Ours to Love Read online

  “Pizza is always okay.”

  “This is going to work out great,” Will said with a nod, “I can feel it.” Ryan giggled again and Will and I both stared at him with goofy grins on our faces until I was able to snap out of the spell.

  “How about we meet at Romero’s Pizzeria Wednesday at six?”

  “That sounds perfect,” Ryan agreed with a heart-stopping grin.

  The waitress appeared to gather up our empty plates and set the check on the table. When Ryan reached for his wallet, Will and I both put up a hand to stop him.

  “I can get this,” he offered. “Or at least pay my part; we got a lot of food.”

  Will shook his head. “You’re dating two possessive assholes who constantly try to outdo each other. Trust me, you’re not going to need that wallet.”

  I was worried Will’s blunt word choice would scare Ryan, so I was pleasantly surprised when Ryan’s face lit up and he bit his lip in a distractingly sexy way. “Thank you.” He stood up and in a downright adorable gesture, held his hand out to each of us, shaking our hands in turn. “I’m so glad my original date went to crap, and I got to meet you guys. I’m really looking forward to spending more time together.”

  “Me too,” Will and I answered together. Ryan giggled again and shook his head.

  “See you both on Wednesday.” With one last smile and a little wave, Ryan left us alone.

  Will and I each stuffed some bills into the check folder and sat back. I wanted to relax for a minute before heading out, and to bask in the strange and wonderful events of the evening.

  “We’re a couple of lucky bastards, you know that?” Will asked from beside me.

  “I do.” I smiled as I stared at the spot where Ryan sat just minutes ago.

  Will groaned and ran a hand down his face. “We’re also a couple of dumb bastards.”

  “What are you talking about?”

  “We didn’t even get his phone number.”

  “Fuck.”

  “Yep.”

  “At least we’re gonna see him in four days.”

  “Four days is a long time with no contact,” he argued. “And a long time to rethink what he just agreed to.”

  He was right; our situation was an interesting one to say the least. I wasn’t even positive what the hell to do, and I had at least a little experience in the matter. Ryan had said he’d never even dated before, and now he had two guys – brothers at that – falling all over themselves to get to him. What if it was too much? He seemed into it tonight, but would days without speaking change his mind? Would he get inside his own head? Would the situation be too weird or intense? Fuck. After seeing him tonight, with his big bright eyes and baggy sweater, all I wanted to do was wrap him in my arms and keep him warm and safe. The last thing I wanted to do was scare or intimidate him. Or give him the impression this wasn’t important to me by basically ignoring him for several days. Another idea bounced inside my brain.

  “You know, we do know where he works. And the truck will surely need gas before Wednesday.”

  Will answered with a wicked grin. “I always knew you were the smart one.”

  Chapter Two

  Ryan

  It was mid-morning on Monday, and I was on my knees, stocking chips on the lowest shelf, but my mind was a million miles away. I couldn’t stop thinking about the turn my weekend had taken; I’d shown up to a cute little restaurant on Saturday expecting to meet a guy I’d been matched with through a dating app, but instead ended up being dumped by him and scooped up by two gorgeous men.

  Gorgeous was an understatement. I’m not sure there’s a word in the English language to describe the beauty the brothers possessed. Beauty probably wasn’t it, though; that sounded too feminine. These men were all muscle, strength and scruff. Mm, the scruff. And the muscles. I squirmed a little on the floor. I needed to get my mind on another topic; I’d be done shelving these snacks soon and I wanted to actually be able to stand up afterward without my dick standing up to wave hello to everyone.

  But I couldn’t help it. The memory of Will and Logan’s handsome faces demanded attention in my brain. The crazy thing was, there was no way I could decide which man was more handsome, even if I’d had a gun pointed at my head. They were very different, but each perfect in their own way. And not only in their looks, but personalities as well. Will was gruffer, but not in a bad way; in a protectively aggressive way. He was also ornery as could be, and I liked it. Logan was protective in a more shielding, caring way. He seemed more tender; the obvious planner of the two as he chose his words and actions carefully. They were two halves of the perfect man. It broke my brain when I tried to understand why both of these gorgeous men were interested in me. I was a little nervous, but I couldn’t deny I was flattered and intrigued.

