My Christmas, My Crooked Bend: Men of Crooked Bend Book 6

by Taylor Rylan

  “Did you call and check or something?” I asked, and when Collin nodded, Sean was the first to respond.

  “It’s Thursday, right?” Sean asked while giving me a genuinely confused look, causing me to chuckle but nod. “Then the special is open-faced roast beef sandwich. I’ll take that.”

  “That sounds good to me, so make it two,” I said as I grabbed my wallet and pulled out a twenty and handed it to Collin. I really did love my husband, but the lack of red meat in the house got to me at times. Collin already had his phone up to his ear as he waved before leaving. I found Dad’s contact in my phone and hit Talk. Wondering what I was about to discover.

  “Jasper. Is everything okay?” Dad asked, making me smile.

  “Careful, you’re starting to sound like Papa,” I replied.

  “He’s standing right here, and you know he’s concerned.”

  “Papa has always been a papa bear. But actually, we were the ones concerned. You said you’d call us yesterday and never did.”

  “I called your brother. I’m assuming he didn’t call you?”

  I looked at Sean, and he shook his head.

  “Dad, you didn’t call me.”

  “Your other brother. I talked to Logan and Rhett last night.”

  “Well, the little stinker didn’t call. Is everything all right?” I asked. They were supposed to arrive this weekend, but they’d gotten incredibly busy lately.

  “I guess we should have called you two as well. We arrived in Jackson this morning, and after we do some shopping, we’ll be out at Wild Creek.”

  “You’re here already? Christmas isn’t for another week and a half,” Sean said, just as surprised as I was. Something wasn’t quite adding up. They had been too busy lately to show up so soon.

  “You going to let us in on what’s going on?” I asked while looking at Sean, who was nodding.

  “And ruin the Christmas surprise? No. You’ll have to wait.”

  “Fine. Do you two want to come to my place for dinner?” Sean asked and was gesturing to me as well. I nodded but stopped when Dad’s voice came through the phone again.

  “Damn, we should have called. We’re having dinner with Logan and Rhett. We assumed you two would be there as well.”

  “Fine. Tomorrow, then?” Sean asked, looking miffed. I didn’t blame him. What was our baby brother up to?

  “Tomorrow sounds good. I’ll talk to Rhett and see what’s going on.”

  “No, it’s okay. Tomorrow works. We’ll see you then. Have fun shopping, you two,” Sean said before getting up and walking out of the office.

  “He’s upset,” Dad said through the line.

  “Rightly so, but we’ll get over it. See you tomorrow. Collin will be back shortly with our lunch, so we’ll chat with you soon.”

  “Jasper, don’t be upset, please.”

  “As I said, we’ll get over it. See you soon. Love you both,” I said before I disconnected the call. I took my phone with me as I left the office and went to the conference room. It had a large table, and if we weren’t in meetings, we often used it for lunch.

  “Okay, the little squirt’s up to something,” Sean said when I entered the conference room.

  “Maybe. Maybe not. Perhaps he simply hasn’t called us yet?”

  “Or he’s up to something. I’m telling you, there’s definitely something going on with him.”

  “Well, maybe he has news to share with our dads and wanted to tell them first,” I suggested as I sat down in a chair. Collin came walking in just then, loaded down with a bag in each hand. The sandwiches smelled heavenly, and my growling stomach reminded me why I was so hungry. I’d left the house late, and without eating breakfast, because my little imp was busy riding my cock this morning. Like I’d ever say no to first-thing-in-the-morning sex.

  “Thanks, Collin. I appreciate you running to get lunch.”

  “No problem. I grabbed pie while there as well.”

  I looked at Collin, ready to kiss him. Because yeah, pie was another thing that my loving husband didn’t have in the house, ever. He’d become such a health food nut lately, and it was driving me crazy.

  “Why does Jasper look like he’s about to orgasm?” Collin asked with a scared look on his face. Sean looked at me and started laughing.

  “Liam has become quite the fussy eater since they’ve gotten married, and I know pie is one thing Jasper loves but Liam never has at the house.”

  “Umm, Jasper?”

