AllFreeNovel
Share Us
I poured the smoothie into a cup and finished it quickly before putting the cup into the sink. I needed to sleep. The news had completely exhausted what little energy I had for the day.
I paced my way to my room, which was right next to the twins, thinking about wrapping my fingers around their arms. I wanted to sigh into their necks while they drew circles on my belly.
Gritting my teeth together, I steeled my resolve to be mad at them. But we hadn't cuddled since the Paris trip. It had been a downward spiral of drama since then. Going back to last Wednesday, when everything seemed perfect, sounded nice.
Anxiousness gripped my heart. What if we could never go back?
I should have washed my makeup off, but I was at that point where all my reserves had been drained and rinsing my face sounded like too much of a chore.
I changed into a loose t-shirt; their loose t-shirt, and wrapped myself underneath the blanket.
I hadn't fallen asleep so quickly in a long time.
***
The sound of the door creaking open woke me up. It was still dark. I couldn't have slept for that long.
Rubbing my eye as my vision cleared, I saw the silhouette of one of the twins standing at the doorway.
"I didn't mean to wake you," Riley said. He walked over to my bedside.
Still feeling disorientated from waking up, I momentarily forgot about how angry I was. He hadn't changed out of his suit, looking like my perfect corporate prince charming. The lighting made his jaw appear even more chiseled than normal. I had to hold myself back to not reach out and run my fingers on his jawline. "You look wonderful," I said, smiling a half-smile.
What the actual hell? Was I drunk? I started thinking of ways I could retract my foolish statement. Nothing came to mind. That statement was too blatant.
Thankfully, Riley acted as if he didn't hear it. He put his hand on my forehead. "Are you feeling better?"
I opened my mouth and shifted my jaw around, testing my headache. It had more or less disappeared. "Yeah." The atmosphere had become uncomfortable again.
He took my hands in his. His hands were so big, coarse, and masculine. Gently, he brought my fingers to his lips and trailed them across his mouth. He studied me as he did, and my eyes watched him carefully.
"Where is Ryan? I need to talk to the both of you." I tugged myself away. The disappointed expression lacing his features made me regret my action.
He frowned. "He's back in our room. He's not taking your rejection very well."'
Was Riley bothered by my searching for Ryan? It caused happiness to boil in my chest in a strange way. He was cute when he got jealous.
"Your mother called me,” I said.
The frown cut deeper. "And why would she do that?"
I licked my lips, wondering whether I should spill everything. If all the implications fell squarely on my shoulders, I might have kept everything to myself without batting an eyelid, but my dad was just fired and Kristie was next in line. "Your mom... she hasn't been very nice lately."
Riley groaned. "What the f**k did she do this time? Did she offer money for you to leave us?"
"How did you find out?"
He palmed his face. "She does this all the time. That stupid mother of mine." Unexpectedly, he bent down and gave me a hug, one that felt like relief. It was tender, yet strong. I didn't push back, soaking in the sincerity of the hug, and being a little stunned at the same time.
As he squeezed me tighter, he said, "Thank God, you're still with us."
"Why wouldn't I be?"
He pulled back. "Every woman my mother met got the same offer. We used to wonder why they'd leave without a word sometimes, and then finally, one of the girls told us about our mother, right before she left."
"Why would she want to keep doing that?" I bit my tongue as I coaxed myself not to get jealous over the fact that there had so many women who had been in the twins' bed before.
"To torment us." The words hissed under his breath.
Raising a brow in confusion, I stated, "But she's your mother."
"Not all mothers love their children."
I squinted my eyes, not quite understanding him. "But she's your mother," I repeated.
"Don't be fooled by the way she treats us. She hates us." His lips pressed together as he thought over something, presumably his past. "She's a little messed up in the head."
I didn't prod further, not wanting to bring up unwanted memories. Though, there must have been some sort of misunderstanding between the twins and Mrs. Crawford. No mother would purposely torment their child. It sounded an awful lot like a lack of parent-child communication.
"She called me after I got home," I said. "My dad got fired because of her."
I paused to let the information sink in, and then continued, saying, "Kristie is going to lose her job if we don't do something about it. She might even be kicked out of her home."
