When I woke again an hour or so later, the bed was empty, and the house was quiet. I looked outside, and the snow had finally started to slow down from the insane thick flakes that had been falling off and on for days now to the smaller flakes that were coming down now. I wondered if the storm was finally going to pass. I didn’t know if I liked that idea just yet. I was really beginning to like being here, stuck in a house with three men who apparently had fancied me just as much as I had fancied them for all these years.

I got up and made my way down to the kitchen. There were signs that breakfast had been made, and the dishes had been washed. I grabbed the old-fashioned kettle, filled it with water and put it on the stove to boil. I heard laughter from the living room, and I headed in there while the kettle boiled.

“Morning sleepy head.” Finn grinned at me. I blushed thinking about what I had done to him that morning.

“Morning.” I changed the subject. “I’m boiling the kettle, does anyone want a coffee?” All three murmured their agreement, and I looked around at what they had done in the room. Jude was just sitting in front of the fireplace, setting up the fire to light it. “This room is looking great,” I said admiring the effort they were putting in despite the snow outside.

Charlie follows my eyes around the room. “Yeah, it’s a lot better looking now than the shithole it was when we first bought it.” There was something about that statement that made me curious, but the kettle started to whistle on the stove, and I didn’t have time to ask anything more about it.

Back in the kitchen, I made everyone coffee and watched them all coming in and grabbing cups, smiling and giving me a kiss on the cheek in turn.

I smiled and creased my forehead at the same time. “Some people seem very happy around here this morning.” I laughed.

“We are.” Jude smiled back.

Uh huh. They are up to something.

“Why don’t you get back to work on that book of yours, and we’ll get back to work on the living room. We don’t have to do anything major today, so we shouldn’t be making too much noise for you.” Jude suggested.

Yep, definitely up to something.

I nodded, grabbed my mug and my notebook and sat at the table, ready to write. The three brothers stood with their asses against the edge of the countertops, sipping their coffee, and staring at me.

I shook my head and laughed. “You know it’s hard to work with an audience.” They chuckled, made their apologies and headed into the living room to finish doing whatever it was that they were doing.

Hours passed. Jude, Finn, and Charlie kept busy, and I got lost in a few thousand words of the rewrite. Eventually, my stomach made it very clear that if I wanted to continue, then I would need to be supplying it with some sustenance. I got up and started to make something for a late lunch, early dinner. I had to admit, the last few days of lust and tension and finally giving into it all was giving me more than enough inspiration for my characters and their frenemies to lovers’ angst. After hunting in the fridge and cupboards, I found something that would take a little while to prepare, but I was sure that everyone would appreciate it.

I also found some of what I can only assume were Jude’s IKEA Ginger Thins, as I remembered a fight he once had with Finn over eating them all on him and decided that I would brave his wrath because they were the perfect thing to keep me going until my meal was ready.

An hour or so later it seemed I wasn’t the only one who was being tortured by their stomachs. Jude appeared around the corner of the kitchen and inhaled the air deeply. “Is that what I think it is?” he said watching me put a biscuit into my mouth. I stopped mid-bite and stared at him. I nodded. “You’re eating my ginger thins?” He asked again.

“Sorry,” I said, crumbs falling from my mouth.

I was saved as Charlie arrived right behind him. “Is that Jambalaya I smell?” He asked with a childlike grin.

I quickly chewed what was left of the biscuit and nodded. “It is.” I agreed when I had finally swallowed the ginger thin.

Finn appeared to, “Did someone say Jambalaya?”

I laughed, these three were getting on like an accidentally comedic trio today. Their reactions to my choice of meal just seemed to tickle me, and I couldn’t help myself.

“What’s so funny, ginger thief,” Jude smirked.

I shook my head and snorted. “You three. I don’t know what it is that you’re up to, but you’re just coming across as so weird today.”

Finn side glanced Charlie, and Charlie looked at Jude. Whatever it was that they were doing. I wasn’t in on it, and I wasn’t sure that I wanted to be now. I got up and encouraged them to set the table, sort out drinks and anything else that they wanted.

I started to plate up the food for us all, handed them each a serving in turn, and finally sat with my own.

“How’s the book coming along?” Jude asked.

I smiled, I was pleased with the progress I was making here, despite the distraction that my companions were. “It’s coming along nicely. The characters are gelling nicely together, and I’m feeling my editor will be more than happy with how it’s going. Of course, I’ll have to type it all up before I send it to her, but that shouldn’t take too long.” I explained and shovelled a mouthful of food into my mouth.

Charlie smiled innocently. “Been getting some inspiration, have you?”

I almost choked on my food. Finn chuckled and kept eating. Jude just shook his head with a smirk. I hated them all. They were playful bastards, and it felt like I was being ganged up on. I glared at each of them. “You’re all shits.”

Three versions of ‘sorry’ and laughter greeted me. It was infectious, and I found myself chuckling along with them as I shook my head.

We ate, we chatted, and as usual, it got to the point in the evening where we all thought about heading to bed. Charlie and Jude handled the dishes this evening. Finn was upstairs sorting out the fires in each room, and I was trying to sneak in some extra words while everyone else was otherwise occupied.

Finn reappeared just as the others were putting away the last dish. “Ready?” Charlie muttered to the others. He caught my attention when he did and when they turned to look at me, I was already watching them.

“We want you to see something.” Finn smiled, moving towards me with his hands stretched out. He pulled me from my chair and onto my feet.

“See what?” I asked.

