My Brother's Five Friends Read online

  Marriage. Part of me had known that it was real. Part of me understood that happened in Vegas. But most of me just wanted to deny it all, to pretend like the night was just one meaningless moment of total insanity and that I hadn’t really gotten married. But as soon as I saw that certificate, I knew it was real. I knew it had happened .

  I had married my stepbrother. My very rich, very attractive, very dangerous, and very off-limits stepbrother .

  What the hell was I going to do ?

  My room was huge .

  It was probably the size of the entire first floor in my old house. I had a small sitting area complete with couches and a nice television, a full set of old wooden furniture that all looked like it belonged in a museum, flowers and plants everywhere, paintings on the walls, and this enormous four-poster bed. An entire family of four could have slept in that comfortably .

  It was without a doubt the most absurd room I had ever seen. My things had already been carried up, including most of what had been in my bedroom at home. The Barones moved pretty fast and clearly ran a tight ship. I was impressed, although still pretty pissed off. Everything had happened so fast, and suddenly I was stuck in this cavernous room .

  I was totally exposed. I had no clue what kind of people I was now living with. Maybe I didn’t even have any real privacy at all, and they were standing in the walls behind the pictures, watching me at all times .

  But that was just paranoia. Arturo seemed to genuinely love my mom, at least based on the very tiny interaction I had seen and what she had told me. I had to think that he would treat his new stepdaughter well, even if he was a dangerous mobster .

  Then again, there were so many people at the house. I’d only seen a tiny fraction of it, too. Who knew how many rooms there really were, and how many secrets .

  Overwhelmed, I flopped down on the bed and blew my hair out of my face. I scrolled through my phone and found Pacey’s number .

  She answered on the second ring. “Hey !”

  “Hey, Pace. How’s home ?”

  “Fine as usual. Dad is being a dick and Mom is pretending like he isn’t. How’s your new life ?”

  “It’s insane, Pace. Seriously insane .”

  “What’s it like ?”

  How could I explain it to her? “Words won’t do it justice .”

  “Try.”

  “It’s like an enormous mansion. Like a castle almost. And the grounds are so, so huge, and there are so many people. They’re super paranoid about security, too .”

  “Really? That’s weird .”

  For a second, I wanted to tell her about the Barones. I wanted to tell her that I was living with mobsters and married to the son of the leader. But I knew I couldn’t. Pacey didn’t need to know, and it was a huge risk anyway. If she told anyone and it somehow got back to Arturo and the others, who knew what he would do to my mother and me .

  “Yeah,” I said quickly. “He’s just a little odd, I guess .”

  “So what’s your room like ?”

  “Basically a cavern,” I said, and I proceeded to explain it to her. Of course, she wouldn’t understand just how expensive everything seemed and the sort of luxury that surrounded me until she saw it .

  “I’m almost jealous,” Pacey said .

  “Honestly, Pace, I want to get the hell out of here.” I paused, an idea hitting me. “Listen, is there any way I could come stay with you for the summer ?”

  There was a long pause. “You know I’d love it if you did, Nat .”

  “But?”

  “But it’s not a good time around the Harris household. Dad isn’t doing too hot at work, so things are pretty tight. Tempers are high and all that .”

  “Okay. I understand .”

  “I’m really sorry. I hate to say no to you .”

  “It’s okay, really. I just hate this house already. It’s so cold and impersonal. I miss my old room .”

  “I bet. I still can’t believe your mom just sold the house without telling you .”

  “Can’t you, though? This sort of shit is endless with her .”

  “Tell you what. How about I come visit tomorrow ?”

  “I would love that .”

  “Text me the address .”

  “Okay.”

  “I gotta go. Mom is calling .”

  “See you tomorrow, Pace .”

  “Later.”

  She hung up the phone, leaving me alone in the vast room again .

  It took me twenty minutes to get outside the house .

  Wandering through the halls, I couldn’t believe how absolutely huge the place was. It felt like a maze, with the same hallways constantly popping up, but I was totally unable to find any way out. My key worked on most doors, though some remained locked. Most of them were just empty bedrooms, anyway .

  I had to ask directions twice before I finally found the stairs down and the door out onto the grounds. I passed a ton of people wandering around the house, though none of them paid me any attention unless I directly spoke to them. I figured they were paid staff and were used to treating the guests that way .

  For my part, though, I wasn’t used to having staff. I distantly understood that I could ask them for things, but I mostly just wanted to be left alone. I felt embarrassed and uncomfortable simply being in the house, let alone bossing some poor staff member around .

  Once outside, though, I began to feel a little bit better. The cool summer day was sunny and comfortable as I followed a path down through the grounds. I saw open stables with horses grazing, pens with farm animals, rows and rows of flowers, and even what looked like a small vegetable patch. I couldn’t imagine mobsters as farmers, and so I just assumed someone else had installed it all before the Barones took over the grounds .

  Farther along, I came into a wooded area. The path stretched around a small lake, and the woods were very peaceful. It felt great to finally be away from all the people and the bustle. For the first time all day, I felt halfway okay .

