Quiver & Burn: A MFM Firefighter Romance (Surrender to Them Book 5)

by Kelli Callahan

  “Are you okay?” Jett ran over with a look of concern on his face.

  “I—yeah.” I nodded and looked up at Rand, briefly getting lost in his steel colored eyes. “Thank you.”

  I’d fall all the time if I had someone like him to catch me.

  “You have to be careful in here.” Rand shifted me until I was upright and standing on my own two feet.

  Wow, that was almost disastrous—but it had a pleasant ending.

  After nearly finding out what the floor tasted like, I decided to be a lot more careful. Even with near disaster making my heart race, I couldn’t stop thinking about the way it felt to be in Rand’s powerful arms. Something inside of me wanted to be there again—to be so close to him. I tried to snap out of it. I wasn’t even supposed to be on a date—or whatever it was—with Rand. Jett was the one who asked me to go. He was the one who staged the meetings in the hallway. We chatted while we worked, and I started to see more of their differences shining through. Jett was slow and methodical, moving stuff out and carefully studying the next endeavor. Rand was more aggressive, just pulling the boxes out without paying them much attention.

  “Okay.” Jett put his hands on his hips. “We’ve got everything out of the locker. Let’s start going through the boxes.”

  “Sounds good.” Rand walked over and ripped the tape off the first one.

  Now we get to see what kind of buried treasure I almost ended up in the ER for.

  Chapter Six

  Jett

  Brylee’s turquoise eyes were full of excitement when we started opening the boxes. They reminded me of the excitement Rand and I used to get every time we tore into boxes of potential loot. It was still fun, but after so many disappointments, we didn’t normally get excited until we actually saw something interesting. The first box didn’t have much of interest. It was old clothes and judging by the state they were in, they were pretty much worthless. The second set was full of pots and pans. They might be worth something to a thrift store, but it wasn’t what we were really after. Brylee seemed especially interested in a cast-iron skillet that looked like it had seen a lot of use, so we put it aside for her. The third box was a little bigger, and I had a glimmer of hope when I pulled it open and saw a small jewelry box sitting on top, but it was absolutely empty. It might be worth a couple of dollars, but that was about it.

  “Well shit.” Rand flipped the jewelry box over in his hands. “I guess this one is going to be a waste of money.”

  “Yeah.” I wiped sweat away from my brow. “We’ll be lucky to break even.”

  “There are still a bunch of boxes left.” Brylee leaned over and nudged Rand with her elbow. “If it gets too boring, I can show you how good I am at balancing on a stool.”

  “Please don’t.” Rand rolled his eyes and chuckled. “I might not catch you next time.”

  “You wouldn’t let me fall.” Brylee grinned and leaned over to look in the next box.

  I had been so focused on buying lockers and getting the first one emptied as fast as possible that I hadn’t really spent much time flirting with Brylee. I saw the attraction shifting, and when she thought I wasn’t looking, she was staring at Rand with a silly grin on her face. My opportunity seemed to be slipping away. I wasn’t jealous of my brother, even if I did like Brylee, and if that was the direction things went, then I wasn’t going to hold him to our agreement. That wouldn’t have been fair to either of them, and it really didn’t matter if I was the one who saw her first.

  It was going to be difficult to look at those curves and know that I let them slip through my fingers before I ever got a chance to run my hand across them, but it wouldn’t be the first time. Watching her bend over to dig through the box might as well have been torture because her ass was fucking incredible in a pair of jeans. Rand looked at me and we shared a knowing nod—one that caused me to swallow hard when my dick tried to show me that it didn’t have a chivalrous intent at all with a woman as beautiful as her. We both had to look away in an almost comical fashion when she sprang up and turned around.

  “This one is full of junk.” She sighed and her face reflected disappointment. “Are you two tired of digging through boxes already?”

  No, but fuck—you’re one hell of a distraction.

  “Nah, just taking a break.” Rand chuckled and started opening another box.

  “I was going to look through that one next.” Brylee leaned over—and lightly grazed Rand’s arm as she grabbed the side of the box.

  “Go ahead.” Rand pulled away and turned to the next box.

