Badge Boys Page 14

  Her hands stroked him, his muscled back, his biceps, and his forearms.

  And then she couldn’t control herself anymore. His continual pull out and slide in rhythm had increased and her body got into the rhythm. Her hips were rising to meet his. Her muscles pulsed. She grasped his hips, pulling him harder and harder into her. Just when she was convinced she would explode, she did, coming apart everywhere at once. Her core grasping at him in a rapid pulse. Then she fell back, panting.

  “Oh my God, Troy. How am I supposed to do anything after that? You wrecked me!”

  “Take a nap. With me.” He pulled her into position against him. Spooned with her. Wrapped his arms around her. Scattered kisses over her shoulder and her neck.

  His breathing evened out and eventually his arms went slack.

  Annie lay back into him, safe and warm. Sated.

  She loved this man. She loved his brother. She knew the differences they never mentioned. She loved them both.

  She couldn’t allow the thought of choosing one over the other.

  Unbelievable.

  She let herself drift off. She had work to do.

  She could do it later.

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  It had been five months since the incident at the hotel. The twins had not moved in with Annie yet, since they couldn’t agree on the logistics of that next step. It was a source of friction.

  She held firm. There was a child involved. Bobby was in rehab. He was well enough now to go back to his shift for childcare for Troy junior. Ivan and Troy each had a shift. The grandparents did back up. Four households were involved in this rotating childcare routine. She was amazed that the kid hadn’t had a meltdown before this.

  He lived like a homeless person. Carrying his little backpack with him. Keeping everything in a big duffle bag.

  Still off duty, Bobby was staying at his parent’s house instead of in his apartment and it made sense to let Troy Junior stay there with the grandparents as well, with the occasional break with Troy or Ivan. Bobby’s apartment was checked on routinely by whomever was assigned patrol in the area. Sometimes the child asked about Bobby’s house since it had a swing set. It was near a park. He missed it.

  Annie had strongly suggested taking the kid over there to play in the park. Swing on the swings. They had finally followed up with that.

  “Kids need consistency,” she argued. “That time in the park and the swing set are part of his known world. It was seriously disrupted.”

  She knew about the boy, but they hadn’t introduced her yet. She felt it was too soon. Too much change.

  They wanted to move into her overly large house because it had four bedrooms. That meant that Ivan and Troy each had a room. And the fourth room could be used for the child. They wanted to sell their two homes. Merge their assets.

  Annie nixed the idea. “Too soon. Kids are not ping-pong balls. They need a routine. You have one. You need to stick to it. He’s not ready for such upheavals at the tender age of three. He’s already concerned about the swing set. What does he have at the other two houses? Because he may have found something at each home.”

  “Almost four,” Troy piped up. “He’s almost four.”

  “Which is getting worse and worse. Besides,” Annie continued. “I need to establish a bond with the kid before all of a sudden I am playing Mommy Dearest.”

  “Ouch,” said Ivan.

  “What will I be? Auntie Annie who sleeps with his fathers and makes them make those funny noises?” Because neither man was quiet when they came. She wasn’t, either. That would have to change. Or they would need to soundproof the kid’s room.

  “Put him in the room farthest from the action,” Troy offered.

  “That’s the bonus room for the house. Since my writing office is in the family room, the family room isn’t a family room. We need the bonus room to be a family room.”

  “The middle bedroom. There are two closets between the rooms.” Troy liked that. “If necessary, we can nail the closet doors shut. Or put locking doors in there.”

  “I think selling this house would be better,” Annie persisted. “Get a house with the master bedroom at the opposite end of the building. We need five or six bedrooms.” Good luck finding that. She knew the real estate market. On second thought, that would work.

  “The bedroom on the mid level,” someone said.

  Annie wasn’t watching so she wasn’t sure who spoke. They’d been over this. “That room is right at the front door. Not good for a child. Besides, I need to meet this kid a few times. We need to go do things together, all of us. I need to be eased into his life. Not just arrive as a done deal. I haven’t even met your parents yet.”

