“Where are my keys, asshole? I want them now.”
“I don’t have your keys.”
He sounded so innocent that her gaze flew up to glare daggers at him. It became obvious to her that he wanted to play stupid in front of Trina. Brit’s temper hit the roof. She reached around him so she could grab the back of his jeans, leaning against his big body since he was wedged between the cabinet and the open fridge door he still gripped. Her hands cupped his ass where his pockets were but she just gripped firm flesh and no keys.
“Brit?” Trina gasped. “What is going on? What are you doing?”
Brit released his ass and stepped back to give River another glare. “Let me tell you something, you big son of a bitch. I’m not one to play games with and do you want to know what’s great about being a physical therapist? I have strong hands.” She kept her furious gaze locked with his wide, stunned-looking eyes as she curled her fingers around the front of his jeans with her right hand, getting a firm grip on a handful of man. She made sure she applied enough pressure to let him know he wasn’t getting away from her without causing injury to himself but squeezed just enough to get her point across. “Give me my keys or I swear to God I’ll castrate you just the way I threatened before.”
The sound of jiggling keys came from behind her somewhere a second before a male chuckle reached her ears. Jerking her head around, Brit looked over her shoulder, refusing to release River to stare at…River, leaning against the wall just inside the kitchen.
She gawked at the bare-chested River holding up her key ring, a wide grin on his face, as a pair of highly amused, dark, sexy eyes locked with hers.
“Looking for these, baby? Want to let my brother go now? By the pale expression and the grimace of pain on his face, I don’t think he’s enjoying you gripping him there.”
Brit snapped her head back around to stare up at…River, who had grown pale, appeared to be in some discomfort, and continued to stare down at her in shock. She released him as she stumbled back a step, confused as hell. Her mouth opened but nothing came out.
A gentle female hand gripped her shoulder as Trina moved next to her to give the shirtless River a shake of her head. “What did you do, River?” Trina turned her head, her sympathetic gaze meeting Brit’s confused one. “Identical twins, hon. The only ways to tell them apart are by talking to them or looking at the left ear. The one you grabbed is Ryder and he’s got an earring. River,” she jerked her head at the one leaning against the door to the kitchen, “hates needles so bad he refused to get one, thankfully, so I can tell them apart.”
Turning her head Brit stared at Ryder as he rubbed the front of his jeans where she’d gripped him but he glared at his brother instead of her. “You pissed someone off again and didn’t bother to let them know to check if it is really you before they strike out at you?”
River chuckled as he shrugged his bare, wide shoulders. “Do you know how many times I’ve gotten slapped for you at some rodeo after I run into some woman you met in a bar and never bothered to call? Hell no, I didn’t warn her.” He walked closer to his brother. “Besides, I didn’t know you were home.”
Brit remained too shocked to move as she watched Ryder release the front of his jeans as his identical twin reached him so they could bear hug. Instantly comparing them she realized that River stood just a tiny bit taller but body-wise they looked absolutely the same. Their faces were impossible to tell apart.
“Their hair is the same,” Brit softly stated.
Sighing next to her, Trina nodded. “Weird, huh? They haven’t seen each other in a few months but from what I hear they both like it cut the same and keep it at the same length.”
They broke apart and River turned to face her. Her gaze darted back and forth between them, still reeling from the shock. She swallowed and then focused her glare on the bare-chested one.
“Give me my keys. Now that I know who to really go after it will be you who gets his balls torn off if you don’t hand them over.”
Ryder grinned. “She does have strong hands. It felt like a vise grip.” He turned an amused look on his brother. “Who is she? She’s cute but not our normal type.”
“Keys,” Brit interrupted quickly, stepping away from Trina to walk up to River to put her hand out, trying to stop him from saying something that would mortify her. “I’m out of here.”
“What did you do?” Trina glared at River. “Dale Hass called yesterday morning and asked us to put her up for a month and damn it, we are. Don’t be chasing off the only woman on this ranch because I am looking forward to having one to talk to.”
