Madison stirred and, with a lazy stretch, she reached up and pushed her sunglasses onto her forehead, and got a look at the twins.
As if stepping straight out of her dream, they stood before her, shirtless, the sunlight glinting off their sculpted torsos as they stared at her with an intensity that made her breath catch. They’d never looked at her like this before. There was hunger in their eyes.
“Hey boys,” she called out, trying to sound casual, even though her stomach was doing somersaults.
As they walked toward her, their muscles shifted in smooth, powerful ways. Their broad shoulders tapering down to lean, defined abs.
The twins sat down on the lounger on either side of her, like it was the most natural thing in the world, their shoulders brushing hers.
“You look different, Flake,” Ethan said.
“You’re still calling me Flake?”
They ignored that question.
“Yeah, a lot different,” Levi said, his eyes scanning up and down her body.
She arched a brow, smirking. “Is that a good thing?”
They both nodded—slow, deliberate.
“We didn’t expect you to be so…grown up.”
“I can’t be a kid forever, now, can I?” she said, looking up at him.
“Guess not.” The twins glanced at each other, seeming to share the same thought.
“Don’t we get a hug hello?” Levi asked.
“Sure,” Madison managed to say in a low voice.
They pulled her in from both sides, hugging her firmly, their strong arms wrapping around her until she was pressed snugly between them.
Madison was hit with a wave of nostalgia and comfort, overwhelmed by how good it felt to be pulled into that space she hadn’t realized she’d missed. Levi smelled clean and woodsy. Ethan smelled like spicy mint.
The hug went on longer than it probably should have. Madison started thinking about her dream that morning, and felt the temperature rising in her body.
Then, the patio doors burst open and her brothers came out.
In a blink, the twins were up, grinning and casual like nothing had happened at all.
Madison and her brothers, along with the twins, spent the afternoon splashing around in the pool like kids again, the air ringing with laughter and taunts. The four boys, of course, had to turn just about everything into a competition.
Madison floated on an inflatable, her sunglasses tilted just enough to watch the twins without seeming obvious. The sight of their slick, muscular bodies glinting under the sun made her feel a certain kind of way.
She giggled when Levi swam under and flipped her float, sending her shrieking into the water.
“Still afraid of drowning, ’Flake?” Ethan teased, catching her around the waist and lifting her easily before dropping her again with a splash.
“Hardly,” she shot back, breathless.
It was hard to believe she’d once been afraid of the water. So much so, she’d had nightmares about drowning.
It had been the twins who’d eventually taught her to swim, slowly over time, showing remarkable patience for teenage boys.
And as she’d gotten more comfortable in the water, the nightmares had become less and less frequent.
Shaking away the memories, she dove deep and swam underwater to the opposite side, reveling in the cool water against her overheated skin.
Later, they gathered around the edge of the pool for snacks and cold beers. Her brothers launched into old stories—most of them wildly exaggerated—and the twins kept finding ways to nudge closer to her. Levi tossed grapes at her until she threatened to dunk him, and Ethan sat close enough for their knees to touch, a smile playing on his lips.
Madison’s brother Ezra leaned back on his elbows, a smug grin on his face as he looked between the twins. “So… that girl from last night. She get a double dose or what?”
Levi choked on his soda, coughing into his arm. Ethan gave Ezra a sharp look as color crept into his cheeks.
“Why so shy?” Liam asked, raising an eyebrow. “Usually you can’t stop bragging.”
Levi shrugged, avoiding Madison’s gaze. “It just… kind of happened. She was into it.”
Ethan nodded slowly. “Yeah. We didn’t plan it. It just felt right in the moment.”
Madison blinked, stunned. Her mouth opened, closed, then opened again. “Wait—so you were both with her? At the same time?”
The twins nodded slowly, a rare hint of sheepishness in their expressions.
Madison tilted her head, her curiosity outweighing her embarrassment for a moment. “So… how do you even decide who goes first? Like, is there a coin toss involved? A schedule? And did she ask for both of you? She couldn’t choose? Did she suggest it?”