  “We haven’t figured out how to introduce you to our folks,” Troy said.

  “Never mind introducing me to a child.” Annie stomped off to the kitchen. “You are moving too fast. Slow down.”

  “We could sell two houses,” Ivan said again.

  “They’re a good investment. Rent them out. After this is resolved,” she said. “Stop making all these knee-jerk reactions. I think we need to move slower. No one is going anywhere. Let’s do things right.”

  “Three mortgages. Think of the savings.” Troy said, for once being practical. Rental income sounded good to him.

  “I know. I pay mine monthly,” she said. “On the other hand, renters never properly take care of a home. There is that. Slow down.”

  “If we all end up in one place it will be cheaper,” Ivan answered.

  “If we all end up on one place, how would I get any work done?” She laughed. “We need a bigger house. Not so much square feet. We need a better flow. There’s no room for an addition here.” Not that she wanted to go through with an addition. The new kitchen had been bad enough. Months of upheaval. It had only been a year. Not long enough to forget.

  “What did you let the captain know? Just that we were dating? If you move in, it’s going to be messy,” she said.

  “Look. That’s what being a primary is for. We would be the couple. Troy would be listed as our roommate.”

  “What you will tell your parents?”

  “The same thing.

  “And the kid?”

  Ivan shrugged. “The same thing.”

  “And when the kid gets older and inquisitive and spies on us and finds out what’s what, have you thought it out? The kid would be in therapy for years. So would I.”

  She set up the Keurig and made a chai latte, her go-to drink when feeling stressed. That or a café mocha.

  “Never mind child-proofing the house, including my business papers. I don’t want to rent outside office space. It could be robbed. Never mind, what am I supposed to do when I get a wild plot bunny? Drive over in the middle of the night? No. Doesn’t work for me.”

  “You love this house,” Ivan.

  “If the house stops working for you, remodel or get another house. No room here to remodel. If there were, I’d bring in a fifth wheel RV decked out as an office. So there you are. We need to find a house with RV access. Instant writing cave. Four bedrooms. Open plan. Good flow. Three bathrooms. The RV would have a bed and a bathroom. At least a shower. I could hide.”

  “How big of a yard?” asked Troy.

  “The yard can have a hot tub and a pool. Room for a swing set. Climbing bars. Whatever. And ample space to drag the RV in and out. We can swing loan off this one. You can sell yours. Last of all, I can sell this one once I move out. Have it landscaped. Painted in and out. Fix the tricky lock on the patio door. I am not ready to make that call.”

  She sipped her chai and smiled. That actually would be perfect. “I could work undisturbed. Who would break in? Only a complete idiot.” She realized she had just thrown down a challenge. If she did manage to get that writing cave, they’d be sure to demonstrate how easy it was to disturb her.

  “Sounds like we talk to a realtor.” They were talking in unison again.

  “Not until I’ve met the kid on neutral territory. W
e could go to the zoo. Takes time. One step at a time. Think about it while I am gone. I mean it. Besides, you’re trying to stop me from getting on the road. Enough. We can logically discuss this when I get back home.”

  Annie had signed up for a retreat workshop writer’s retreat and was taking a step to push herself along her path. She needed to be around writers. She needed to forget about the office. She needed to get a little focus.

  They were not happy about her driving out in the boondocks. She had declined their escort. She had declined being driven there and dropped off. Being picked up later. She had been firm.

  “I need to pack. I leave on my trip in the morning. I’ll need to lock up. The cat doesn’t need anything. I’ll leave a bag of cat food in reach. She can diet later. Toilet seats get left up—nice for you. I’ll put down a roasting pan of water. Deep dish. Maybe just half a bag of dry cat food. I will put out canned food when I leave. The room air conditioner will suit her just fine. I’ll be gone three days. I’m driving home Sunday night.”