  As I walked, I found my mind suddenly straying back toward Lucas. The way he looked at me, that devilish smile, it screamed of sex and desire. He seemed like he couldn’t get enough of me. The way he reached out and touched my hair and spoke so close to me sent a rush down my spine. Despite being such an asshole, I still found myself inexplicably drawn to him .

  Just like that night in Vegas. I didn’t understand it then, and I didn’t think I ever would. But he was my stepbrother now, and a dangerous one. I just needed to get along with him for the summer, and then hopefully I would never have to see any of them again .

  Oh, and I needed a divorce. But one thing at a time .

  I came to the end of the woods and found myself at the end of a large lawn leading back from the house. I noticed someone coming toward me, wearing an expensive suit .

  I recognized him as he got closer. Lucas waved to me, and I wanted to run away .

  “Hey, sis,” he called out. “Lost ?”

  “Not lost,” I said. “Just looking around .”

  He stopped a few feet away from me and crossed his arms. “Well, how about a tour ?”

  “No, thanks,” I said, and walked past him .

  He fell into step next to me. “What are you interested in seeing ?”

  “I don’t want a tour,” I said. “Just looking for the pool now .”

  “Come on,” he said, taking me by the arm. “This way .”

  “Hey,” I protested, but he was already walking off the path. He dropped my arm and I fell into step behind him. “You can’t just drag me around like that .”

  He grinned back at me. “Sure I can .”

  We moved between some buildings, and I stopped in my tracks. Spread out in front of us was an enormous pool with two hot tubs and plenty of chairs set around it. Nobody else was around .

  “Wow,” I said. “This is really nice .”

  “It’s fine,” he said, walking over to the water. “Doesn’t get much use .”

  “Seriously?”

>   “Seriously. Gangsters aren’t really the type to lounge around a pool all day .”

  I shook my head, annoyed. “So why even have something like this ?”

  He began to loosen his tie. “Because it shows off our wealth and power .”

  “Seems like a huge waste to me .”

  He took off his tie and dropped it over a chair. He slipped his jacket off next, draping it over his tie. “It’s not a waste. Not in our line of work anyway. Image is everything .”

  He began to unbutton his shirt. “What are you doing ?”

  “I thought you wanted a swim .”

  “I never said that .”

  He shrugged, stripping his shirt off. I stared at his chest, muscular, defined, and covered in tattoos. I remembered that body well and had the crazy urge to walk up to him and touch his skin .

  Or maybe I wanted to push him into the water. I wasn’t sure .

  He began to unbuckle his belt .

  “Stop,” I said quickly, blushing .

  “What? We’re stepsiblings now. It’s not weird.” He pulled off his belt and then slipped his pants off .

  I stared at him standing in front of me, wearing nothing but his tight black boxer briefs. He took his pants and laid them out over his other clothes, and then he turned back to me .

  “Image is everything, Nat. Don’t forget that. We have all of this because we don’t want anyone to forget who we are and what we can do.” He stepped up to the edge of the pool and then dove in .

  I stared at his clean, incredible lines, his handsome body, and I felt the heat between my legs spike .

  He surfaced in the middle of the water. “Come on in, sis,” he called. “It’s nice today .”

  For the second time that day, I turned and walked quickly away from him .

  As I retreated toward the house, his laughter was ringing in my ears .

  And the image of his body, nearly naked, his cock slightly hard against his thin boxer briefs, stuck in my brain and made my skin tingle .

  8

  Lucas

  “W hat happened earlier, boss?”

  I looked at Vince as I toweled off .

  “Bad news about that, Vince .”

  He smirked. “It’s always bad news in this business .”

  I laughed, nodding. I slipped my wet underwear off and tossed it aside. Vince turned away, looking out across the lawn as I pulled my clothes back on .

  Damn Natalie. I wasn’t sure why I kept pushing the girl, why I couldn’t let her be, but she was still very much on my mind .

  I loved the way she looked at me, the way she bit her lip. It was almost too much, the way she acted as if she hated me while her body screamed how badly she wanted me .

  Dressed, I began walking back toward the house. Vince fell into step next to me .

  “Roddy got pinched,” I said. “And our shipment was confiscated .”

  “Fuck,” Vince said. “How did that happen ?”

  “I don’t know, but Arturo tasked us with finding out .”

  “Shit luck .”

  “Yeah. We’ll start on that tomorrow .”

  “Any ideas ?”

  “I have a few .”

  We stopped outside the back door. “Anything you feel like sharing ?”

  I grinned at him. “Not yet. Do some digging on your own tonight if you can .”

  He nodded. “You got it .”

  “See you later .”

  He turned and walked off. I watched him disappear between some buildings and sighed .

  Damn shit luck. Nobody knew why Roddy got pinched and why the shipment got confiscated. We’d been planning that deal for months, and now the Russians were pissed we weren’t delivering .

  It had been one of the biggest deals with them in a long time. We didn’t usually work with the Russians since the crazy bastards were so unpredictable, not to mention they were on the decline, but Arturo thought it was time we started being friendly again. And so I had worked my ass off setting up a nice little exchange of goods for cash .

