Four Kicks - Stephanie Brother Page 0,43

quickly disappears.

“You guys are naughty,” I scold in a flirtatious tone.

“You’re the one who’s naked,” Landon says, leaning down to kiss me.

“We thought you’d be ready to go.” Nathan strokes a finger over my hardening nipple, not sounding in any hurry at all.

“I’m sorry. I lost track of time. You won’t punish me, will you?”

“I guess we’ll have to,” Derek says, squeezing a handful of my backside in his big palm.

Ash gives me a brief but promising kiss before saying, “We’ll definitely spank you, but it will need to be later. We have to go. How soon can you be ready?”

The other men voice their agreement, though they do sound reluctant to let me go. I rush through my preparations, and soon I’m ready to leave, with a light sweater over my dress and my hair pulled up in a simple knot.

Derek grabs the overnight bag that I’d packed this morning, and the five of us head to Ash’s car. The men typically drive trucks, and until now we’ve been riding in separate vehicles, paired up in groups of two and three. Ash recently bought this car and now we can all ride together.

I’m in the back between Landon and Nathan and they pick up where they left off, Landon drawing lazy patterns on the sensitive skin on the back of my neck, and Nathan squeezing my bare knee, leaning in to kiss me.

Engaged in such distracting activity, it takes a while for me to notice that Ash isn’t driving toward the bridge that would take us off the island. In fact, he’s headed in the opposite direction.

I lean forward and touch his shoulder. “Where are we going?”

“We’re still going to the resort. We’re just taking a quick detour.”

I don’t bother to press for an answer because I can tell by his tone that this detour holds a surprise. Instead, I relax, leaning against Landon while holding Nathan’s hand. Derek turns and smiles back at me, and all seems right with the world.

I lose track of the route we’re taking, and after a short while, Ash turns down a road I don’t recognize. The road isn’t paved and he goes slowly. I don’t see anything around us except for trees and an open, grassy area.

Eventually, he stops and turns off the engine. The men get out, and Nathan leans in, offering a hand. Outside the car’s tinted windows I’m surprised to see how beautiful the sky is. We’re on a hill with a broad view of the southern part of the island and the ocean beyond. It’s the peak of the sunset and the horizon is ablaze with intense pink and coral colors.

I turn, taking in the view all around us. “This is beautiful.”

“Do you like it?” Derek asks.

“It’s gorgeous. Is this why we were in a hurry? You timed the sunset viewing perfectly, and what a great place to watch it.”

“How would you like to watch many more from this spot, for years to come?” Landon asks.

When I look at him, questioning, the men nod at each other before all four of them drop to their knees in front of me. My eyes instantly well with tears. The very air around us seems to change.

Nathan clears his throat. “Lacy, ever since I first met you, I knew there was something special about you.”

Derek speaks next. “Nathan and Ash told us about meeting you, and when you came to work at our office, it seemed like things were meant to be.”

Landon takes my hand. “You’re fun and funny, smart and beautiful, and we all think you’re the perfect match for us.”

Ash pulls a small box from his pocket and opens it, revealing a diamond ring a million times more stunning than the sky. My heart pounds in my chest as my breath catches. “We’d like to ask you to marry us, and while that may not be exactly possible, we are asking you to be with us forever.”

“Be ours, and we’ll be yours,” Nathan says.

Landon gestures around us. “We bought this land. We’re going to build a big house here, and we’d like you to live in it with us.”

“Let’s make a home together and start a family together,” Derek says.

Tears are falling from my eyes uncontrollably but I’m barely aware of them. I’m floating and my heart is about to burst from my chest, so filled with happiness that it can’t be contained.

“Yes! Yes!” I tell them, looking from one to the other, unable to believe that this is