River grinned. “I didn’t know someone slept in my bed last night and I accidently woke her up. She got rather pissed off at me and said she’d leave first thing this morning even though I left the room immediately. I swear I acted like a total gentleman, Trina. I took her keys so she wouldn’t leave before I could show her that I wasn’t some pervert who intentionally walked into her bedroom.”
“You lying son of a bitch,” Brit muttered.
River’s eyes sparkled with amusement. “You want me to be totally honest?”
“Just shut up and give me my keys.” She glared up at him, her hand still out.
He hesitated and then handed her the keys. She calmed as her fingers curled around them until he raised both his hands, showing them to her. She stared at them, saw grease smeared on his skin. Her gaze flew up to his.
“I borrowed your keys to pop your hood. You’ve got some engine trouble. It shouldn’t take me more than a few days to order the parts you need. I didn’t want you getting on the road to go back home until I was sure your car would make it.”
“What did you do to my car?”
His grin spread. “I’m fixing it.”
He’d done something to her engine and he blatantly taunted her with his actions. “You son of a bitch.”
He chuckled. “Actually, my mother was a whore, so next time you feel the need, go with that insult.”
That shocked her to silence.
Ryder sighed, turning his head to frown at his brother. “Did you have to tell her that?”
River shrugged. “I wanted her to be accurate. It’s not as though it’s a secret around here.” He looked back down at Brit. “Are you hungry? I’m starving. Trina makes the best breakfasts.”
“Fix what you did to my car.”
He shook his head and inched around Brit to walk to the table. “I have to order parts.”
Spinning to glare at the jerk, Brit watched him calmly sit at the battered table near the back door. He kept his back to her. She took a step toward him, her keys fisted in her hand, the urge to beat on the bastard so strong she didn’t even bother to try to fight it. He deserved to get hit.
A hand snaked out to grip her arm, halting her, and Brit jerked her head around to give Ryder a startled look. He frowned at her and shook his head slowly, releasing her arm as quickly as he’d grabbed it.
“It’s not worth it. You can’t beat sense into his thick head. Trust me. We’ve all tried to before. I’ll take a look at your car after breakfast and see if I can fix whatever he did.”
Trina sighed loudly, bringing plates to the table. “Damn it, River. Can’t you behave just once? You shouldn’t be harassing our guest.” She glanced at Ryder. “Where’s Nav? I thought you said he’d be right along.”
“He is dropping off the new studs to Adam and Trip. He dropped me off on his way there so I could shower. One of the new studs is an ornery son of a bitch that knocked me on my ass into some horse shit.”
Laughing, River picked up his fork. “Nav should have waited for me to arrive and taken me with him. You and horses never got along.”
Ryder brought more plates of food to the table. “That’s why I am in a band. He might have waited but nobody knew you were coming home. I heard you got hurt. You okay?”
“Hell, you know me. The high prize money tempted me enough and while I won, the dismount got a bit rough. I’m good though.�
� River didn’t look at Brit once. “What happened this time to bring you home?”
Ryder sat, reached for a gallon of milk, and poured it into a glass in front of him. “Jeff had to be taken to rehab again.”
“Shit. What got him drinking this time?”
Brit realized she wasn’t going to win this argument and forced herself to calm down. She glanced at Trina, who motioned with her head for her to have a seat at the table. Brit set her keys on the table next to her as she sat as far from River as she could get, refusing to look at him but unable not to hear his conversation with his brother.
“He tried to surprise the wife when we got a last-minute gig near his home and she wasn’t alone.” Ryder sighed loudly. “I keep telling the guys that marriage and bands don’t mix but they don’t listen. He tied one on, got locked up after going back to beat the shit out of the guy who’d nailed his wife, and we bailed him out. We took him straight back to rehab.”
“She wasn’t a groupie on the move, huh?”
