Braydon(10)

“I don’t want you to go away,” he said, a little too quickly.

The passenger door opened, a smiling young man greeting them both as he offered Cheyenne his hand. Brendon wanted to be the one helping her out of the truck, but he fought back the jealousy that raged down deep.

He needed to find a way to distance himself from this woman. He was wasting his time on her. She obviously didn’t want the same thing he did, and since Brendon had no intention of changing at this point in his life, he knew it only made sense to move on.

After all, he should’ve been trying to find a way to fix things with Jessie and Braydon.

Too bad he didn’t know how to do that, either.

A short while later, after parting ways with Cheyenne just inside the resort, Brendon found Jessie and Braydon lingering near the rows of long tables topped with fancy china and heavy white candles that had been set up in Zane’s club. Jessie and Braydon were talking to V and Zane, congratulating the lucky couple. In a move that had become so natural lately, Brendon stepped up behind Jessie, circling his arms around her waist and pressing up against her. She turned and smiled at him as she always did, a brief look of surprise flashed in her eyes, but then it was gone. The glare he received from Braydon wasn’t normal.

He made a mental note to ask him about it when they got home.

But for now, he just wanted to forget about the tense few minutes he’d spent with Cheyenne, and the feelings the woman stirred in him, and what better way to do that than to immerse himself in Jessie for a little while. She was warm and willing and he knew when he tempted her with sneaking off to a darkened room down the hall, she’d be a willing participant.

He only hoped Braydon wouldn’t put the brakes on the way he had a while back. Since that night, they’d engaged in a couple of encounters together, but other than that, Braydon was keeping his distance.

But tonight, Brendon needed this. It was a distraction he wouldn’t be able to resist.

After another couple commandeered Zane and V, Brendon led Jessie off, keeping her close while Braydon stayed a few steps behind them. He was a little surprised that his twin wasn’t much in the talkative mood, but he didn’t question that, either. He had a one-track mind at the moment, and it revolved around exorcising Cheyenne from his thoughts.

“Have I told you how hot you make this dress look?”

Jessie turned toward him, flashing him a hesitant smile. “Thank you. I think.”

Leaning in close to her ear, Brendon added, “I’d give anything to slip it off you right here, right now.”

“Right here?” she asked incredulously.

“Well, maybe not right here. But yes, here. Now. Like, the three of us sneak off down the hall for a minute.”

“A minute?” Jessie questioned with a mischievous smirk. “You romantic devil.”

Brendon laughed. Although the sound was forced, it still did the trick.

Jessie glanced over her shoulder at Braydon before turning back to look at him. Whatever was going on with these two wasn’t helping the strain emanating through Brendon after his encounter with Cheyenne. But he knew a surefire way to alleviate some of that unnecessary pressure. For all three of them.

When Jessie didn’t balk at his suggestion, he placed his hand on the small of her back and made his way across the large open room. Zane had opted to transform the nightclub within the Alluring Indulgence Resort into his wedding reception, and the place looked nothing like it normally did, except for the amount of people crowding the space.

Weaving their way through the tables and the guests, Brendon continued to direct Jessie toward one of the back exits that would lead to a small corridor, taking them into the main hotel. They had to talk to several people as they made their way, so progress was slow going, but they finally arrived at Brendon’s intended destination, the back exit door of the club. A quick examination of the room behind him and Brendon knew that no one was paying them any attention, so he ushered Jessie through the door and down the narrow hall, Braydon still keeping a steady pace alongside them.

“Where’re we going?” Jessie asked, her heels clicking on the hard tiled floor.

“Not far,” he said by way of an answer, not really knowing where he was going, but figuring he would recognize it when he found it. As they passed room after room, most of them storage spaces for the hotel, he tried a couple of knobs only to find them locked.

After trying the knob on several more doors and finally finding one that turned, Brendon made a cursory check of the room to ensure it was unoccupied before stepping aside and waiting for Braydon and Jessie to precede him inside.

Someone had been kind enough to install a lock on that door, they obviously just weren’t used to using it, which worked out in his favor tonight. Might as well take advantage of it now to ensure they didn’t have any uninvited guests.

Brendon made his way to Jessie, not wanting to waste a minute. People would start looking for them soon, and his goal was to release some of the pent-up stress, make Jessie come a few times, and then get back to the party. At that point, he’d grab a few beers and ignore the fact that the woman who occupied every one of his waking thoughts was within reach, but untouchable.

But right now . . . he had Jessie. And she was the most important thing.

“Jessie,” Brendon whispered as he pulled her closer, sliding his hands beneath her long hair and pressing his lips to hers. She smelled sweet and so familiar. “I want you naked.”