Relapse

Nathan has on a white button up shirt and a pair of black pants. The top button on the shirt is open and the small peek of skin and hair that I can see makes me want to rip his top off and see what’s beneath.

Chase is wearing a t-shirt and it’s melded to his body, showing the outline of the hard muscle beneath. His dark hair is pulled back from his face, showing off the devilish grin that he gives me.

I take a deep swallow as I look at Emmet in the back. While he may be the youngest, he’s definitely the tallest and his lanky form hovers over the other two men. Like Nathan, he’s wearing a dress shirt, but he has the sleeves rolled up to his elbows and shit- when did forearms become so sexy? He’s wearing a pair of jeans, but they aren’t ripped like they usually are. The assortment of rings on his fingers shine and I catch sight of his necklace just below the collar of his shirt.

A throat clears and I turn my head to find Nathan offering me a soft smile. He holds out a bottle of wine and my mouth parts slightly as I take it. “Thank you,” I say softly, still slightly dazed by the hot men in front of me.

“Ivy Hendersen, what are you doing? Open the door and let these gentlemen in.” Grandma comes bulldozing down the hallway and she snatches the bottle of wine from my hand, studying it before her lips turn up in approval. “Nice.” She looks up at the men who still stand on the porch before looking at me and rolling her eyes. She pushes the door out of my grasp and it smacks against the wall. “Come in,” she repeats before trudging back down the hall, muttering something under her breath about ridiculous granddaughters.

I step out of the way and let them in, frowning when I notice the lack of a particular dog. “Where’s Charlie?” I ask, turning my eyes to Emmet.

His brows rise slightly before he turns his gaze to the other two men. “They made me leave her at home, said it wasn’t polite to bring her to dinner.” He shrugs but I can tell he wasn’t completely on board with this decision.

I find myself glaring at the other two. “How rude.” I turn my gaze back on Emmet and at the small upturn of his lips, I can’t help but to smile back at him. “If you want, you can go get her. She’s always welcome here.” I’ve always loved dogs and Tanner and Lilly have taken a liking to Charlie.

Emmet’s smile widens and he glances over my shoulder at the other two with a smirk, folding his arms over his chest. Finally, he turns his gaze back to me. “It’s okay, I left her a bunch of treats and toys to entertain her, but I’ll bring her next time.”

“Good.” I move around the men and lead the way further into the house, before realizing I’ve never actually given any of them a formal tour of the house.

Is that something that people do?

In reality though, our houses are nearly the same in structure from what I’ve seen of their house, so I decide against the tour, instead leading them to the dining room.

Tanner is placing plates on the table and by the slump of his shoulders, I’m betting it’s something Grandma is forcing him to do. That makes me smile, remembering all the little chores Grandma would volunteer me and my cousins for when we were younger.

When his eyes land on the guys, he perks up some, though. “Hey Coach Chase,” he walks over and gives the man in question a high five before doing the same to Nathan. He comes to a stop in front of Emmet and tilts his head to the side slightly. Emmet stares back at him, though his expression is soft and I realize that he doesn’t know him as well as the other two since he doesn’t coach. Tanner’s eyes look over the rings on Emmet’s fingers and the nail polish on them, his eyes widening slightly. ‘That’s cool,” he finally says, before holding his hand out to Emmet for a fist bump.

The notion makes me smile.

“Everything is almost done, y’all just take a seat,” Grandma says as she fiddles with one of the pots.

Chase and Emmet take seats while Nathan moves into the kitchen. “Do you mind if I help you ma’am?”

I cringe as I look at them, knowing how Grandma can get about her kitchen and having others in it. Grandma turns and studies Nathan and I prepare to reassure him after she lets him down harshly.

“Sure, get over here and mash these potatoes.” My eyes widen at the words and I must let out a bit of a gasp because Nathan turns around to look at me and he offers me a wink.

With a shake of my head, I sit down in the seat across from Chase. At the end of the table, Emmet and Tanner are engrossed in something on Emmet’s phone. Lilly is sitting beside the table playing with a toy truck.

I turn my gaze to Chase and find him already watching me. His brown eyes are captivating as his lips pull up into a sensual smile that makes my body heat.

Fucking hell, how can one man turn me on with just a look?

Shifting in my seat slightly, his eyes follow the movement. “How was work last night?” I ask, trying to avert his attention. I remember him mentioning after lunch that he had to go home and get ready for his shift.

“Same old, same old. Crackheads starting street fights, old ladies calling for no reason-”

“Hey,” Grandma yells from the kitchen.

Chase turns with a smile. “You don’t fall into the crazy nitty category,” he reassures her. “Unless you’ve called the police on a gay couple just for kissing in the park.”

“Huh, absolutely not, but I may have had the cops called on me a time or two for public indecency.”

I shake my head as Chase and Nathan laugh.

“What’s public indecency?” Tanner asks, glancing up from Emmet’s phone.

“Nothing for you to be concerned about,” I tell him, finally understanding my father’s frustration over the years with all the crazy stories Grandma told me as a kid.