The Bayshore Rivals: The Entier Series

by Cassandra Hallman

  “Oliver said we were just friends.”

  “I don’t think friends do what we did,” Banks chuckles.

  My eyes dart between all three of them. They can’t really be saying what I think they’re saying, can they?

  “I….” My cheeks heat and a boulder the size of Texas starts to form in my throat. That guy from the party, he said I was into threesomes. Assuming what they’re saying is true, then he was right?

  “Did I… Did I sleep with all three of you?” I cringe as I ask the question, though there’s a tiny spark, a tiny flame of curiosity that flickers inside of me. Ashamed, I bury my face in my hands. This is wrong, so wrong.

  “You didn’t sleep with all three of us. Only Sullivan.” Oliver speaks through his teeth, his tone, filled with venom, signifying his distaste over the subject. Dropping my hands from my face, I turn to face Sullivan.

  Shame and guilt mix inside his ocean blue eyes and I know immediately that there is more to this story than what they’re telling me.

  “Tell me. What happened?”

  “I don’t think now is the right time to talk about this,” Sullivan interjects before anyone can say anything.

  “Why’s that?” Oliver hisses like a snake, and Sullivan’s gaze turns to steel, his jaw clenching so tight you could cut glass on the edge of it.

  “You know why,” he grits out.

  “Yeah ‘cause it would paint you in a shit light, and god forbid that happens,” Oliver snarls, and I notice that he’s vibrating with rage, his entire body tense. “I’m going outside before I do something stupid.”

  Oliver tries to get up, but I grab his arm pulling him back. “Don’t go.” I’m not sure what compels me to say it and with the feeling behind it, but as soon as the words are out, Oliver relaxes next to me. “Please tell me what happened… all of it. The good and the bad. I want to remember it, but I can’t, so I need you to tell me.”

  “We followed you to Bayshore, we wanted to mess with you, try to sabotage your school year, maybe even get you expelled,” Oliver starts explaining. “We followed you around, spread rumors…” His voice trails off, shame filling his eyes at the memory.

  “Then we got close, really close,” Banks continues. “We actually got to know you, and we were working on forgiving you, but then you betrayed us again… or so we thought.”

  “You denied setting us up again,” Sullivan says as if he’s lost in thought, “at the end, Banks and Oliver believed you, but I didn’t… I was so caught up in my own anger, so caught up in feeling like we had given you the knife to stab us all over again, that I secretly filmed us having sex.”

  My eyes go wide at his confession, my heart all but lurching from my chest.

  Filmed us having sex?

  My mouth pops open, and I don’t know if I’m angry, shocked, or ashamed.

  “Why? Why would you do that?”

  Sullivan blinks, his eyes finding mine. “I was angry, I thought you’d made me fall for you as part of a plot against us. I had no idea you were so innocent. I was going to publish the video for all to see, show you as the dirty slut I thought you were, but I didn’t. I swear to you that I didn’t, nobody ever saw it. I knew the second that I saw the blood on your thighs, it was me who had wronged you. Both of our parents wanted to ensure we remained enemies, and I had gobbled that bullshit right up. They had me eating right out of their hands.” Shaking his head, he looks away, as if he couldn’t take looking at me any longer.

  “Do you still have it? The tape...”

  Sullivan turns, his eyes snapping up to mine. “Why?”

  “Do you or do you not?” I ask again. The air grows thick as all eyes move to Sullivan.

  His face pales just a bit, and then he says, “I swear no one’s seen it but me.”

  “But you still have it?” I push.

  “Yes,” he finally admits. “Yes, I still have it.”

  “Jesus dude, you didn’t delete it?” Oliver barks, and I swear he’s just looking for a reason to clobber his brother. Then again, I’m kinda interested in seeing it.

  “I can’t believe you, you really are a dickhead,” Banks chimes in, just as disappointed in his brother as Oliver is. “I should kick you in the nuts right now.”

  “I want to see it. I want to see the tape.” I don’t even think about the repercussions or how it’s going to make me feel afterward. All I want is to see it, because maybe, just maybe, reliving my past will make me remember it fully. Sullivan pulls out his phone and thumbs through it, pausing as soon as he finds the video.

