Since my discussion with Hudson two weeks ago when Max passed out at their impromptu party, the boundaries I have put in place have seemed to work for us all. The brothers have stopped trying to get into my knickers and we have settled into an easy, relaxed rhythm. Every morning breakfast is dished up at eight am. We sit and chat together whilst we all eat, then we spend the day apart. I hang out on my own or with Shawna and the brothers go skiing, or fucking, I’m not really sure what they do with their day, and frankly, I don’t ask. Then we come together again in the evening for supper where we sit and discuss what we’ve done in the day or talk about general, light-hearted stuff. The conversations never get deep, the brothers never mention the women they are seeing and somehow an easy friendship has begun to form between the four of us.

This morning I am feeling revived after an early morning swim in the pool and a quick go in the sauna. The brothers have no issues with me using the facilities so long as breakfast is served at eight am sharp. Turning back to the task at hand, I dish up the full English breakfast they have come to expect every morning and place the warmed plates on the kitchen island. My phone rings, making me almost drop a plate when I see who’s calling.

“Hi, Mum,” I say, trying to hide the note of dread in my voice. She hasn’t rung me at all since I’ve been here. Had it not been for Richard’s regular texts I wouldn’t have known what was going on back home. Last night he sent me a message saying he thought Mum was up to something fishy and warning me that there was trouble brewing. Hence the nauseous feeling when answering the phone now.

“I need five hundred quid,” Mum says. No hello, how are you? No, how are you getting on? Christmas Day is only three days away, but there’s no mention of that either. Mum’s straight to the point as always.

“I don’t have five hundred quid, Mum,” I say. “I don’t get paid until the end of the month. Can’t it wait until then?”

“No, it can’t bloody well wait. I need the money now. I’ve got a loan shark after my arse. They’ll get nasty if I don’t find the money soon,” Mum whines.

I have the sudden urge to scream. “Can’t you ask Dom? Maybe he can help you out,” I say instead.

Mum’s laugh is high and brittle. “Dom’s fucked off and Paul hasn’t got that kind of money.”

“Who’s Paul?”

“My new fella of course,” she says. “Please, Louisa. I wouldn’t ask if I had the money myself.”

Frankly, there is fat chance of Mum ever having any money. She doesn’t work, and all her benefit money goes on booze. “All right, Mum. I’ll get it for you,” I say quietly, not wishing for the brothers to overhear my conversation. “But you have to give me a bit of time.”

“I don’t have time. It has to be today, or I’m screwed.”

I almost say, ‘aren’t you always’ but I hold my tongue, not wishing to get into an argument with her.

“Fine, I’ll sort it,” I say, clicking my phone off and chucking it onto the kitchen counter. I knew this would happen. I knew this was too good to be true. I’ve been here just two damn weeks and she’s already asking me to get her out of some shit she’s got herself into back home because I am not there to babysit her. How in the hell had she managed to get herself into trouble with a loan shark? “Damn it,” I say, slamming my hand on the counter. Why can’t she stay out of trouble? Why can’t she leave me alone?

“Everything alright?”

I turn around to see Bryce staring at me. He’s dressed in a soft black tracksuit slung low over his hips and a tight fitting white t-shirt. His hair is pulled up in a high bun on his head and his beard is neatly groomed, even though it’s early in the morning.

“Fine,” I say, giving him the best smile I can muster. “Chalet girl stuff, that’s all.”

He nods and sits on one of the stools.

“Morning, Icy,” Max says as he skids into the room.

“Morning, Jester,” I retort, laughing despite myself. He’s such a big kid at heart that my nickname suits him perfectly. Besides, he calls me Icy, so I have to get my own back somehow.

A moment later Hudson steps into the kitchen with dishevelled hair and sleep still pulling at his eyes. He isn’t much of an early riser, but he always gets up with his brothers because, well, that’s just what he does.

“Morning,” he mumbles.

“Morning, Hudson,” I say, handing him a cup of coffee.

“Shall I ask Louisa then?” Max says, looking from Hudson to Bryce.

“Ask me what?” I say, dishing up their breakfast.

“Well, if you haven’t already noticed, it’s Christmas day soon and Bryce, Hudson and I usually head out to a cabin further up the mountain. It gets a bit busy down here in the resort. We thought you might want to come too,” Max says, almost shyly.

“I see.” I glance at each brother in turn. “I’m not sure. I mean, I don’t want to get in the way of your celebrations. I imagine you’ll have company. I’ll be fine on my own.” I take a sip of my lukewarm coffee and peer at the brothers over the rim of the cup.

“There won’t be anyone else. Just us, and you. If you want to join us that is,” Hudson says, his eyes never leaving mine.

“But I thought you’d want to have, you know…” I wave my hand around in the air. “Company,” I finish. Sex, that’s what I want to say. Basically, it sounds like the perfect place to take a few girls and have an orgy.

“We’ve never invited a woman to the cabin, but we’d like your company. None of us are particularly interested in anyone else’s right now,” Hudson says, then slams his mouth shut. Bryce and Max both give him a look that makes me think there is more to this request than meets the eye.

“Um, I don’t know.”

All three of them are staring at me whilst I dither between my sudden desire to be alone with them in a cabin in the mountains, and the urge to run screaming from the chalet. I can see Bryce’s expectant look, Max’s hopeful expression, and Hudson’s hot gaze and I feel incredibly uncomfortable in my skin all of a sudden.

“It’ll just be a couple of quiet days hanging out and eating,” Max says with a shrug. The strange thing is, although he is acting like it’s not a big deal, I can tell he really wants me to say yes. There’s almost a look of desperation about him. Bryce and Hudson are the same, they seem way too tense for this to be a casual request.

“Tell that to all the girls hankering after you three. I’m pretty sure most of the females in the resort would love to join you and would happily take my place,” I say, trying to make light of what is fast becoming a very tense situation.

“Like Hud said, we don’t want anyone else,” Bryce says, his hazel eyes darkening so that they are almost the same colour as Max’s.

“We thought it would be fun,” Max chimes in, his voice slower, more sensual than usual.

Thank God there is a kitchen island between me and the brothers because right now I feel as though they are all about a second away from doing something stupid. My heart is beginning to thump erratically in my chest as my mouth opens and closes like some dumb-arse goldfish. I am saved from responding at all when my phone rings loudly. I snatch it up from the counter. It’s Mum.

Flipping open the phone, I walk from the room listening to my mother’s tirade whilst the brothers Freed watch me walk away from them yet again.