  Another thing I couldn’t deny was that both of them had had starring roles in my fantasies the past two days. I was surprised I hadn’t pulled my dick clean off as much as I’d touched myself, imagining hard bodies, warm eyes and beard burn. Lots and lots of beard burn. I was so wrapped up in my naughty thoughts, I barely registered someone walking up behind me, but my attention was caught when a throat cleared.

  “Hey cutie, can I get your number?” a deep voice crooned.

  My shoulders slumped and I closed my eyes for a second. Not this again. I stuck the last bag of chips on the shelf and wished I had more to keep myself distracted. But, it looked like I was going to have to speak. “I…I just really don’t think that’s appropriate.”

  “Oh. Have you changed your mind about Wednesday, then?” another voice asked, sounding disappointed.

  Confused, I stood and turned around to see Logan and Will both standing in the aisle looking dejected. “Oh! No way! I’ve been looking forward to it.” Before my brain could register what my feet were doing, I’d stepped closer to them and thrown an arm onto each of their shoulders. I was quite a bit shorter than them and they were standing a couple of feet apart, so it was a very awkward hug, but it was the best I could do. They each snuggled closer to me, dropping their chins on either of my shoulders and wrapping an arm around my waist. It felt so good and right and warm, someone moaned. It was me.

  Before my prick could stand up and salute again, I took a step back and dropped my arms. “I’m sorry, I didn’t know it was you guys behind me.” I sighed and rolled my eyes. “There’s this older guy who comes in pretty often; he always tries to flirt and get me to give him my number and I always turn him down, but it doesn’t dissuade him. He always calls me cutie, so I thought…”

  I trailed off at the sight of Will’s face pinching in with anger. “Is he here now?” He cracked his knuckles as he peered over the top of the snack shelves, eyeing everyone in the store suspiciously. So much for my dick not perking up.

  “No, he’s not here,” I said quickly. I personally couldn’t see over the top of the shelves, but I knew my words to be true; if the guy were there, he would have sought me out already. I wasn’t about to tell Will that though, in fear he might go Hulk on my neatly stocked shelves.

  “I can wait,” he shrugged, still scrutinizing innocent shoppers.

  “Stop it Will, you’re making him nervous,” Logan chided, stepping closer to me and placing a hand on my shoulder. What he didn’t know was that my shaky hands and lip chewing were from arousal, not nerves. What he also didn’t know was that his gentle touch and the concern in his eyes weren’t helping my problem one little bit. These men are going to kill me.

  “No, it’s okay,” I assured, proud when my voice only squeaked a little. “I appreciate you guys. But the man comes in pretty sporadically, so waiting would just be a waste of your time.” Will looked like he wanted to argue that fact, but I waved him off. “Besides, I just ignore him. He’s never touched me or anything like that. He’s just annoying.”

  Logan squeezed my shoulder and Will huffed. “Fine, I’ll leave it alone,” he said, sounding like it was the exact opposite of what he wanted to do. “But if the guy ever lays so
much as a finger on you…”

  “You two will be the first I tell,” I promised. It shocked me how easily I referenced both men, not just one. Somehow, I just instinctively knew they’d both look out for me. And honestly, I couldn’t imagine turning to just one for comfort or even company. Huh.

  “Good,” Will said with a firm nod of his head.

  “So, did we just join the pushy man in the annoying category, seeing as we showed up at your work asking for your phone number?” Logan asked, looking like he was half joking but half worried.

  “Absolutely not. He’s annoying because he won’t take a hint that I don’t want him. I want you guys.”

  “Oh yeah?” Will asked, that wicked grin I was getting acquainted with taking over his lips.

  My face heated. “I mean, I want you guys to have my number; to call me, or text me or whatever. I didn’t mean I want you. Not that I don’t! I do, trust me. I really do. Even just that hug got me all hot and bothered and hard.” My face heated even more as I realized what I’d just said in my attempt to reassure them. “Oh, god.” I pinched the bridge of my nose, feeling overwhelmed and embarrassed.

