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ETHAN

He watched her as she looked down at his lap, then back at his face.

“It won’t make it too hard to drive?”

“I’ll manage,” he said.

He liked the way she bit her lip as she thought. Finally, she shrugged casually. “Sure, thanks.”

She adjusted her seatbelt so she could lean that way, then lowered her head down onto his lap.

“Thanks, this is more comfortable,” she said with a smile, her eyes already closed.

She seemed to fall completely asleep within seconds. Ethan liked hearing the regular rhythm of her breaths and feeling the weight of her head on his thigh.

As he drove, he kept glancing down at Madison.

He still couldn’t get over the fact that she wasn’t a kid anymore.

That she was a natural beauty, they’d always known; but even so, he hadn’t been ready for…~all this~.

Her short dress showcased her toned, slender legs and round ass, and the deep neckline did nothing to hide how full her breasts had become. He thought of when she’d turned around and bent over to pick up a box as they were loading the SUV…

“Jesus,” he growled in a low whisper. Surely it was wrong for his dick to react to her like this.

Madison was like his little sister—actually ~was~ his best friends’ little sister. And it may have been three years since he’d first felt the stirrings of attraction, but at twenty-eight, he was still way too old for her.

To be honest, if someone like him came sniffing around Madison, he’d be the first in line to tell him to get lost.

Which was why he and Levi had kept their distance.

No sense playing with fire.

Speaking of, a cold sip of water sounded good right now. He adjusted himself and slowly stretched out to reach the glove compartment, where he kept his water bottle.

But as he straightened up, the bottle brushed against Madison’s leg.

She shivered for a second while still sleeping, then opened her eyes, looking confused. Her cheeks were flushed from the heat, and her lips were slightly parted.

“Mm…sorry…I fell asleep,” she whispered in a hoarse voice.

“Don’t worry about it, ’Flake. You looked tired.”

“I was. May I?” she said, pointing at the water.

He took a swig, then handed the bottle to her and dried his mouth with the back of his hand. “We’re almost home anyway.”

“Already? How long have I been out for?”

“Almost four hours.”

“Shit. I didn’t realize I was ~that~ tired.”

“It’s okay. I bet you had a lot of things to do.” He smirked. “Apart from having sex, of course.”

Madison punched his arm before showing him her middle finger. “You know, not everybody likes to fuck like rabbits.”

He suppressed a grin. “I’m sure that’s just because you haven’t found the right…~tools~ yet.”

She didn’t bother to answer that, and when he turned onto her street, she leaned forward to grab her bags from the floor.

As she did, the strap of her dress slipped off her shoulder, giving him a clear view of her full left breast, covered only by her lace bra.

His eyes widened, but he only hooked his index finger under the strap and pulled it back over her shoulder. Her skin was warm against his finger, and she sucked in a breath.

“Uh, thanks,” she said, straightening up.

He adjusted himself again before pulling into her driveway, but from the corner of his eye he could see her glancing at his bulge.

~Fuck.~

If the attraction was mutual, it was only going to make things harder.

No pun intended.

He decided to let her off the hook.

“Happy to be home?” he asked as he pulled in front of the Davis’s white Spanish-modern house.

She quickly looked down at her bags, blushing. “You have no idea.”

She was right. He didn’t. Since she hadn’t come home for breaks the past few years, he’d thought maybe she preferred to stay away. “Let’s get you in then.”

After they unloaded everything, she wrapped her arms around his waist and rested her head on his chest for a minute.

“Thanks, Ethan, for all your help.”

“Yeah, no problem, ’Flake.” He patted her upper back like a fond uncle, willing his body to stand down. “I’ve got to go and meet the boys, but we’ll all be back for dinner.”

“I’ll make dinner then…as a thank you.”

“Sounds good to me. I’ve always loved your cooking.”

Pulling away, she tilted her head just enough to look at the house. “It’s so good to be home. I really have missed it.”

“And did you miss us?”

She rolled her eyes and stepped back to reach for the door. She didn’t say anything, but the smile she sent his way before she went inside felt like an answer.

MADISON

Madison couldn’t take her eyes off the windows that took up one wall of her room.