Jude took hold of my other hand. “You’ll see.”

They started to pull me towards the living room again, and just before we got to the closed door, Charlie pressed himself behind me and put his hands over my eyes. “No peeking.” he breathed against my ear, my skin prickling at his closeness and his touch.

I heard the door being opened, and Charlie guided me into the room. The first thing that I was aware of was the warmth of the room. It wasn’t cold anymore, it also didn’t sound like it was echoing as much as it had been. I was shuffled further forward, and Charlie stopped.

“Ready?” Finn asked to my right.

I licked my lips. “I think so.”

“Three, two, one.” was whispered in my ear and Charlie removed his hands from in front of my face. I blinked at the light in the room from candles and the large fire in the hearth. Right ahead of where we were standing was a large old roll top writer’s bureau and chair. Was this for me? I stared at it, and Charlie’s hands rubbed down my arms. “It was Jude’s idea.” He breathed against my ear.

I looked at Jude who was wistfully looking at the floor, embarrassed that he had been outed for such a gesture. He had thought about me writing at the dining room table with no proper space in the house, and while the snow had been falling outside, they had worked to make this into a workable space, including a little nook for me.

I was blown away by the gesture. My eyes got wet, and I stared at the table. “Try it out.” Finn grinned at me, pulling the chair out for me in front of the desk, ready to push it in behind me when I sat. I ran my fingers over the beautiful wood that had clearly had some work done to it.

“Thank you.” I smiled at all of them, moved by the generosity of their gesture, touched at the consideration that they were showing me. As I sat at the desk, I glanced around the room and noticed that it was pretty much complete. They had a rug on the old tile floor, they had a sofa and chairs, they had a coffee table and sideboard, paintings hung on the wall. The room was beautiful. And so were they.

“Right. I’m going to bed.” Announced Charlie and looked over at Finn.

“Oh, yeah, me too.” He agreed. The pair of them turned and made a hasty retreat out of the room. Jude just stood there. Silently watching me.

I stood and moved over to be in his space, right in front of him. “Thank you,” I whispered up to him, my eyes threatening to spill tears down my face. When he looked at me, I saw it, the love, the yearning, the passion, but most definitely the love, and my tears spilled over my cheeks.

“Hey.” He said softly and ran his finger over my cheek, wiping away my tears. “Don’t cry, beautiful girl.” He pulled me to him and wrapped his arms around me.

“It was really sweet of you Jude, no one ever goes out of their way for me like that,” I admitted, holding him tighter against me.

“Someone should always be going out of their way for you Ellie.” He whispered against the top of my head and pressed a simple kiss into my hair. I looked up at him, and he looked at me with an intensity that sent me crazy. I was suddenly very aware of how comforting it felt to be in his arms, how deliciously he smelt, and it just wasn’t enough.

I leaned up and captured his mouth with mine. It was a sweet kiss, a thank you for his kindness. I cupped his face in my hands and kept my mouth pressed against his. He straightened to break our mouths apart and stroked my hair softly. One hand cupped my face, his thumb rubbing over my cheek, the other hand played with my hair. He bent to kiss me again, a proper kiss this time, his tongue sliding over my lips and begging entry. I opened my mouth and welcomed him in, kissing him as he kissed me, letting him set the pace.

He was starting a fire in me. Slow burning, and utterly all-consuming. The passion was bubbling and simmering just below the surface, needing and wanting more the longer it went on.

His mouth moved from my lips to my neck, sucking, licking and nipping at my skin. “Jesus Jude.” I moaned out as he started to suck a little harder on my collarbone. I knew what he was doing. I was going to be the proud recipient of a hickie from Jude Edwards. I knotted my fingers through his hair and pressed his face against me, urging him on, wanting him to do precisely what he was planning.

He pulled my skin into his mouth harshly. The discomfort of it and the soothing of his tongue at the same time made it a heady mixture of pain and pleasure. I couldn’t help myself, I couldn’t keep quiet, another moan fell from my lips. When he was satisfied with his handiwork, he kissed back up along my neck and nibbled on my earlobe. “I want you, Elle, I’ve always wanted you.”

That broke the dam, the passion that had been simmering beneath the surface overflowed, and I couldn’t stop it anymore, nor did I want to. I moved his face back to mine with my hand, and I kissed him. Hard. I wanted Jude to have absolutely no doubt about what it was that I felt for him, what it was that I wanted to happen between us. There was a certain irony that quietest and sweetest one of the three was the one who would ignite the biggest passion in me and have me at the point where I needed to have him, there and then, and I didn’t care if the other brothers heard me this time.

I somehow moved us to the newly set out sofa, and I pushed him back. He flopped down against it, and I was in his lap in seconds. My mouth was back on his, and I ground myself against his groin, knowing that he had to be as needy for this as I was. He moaned against my mouth, and his hands found my arse as he pulled me hard against him. I felt the outline of his cock behind his jeans. I was right, Jude Edwards had quite a package. I moaned against his mouth when he pressed me onto him, rocking his hips up to meet me right where I needed him.

“Jude.” I pleaded as he mouthed at my tits through my t-shirt. Fuck. I needed him, I needed him like I had never needed a man before in my life. I needed to feel him inside me, I needed to have him making love to me, fucking me, filling me with everything that he had.

Without any apparent effort, he wrapped his arms around me to keep me against him, and he moved towards the edge of the sofa. I wrapped my arms around his neck, and my legs around his hips and I held on tight. He stood, and keeping me against him, carried me upstairs to his bedroom.