  Will’s smile turned even more wicked, if such a thing was possible, and Logan chuckled beside me. “Well, that’s a good thing,” he said gently, “This whole dating thing probably wouldn’t work out if you weren’t interested, right?” It meant a lot that he was trying to soothe my nerves. Too bad I was awkward and didn’t know when to shut up.

  “Well, I am. Interested, I mean. Very much interested. And not just my dick. Oh, good lord, why do I keep talking about my dick?” I wanted to disappear amongst the bags of Cheetos and pretend none of this ever happened.

  This time both men busted into laughter, but Will was the first to speak. “I could talk about your dick all day.” When I blushed so hard I thought my face would ignite, he added, “My god, you are adorable.”

  “I’m also awkward, nervous, confused…and horny, apparently.” Why did these guys want me? I’d yet to figure that one out.

  “Nothing wrong with being horny.” Will winked and not so subtly adjusted himself in his jeans. It was too much; I was about to need a clean up on aisle 3.

  “There’s nothing wrong with being nervous or confused either,” Logan added, now rubbing my upper back with an open palm. The simple gesture went a long way in calming me. “That’s why we’re meeting this Wednesday, remember? We’re going to get everything ironed out. We want you to be comfortable with everything. That’s why we stopped in, too; to get your number in case you needed us or had any questions or concerns that couldn’t wait. We want to be there for you.” He gave me a little smile, which I returned.

  “Thank you. Both of you,” I said, looking between the two of them. “I’m glad you stopped by. I’ve been wanting to see you,” I admitted quietly. They both smiled beautifully, and Logan was about to say something when a voice sounded behind me.

  “Cook, are you seriously just standing around talking to customers?” my boss, Carl, barked behind me.

  “We needed directions and Ryan was helping us out,” Logan said quickly. I didn’t know whether to be impressed or worried that he could come up with a lie so quickly.

  “Well finish up because I need you at the register. Jeremy is going on break.”

  “I’ll be right there,” I answered before Carl rounded the end of the shelving.

  “Who was that guy? I thought you were the boss,” Will asked.

  “He’s my boss; the owner, actually. He comes in a few days a week just to flash his dick around. Not literally!” I added when Will’s features began to darken again. “I just meant he likes to come in every now and then to remind everyone he’s in charge.”

  “Hmm,” was Will’s response, but he looked rather unimpressed.

  “I really should get back to work.” I handed my phone to Logan. “Could you put both of your numbers in here? Maybe in a group chat?” For whatever reason, it felt wrong talking to one brother and not the other.

  “Of course.” Logan tapped on my phone for a minute and a ping sounded from both men’s pockets. “And remember, if you need anything at all, you text or call us, okay?”

  “I promise.” I chewed on my lip for a moment before asking, “What if I just want to talk? Would that be okay?”

  “Sweetheart, we’ve stalked you twice now,” Will pointed out. “We obviously want to talk to you. You never have to ask that.”

  I would have laughed at his words if they didn’t warm my heart so much. Maybe I had a problem; being stalked shouldn’t be so touching. I smiled and nodded as I put my phone back in my pocket.

  “We’ll let you get back to work,” Logan said as he wrapped me in a quick hug. “See you soon, baby.”

  Will gave me a hug as well before they left the store. I blatantly stared after them as they climbed into their truck and pulled out, my mind reeling. Sweetheart. Baby. No one had ever called me those things before. I’d never felt like this before. My heart skipped a beat and a dreamy smile crossed my lips. How am I going to wait two whole days to see them again?

  *****

  Will

  “And then you guys went to his work?” Marty said with wide eyes. “Holy stalkers, Batman!” His huge grin told me he was eating this shit right up. Marty liked to gossip more than a teenage girl.

  “If you saw him, you’d understand,” I insisted.

  “Oh, I definitely need to see him; he sounds positively dreamy,” he answered, batting his eyelashes.

