Emmett cursed his cock, which seemed to have a mind of its own after seeing Amber’s naked body between his brothers. He didn’t bother to get a glass out of the cupboard, but took a long gulp straight from the whiskey bottle he’d found on the counter.
This was a totally fucked-up mess. Cody’s actions didn’t surprise him, but Bryant’s did.
“Fuck,” he said aloud. What the hell was he to do now? His cock had its own idea, but he knew that was insane at the very best, at the worst, utter catastrophe.
Bryant came out of the bedroom, fully dressed. He didn’t say a word, which didn’t surprise Emmett. Their mom had dubbed each of them by a quality that ended up following them into adulthood.
Bryant’s was “thinker.”
Cody’s was “dreamer.”
She’d always called him “the judge.” It made sense. Looking at all the facts, he knew what his brothers had done with Amber was a mistake. It would end badly for all of them, no doubt about it. Time to swing the gavel and issue punishment. Fuck.
Bryant placed an empty glass in front of Emmett and one in front of himself. “We may be ranchers, Emmett, which might mean we aren’t the most civilized, but we do have glasses.”
“Fuck off.” He tipped the bottle up and took another drag of the liquor. It burned his throat all the way down.
“Okay. That’s how you’re going to play this. Your call.”
“Apparently not. We all agreed to keep our dicks in our pants around Amber until we knew her full story. What happened to that, Bryant? Did Cody trick you somehow into forgetting that promise?”
Bryant stood up and brought out another bottle of whiskey. He sat down, opened the bottle, and filled his glass. He drank down half the contents and then set the glass back on the table.
Cody, wearing only his Levi’s, emerged from the hallway.
His brother’s infuriating smile pissed off Emmett to no end. He tipped up his bottle and let a big portion of the whiskey coat his throat. The liquor hadn’t taken the edge off, and God knew it needed to be softened or he might punch his brothers into the floor until they understood how bad they’d fucked things up.
“So we’re drinking.” Cody took the bottle Bryant had brought to the table and filled the other glass. “Works for me.”
“Where’s Amber?” Emmett felt his pulse in his temples, pounding away like a heavy sledgehammer.
Cody drank from his glass. He stared directly at him, as if daring him to start anything. “She’s in the bathroom. Said she needed a minute to herself.”
“What the fuck were you two thinking? She might be married, or have you both lost your minds? Of course you have. What other explanation could there be for you to take her to bed?” The words burned like acid in his mouth. He was angry with them, most definitely, but he was also afraid for them. Their actions had made them vulnerable again, vulnerable for more pain, more heartache. They didn’t deserve that, not after all they’d suffered, no matter how foolish they’d been.
> Cody shook his head. “Emmett, why did you come back so quickly? If you had stayed on task, you wouldn’t have seen a thing.”
“You would’ve liked that, I bet. One of my stirrups broke. I came back to fix it and found you. Why are you back already? Was that your plan all along, Cody? Get me out of the cabin so you could trick Bryant into taking Amber to bed?”
“Fuck off,” Cody snarled. “You’re not my dad.”
Bryant rolled his eyes. “He came back because the road was mucked up, Emmett. You know how the south part of the ranch is. And he didn’t trick me into Amber’s bed. I was already making love to her when he got back.”
What was wrong with his brothers? Did their cocks suddenly take control of their brains? “What the fuck were you thinking? Bryant, that’s not like you.”
Bryant looked up at the ceiling and sighed. “I’ve been the peacemaker my whole life. You and Cody lock horns again and again. I’m done with it. Amber is my priority from now on.” He grabbed the glass and drained the remaining contents into his mouth. Then he poured himself another.
They clearly weren’t thinking this all the way through. “You’re both fucked. You can’t play with Amber’s life like that. She’s a person, not a plaything. You want to fuck someone, go to Phase Four. There are plenty of subs more than willing to bed either one of you or both, but not Amber. Can’t you see what a mess you’ve made?”
“Stop trying to protect us, Emmett.” Cody swirled the liquor in his glass. “We’re grown. You mean the world to me, to Bryant. But you have to stop playing parent. Okay?”
“It’s not just about you two. What about Amber? What about the life she left behind? The people she left behind.”
“What if there aren’t any people in my past, Emmett?” Amber stepped from the hallway. She was wrapped up in one of his mother’s robes. Where she’d found it, he wasn’t sure, but it fit her perfectly. In no way did it remind him of his mother. Instead, Amber’s ample breasts made his cock stir again in his jeans.
“We can’t know either way,” he answered. “That’s the point. Until we do know, these two idiots should have kept their hands off of you. Can’t you see that?”
She sat down beside him and placed her tiny hand on top of his. “No. I don’t see it that way. It’s been many days. I believe that if I had someone in my life, someone special, at least one or two memories would’ve come back about him. None has. Do you see where I’m going with this?”