I felt like I was floating as I drifted over to their front door.
Loren caught me just as I was passing him and lifted me bridal style. I grinned up at him, allowing the nameless emotion he stirred, the one that smelled like I was rolling down a grassy hill, to imbue as he gazed down at me. I could feel his excitement to show me their private, hidden kingdom rolling off him in waves as he carried me over the threshold.
I kept smiling even when I heard Houston and Rich suck their teeth for not thinking of it first. Sometimes I found their jealousy adorable because they forgot they weren’t teenage boys anymore.
Loren carried me inside, and I gaped as I admired the high ceiling, carved moldings, dark walls, and arched doorways. There were even three black chandeliers whose candles illuminated the lush, blue rug decorating the long path to the stairs. It continued up the steps that split on the second level and continued in opposite directions.
“Welcome to our treehouse,” he flirted as he carried me across the foyer. “No girls allowed, but for you, we’ll make an exception.”
“I’m honored,” I returned dryly. “So will you be giving me the tour then?”
Loren’s footsteps echoed with each step he took, warning me just how large and how easily I could get lost in their home.
“Sure. Let’s start with my bedroom.”
He flashed me a sexy grin that was way too tempting, so I made him put me down. By the time Houston and Rich made it inside with our bags, no thanks to Loren, I’d already kicked off the booted heels I’d worn before finding and exploring their kitchen, dining room, and the small sitting room I could tell they never used.
Obviously, the house wasn’t new construction, but I could tell it had been well restored, which couldn’t have been easy.
I didn’t have to guess why that made me smile.
The three of them could have purchased or built something separate and more befitting to their individual styles. Instead, they’d chosen to revive a long, lost castle that had been cast aside and forgotten. They’d thrown themselves into the project and then used their labor and sacrifice as an excuse to share it and stay together.
I wouldn’t bother to ask if my theory was correct.
I knew them too well by now.
Just as I was wandering into another room, since Loren had rudely chosen to disappear, Rich appeared out of nowhere, cutting off my path and making me yelp in surprise. As the taste of green apples and the scent of copper dissipated, he grabbed my waist when I tried to move around him.
“I promise we’ll give you the tour in the morning, okay?”
Feeling shy and embarrassed for some reason, I nodded as I smiled, and then I let him pick me up and wrap my legs around his trim waist before he carried me off.
I’d forgotten it was almost three in the morning.
Just like I’d forgotten the show tonight after our long weekend thanks to me dragging them to Faithful to deal with my family and then around Seattle to sightsee.
We climbed the stairs and traveled down a long hallway and then another, and I didn’t realize I should have been paying attention to where we were going just in case until we were already entering a bedroom.
I peeked over my shoulder since my back was to the room as Rich carried me.
The walls were decorated with periwinkle wallpaper that had a dark-gold filigree print. Each of the six arched windows taking up three of the bedroom’s walls were draped by long, heavy panels of dark purple while another chandelier, this one a mix of crystal and candle, hung from the black lacquered ceiling that matched the wooden floors.
Braced against the furthest wall was a large four-poster bed made of black iron and an elegantly carved headboard.
Jericho immediately started for it.
I looked around as he crossed the large room. His sneakered feet were silent, but without carpeting, and thanks to the high ceiling, there was still a soft echo as he walked. When he reached the bed, instead of laying me on it, he swung around until I was facing the bed instead of the door. He then dropped down, draping his legs over the foot of the bed as he lay on his back.
His breathing began to deepen immediately as I felt his grip on my ass loosening.
“Is this your bedroom?” I asked before he could fall asleep. It didn’t seem like his style.
Eyes closed, he confirmed my suspicions when he sleepily shook his head no. I tried to climb off him so he could sleep in peace, but his arms tightened around me, a silent order to stay put.
Five maybe ten minutes passed with me lying on his rising chest and grinning at him as he fought to stay awake. I didn’t understand why he bothered considering how late it was, but he’s never looked more adorable to me.