The light was captivating as the slowly disappearing sunbeams mixed with the incoming darkness, coloring the sky—and her room—with a warm, deep-orange light.

~I missed this~.

It took her an hour to unpack and arrange most of her things, but she was pleased that she’d be going to sleep in a real room tonight, one fit for a professional young woman.

Even though she was returning to a place with painful memories—and without her cheating boyfriend—she was determined to make the most of this fresh start. Work hard for her brothers and figure out the rest of her life.

She’d stayed away for too long, and it was time to learn from her parents’ bad example and ~do better~.

Suddenly aware of how much her body ached with tiredness, she swung her gaze to the en suite.

A relaxing bubble bath in the garden tub sounded comforting, but she checked the time and decided on a shower instead—quicker and more effective.

She undressed and jumped under the hot water. The relief was almost immediate.

After a few minutes, she reluctantly got out, the chilly air against her warm, wet skin making her shiver as she wrapped herself in a towel.

Burying her nose in the soft cotton, she inhaled the scent of sandalwood and honey, one of the smells of her childhood, and sighed.

“Home…”

She’d needed that space to grow like she needed air to breathe, but it really ~was~ good to be back.

So long as the boys remembered she was an adult now.

She threw on a pair of black lace panties, black shorts, and a green tank top, then collected her hair into a messy bun before slipping on a pair of sandals and heading downstairs.

She went straight to the kitchen, which had once been her favorite place in the house. It was massive, fully equipped with state-of-the-art appliances, and always well-stocked.

But when she looked inside the cupboards in search of inspiration for tonight’s dinner, she was surprised to find them almost empty.

She moved to the walk-in pantry to try her luck there. Fortunately, the situation was a little less dire and she was able to find a few staples.

But as she laid the ingredients out on the kitchen island, she released a gusty sigh. How her brothers had managed to survive without her was a mystery.

“Well, let’s get started.”

Deliberately avoiding her notifications, she connected her phone to the Bluetooth speakers hidden everywhere in the house, poured herself a glass of wine, and started pulling out bowls and utensils.

It would be nice to cook again, especially for guys who appeared to have been surviving on fast food for the last four years.

Ironically, she was so adept in the kitchen thanks to the person that she now resented the most: Isabel Davis.

Her mother.

Isabel was a chef, and Madison’s earliest memories were of following her around the kitchen, spending hours “helping,” but probably making big messes her mother was too kind to point out.

~Isabel seemed a lot nicer back then.~

Or maybe that was just wishful thinking.

Because at some point, time together in the kitchen—at all, really—had become a rare occurrence, something offered grudgingly when her parents were actually around.

By the time Isabel and Nikolaj moved out for good when Madison was eleven, leaving their children behind to open a restaurant in Italy, with~ Marta~, cooking had become both a chore and a necessity.

Shaking these unpleasant thoughts from her head, Madison took another sip of wine and got to work.

Swinging her hips to the rhythm of the music, she smoothly moved from one side of the kitchen to another, getting everything ready, and before long the kitchen smelled delicious.

“Hey, you.”

Madison had been so focused that she hadn’t heard anyone coming in, and the sudden greeting made her jump and spill a bit of wine.

~Levi?~

Madison curved her lips into a faint smile as she turned around.

But as soon as she set her eyes on Levi Thompson, she swallowed hard.

Standing at the kitchen’s archway, leaning against the wall with his strong arms crossed, he looked every bit as beautiful as his brother.

The smile stamped on his perfectly clean-shaven face was to die for. His defined jaw was begging to be touched. His strong chin showed the sweetest dimple on earth.

~Does he shave so people won’t confuse him with Ethan?~

She’d never had any problem telling the twins apart, but she knew plenty of other people did.

Even though their dark hair and strong builds made them look like two halves of the same apple, their eyes and their scents made them impossible to confuse…at least for her.

“Jesus, Levi. You almost scared me to death.”

After removing her hand from her racing heart, she turned back to cooking.

She heard his footsteps and then felt his presence right behind her.

His breath was warm on her neck as he said, “Don’t I get a hug hello?”