  I tried to give Rand a nod that let him know I didn’t mind, but there was a concerned look on his face. He was trying to do the right thing and avoid Brylee’s attention. I respected that. I kind of wished we didn’t have our stupid oath not to compete because I was worried would happen if he shunned her attempt at flirting. Our first not-really-sorta date might be the last time either of us got to spend time with her. I saw the look in her eyes when he caught her. He might not have saved her life, but he probably kept her from losing a couple of teeth. I decided that I needed to go for it—to make some sort of move. If I struck out, then at least I could say I tried. It was time to stop worrying about the locker and focus on what really mattered. I pulled the box over that Brylee nearly fell trying to get and started pulling it open.

  “Anything interesting in that one?” I leaned over and put my hand on her lower back.

  “No.” She shook her head back and forth, but a slight grin formed on her lips when she felt my touch.

  “I think this one belongs to you, no matter what is inside.” I pointed at the box sitting next to my feet. “It almost sent you to the emergency room.”

  “It’s probably full of rocks—that’s my luck.” Brylee turned towards the box and brushed against me as she finished opening it. “Movies!”

  “Really?” Rand’s face lit up and he walked over.

  “Rand collects really awful movies.” I chuckled and pulled the stool over so Brylee could sit.

  “They’re not awful—they’re classics.” Rand dropped to his knees and grabbed a handful of DVD cases. “Classics that nobody else can appreciate.”

  “Whoa, this was my favorite movie growing up!” Brylee reached into the box and a huge smile spread across her face. “The Princess Bride!”

  “Really?” I blinked in surprise. “That movie is older than you are.”

  “Inconceivable!” She held the movie against her chest and grinned. “This was the first movie my parents let me watch that wasn’t a cartoon. I haven’t seen it in years…”

  “Well, now you own it.” Rand smiled and held up a couple of movies. “These are more my taste.”

  “Sorority Girl Massacre and Murder Valley High.” I chuckled under my breath. “Yep, those are the kind you love.”

  “You can keep those.” Brylee wrinkled her nose. “I don’t think I would ever watch them.”

  “I’ll tell you what.” I reached down and took one of the movies from Rand. “We’ll watch The Princess Bride with you if you watch Sorority Girl Massacre with us.”

  “Tonight?” Brylee looked at me and her lips twisted into a grin.

  Hard to say no…

  “Sure, why not. Rand, are you up for it?” I shook the movie and forced a slight smile.

  “I guess so.” His eyebrows lifted and a slight look of concern spread across his face.

  We continued looking through the boxes and it took a couple of hours to finally finish sorting them. Brylee kept a few movies, but the owner of the locker appeared to have the same affinity for bad movies that Rand did, so he ended up with a much bigger stack. Brylee confessed that she didn’t have much in the way of kitchenware, so we packed her a box with most of the pots and pans. She jokingly asked if she could keep the stool in case she needed to change a light bulb, so I added it to her stack—hoping she wasn’t serious. Once everything was sorted, we carried the worthless stuff to the dumpster and loaded the truck with the rest. I c
ould see that Brylee was eager to check out the next locker, but it was getting late. I wasn’t sure we would have time to finish it if we started without much daylight to spare.

  “Why did you ask her to hang out with us tonight?” Rand pulled me to the side while Brylee was out of earshot.

  “I thought it would be fun.” I shrugged. “Besides, she seems to be more into you than me.”

  “Which is why you should ask her out on a date instead of coming over to our place to watch movies,” Rand grunted and shook his head.

  “Let’s just see where it goes. We don’t have to compete. If she keeps showing interest in you, then I’ll step aside.” I reached over and patted him on the back.

  “So, are we going to open up the next one.” Brylee walked over and interrupted our conversation before Rand could respond.

  “Probably not today.” Rand shook his head back and forth. “We won’t be able to finish before it gets dark, and then we’d just have to load everything back into the locker.”

  “Tomorrow then?” A hopeful smile spread across her face.

  “We’ll be working tomorrow.” I sighed and shrugged. “We probably won’t get to it until next weekend.”