  Slowly, he hands it to me, shame and guilt, among a slew of other emotions paint his features. Ignoring how that makes me feel, I take the phone, and without any hesitation, I hit play.

  The video starts, Sullivan and I are in a bedroom, already lying on the bed, naked. His body is covering most of mine, but I still feel weird with Oliver beside me, who can clearly see the screen.

  “Do you want me to fuck you hard and fast or slow and gentle?” Sullivan’s voice comes through the speaker and my breath hitches. He sounds different, his tone laced with lust, his voice deeper, reaching into the tiny crevices of my soul.

  “Slow, please,” my voice comes out strong, and I watch intently as he starts moving, his hips thrusting forward with determination. The muscles of his back ripple and he looks like a man on a mission, a mission of pleasure. As I watch, heat creeps up my neck and cheeks, while tingles of warmth spread throughout my core.

  “Do you wish it was all three of us doing this with you right now? That we got to take turns with you? Making you come over and over again.” Holy shit. I almost drop the phone. Why would he ask me that? Swallowing loudly, I glance up at Oliver and Banks, who are both staring holes straight through me.

  “Yes,” I answer, sounding breathless. “I would like that…”

  Hearing my answer, I drop the phone. It slips out of my trembling hands and falls to the hardwood floor landing with a loud clunk. Moaning sounds fill the room before Sullivan can snatch the phone from the ground and turn off the recording.

  My cheeks are on fire, and my head feels like it’s about to burst into flames. I basically just watched myself in a porn video while three guys were watching me.

  Though embarrassing, it was needed, because it showed me that they weren’t lying. I had sex with Sullivan, not all three of them, but I wanted to sleep with all of them, that much was obvious which all but tells me they all mean something to me.

  “So…” Banks clears his throat. “Did that help jog your memory?”

  Someone, please kill me now. Or at least let me disappear for a little bit.

  “You don’t have to feel ashamed, Harlow,” Oliver says. “All three of us knew what we were getting into. We had talked about it at great lengths when things started to change between us. We want you just as badly as you want us.”

  “Wanted, you mean?” I correct him, though, we all know that I’m lying. Even if I don’t remember them fully, in some ways my body does, it’s drawn to each of them in its own way, each of them taking something different from me, and giving me a little piece of themselves back.

  “Stop denying it. We know you want us, and you know that we want you. Enough damage has already been done, enough time has been wasted, and I don’t want to play games anymore.” Banks states, matter of factly.

  “It’s not that easy for me. My body remembers you, but my brain doesn’t. I’m afraid, okay? How can I trust anyone or anything, when I can’t even trust my own brain?”

  “You can trust us,” Sullivan assures, his hand reaching for mine.

  “Brain injuries take a while to heal, and sometimes the memories never come back, but that doesn’t mean we’re just going to walk away or let something happen to you.” Sullivan’s fingers interlock with mine, and for the first time today, I feel safe.

  “Why don’t we get something to eat and talk about what happened today?” Oliver suggests, and everybody nods their heads in agreement.

 
; They must have had this planned because both the fridge and pantry are stocked with food. Sullivan heats up some ready to eat grocery store meals, and we all sit at the small dining table. The guys shovel food into their mouths at an alarming rate, while I take small bites, trying to decide if I’m hungry or not.

  Looking between the three of them, I start to talk. “It was just Caroline and me at the table. So, if someone rigged the burner, it happened before we came into class. The only other person who came to our table was… Tiffany.” I really tried to say her name in a normal voice, but the dislike for her clearly reflects in my tone. “She told me you guys had a thing…”

  Banks chuckles, “Of course she did. You don’t have any reason to be jealous of her though. We used her to make you jealous, nothing more than that.”

  “Did you sleep with her?” I don’t know what compels me to ask, but I have to know.

  “No, none of us slept with her or any of her friends,” Sullivan cuts in. Through all of this, I know I should be more apprehensive, should be concerned about what’s happening, but I’m not. The brothers are the only people who have been honest with me. They’re the only people that have made an effort to tell me about my past, our past.