  The whole thing was very, very secretive. I could only name a handful of people that even knew about it, and I couldn’t imagine any of them ratting to the cops. I’d suspected that someone was being tailed by the feds for a while, but I had no real proof of that .

  I walked into the house, shaking my head. I didn’t have to deal with that problem just yet. Father demanded that the whole family show up for a special dinner he had planned for Natalie and her crazy mother, which meant a ton of important mob captains would be there .

  I moved through the hallways, nodding here and there to the staff. My father treated some of the people that worked for him like garbage, but that never felt right to me. Really, they had the most power in our house. They knew it better than anyone else, and they were the ones that cooked our food and cleaned our rooms. It felt like madness to be an asshole to them. Besides, some of them were decent people .

  I moved up to the third floor and followed the winding hallways to the very far corner of the southeast wing. I stood outside a blue, ornate door, grabbed the knocker, and banged it .

  There was no answer. I knocked two more times, but nothing .

  “Louisa,” I called out, “you either open up or I’m going to barge in .”

  The door opened a crack. “What?” Louisa said .

  “I need a little favor .”

  “Not in the mood for this, Lucas .”

  “You don’t even know what it is,” I protested .

  “Doesn’t matter,” she said. “I know our new stepmother and stepsister are here, and I know you like to be a dick .”

  “All of that is true,” I said .

  “So go away .”

  “Sorry, kid. I need a favor, whether you want to help or not .”

  There was a short pause, and then she sighed. I knew she couldn’t say no to me. “Fine. Come in .”

  The door opened and I smiled at my younger sister. “You’re looking spry today .”

  She gave me a look and closed the door behind me as I entered her room .

  Really, it was more like an apartment. Louisa was father’s little princess, but she was admittedly incredibly odd. A few years younger than me, Louisa had dropped out of high school early on and had decided that she wanted to help with the family business full time. When Arturo told her that wasn’t happening, she turned into something of a spinster, living in a remote corner of the property and not going out very often .

  Her rooms were large and covered in electronics equipment. Louisa plopped down on a couch and grumbled at me .

  “What’s the favor, Lucas? I’m busy .”

  “You’re never actually busy, kid .”

  “Sure. I got a raid in ten minutes .”

  I rolled my eyes. “That doesn’t count as ‘busy,’ you know .”

  “Maybe not,” she said, shrugging, “but you need something from me and I’m already bored, so get talking .”

  I laughed as I sat down across from her. Louisa was slight and pretty, with thick dark hair and dark eyes. She looked just like our late mother, in a lot of ways. She was thin and always has been, and I was always worrying that she didn’t eat or exercise enough .

  I was like my father in some ways. We were both too protective of Louisa .

  “I need a dress .”

  “Changing sides, are we ?”

  “It’s not for me .”

  “Who then ?”

  “Natalie. Our new stepsister .”

  Louisa gave me a long look. “I’m not sure I like where this is going .”

  “It’s just a little prank. She’s a tad nervous, and I thought this could break the ice .”

  “What kind of dress ?”

  I grinned at her. “The sluttiest thing you got .”

  She laughed, but I could already tell that her interest was shifting. She was like that, always getting distracted, always moving on to the next thing. I loved her fiercely, and she was really the only person in the
world that I trusted .

  “Do whatever you want,” she said, getting up and walking over to a computer. “You know where the closet is .”

  I stood. “Much obliged .”

  “Tell Stumpy I won’t be at dinner.” Stumpy was her nickname for our father, something he absolutely loathed but would never reprimand her for .

  “He’ll figure it out on his own .”

  “Sure,” she muttered, already in a new world .

  I walked away, back toward her bedroom. Once you left the main sitting area and entered her private room, the only place where the staff was not allowed to enter, the place was a mess. I threw open her enormous closet and was greeted with row after row of dresses, coats, shirts, pants, and more .

  “For a recluse, you have a ton of clothes,” I muttered as I picked through her things .

  Ten minutes later, I had the perfect thing. It was probably from Louisa’s old life, back before she had locked herself away .

  I carried it out and back into the main hall. “See you, kid .”

  She gave me an absent wave. I doubted she really even noticed when I walked out of her room .

  I paused in the hallway, admiring the dress. I imagined Natalie wearing it and felt my cock stir, and I knew it was the right thing .

  Smiling to myself, I went to find a staff member to help .

  9

  Natalie

  T he warm water washed down my body. I had to admit, although the day had been totally crazy and I was dreading dinner, I loved my new shower .

  The bathroom was connected right to my room, and it was large and modern, clearly having been renovated recently. The shower was a large walk-in right next to a big white tub, and the water pressure was incredible .

  I stood there letting the water run down my body as I thought about Lucas. I couldn’t believe he was willing to strip down in front of me like that right in the middle of the backyard. Anybody could have walked in on it; anybody could have seen it. He was definitely acting brash and inappropriate, and I could barely understand why .

  But I had to admit that his body was incredible. Lean and defined, the tattoos only served to make him look that much more intense .