  “Okay, just let me know! This has been a lot of fun.” She nodded quickly. “Thank you so much for bringing me.”

  I guess she’s coming back whether we invite her or not.

  “No problem at all. Who’s ready for lunch?” I turned my arm and looked at my watch. “Hell, it might as well be dinner at this point.”

  The three of us climbed back into the truck, and Brylee sat closer to me than she had on the ride over. I really thought she was shifting her attention towards Rand, but her body language didn’t exactly say that. When we hit the curve at the end of the street, she put her hand on my leg for support and let it linger there after the turn was complete. She was confusing the fuck out of me, and a worrisome thought went through my head. What if she was interested in both of us? Rand and I might have joked about it, but we weren’t ready for that. We had been down that road before and it didn’t end well. There was no way I could put my heart on the line with a girl that couldn’t choose. It didn’t matter how beautiful she was, or how much her smile made me want to melt.

  “Alright, which movie are we going to watch first?” Brylee sat down on the couch and looked at us.

  “You two figure it out. I’m going to make popcorn.” Rand motioned towards the television and then headed into the kitchen. “Does anyone want a beer?”

  “I’ll take one.” I leaned over and picked up the two movies from the coffee table.

  “Sure, I’ll take one too.” Brylee nodded and smiled.

  “You know this one is going to suck, right?” She stared at the cover for Sorority Girl Massacre.

  “Then let’s watch The Princess Bride and after we have a few beers—that one won’t be as bad as it sounds.” She chuckled and leaned back against the couch.

  “We don’t have enough beer to make this movie good.” I tossed Sorority Girl Massacre back on the table and walked over to the television.

  I started wishing we had a bigger couch when the three of us sat down. It was closer to a large loveseat than a full sized couch. Brylee was between us and each time she leaned forward to grab some popcorn, her arms brushed against us both. She didn’t seem to mind at all—another worrisome sign. I shared a knowing glance with Rand and saw the same concern in his eyes. I tried to relax and just let things happen. I really did like Brylee. She was more than just a girl with beautiful curves. She was interesting, fun to be around, and had such a genuine love for life. I just hoped I didn’t fall for her while she was falling for Rand—or worse, falling for us both at the same time.

  Once the movie started, she stopped moving around as much and my focus shifted to the television screen. It had been a long time since I watched The Princess Bride, but I always liked it. Rand and I were huge fans of professional wrestling when we were kids, so the fact it had Andre the Giant in it made it one that we just had to see. His glory days might have come before we were old enough to watch, but we used to rent old wrestling pay-per-views on the weekend since we couldn’t afford to watch any of the new ones.

  Chapter Seven

  Brylee

  I was starting to struggle with my feelings and desires. The more I got to see of their personalities, the more attracted I got to them—both of them. Jett was so calm and collected, but a lot more serious about everything. He could be charming, but it didn’t seem to be a dominant trait. Rand, on the other hand, was extremely charming but much less reserved. With the three of us sharing a bowl of popcorn, there were a few times when we ended up reaching for it at the same time. Jett always pulled away, but Rand didn’t seem to care if both of us had our hands in the bowl at the same time. I tingled every time his fingers grazed mine. Unfortunately, I felt the same tingle every time Jett shifted on the couch and his leg brushed against me.

  This would be so much easier if they weren’t so freaking hot.

  They both did their best to give me room, but I had to keep my hands flat on my knees to avoid being pressed against one of them. After a couple of beers, my inhibitions started to wane. By the time we finished The Princess Bride, I didn’t even care if I was practically sitting in their laps just to be comfortable on the couch. I tried to scoot closer to Jett because I didn’t want him to feel like I was on top of his twin brother when he was the one who invited me over. I just couldn’t avoid thinking about them both—imagining things that were so filthy they made me squirm. I wasn’t that kind of girl. Those thoughts shouldn’t have been running through my head. If I didn’t find a way to focus on something else, I was going to leave a wet spot on their couch before the evening was over.

  “Okay, who wants another beer before we start the next one.” Rand stood up and grabbed the empty bottles.

  “I’ll take one.” Jett raised his hand and nodded.