  I’m not too ashamed to admit I’d normally knock a fucker out for saying something like that, but Marty was…different. I knew he didn’t mean any harm. He’d been a close friend of our family since I can remember and had stepped in as sort of a father figure to Logan and me after our parents died. Well, maybe not a father figure…more of a fairy godfather, with an emphasis on fairy. And no, that’s not throwing shade since he’d called himself that more times than I could count. He ate that shit up, too; he was flamboyant, feisty and fabulous. Again, his words.

  “You better not let uncle Luke hear you saying stuff like that,” Logan teased. Uncle Luke was Marty’s partner of over twenty years.

  Marty feigned innocence, putting a hand to his chest and dropping his jaw. “What? I’m not dead yet, and as long as Luke takes his little blue pill, neither is he.”

  “Come on, man, I don’t need to hear shit like that,” I groaned.

  “Well then you definitely don’t want to hear about the way we used to go at it when we were your age. The stamina of that man!” He fanned his face with an open hand.

  “Enough! Please!” I begged.

  “Fine,” he said, inspecting his fingernails. “I don’t want to talk about him anyway.”

  Ah, yes. The reason why Marty was at Logan’s and my house – the reason he was at our house several times a month. He and uncle Luke had a “fight,” which meant Marty had pestered and pouted about something ridiculous because he was bored, until Luke got worked up. Uncle Luke had a fiery temper, and Marty loved to pour on the gasoline, just for the thrill of it. If he weren’t nearly thirty years older than me, I’d call him a brat. Hell, he’d probably love it if I did. Anyway, Marty always stoked the fire and then drove to our house which was about five miles down the road and waited for Luke to call and apologize, which he always did. The man was whipped in the worst kind of way. Then they’d do god knows what to make up. It was like a twisted game for them.

  “I’d much rather talk about your problem,” Marty continued, looking between me and Logan.

  “What problem?” Logan asked, sounding as confused as I felt.

  Marty looked at us like we’d lost our damn minds. “Um, hello? Only one sexy man for the two of you? You don’t see any issues here?”

  I loved uncle Marty, but even he didn’t get to overstep that way. “There’s nothing wrong with what we’re doing,” I barked. One more negative word about it and I’d ask him to leave.

  “Oh, for heaven’s sake, put
your dick away,” he said with an exaggerated eye roll. “I didn’t say there was anything wrong with it. You should know me better by now to know I don’t judge. Live and let live; hell, the kinkier the better. Keeps things interesting. I just meant there were lots of things to consider when going into a relationship like this.”

  “We’re meeting with Ryan tomorrow to go over everything. That was my idea,” Logan stated proudly. The suck up.

  “That’s good,” Marty smiled. “So, I assume the two of you have already discussed everything, then?” he asked, motioning between the two of us.

  “What do you mean?” I asked with squinted eyes.

  “Oh, sweet merciful heaven, you two can’t possibly be this dense.” Uncle Marty rubbed at his temples, looking like a disappointed father. “That’s great that you encouraged Ryan to ask questions, but you need to make sure you two have discussed everything and set boundaries before going into this. You need to have solid answers to his questions.”

  “No problem,” I said confidently. “Logan and I already discussed this the first night we met Ryan. We agreed it was fine for us both to date him.”

  Marty took on a grin that told me I was in for trouble. “Okay, so are you going to have two separate relationships, or will it be a constant ménage a trois?”

  “Um…” I looked at Logan for answers, but he just shrugged.

  “And have you discussed what will happen sexually? What about jealousy? You may be fine dating him together, but will you be okay watching your brother give it to your boyfriend?”

  “Okay, I think I see your point,” I admitted. Just then, Marty’s phone rang. He smiled and cleared his throat before answering.

  “Hello?” He listened for a moment and his smile widened. “Of course, I forgive you, Lulu.” Another stretch of silence. “And you are the love of my life, sweet man. So, what are you going to do to make it up to me?” His smile turned purely wicked. “Oh my. That sounds positively filthy…Yes, put it in the microwave, you know I like it warm.”