  The cat had finally deigned to acknowledge that the men came and went. She still wasn’t friendly, but she didn’t run as fast. And sometimes didn’t run at all.

  Wait until the kid shows up.

  Meanwhile, groans and complaints came from both men.

  “I need to go to the writing retreat. I have work to catch up on. I have a book due out. I respect your call-outs. Think of this as one of mine.” Even if she set her own goals, she needed to reach them.

  “You make the schedule,” said Ivan.

  “I intend to keep it,” she said. “I am an independent person.”

  Ivan had his arms around her, and Troy was only a step behind. “We know. It’s one of the things we love about you. But I still wish you’d let me put a GPS unit in that old truck.”

  “So we can find you if you get lost,” quipped Troy.

  “No. No. No.” She kissed each of them on the cheek. “No more arguments. Stop interrupting me. My chai latte, this chai latte, I am drinking warm.” She stuck her tongue out again. “And don’t call my truck old.”

  “Seriously, what if something happens? What if you can’t call? Your phone dies? You have an accident? We need to be able to find you.” Ivan was being a fussbudget. No. He was being possessive. He didn’t want his possession out of his sight. He was still fighting jealously sometimes when she was attentive to Troy.

  Troy had the same problem. He and Troy were still working out that little problem. They seemed to think it was in check. She wasn’t so sure.

  The fact was, she loved both of them with an intensity that scared her, and she knew that it would kill her to lose one.

  “You’ll find me,” she said with all the confidence she could display. “I have printed out my driving route. Written down my schedules and shown them to you over and over. Made two copies and one is here in the kitchen taped to the wall. Any other questions?” She pointedly lifted the cup and sipped at the almost too hot cup of chai.

  “The Dark Ages. You are in the Dark Ages,” said Ivan.

  “I love my flip phone. It is what it is supposed to be. A tool. A phone. With an off switch.”

  “We can’t text you. Or send email,” said Ivan.

  “Good. I’m on a computer enough. I don’t want to carry it with me. I will be learning something. Taking notes. With a pen and paper.”

  “Good grief. The Dark Ages for sure.” There they were again. Speaking in unison. Her heart flipped over. Damn it. They were so hard to resist. Kids in a candy store. Make that a toy store. They had to be reminded that she wasn’t a doll. She had a career. A mind of her own.

  Annie also knew that she loved them both to bits. So far, it had always been the two of them. A moment here and there of one-on-one time. There was much more to learn about them. This wild ride she was on had only started. She didn’t want to be bowled over.

  The child involved was a serious complication. She meant what she had told them. She wanted the child to be secure with her before she was suddenly presented as his new mommy. Down the road, failing to do things right could lead to disaster for everyone.

  She had heard horror stories about kids tossed from relationship to relationship. So far, at nearly four, the kid was well-adjusted and just thought he had a normal existence. By seven, he would need stability. One house. And a clear understanding of his family.

  When she came back, she thought consulting a family counselor might be useful to help plot out her introduction and be sure they had done everything to provide the proper support for a true family blending.

  They needed to agree on the housing situation first.

  They were guys. Good guys, but guys. So far they had done a rather spectacular job. They just needed to understand the little person was not going to be a baby for long. He was a tough little guy. Like any child, he had his own ideas. He was reaching an age where he would let them know. She was the one who had minored in child psychology.

  Besides, she was hiding a secret—one she wasn’t ready to divulge. This trip was for thinking about things. Away from temptation. She wanted to be sure this was right. For everyone concerned.

  Ivan came up, removed the coffee cup from her hands, and kissed her. A signal that the current argument was over. She’d have to move quickly to get her packing done.

  Chapter Twenty-Three

  Annie had successfully packed mostly because they had a call-out. The great argument-ender. She had clothing, materials, had decided on taking her laptop, just no Internet connection. PJs and robes, caftans, slip-ons and comfy clothing were checked off. A multi-piece wardrobe that would allow her to become more professional for dinners was rolled up and packed. Maybe more professional. If she felt like it.

