He rarely talked about Tampa other than the Croft office, but it surprised me he had a house. It never came up in conversation. He didn’t seem like the kind of guy to buy with his restlessness. “A bay bungalow?”
He offered a smile before turning to watch Tally bound back and forth, her tongue flopping from her mouth. “No, but it’s a few blocks from the bay. A one-story contemporary with a pool. A family is buying it, so they’ll make more use of it than I ever did.”
I observed him as he watched Tally play, lines of worry creasing his forehead. I squeezed his hand, willing to wait as long as it took for him to open up. “It sounds amazing, and I’m sure you’ll find something you love in Chicago too.”
He glanced back my way, swallowing hard. “I hope so.”
* * *
Jason wasn’t the only Barrett that knew his way around the kitchen. While he focused on the bird, Luke worked on sides and dessert. Ethan addressed our immediate hunger, making a breakfast that left me doubting I’d have room for dinner with waffles, eggs, bacon, and sausage. Spoiler: I did.
After the tastiest Thanksgiving meal possible, I cleaned up despite protests, needing to make myself useful. I didn’t want to screw up any dishes since I was hardly a domestic goddess, but I knew my way around cleaning a kitchen thanks to years of culinary failures.
The boys relaxed in the dining room while I tidied up, leaving the kitchen more immaculate than I found it, every inch of white marble spotless. Jason wasn’t kidding when he said the place was nicer than any hotel, the unit screaming luxury from the high-end double stove to the walk-in wine closet.
I dried my hands and padded towards the dining room, careful not to slip. As pretty as it was, the flooring was a death trap if you wore socks, and my purple dinosaur ones had no traction to speak of.
I found the boys right where I left them, though there were three bottles of booze on the table: tequila, rum, and whiskey. There was a stack of cards beside them, along with an assortment of shot glasses.
“What are you playing?” I asked, taking a seat beside Jason at the massive pedestal table.
“Truth or Shot,” Luke declared, rubbing his beard. “Want to play?”
“Sure,” I agreed. “I have nothing to hide.” It wasn’t exactly the truth, but it wasn’t like we’d die if they found out we worked together.
“Me neither,” Luke challenged, puffing his chest out.
I smirked. “I know. I’ve already seen it all.”
His brothers chuckled while he reddened. “Just for that, you’re going first.”
I glanced at Jason, who sat back with his shoulders relaxed, though he was rubbing his temple again. He had headaches often, likely due to Croft’s nonsense. I reached out and stroked his hair. “Need ibuprofen, Jase?”
He shook his head and smiled, waving me on to start.
I reached out and plucked a card. “If you had to sleep with one person in this room, who would it be?” I read. “Easy. Jason.”
“Oh, that’s shit!” Luke protested. “Obviously, we’d all pick you.”
Jason and Ethan nodded in agreement. It would have been a lot more flattering if I literally wasn’t the only viable option.
Jason took the next card, grinning ear to ear. “What is your biggest turn on?” He glanced my way, chuckling. “Apparently, a nice ass.”
“A chick who makes the first move,” Luke declared.
Ethan shrugged. “Confidence.”
“Definitely confidence,” I agreed. It was what initially drew me toward Jason. He was easy on the eyes, but the way he led a room set me ablaze more than anything. He was always sure of himself.
Luke grabbed the next card, brows snapping together, his expression a mirror image of one I saw on Jason’s face countless times. “How old was the oldest person you’ve had sex with?”
He didn’t answer right away, causing both Jason and Ethan’s eyes to flick his way. He swallowed hard. “Fif-ter-ee,” he grumbled, slapping the card down.
“What was that?” Jason asked, leaning forward on his elbows. “We couldn’t understand you, little brother.”
“Fifty-three,” Luke muttered, crossing his heavily tattooed arms.
The other brothers erupted in delight, high-fiving one another.
“I knew it!” Ethan shouted, pointing Luke’s way. “You totally fucked Ms. Chambers!”
“It was a rough twenty-fifth birthday, okay?” Luke defended, putting his hands up. “I had one too many shots. My mind was telling me, no, but that blazer was telling me yes.”
“Thirty-three,” Jason offered. “Twenty years younger than my younger brother’s tastes.”
Ethan grinned. “Twenty-nine.”
All eyes drifted my way. “Thirty-six,” I replied.
Jason whirled to face me, shock all over his face. “I’m the oldest person you’ve had sex with?”
“By a mile,” I teased. He only had the second-oldest, Justin, beat by two years, but there was no harm in teasing.
Jason shuddered while Ethan chuckled, grabbing the next card. “What is one thing on your bucket list?” he read.
“Fucking seriously?” Luke growled. “Why do you guys get the easy ones?”
Ethan smirked. “I want to travel to Iceland to see the Northern Lights.”
“Lame,” Luke taunted. “I want to open a tech school. Kids need to learn trades.”
Ethan nodded. “Damn right.”
“I want to go international,” Jason answered. “Now that I have the national director role, it’s the only place to go.”
All eyes moved my way. “I want to find a job I love.”
“Where do you work?” asked Ethan, glancing between us.
I looked to Jason, who nodded, giving me the okay. “Croft.”
Both of his younger brothers went wild with laughter while Jason shook his head.
“You filthy animal!” Luke hooted, clutching his side.
Jason shrugged. “When you like something enough, you break the rules.”
I grabbed the next card, groaning as I glanced it over. “How many people have you had sex with?”
All three men reached straight for the booze, not even hesitating.
“Seriously?” I laughed.
Jason poured me a