“Nope. She had a son from a previous marriage and had to keep a home up for the boy. We were only gone for three weeks on that tour but I guess she got lonely.” Ryder shrugged. “The life is rough on couples.”
“I’m glad you’re both home.” Trina sat next to Brit. “Nav is worried about me and likes to stay close to home all the time now. With both of you here, he can do that.”
The back door opened and another brother walked in. Brit stared in amazement as she looked intently into his eyes. This brother wasn’t as dark as the twins and obviously part white with those blue eyes. He glanced at her and then his attention fixed on Trina. A wide grin transformed his handsome face into a look of sheer joy.
“Damn, I missed you.”
Trina jumped up and ran into the man’s arms, moving fast for a pregnant woman. “Nav!”
He lifted her from the floor, hugged her tightly, and planted a passionate kiss on her upturned lips. Brit gaped at their open affection as the guy’s hands gripped his wife’s ass and helped her lock her legs higher around his waist. He started to walk, still kissing her, and caressing her backside. They left the kitchen, out of sight.
Ryder turned his head to grin at his brother. “Get used to it and turn on your stereo when you go to bed.” He chuckled. “I don’t know what the hell they are doing to each other at night but it can get really loud.”
River chuckled, his gaze fixing on Brit. “I like loud women. The louder the better.”
She fumed, glaring at him. “Dream on, asshole.”
“Um,” River licked his lips. “I had a dream—”
“Shut up.” She grabbed her fork and stabbed her eggs. “I mean it.”
Ryder glanced at them and then surprise paled his features. “Shit. You two? Last night?”
“No!” Brit’s blushed hotly.
River chuckled. “Couple days ago. Meet my physical therapist. She’s good with her hands.”
Embarrassment flooded Brit as she stared in anguish at River for telling that to his brother. He’d just admitted they’d had sex. Tears filled her eyes, which she blinked back hard then she stood, her fork clattering to the table. She ran from the kitchen.
She made it halfway up the stairs on her way to get her things when a strong arm wrapped around her waist and jerked her back into a hard body. A hand braced on the railing to keep both of them upright. She jerked her head around to look over her shoulder at River.
“Don’t fight me on the stairs.” He frowned. “What is wrong with you?”
“You told him.”
The frown on his face deepened. “So what? He’s my brother and I tell him everything. We’re identical twins, closer than most brothers, and he figured it out anyway since he knows me too well.”
More tears filled her eyes but she blinked them back. River saw them though, his stunned gaze widened and then narrowed.
“Your family is friends with Dale. He’s my boss and he’s going to be furious if he finds out I slept with you on the job.”
“So what? If you think Dale is a saint, think again. He grew up on the rodeo circuit. I could tell you tales that would shock the shit out of you about that man, including the fact that he blew a lot of his money on whores and some of the biggest sluts ever born. He liked his women fast, loose, and easy. If you think he’s going to get his ass bent out of shape because you nailed me, you’re wrong. He’s the last person to ever judge anyone else when it comes to having sex.”
“You don’t understand,” she lowered her voice. “He’s the only one who gave me a chance after he found out about my past. No one would hire me but he did. He always tells us to never screw with the patients. He’s going to fire me if he finds out and I won’t be able to get another job. I can’t take care of myself if I can’t pay the rent or have enough money to even eat. I don’t want to live in my car.”
The grip on her waist eased as River released the stair railing but he refused to let her go. His hand slid to her hip, urging her to turn around. She hesitated and then moved to face him. With her standing a step up from him they were almost eye level as they stared into each other’s eyes.
“Why wouldn’t anyone hire you?”
She shook her head. “I’m not going to talk about that.”
He frowned. “Are you an ex-con? Did you get into some trouble once? That’s okay, you know. Everyone makes mistakes. Dale isn’t going to fire you over this. Trust me. If he ever finds out I nailed you, he’ll totally blame me for it. He’ll believe I seduced you and he’d be right.”