  “I shouldn’t—ah what the hell. Yeah, I’ll take another one too.” I smiled and looked at the popcorn bowl. “Is it impolite to ask for more popcorn?”

  “Not at all.” Rand chuckled and picked up the bowl. “Coming right up.”

  “I never drink.” I blinked a few times, feeling the slight heaviness around each eye.

  “Luckily you live pretty close.” He chuckled and started to stand.

  “Yeah, just point me towards 4D and give me a push.” I leaned back against the couch and watched as he swapped out the movies.

  “I’ll make sure you get home safe.” He turned back towards the couch. “You know this movie is probably just going to be nudity and murder, right?”

  “It’s not my favorite thing to watch, but I like hanging out with you guys.” I shrugged and scooted over to give him some room when he got back to the couch.

  “I like hanging out with you too.” He smirked and nodded.

  Jett sat down on the couch and as he adjusted his position, he practically pressed against me. Our eyes met and I saw his steel-colored orbs flash with a hint of something that I hadn’t seen yet— desire. He seemed to stop breathing for a moment and I felt my heart racing. Was he going to kiss me? He took my hand and squeezed it. His serious expression was exactly what I needed at that moment because my heart felt like it was about to do a somersault. I wasn’t sure how I would react if he did kiss me, but just looking into his eyes was making me tingle more than I had all night. He finally exhaled, slowly, and just when I thought he was going to lean in for the kiss my body was starting to crave—he leaned back. I couldn’t hide the disappointment on my face. I swallowed hard and sighed, not even trying to be subtle about it.

  “I’m sorry.” He let go of my hand.

  “Why?” I tilted my head to the side. “Did I do something wrong?”

  “No, it’s not you—it’s just very complicated.” He closed his eyes for a moment and his face twisted into a grimace.

  “Okay.” I nodded and folded my arms across my chest.

 
; If I say what I’m really thinking, I’ll probably regret it.

  “Who’s ready for round two?” Rand walked into the room with a bowl of popcorn and three beers.

  “I got it queued up.” Jett motioned to the television.

  “Perfect.” Rand handed us our beers, but instead of sitting down next to me, he sat in the chair that was next to the couch.

  Well, now I have more room.

  I scooted away from Jett to give him space—since that seemed to be what he wanted. I had no idea what ruined the moment we almost shared, but I couldn’t dwell on it. It was still fun to hang out with them, even if it wasn’t headed in the direction I thought. I couldn’t help but wonder if I had done something wrong, even if he said I didn’t. Did I give mixed signals? Was he worried that I was interested in Rand instead of him? I didn’t even know the answer to the last question myself. I felt torn. I knew it was practically impossible to fall in love with two men at the same time—especially twins, but I couldn’t shake the feeling—the way their differences seemed to compliment each other so well. Yes, they were both gorgeous enough to set my panties on fire, but that wasn’t all I wanted. I really did like them both.

  “Have you ever seen this movie before?” I looked over at Rand when the opening scene was two sorority girls running around without a hint of clothing.

  “Not this one.” He chuckled and shook his head.

  “We can put on a different movie if you don’t want to watch this.” Jett looked at me with a bit of concern. “Rand can watch this one on his own.”

  “No, it’s fine. I was just curious. I haven’t watched very many horror movies—or whatever this is.” I reached for my beer and took a sip.

  Nudity didn’t really bother me, but once the sorority girls went upstairs to climb in bed with their boyfriends, I started to squirm. It was hard enough watching a movie with sex when I was with one of my friends—watching it with two extremely hot guys was a new experience entirely. Rand seemed more interested in upcoming bloodshed than the tits and ass while Jett looked a little bored. The entire thing was cheesy and the lines were as awful as the fake blood that sprayed from them in a comically bad fashion once the killer showed up. A few of the naked girls got killed and the screen flashed to somewhere else in the house—somewhere that was apparently so far away they couldn’t hear the violence going on while the killer hacked up the other sorority sisters. One of the sisters, who appeared to be in charge, ordered a line of younger girls to bend over a table as she picked up a large wooden paddle.