Page 27

JACOB

The atmosphere in the bedroom is like the locker room right after a win. All the tension is gone, and in its place is relief and the kind of euphoria that outsiders can never understand. Riley’s lying between us on Hayes’ bed, with flushed cheeks and parted lips, and I can’t stop watching the way she looks at us. Not nervous but curious, excited, happy.

Different from the girls I’ve been with before. There’s no artifice to Riley. She’s authentically herself without pretense or the desire to please us for any other reason than it feels good. She’s not looking for a man for his NHL potential or his current prestige. All those times she pushed us away make this surrender a well-earned victory and Riley a trophy worthy of winning. It’s good.

It’s also dangerous.

Hayes is still deep inside her, gripping her thighs like he’s afraid he’ll hurt her if he pulls out too quickly. That’s Hayes for you—steady, careful, considerate. It makes sense that Riley would feel safe with him. It’s also why I’m not annoyed that he’s the one who took her first.

I would have liked it to have been me, but I can breathe as long as we’re all in this together, experiencing it as a unit. I can’t lose anyone else in my life. I can’t be alone. We have to be a team because that’s all I know. And Riley, for all her sass, soothes me in a way I wish I didn’t crave.

I lean closer to brush a strand of hair away from Riley’s face, the urge to be gentle and soft with her taking me off guard. Our eyes meet, and the surprise in hers hits me right in the chest. “Careful, Jacob. Your brothers might think you care,” she whispers.

She’s right. If I’m baffled by my swell of feeling, my brothers must be bemused. Usually, I can’t stand closeness or after-sex conversation, and any girl I fucked would usually be halfway down the stairs but today is different. Riley’s different. And sharing with my brothers? Well, that’s different, too.

“Nah,” I say, tipping my head to one side. “Just making sure you didn’t have cum on your face.”

Riley snorts, but her eyes are bright and knowing, and her smile broad. “So considerate.”

Shawn, who’s the only one who hasn’t come yet, is still holding his dick. Mines harder than iron, and Hayes, although relaxed, is eyeing Riley like he could devour her for a second time. Her arms cover her breasts, and the shyness in the gesture tugs like a hook in my chest.

“This is so surreal,” she whispers. “I’m in one of those ridiculous locker room stories you guys probably swap after practice.”

“This would be a story no one could top,” I muse.

Hayes shoots me a glare.

“What?” I raise my hands, my grin widening. “I’m just stating facts.”

“You can’t tell anyone,” Riley says suddenly, gnawing at the corner of her mouth, eyes darting between us. “I don’t want to be the talk of the locker room or another notch on your hockey stick.”

“You embarrassed of us?” I ask, keeping my voice light while, in truth, her quickness to defensive mode pricks like a splinter of glass.

“No,” she says quickly. “I just…”

“...realize the world isn’t ready for what this is?”

The world? Trust Hayes to make a mountain out of a molehill.

“Do we even know what this is?” Shawn says. I’m not sure how he’s still functioning while most of the blood in his body is in his dick, but he has mental-physical separation skills that I don’t possess.

“Exactly.” Hayes takes Riley’s hand. “Of course, we’ll keep it between us for now.”

“Okay.” As her face relaxes, I know that Hayes has promised the right thing.

Hayes leans down, his lips brushing hers in a kiss so soft that it feels like I shouldn’t be watching, but I do because the way she melts into him and her fingers curl against his chest stirs something primal inside me.

When Hayes pulls back, he rests his forehead against hers, his voice low. “You set the pace, Riley. We’ll follow your lead.”

She nods, her lips parting like she’s about to reply, but before she can, I slide closer, my hand covering hers. “You ever seen a team that works better apart than together?” I ask, my voice low and steady.

She blinks, her brows furrowing slightly. “No...”

“Exactly.” I squeeze her hand lightly. “We’re a team, Riley. And a team protects each other. Me and my brothers… we’ve always been a team, and now...” I trail off, letting the words hang there for a second. “Now, we want you to be part of that.”

Her lips curve into a smile I can’t quite fully read. “You make it sound so... simple.”

“It is,” Hayes says firmly, his hand finding her waist. “At least, it will be if you trust us.”

Her gaze lingers on him for a long moment, and then she looks at me. And Shawn. She nods, and I sit back, allowing a little relief to pass through me. “Good.”

Then, I lean in and kiss the corner of her mouth. Her skin is warm, and the way she tilts toward me makes my chest tighten. She cups the side of my face, her fingers stroking gently over my temple where the remnants of a headache still linger, soothing and calming, and I melt, wishing I could lie down and fall asleep next to her and not rise for a week.

I’m kissing Riley Johnstone, leaning into her, learning the shape of her mouth, her taste, and the way she moans as our tongues tangle. It doesn’t feel new; instead, it feels like we’ve been dancing this way forever.

“And the best part?” Shawn adds, interrupting the quiet. I draw back as he slides his hand to her thigh. “You have three of us to make you shine.”

Her laugh is shaky, but it’s real. Her gaze flicks between us, lingering on Hayes for a moment before shifting to me and then Shawn. “This is so crazy,” she admits. “But it feels... right. Doesn’t it?”

“It does,” I say. But her question lingers. If she’s asking us for reassurance, maybe we haven’t done enough to show her how right it can be.

We move like clockwork after that, instinct guiding us like a perfectly timed power play. Hayes pulls out, letting Shawn take his place.

“You sure you can take me?” he asks, and when Riley nods, my brother flushes with relief. His usually steady hands tremble as he sheathes himself, and I watch her, every shift in her breathing and every tremble in her body, so I can make sure she’s comfortable with what’s happening. Caring so much about another person during sex is new, leaving me uncertain of my ability to deal with the unfamiliar pang of nerves and worry.

But by the time her soft gasps and moans fill the room again, it’s like the world outside doesn’t exist. No ice. No games. No rivalries. No expectations. Just us, tangled together in something bigger than any championship we’ve ever won.

When Shawn has cried out his own release, Riley’s eyes find mine, pupils blown with arousal yet questioning.

“Jacob,” she whispers, reaching for my hand. The simple tug of her fingers snags at my emotions.

I never imagined she’d want me, too.

Her eyes are wide and shining, her lips slightly parted, and she’s beautiful like this—raw, vulnerable, and yet completely in control. I cup her cheek, brushing my thumb along her flushed skin, letting her see what she’s doing to me. No words can explain it. I can’t even figure it out myself.

“I’ve got you,” I tell her, and I mean it.

Easing inside her feels like the final piece of a puzzle sliding into place, and her body welcomes me. Hayes and Shawn hover close, their hands and mouths keeping her grounded. It’s overwhelming, yet I’m the calmest I’ve felt in a long while.

Riley gasps, and her back arches as I move my hips, savoring every moment. Her body cradles me, and I press into her, harder and deeper, testing just how much she can take. The chase toward release is forgotten as I meet her gaze. Riley fills my vision. Only her.

Riley’s fingers dig into my shoulders, her voice trembling with urgency and wonder. “Jacob…”

“I know, baby. I know.”

I didn’t know it could feel like this. For my whole life, sex has been like running drills. I know what to do to get the puck in the back of the net, but the route to get there has been practiced and soulless. With Riley, the slow sweep of my skates over the ice has come into clearer focus, and I take my time, the net in sight but far in the distance, the journey to get there so much more important.

This isn’t just about sex. It isn’t about chasing an orgasm for the sake of it. It’s about coming together and holding on.

And when she whispers our names, one by one, I know we’ve done exactly what we set out to do: make her the center of everything, the glue that will hold us together because I don’t have the strength to do it anymore.