  “Well, I guess that makes me feel a little better,” I say the words out loud, though, I didn’t mean to.

  “We missed you, so much, and we did kick Sullivan’s ass for you. After what he did, he’s lucky we didn’t disown him,” Oliver states, before laughing and the sound slices through me. It’s so deep, and warm, and I just want to tell him to keep talking, and laughing, but that would be weird, right? Dropping my gaze down to my food, I shove the pieces around with my fork.

  It hits me all at once why I’m here then, all the pieces stacking up inside my head, leading me to this very moment. My father had said I was in danger, and now the brothers were saying I was in danger. But who was I in danger from?

  “Who would want to hurt me?”

  “Honestly, we don’t know. First, it was the…” Banks’ words cut off when a soft knocking sounds against the door. All three brothers exchange a look as if they’re talking with nothing more than their eyes. Oliver pushes away from the table and goes to the door, letting in whoever is on the other side. Immediately, I start to feel nervous, dropping my fork onto my plate.

  “How is everything? Is she okay?”

  Caroline? I shove from my chair, nearly sending the thing to the floor. She’s stood in the doorway, her face scrunched together, guilt flickering in her eyes.

  “Harlow, I’m sorry,” she says, as soon as she crosses the threshold. Deep down, I know I should be angry with her for leading me here, but I’m not. I can’t be. It seems the Bishop brothers and Caroline are the only people telling me the truth, or really anything right now.

  “Don’t be. It’s okay.” I assure her with a soft smile. She nods as if accepting my word, and Oliver closes the door, sealing us all inside.

  “What’s the lowdown, Cuz?” Banks implores.

  Cuz? I stare, thinking maybe I’ve misheard him. Sullivan catches my bewildered facial expression and interrupts before Caroline can start talking.

  “Caroline is our cousin,” he announces, and I stare at him blankly. I have half a mind to say no way, really, but I feel like sarcasm really isn’t needed at this point.

  “You didn’t tell her yet?” Caroline whispers, elbowing Oliver in the side.

  “When would you have liked me to tell her? Trying to keep her in this cabin has been enough work.” Oliver quips before giving me a dashing smile, the effects of said smile send a ripple of heat all the way down to my toes.

  Caroline shrugs, “I guess, it doesn’t matter though. It’s a good thing you got her out of there. I don’t know what the hell is going on. There was no evidence of anything, no foul play, they’re claiming it was the burner that malfunctioned, but we all know that would just be too much of a coincidence.”

  The way she says it, with so much conviction, it scares me a little.

  “We’ll figure it out. Don’t worry, Harlow,” Sullivan says.

  “Want something to eat, Cuz?” Banks offers and Caroline nods furiously.

  “I’m starving… let me get some of this,” Caroline points at the meatloaf. I realize that there are only four chairs, and all of them are taken, so I get up to sit on the couch.

  “I’m done eating, you can have my chair,” I say, but when I try to walk past Banks, he reaches out and grabs me by the hip, pulling me into his lap.

  “Don’t be ridiculous. You can sit with me,” he grins, as my ass makes contact with his leg. I should pull away, but sitting on his lap feels normal, and it feels even better to have his heavy arm wrapped around my middle, holding me tightly to him.

  Jesus. There has to be something wrong with me.

  Caroline eats and talks a little more before saying her goodbyes. When she leaves, I’m left feeling anxious and unsure.

  One cabin. Three brothers, and me.

  23

  The guys talk amongst themselves for a while, and then we all move into the living room and watch a little tv. The room seems so small with all four of us in it, and I swear the temperature rises too. Sandwiched between Banks and Sullivan on the couch, my eyes start to grow heavy with exhaustion.

  “Ready to go to bed?” Oliver asks, obviously seeing my drooping eyes. I glance over to the lone bed in the room. “To sleep, nothing more,” he clarifies, seeing my apprehension.

  “Are we all going to sleep in one bed?”

  “Nah, we’ll make Sullivan sleep on the couch. It’s a king-size bed, it will fit three of us, so, you, me, and Oliver can sleep in it together. Unless you’re not okay with that?”

