6 Mountain Brothers for Christmas

“Here you go,” Quinn said, flipping on the light. “Home, sweet home for a little while.”

Our parents hadn't been back to visit in a while. They only came back for major holidays, most of the time expecting us to come visit them in Florida. The room was in pristine condition though, and was still decorated for them. Thankfully, our parents had decent taste in decor.

The walls were a light, powder blue with a white trim. Navy and white bedding made up the Cal-king sized bed, with more pillows than any one person should ever need. An empty dresser, a walk-in closet and private master bath were also at Hailey's disposal.

It was, by far, the best room in the house, and at different times, we'd debate who would move into it. Ultimately though, we kept to our own rooms, since none of us felt right about moving into our parent's space. Even if it did sit empty.

“Wow, this is really nice,” she said. “Better than any hotel room.”

Hailey placed her bag on the bed, and turned to us, her long, dark hair covering her shoulders and face. She wasn't wearing any makeup, yet her skin was so clear and porcelain white. Her green eyes were bright and vivid as she looked at the three of us.

“Dinner is ready,” I said, scratching my chin, still wondering what the hell was going on. “I can put out an extra plate. Didn't actually think Bennett would be here either, but there should be enough.”

“That would be great,” Bennett said. “We can help you setting the table and let Hailey get situated.”

As we left the room, I shut the door and waited until we were down the hallway and weren't likely to be overheard before rounding on my brothers.

“Okay, what the hell is going?” I asked, leaning against the kitchen counter, arms crossed in front of me. “How did a date with Ben turn into the two of you bringing her home to stay?”

“It's a long story,” Ben said, rubbing his temples.

“Very long,” Quinn said with a sigh.

“I ain't setting up shit until I hear it, so one of you better start talking,” I said.

“Fine,” Quinn said. “So we were over there, and –”

“We?” I asked, cocking an eyebrow.

“Yeah, well, I went over to see her before her date with Ben,” Quinn said. “Didn't intend on sticking around, but shit went down.”

“What kind of shit?”

“Her ex,” Ben said. “He stopped by and things got ugly. And now it's more than obvious that Quinn was right. She was being abused.”

I looked at my brother's face and noticed some swelling in his cheek. A cut straight across it looked fresh.

“Really ugly from the looks of it,” I muttered.

“Yeah, it got violent,” Quinn said. “And the cops came, Leo was arrested and well –”

“Well what?”

My brothers shared a look. I could tell there was something they weren't telling me still. Something they were hiding. Quinn stared to speak, but Ben spoke up first and cut him off.

“We decided it would be in her best interest to stay here,” he said. “Leo is free on bail and he'd never think to come here. And if he did, well, there's three of us and only one of him.”

“Makes sense,” I said.

I waited for them to say something else, but they again, shared a look and then went on their way. Ben set out two extra plates on the table while Quinn put out more silverware and glasses. Neither of them was saying anything to one another, but there was most definitely a tension between them. “So, there's nothing else you want to tell me?” I asked as I walked into the dining room. “Nothing at all?”

Hailey's voice caught me off guard as she walked up behind me. She wrapped her arms around my waist, taking me by surprise.

“Cason, is it really okay if I stay here?” she asked. “Or will it bother you?”

After the other night, I wanted nothing more than for her to stay in our house. I turned and looked into her emerald eyes, pulling her in for a bear hug.

“Of course not,” I said. “I'm just curious why my brothers are acting so weird.”