“I’ve never been to prison.” She swallowed, careful of her wording to remain truthful. Prison and jail were two totally different things, technically. “I’m not an ex-con and you didn’t sign a work contract that states you’ll be fired if you sleep with a patient, but I did.”
He grimaced. “He really makes you sign shit with that in it?”
She hesitated. “Have you ever heard of a guy named Larry Douglas?”
Understanding lit River’s features. “Yeah. I remember that. He married one of Dale’s therapists two years ago and she took him for everything he had. It got nasty in the courtroom when they divorced.”
“She took advantage of that old guy and Dale blames himself because he hired her and sent her to Mr. Douglas.”
“I remember. Larry had just turned eighty-five at the time and was senile as hell. That bitch drained his accounts faster than she could spend it.”
Nodding, Brit sighed. “Dale told me. Now he has it in our work contract that we aren’t allowed to get involved with any of his patients under any circumstance.”
“But you fucked me.”
Her face flushed again and she let her gaze drop to his bare chest, a mistake as she stared at his tan skin and wide chest. He was so attractive the urge to touch him grew too strong until she fisted her hands at her sides to keep them there. She nodded.
“Why did you then, if you knew it could get you fired?”
She glanced up and then back down at his chest. “I don’t know. Temporary insanity maybe?”
He chuckled. “Maybe it’s my bedside manner.”
“Maybe it’s because I’m lonely and you’re hot.” She wished she could take the words back but they were out there. He knew he was sexy as hell so it wouldn’t come as a shock that she’d admit that to him. She just wished she could take back her confession of being lonely. “Will you let me go now? I need to get out of here.”
His arm tightened around her waist. “You’re not leaving, Brit. I disabled your car.”
“Fix the car so I can go.”
He slowly shook his head. “You came here to get a vacation, right? I’ll talk to Ryder and he won’t tell a soul. Trust me on that. He can keep a secret so you don’t have to worry about Dale ever finding out about us.” He took a deep breath and then his voice lowered into a husky tone when he spoke. “Let me take you to bed again. I want you and you want me.”
“I want a lot of things but that doesn’t mean I get to
have them.”
He grinned. “I’m right here and you can totally have me.”
She couldn’t help but smile back at him. The jerk could be charming when he spoke in that tone and his sexy eyes sparkled with amusement. His hand on her hip shifted to her ass, firmly cupping her there.
“I want to spread you wide open on my bed and eat breakfast.”
Her nipples hardened. She swallowed, hating the way her body responded to the thought of River’s face between her thighs and the wonderful things she knew his sexy mouth were capable of.
“You’re here and I’m here. Don’t overthink this. Turn around and let’s go to my room.”
She bit her lip, undecided. Her body wanted one thing but her mind told her what a bad idea it was. She stared into River’s eyes, neither of them speaking for long moments. River’s hold on her ass tightened and he drew her against his body until they were nose to nose, chest to chest. She could feel the warmth from his hot skin through to her thin T-shirt and against her skin where they touched.
“I could get addicted to the way you moan while I’m licking you.” His voice grew husky as he whispered the words. “Let me take you to my bed, spread you out, and do what I want to you.”
Her stomach clenched at the memory of River licking her clit. She squeezed her eyes closed, her hands curved around the top of his shoulders as her body moved closer to his. The hands gripping her ass lifted her a little higher, jerked her tight against his chest, and she gasped, her eyes opening when her feet left the stairs.
“Wrap your legs around my waist,” he ordered, not waiting for her to obey his command as he started up the stairs.
I’ve lost my mind again, she thought but her legs still ended up crossed over the back of River’s jean-clad ass. He made it to the top of the stairs and moved quickly down the hallway. He kicked his bedroom door closed behind them. He never paused once until he bent over his bed, allowing gravity to let her drop so she landed gently on her back on his mattress. She stared into his sexy, brown gaze.
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