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Furtively, I peek into the hall to see if there are any other girls around. Fortunately, everyone’s turned in for the night, and I giggle a bit while sneaking out. The sky is dark, with just a faint smattering of stars, and within minutes, I’m at the back door to Shane and Stanton’s ranch house. I knock softly and am immediately ushered in by Stanton, who greets me with a warm smile and tender kiss.
Even though I’ve been in their home several times now, I always find myself in awe of the luxurious setting. The ceilings are tall and vaulted, with rough-hewn exposed beams crossing high overhead. The furniture is rustic and comfortable, in varying shades of creams and deep brown leather. My favorite features, however, are the floor to ceiling windows in the living room, which frame the stunning mountains that surround the Lazy R.
“I hope you’re hungry,” Stanton says as he helps me take off my sweater. “Shane’s making pasta.”
I raise my eyebrows in Shane’s direction. The dark-haired man grins widely, his handsome face creasing into a smile.
“A midnight snack?” I tease.
“Yes, indeed,” he growls. “And I believe you owe the cook a kiss.”
Giggling, I cross to where he’s working in the massive kitchen and plant a kiss on his cheek.
“Oh come on,” he grumps playfully before pulling me into a tight embrace. After he’s had his way with me for a moment, he smacks my rump, making it jiggle. “Go sit down, and I’ll be out with your pasta in a second.”
I dance into the dining room, the table decorated with lovely linen napkins and mood-setting candles. As promised, Shane begins bringing in plates of pasta and warm garlic bread. My stomach growls at the spread in front of me and all three of us laugh.
“Dig in,” Stanton invites with a wicked grin.
As we tend to do on the evenings we eat together, the three of us fall into an easy rhythm of talking and learning about one another. I’m not shy about eating in front of them, and I’m especially hungry tonight since we had all spent the morning baling hay.
“This is incredible,” I tell Shane through bites of spaghetti and meatballs. “These meatballs are really good. I had no idea I could be this hungry either.”
Shane grins at the compliment, he and Stanton both watching me eat with bemused expressions on their handsome faces.
“What?” I ask delicately, putting my fork down and dabbing at my lips with the napkin. “Is there sauce on my face?”
“No, no,” Stanton reassures me as he resumes twirling pasta onto his fork. “We just like the way you devour food, honey.”
I feel my face turn ten shades of red at the comment. “I know I eat a lot,” I begin, feeling embarrassed to have such a behavior called out. “I’m just super ravenous today. We’re worked like farm animals at the Lazy R!”
But it’s Shane’s turn to correct me, and he slips a large hand over my small one. “We wouldn’t change a thing about you, Juniper,” he says soothingly. “A healthy appetite is a great thing, and fucking sexy too.”
Sensing their honesty, I dive back into my dinner, albeit with a little more etiquette than I’d shown moments ago. But then I decide to be truthful.
“I used to get picked on for eating my whole lunch,” I reveal, putting down my fork. Both brothers look up as I dip garlic bread into a tangy red sauce. “It was this stupid lunchtime ritual at school. All the girls would get together and count how much of each lunch we’d be allowed to eat. I never wanted to participate, and they made fun of me for it. I don’t know,” I shrug as I stuff the warm bread into my mouth. “I just like food too much to really care about how much I should or shouldn’t eat.”
“What a shitty thing for them to do,” Stanton rasps. “How the fuck does that even work?” I look at him, surprised to see such an outburst from the normally calmer brother.
I shrug.
“You know, they’d look at your yogurt and say you could only eat fifty percent. Or if you had carrot sticks, it could be as high as seventy five percent. But god forbid you had something like a cookie or chips. That was off-limits, and you’d be shunned for taking even one bite.”
“Holy fuck,” mutters Shane. “Who knew mean girls were like that?”
I nod.
“I know, right? There are so many bullies in the world, and their bullying can take different forms.”
Both brothers stop to think for a moment.
“But for what it’s worth,” Stanton says, his gaze intense as he looks at me. “Your body is perfect, sweetheart, and we love your curves. Don’t change a thing.”
I blush furiously at this compliment, grateful for validation and somewhat giddy from it as well.