  “Yeah?”

  “Why don’t you just buy your own damn pie?”

  Sean laughed again, causing Collin to look at my twin.

  “What? No good?”

  “He’s tried. Liam throws them out. He’s worried about sugar, carbs, and fat.”

  “Fuck that. No! Do we need to fatten you up?” Collin asked curiously.

  “Why do you think I eat out for lunch so much? I’ve tried talking to Liam, and I have gone shopping, but with him working from home, everything’s gone when I get home the next day.” I picked up half of my sandwich and took a large bite and moaned. Damn, that was so good.

  “Nope. I’d totally spank Dalton’s ass for something like that. Or withhold sex. The former sounds more fun though. Lucky for me, he loves steak as much as I do, so I don’t have to worry about that.”

  My mind went straight to the gutter, and thoughts of the first time I spanked Liam flooded my mind. Yep, those were memories best left for when I was alone. Or with my hubby.

  “So anyway, Mr. Browne canceled his contract, and I seriously couldn’t be happier that a client decided to do that,” Sean said, effectively changing the subject before taking a bite of his own sandwich.

  “I agree,” I told him. I’d seen the stress that ass munch had put on my brother, and I’d already talked to Collin about the termination coming from our side. He’d agreed, but in the end, we didn’t have to worry about it since Mr. Browne was the one who ended the contract. I shoveled in fries like I was starving, but in reality, I wasn’t. I’d just been without some of my favorite foods for a while.

  “Did he ever say why?” Collin asked.

  “His wife came with him last trip and didn’t like the cold. She wanted a warmer climate, so he canceled the contract.”

  “Ouch. That’s a big loss,” I said as I looked up as Dalton entered the conference room. “Hey, Dalton. Did you bring your lunch as well?” Collin’s smile went into megawatt category as he turned and looked up at his husband.

  “Hey, asshole. You’re late. Wait, where’s your lunch?” Collin asked after Dalton leaned down to kiss him.

  “I can’t stay, baby. I have to cover over at the station. Jacob had to go. Isaac called and it sounded urgent. I’m just out long enough to get my own to-go order.”

  “Is everything okay?” Sean asked, the concern for his brother-in-law obvious.

  “He said it was, but that it was urgent and he needed to be with Jacob. I didn’t ask any questions beyond that.”

  “Do you want company? I can take my sandwich over to the station and join you there.”

  “If you’re not needed here, I won’t say no.”

  “Take him,” I said.

  “Get him out of here,” Sean said at the same time. We all laughed, but Collin quickly packed up his lunch and left with his husband. I went back to devouring my sandwich and fries before I started in on my slice of apple pie. I moaned around bites of that as well.

  “You know, if you’d just make those noises while eating at home, Liam wouldn’t keep throwing out all the non-rabbit food.”

  “You think? Hmm, maybe I should call over and ask Barbara to set aside an entire pie for me. If I take it home tonight and moan while eating it, do you think Liam would throw the rest out?”

  “Doubtful. And you’d probably get lucky, too.”

  “I got lucky this morning, which was why I was late leaving the house,” I retorted as I licked my fork clean. Damn, that hit the spot.

  “Seriously though, what’s up w
ith Liam? Why’s he so crazy about what you eat lately?” Sean asked as he started eating his own slice of pie.

  “I’m not sure. Even from the beginning, he’s always eaten very little red meat, but lately it’s gotten worse.”

  “Have you talked to him about it?”

  “I have tried, he usually distracts me by taking his clothes off.”

  “You know, if you’d stop—”

  “Don’t finish that sentence. That’s my husband, Sean. And I adore everything about him.”

  Sean smirked at me before he continued talking as if I hadn’t warned him. “I was actually going to say, you know if you’d just eat the food off of him, he’d get turned on, you’d get to eat your favorite foods, and you’d both get laid. You know I know you’re kinky as fuck. Don’t let being married change that.”

  That was something to think about. I hadn’t changed that much since I’d gotten married. Had I? True, I’d only slept with one man in the three years we’d been together, but I didn’t feel as if I was missing out on anything. I loved Liam more now than I did when I’d married him. Sean’s fingers snapping centimeters from my nose had me looking at him.

