneak into her room and have my way with her. I just hope she realizes we plan to keep her awake until the sun comes up every night until we leave.