All four of them burst out laughing. Her cheeks flushed.
Liam snorted. “Someone’s curious!”
Her other brother Ezra continued, “Our sweet little Madison, asking the hard-hitting questions.”
Madison’s eyes widened. “I was just… I never… Shut up!”
Liam patted her on the back. “It’s okay, Mads. You have questions because you’ve never done it.”
Madison’s face went scarlet. “Okay! I’m done here.”
She made a beeline for the house and didn’t stop until she was in her room, shutting the door and leaning against it, heart pounding.
She pressed the heels of her hands into her eyes as if she could block out the thoughts swirling in her head. Still, she couldn’t shake the image of the twins—so close, their laughter, their shoulders brushing hers.
And then there was the woman from last night. What did she look like? What had they done with her?
Why couldn’t she be that girl?
She checked her phone. More texts from Daniel filled the screen—
Nope, nope, nope, leave me alone!
Needing something to distract her, she grabbed a book from her nightstand and curled up in her bed, trying to lose herself in its pages.
At some point she fell asleep in her bed with her book between her fingers.
When the feeling of her mattress dipping woke her, she opened bleary eyes to see Levi sitting on the edge of her bed. But she wasn’t sure if it was real or just another dream.
“Wha…mm? What are you doing here?”
“You look cozy, ’Flake,” Ethan said as he sat down too.
“Why are you two here?” she asked again, more clearly this time, awake now.
“Can we nap with you?” Levi said as he reached out and stroked her hair. She bit her lip nervously as she let her eyes travel up to his face.
Madison blinked and pushed herself up on her elbows, her voice a little wary. “Wait—where are my brothers?”
Ethan stretched out beside her, his tone easy. “They left to take care of some work things.” He smiled, eyes heavy with drowsiness. “We’re feeling lazy. Thought maybe we could rest here with you.”
Levi leaned in, brushing his fingers over the blanket. “You don’t mind, do you?”
His disheveled appearance and tired eyes made him look like a big teddy bear. Despite herself, her hand moved up to run her fingers through his hair.
“Okay. But what about your ‘friend’?”
Just a few hours ago they’d been in bed with someone else, and now they were in her bed, sitting close. Maybe too close.
“What friend?” Ethan asked.
“The girl from last night. Won’t she care that you’re here with me after you were with her?”
“How would she ever know?” Levi muttered. “And she wouldn’t care if she did.”
I looked at him suspiciously. “I don’t want any drama.”
Ethan scooched closer and rested his chin on her shoulder, and the contact of his warm skin against hers made her shiver. “Don’t worry about her. And besides, we just want to cuddle. We always used to cuddle with you,” he whispered sleepily, and she could feel his breath against her skin.
When her parents had left for the first time without saying goodbye—she’d been little, around five—it had broken something in Madison. It was around that time that the nightmares had started.
Liam and Ezra had done their best, sleeping in her room and just generally being with her, and the twins had spent some nights with her too.
Sleeping in the same bed had become routine after a while, a comforting habit they all loved.
Even in her teens, when Ezra and Liam would go abroad and the twins would stay with Madison, she’d sometimes ask them to come into her room and just cuddle her until she fell asleep.
Ethan shifted a little closer, his voice soft. “So… is it okay if we all nap together? Like old times?”
“We’ll keep the nightmares away,” Levi added, “just like when you were a kid.”
But they weren’t kids anymore. And the way her body was reacting to them could create problems.
Ethan’s rough fingers slowly started to trail invisible lines on the side of her arm. Her breathing sped up.
Levi kissed her temple, brushing his nose against hers for a second, then lay down beside her.
Their bodies were close, the warmth seeping into her skin. It felt so familiar, yet thrilling in a way that made her heart race. She wanted this so badly, but couldn’t help but wonder where this would lead, and if she’d be able to come back once she crossed that line.
Ethan tilted his head, studying her face. “What do you think, Mads?” he asked softly.
Their gazes were locked on her with quiet intensity, waiting for her answer.
Madison swallowed, her cheeks warming.