  “Good to know your mind went where I’d intended. But bad timing on my part. I’d asked if you had any idea what was going on with anyone in the family? First Dad and Papa are here a week early and Rhett didn’t bother telling us.”

  “I’m honestly not sure. Hey, you don’t think Rhett’s finally telling them he sold the bakery, do you? I mean, his friend—Charles, is it? He’s here and has been running the place for him for months now, and they’re not stupid. They’ll know something’s up.”

  “It’s Chad, not Charles. That’s an idea, and one I wish I’d come up with. Maybe? But why would he keep the fact that our parents were here already from us? Selling the bakery doesn’t seem like that big of a deal, does it?” Sean asked as he picked up both of our Styrofoam containers and threw them in the trash by the door.

  “Maybe not to us, but remember, they were really hesitant about him moving here so soon after what happened to him.”

  “Yeah, but we both agree, it was what? Eight? Nine months? And Logan has been nothing but amazing for him,” Sean said as he sat back down and looked at me.

  “I know that, you know that, and they know that now, but at the time, they didn’t. What do you say? We call the little shit and ask?” I leaned back in my chair and thought about all the reasons why Rhett wouldn’t invite us to dinner as well.

  “As tempting as it is, I’d say no. We should wait this one out. Besides, who knows, maybe he’s planning on calling us later? Have you asked Liam? Those two are still pretty close.”

  “I have. He said he didn’t know. He would have told me, if he did.” I shook my head, remembering that conversation because, like Sean, I was genuinely concerned about Rhett. Yeah, he had a husband and Logan doted on him, but still. Rhett was still our brother.

  “Hmm, then I guess we wait. So, dinner. Tomorrow at our place? I’ll have pie, and how about steak fajitas? I can grill some chicken for Liam so he won’t have to eat steak. Sound good?”

  “Yeah. You know, we have a better chance of getting anything out of our brother than we do our dads.” I thought about all the times we’d tried to get any information out of our dads, and it’d never worked. Ever.

  “That’s not why I want them to come to dinner.”

  “No?” I sat forward, wondering why.

  “No. We haven’t seen them in how long? I just want to have dinner with them.”

  I smirked and sat back, knowing that wasn’t the only reason. After all, Simon had talked to me just last week about what to get his husband for Christmas.

  Liam — 2

  “Oh, the weather outside is frightful…do-do-dooo, do dooo, do do-do.” I sighed, trying to concentrate, yet again. I needed a break. I needed a vacation. But I knew I’d not be able to have either. Not only did Jasper work just as much as I did, he seemed to be the one covering for everyone else. They needed more architects if they were going to keep their current workload.

  So, I just tried to pretend like there wasn’t anything wrong. And really, there wasn’t. I was just being bitchy. Jasper and I were as close as we ever were. I just wished I saw more of him.

  I got up from my desk and went to the kitchen, determined that coffee would help. I passed Hemingway on his kitty tree in front of the window, but he was too busy sunning himself in what little sunlight we had. December in Wyoming wasn’t exactly warm. Or sunny for that matter, but it was where Jasper was, so it was where I was.

  When I discovered the coffeepot was empty, I looked outside at the snow, then back at the coffeepot. Yeah, I definitely wasn’t going out for coffee in that shit, so I dumped the used grounds in the trash and started a new pot. I checked on Hemingway’s food and water; both were good, so I went to the den and flopped down on the couch and grabbed a pillow. I held it on my stomach, thinking about life in general.

  I love my husband, and Jasper was good to me, but dammit, we needed something. Like, a vacation. To somewhere warm. Tropical with sandy beaches. I sighed, thinking about being in a tiny little bathing suit with Jasper on a beach somewhere. I was brought out of my daydream by my phone ringing in my office. It was Jasper’s ringtone, and I knew there was no way I’d ever make it to the phone in time, so I got up but didn’t rush. I’d just have to call the sexy man back.