  “No… it’s fine.” My eyes dart back over to the bed. It’s huge, and it wouldn’t be fair to make two of them sleep on the floor while I had that huge bed all to myself. “You’re right, it’s big enough for the three of us.”

  Banks smiles, and I get this stupid urge to trace his lips with mine. I wonder what he tastes like. If he’s as intoxicating to my taste buds as he is to my other senses?

  Sullivan gives me an oversized shirt and shorts to wear to bed, and I get changed in the bathroom. I have the weirdest feeling in my gut as I do so. It’s a mixture of excitement and wrongfulness. I’m about to sleep in a bed with two guys, with a third one in the same room. All guys that I admitted wanting to sleep with. I’m not sure what that says about me, if anything.

  Shaking the feeling off, I step out of the bathroom and find they have already gotten comfortable. Sullivan is sprawled out on the couch with his hands behind his head, his shirt’s missing, and his perfectly sculpted body is on display. Wetting my lips with my tongue, I try and look away, but it’s so damn hard. The dips and planes of his chest beckon me onward.

  Finding some internal strength, I pull my gaze away and mumble a goodnight beneath my breath. Oliver and Banks are both in bed, laying on either side shirtless just like their brother, and having left me a lot of space in the center.

  Sweet baby Jesus. My ovaries are going insane, and the heat I felt once before pulses low in my abdomen. From the foot of the bed, I crawl into my designated spot and slither under the covers. Oliver rolls then, one of his thick muscled arms wrapping around me, drawing me into his chest.

  “If this bothers you, tell me, but I want you close. Just to hold you, nothing more,” Oliver whispers into the shell of my ear, and I shiver at the hot breath skating across my cool skin. I can feel the hardness of his body molding against mine like two pieces of clay coming together.

  Tucked tightly into his side, I inhale the clean scent of soap and rainwater. It calms me and makes me feel warm and cozy. Banks shifts against the mattress before rolling over to face me. Like his brothers, he looks like a Greek god, carved from stone, his body perfectly sculpted, his jaw tight, and his hair tousled. Our eyes collide then, and in the depths of his gaze, I see a hurricane of emotions swirling.

  With a gentle hand, he rea
ches out and brushes away a few stray strands of hair from my face.

  “I never thought we would see you again.” Banks’ admission surprises the hell out of me. He comes off as the jokester of the group, but right now he looks anything but to be joking. In fact, he looks serious, so serious it’s almost scary.

  “Well, I’m here now.” The words barely make it past my lips. It feels like I’m caught between fire and ice, my body being pulled in two different directions.

  “Yes. Yes, you are.” He smiles, his thumb drifting over my bottom lip. His eyes follow the motion, the color of them darkening, lust, and need swirling around, and around.

  Kiss me. I scream internally, though, I’m not sure why. The pull I have toward these guys is magnetic, and even if my brain can’t remember why they matter, my body and my heart do.

  “Goodnight, Harlow,” he whispers a second later, pulling his hand away, pouring an ice-cold bucket of water all over my desire at the loss of contact. His eyes drift closed, and he rests his hand against the mattress in the small space between us.

  “Sweet dreams, Harlow.” Oliver nuzzles into my hair, and I feel his words in my bones. The room grows quiet, and it seems to take me forever to close my own eyes. After a while, the heat in my veins dulls, and exhaustion wins out, pulling me deep into the darkness. With all three brothers in the room, nothing can touch me, hurt me, and I let that sink deep into my mind as I lull off sleep.

  I’m standing on the deck of a boat. My hands are on the railing as a brisk wind blows through my hair. It’s cold, so cold, and I bite my lip to stifle the sob threatening to rip from my throat. My emotions are out of control, short-circuiting. Out of nowhere, a hard shove from behind me causes me to lose my grip, the cold metal disappearing out from underneath my fingers. In seconds I’m flying through the cold night air, my body waiting for the pain to come.

  A gut-wrenching scream rips from my chest, rushing past my lips a moment before my body hits the unforgiving sea. Pain ripples through me on impact, petrifying my bones as a terrorizing darkness swallows me whole. Sinking like a rock to the bottom of the sea. Panic grabs onto every cell in my body, robbing my brain of any thought but one. Survival.