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Kian rolled us to one side, all of us still connected, a tangle of arms and legs. He reached across me and stroked his fingers up Vaughn’s arm, wiping away the sweat.
Vaughn looked at him. “Well?”
Kian chuckled. “Well, what? You want me to say you did a good job or something?”
Vaughn propped himself up on his elbow so he could glare at Kian over the top of me. “Maybe! You could at least tell me that was good enough to make us even.”
I smiled softly into Kian’s chest.
Kian’s fingertips switched to trailing up and down my back. “Fine. We’re even. Happy?”
But apparently Vaughn was not satisfied by that admission. “Say I’ve improved since high school.”
Kian lifted his head. “You never fucked me with a vibrator when we were in high school.”
“I know! So say I’ve improved.”
“Jesus, Vaughn. Okay. You’ve improved. You’re a sex god.”
Vaughn settled back down on the pillow and nuzzled into the back of my neck. “Exactly. Thank you.”
I sniggered, but I couldn’t deny the praise was well deserved. “I second that. You were amazing.”
Kian thrust his hips against mine, though he was too soft to do anything. “Settle down. You’ll give him an ego and he’ll stop trying.”
I widened my eyes at him in pretend shock. “You’re right.” I twisted to toward Vaughn. “That was terrible. Try harder next time.”
Vaughn pulled out and pushed me onto my back, covering me with his body and pinning me down on the bed so I couldn’t move. “I hope you didn’t plan on walking anywhere tomorrow, Roach. Because I’ve got all night to try harder with you.”
33
REBEL
I called Torrence the next afternoon, after we’d all slept and showered and driven another four hours. The phone rang only once before he answered it eagerly. “Rebel. You called.”
I drummed my fingers on the dashboard, suddenly a bit nervous. Meeting a bunch of people I was related to was kind of a big deal. “Of course. I said I would when we got here.”
“So you’re in Bedallen?”
“Just pulled into the main town. Are you here?”
“Got in last night. Caught the earliest flight after I got your message that you were on your way. I’m so glad you decided to come. Thank you. It means so much to me.”
I didn’t want him getting too excited. “I’m not here long, I have to get home for the funeral. I just wanted to meet my siblings.”
“Absolutely. I understand,” Torrence agreed quickly. “They can’t wait to meet you either. If you’re on the main road, take a left when you get to the gas station, then drive about five miles. Our property is called Ridgemont. There’s a big white fence running right round it, a bunch of horses and sheep and cows in the pastures. You can’t miss it.”
I relayed the info to Vaughn in the driver’s seat, and he made the turn. He didn’t smile or comment. Kian was equally sullen.
I ignored them both. “We’ll be there soon.”
A silence fell over the car as soon as I ended the call. It grew thicker with every passing mile, until whatever the two of them weren’t saying was very clearly the elephant in the room.
I sighed unhappily. “Okay. Just spit it out. Everything you’re worried about. Lay it all out on the table.”
“You don’t know this guy from a bar of soap,” Kian announced from the back seat.
“He’s my dad.”