  I made a detour to the kitchen and poured another cup of freshly brewed coffee before I went back to the office. I picked up my phone and couldn’t help but smile. Not only had Jasper called, he’d texted as well. Sometimes he annoyed me with how worried he’d get.

  Cupcake: You okay? It’s snowing.

  Me: Fine. Was getting coffee.

  Cupcake: You busy?

  Me: Nope, so call back if you want to talk.

  “Hey, sexy. I had fun this morning,” Jasper said when I answered my phone.

  “I did, too. Everything okay?”

  “Yes. Is there anything we need from the store? We’re about to get a snowstorm, and I didn’t want to be stuck at the house without something. I’m going to be coming home in just a bit, so if you’d look, that would be great.”

  “Oh, Hemingway needs litter. I dumped the last in his box this morning. Also, we’re almost out of coffee and creamer.”

  “Okay. Anything else? Do we need anything food-wise?”

  I bit my lip, wondering if I should say anything. “Anything that sounds good to you. I haven’t checked the weather. Is it going to be bad?”

  “We’ve had worse, but it’s possible we’ll get snowed in for a day or two.”

  “Yeah, if there’s something you’re craving, I guess add it to the list, then. The freezer is still pretty well stocked.”

  “Will do. I’m headed out now. I’ll see you in about an hour or so.”

  “Okay. Please be careful.”

  “I will, imp. I always am.”

  “Love you, Jasper,” I told him with a smile on my face. And I did. I loved Jasper more than anything.

  “You, too.”

  Jasper ended the call, and I sighed again. Snow. Well, it was Wyoming. And it was December. Snow was expected. It was already snowing, but when I looked at the weather radar, my eyes bugged out. It was going to snow. Holy shit. Somewhere warm and tropical was sounding better and better. Why couldn’t we be somewhere warm and tropical? Like Tahiti or Hawaii or the Bahamas?

  Well, if Jasper was coming home early, that meant I needed to get my ass in gear and hit my word count for the day. Or get as close as possible. Sometimes I could work with Jasper home, sometimes not. It really depended on if Jasper had work to do as well. And honestly, if he was running around the house in sweats or not. The man was a complete distraction when he wore sweatpants. He loved to go commando under them, and of course, I already knew exactly what waited for me inside them, but still. I had work to do. So, I turned on my writing playlist and did my best to get in the zone.

&nbs
p; But it still wasn’t working. Because now, not only was I thinking about being somewhere warm and tropical, I was also thinking about Jasper coming home soon and putting on a pair of damn sweats. I’d done it to myself, but dammit, I needed to get my head out of the gutter. You’d think that after spending two plus years married to the man that my desire for him would have lessened, but nope. Not a bit. I was lucky, and I knew it. Jasper was sexy as fuck. Period.

  I sighed again, deciding that maybe I needed to channel my sexual frustration—where in the hell did that come from—into something more productive. I glanced at my chapter notes, and sure enough, I was on chapter eighteen and my guys hadn’t had sex yet. Sure, they’d had time for a blowjob back in chapter three, but damn. No wonder I couldn’t focus well. Swanson and Holloway had a very active sex life. And this was my Valentine’s Day story, so I needed to get my act in gear.

  After I read through the notes and skimmed the manuscript more, I found the perfect place for a hot and heavy sex scene. And I had the perfect inspiration for it. Detective Holloway was going to tie Swanson to their bed and ride him until they both came. After he’d licked the Cool Whip and chocolate sauce off him first of course. That worked, right?

  I was so involved in my chapter that I didn’t hear Jasper come home. It wasn’t until his warm hands started massaging my shoulders, eliciting a groan from me, that I realized I was no longer alone in the house.

  “Hey, cupcake. I didn’t hear you.”

  “I know. I’ve been home for thirty minutes. You had that determined look on your face, as well as that sexual flush, so I assumed you were writing a sex scene and left you be.”

  “Damn. It still amazes me you know when I’m writing about sex,” I said, looking up at my husband, hoping for a kiss. I got it and looked back down at my screen.

  “Baby, your face gets flushed when we have sex. I know what you look like during those times. It’s not that difficult to put two and two together.”