  Paper. Lots of little idea books. A couple of paperbacks to read. Her Kindle was toast having been dropped once too often. Her Kindle library was loaded on the laptop courtesy of the Kindle for the Mac app. Was it too ambitious to think she might have time to read?

  Her suitcase and her laptop case and last of all her purse were ready to go. She had fed the cat, who had seen the suitcases and was now off sulking. Pesky, spoiled-rotten feline. Her closet door had been carefully closed. No shoes were available for desecration. Unless she had missed picking up any shoes. She had walked around all her favorite places to put them.

  Ivan and Troy had made it back in time to see her off. They were tired, but they were still I-just-got-off-shift hyper and were again demanding to put a GPS tracker on the truck.

  “Not again,” she said, moaning. She tried to ignore them while checking off her mental list.

  When they couldn’t win, Ivan simply walked over and kissed her. One of his soul-draining kisses. Unfair way to end an argument! His hands caressed as he lifted her onto the counter, walked between her legs.

  “You will miss us,” he said. “We will miss you. A lot. It’s normal for us to feel adrift. You have become our anchor. We will be counting the minutes. We can’t help it.” His erection was rubbing against her through the multiple layers of his clothing. He was betrayed by the leer on his face.

  “Evil. You are evil. Stop that,” she said, pushing at him. “I don’t have time. Much as I appreciate the offer.” She kissed him lightly on the cheek, stroked him in all his glorious hardness, and slid off the counter.

  “You’re going to miss us,” Ivan said, deliberately adjusting himself.

  “Yes. I’m sure I will. But I am still going.” By now she was laughing. Dirty tricks were not beyond them. They were great cajolers.

  “We know,” they said in unison, which made her smile.

  “Let me go. I need to load my truck.”

  “You will miss a warm bed,” Ivan said.

  “You aren’t in my bed every night,” she replied.

  “We try to be. Part of it anyway,” Troy said. Troy the wisecracking one. Whose wise-off remarks covered a little bit of insecurity, which she thought he was slowly overcoming. It was normal for the second twin to struggle
with a little of that. Just one more reason why she tried to keep her favors evenly given. As she walked by him, she stroked him too.

  “Now who is evil?” Troy asked after he recovered his breath. Like Ivan, he was hard as a rock, and normally, she’d have stripped them down, popped open the sofa bed and set about reducing them to a more comfortable state. Ha, ha. She would have fucked them senseless, if they didn’t get her that way first.

  “I will sleep just fine.” She smirked. “Anyway, I need the rest. Think of all the energy I’ll have when I get back.” She gave them a crocodile smile.

  “We are,” they said in unison. Damn, they were so cute when they did that. She hoped they never stopped.

  Annie scooted around them and went for the door where she had her cases and her purse. The boys, as she thought of them when they were being difficult, beat her to the luggage. They each had one case, the suitcase, and the laptop case, excluding a network line. She hated wireless since it was wonky in her house. It was constantly failing. Hardwire any day, at least until they got better providers. The laptop was used as a typewriter. Period. Facebook and email could take a rest.

  She grabbed her purse, keys, and took a quick look around. She knew, as any woman did, that no matter what, something will be forgotten. She also knew she wasn’t falling off the planet and could go out and buy anything she really needed and had failed to bring. Still, habits of a lifetime were hard to break.

  The neighbors had gotten used to seeing cops come and go. So far, they thought of them as roommates in her oversized house. She hadn’t corrected them. Close. No cigar. She waved to the woman across the street. The guys waved, too. Oh good. Eventually, she would have to explain why two men were in and out of her house, and she didn’t think telling people they were her cousins or brothers or housemates anytime soon was in her agenda.

  So far, they had been careful with displays of endearment when outside. So far, they had kept their relationship behind her front door. There had been one memorable trip to the grocery store. A girl got attention when you were shopping with a fully geared-up cop or two. They didn’t do that anymore.