Chapter Twenty

“We’ve rented a room in Charlotte for tomorrow night.” The text came in from Michael a few weeks later.

I smiled, pleased that I’d get to see them before they left. The weeks up to this trip had been busy ones. They’d organized a lot of things that one of the orphanages over there needed and were taking them over with them. That had involved a lot of stuff to do with customs procedures, last-minute checks, and a lot of phone calls.

Apparently, they went to the same town in Spain every year, a place their mother loved and had been going there their entire lives. It was nice, I thought, that they were able to do that. They’d become friends with the locals over the years and when they found out a local orphanage had been decimated by a freak flood; they went to work organizing aid for them. I was really proud of them, but I’d thought we wouldn’t have any time together at all.

To know I’d get to see them before they left for an entire month was good news. I needed it. Life had started to drag without them in it. Even if we’d only spent two days together, their attention had done amazing things for me, and it wasn’t just the sex. It was the conversations, the company, the way they all made me think and laugh.

Now, I’d have a few more hours of it before they left.

“What time shall I arrive?” I sent back, hoping for an early time.

“Check-in is at 11, so then? We’ve rented a suite, so there will be room for all of us.”

If I knew them, it wasn’t just any suite either. It would be at one of the most expensive hotels in Charlotte. I looked forward to a little pampering and a whole lot of sex.

“Wear that red dress, please?” Michael sent in another text.

“I will, darling, with the black underwear,” I teased.

“Oh, now you’re just killing me,” he quickly texted back.

“Aw, you poor baby. I’ll take care of it tomorrow.”

“You mean I can’t do it myself, right now?” he sent back.

“You can, if you must,” I decided to play along. If he wanted to give me that little bit of control, I’d be happy to go along with him.

“I can wait if that’s what you want?”

“I do,” I responded with my bottom lip caught between my teeth in delight. I looked around, but knew I was alone. Mom was out with the handsome dentist again. She’d even stayed the night with him a time or two. I’d just winked at her when she rushed in to change for work then left again.

This new dynamic to our relationship was nice, and I had a feeling I’d be able to tell her my secret soon.

“If I must.” He finally sent back after a few minutes.

“You didn’t just do it, did you, or you’re telling me you didn’t?” I asked with a quirky-eyebrowed emoji.

“No, I swear.”

“Good.”

“It hurts though.” He sent a pout with the text.

“Good. That means, tomorrow, when you finally get to let go of that load, you’ll be more than ready for it.”

“Don’t be surprised if I fuck you against the hotel room door, then.”

“Oh, now you want to be bossy?” I asked with a happy roll of my eyes.

“It’s not bossy. It’s desperation for that sweet pussy of yours, Nicolette. I dream about it, about you, all of you. Your beautiful face, those luscious breasts I love to hold, those dark nipples I love to suck, all of you.”

“I dream about you too and can’t wait to have you all with me again.”

“It won’t be long. Just a few hours, really.”

“I know, but you’re as desperate as I am for those hours to pass.”

“I am, fuck, I am!” he added an emoji with wide eyes, and I laughed.

“Poor babe.”

“I have to go. Daniel needs some help, I’ll see you tomorrow, babe. Goodnight.”

I sent a quick goodbye and went to bed. It was dark, almost midnight, and I was tired. I’d mowed the grass for Mom and then had a shower. I was ready for a shitty documentary and sleep.

I found one on cheeses and sprawled in my bed. Tomorrow I’d be up to my eyeballs in men, so for now, I needed to rest. I couldn’t concentrate on the documentary, so I rolled over and ignored it. My brain was on overdrive, wondering what we’d all get up to together.

I knew what we’d be doing, but how? Would they all want me on their own again, or would it be one big free for all again? I wanted to experience everything with them. I wanted to explore the things they each had to offer me, but for now, we had to take the stolen moments when we could and enjoy them the best we could.

It wasn’t a competition, either. They weren’t trying to outdo each other as I might have expected. They were all very respectful of each other and their time with me. I had to assume this was something they’d all discussed in detail as they did everything, and that probably let them be as open and free with each other as they were.

They were quadruplets, naturally conceived, and they’d known each other from the moment of conception. They hadn’t fallen out with each other, as some multiples did. They’d formed a bond that appeared to be unbreakable. I was glad about that because the one thing I didn’t want was to be the reason they argued or felt anger with each other.

I didn’t want any of them to be jealous of the others either. I wanted there to be understanding and nothing but love. It was selfish, maybe, but I wanted this to continue, so I was often careful not to single one brother out more than the other, even if Tristan did seem to need more love.

He and Daniel were both my romantics, but Tristan, now that he’d come to know me better, really needed the most love. The others were good with what I gave them, but Tristan wanted the sweet words, the actual love that I had to give, more so than the others.

That’s why I adored them all. They each needed something different from me. They each wanted to have their own version of Nicolette, but they also knew I was my own person. They weren’t too demanding, or too controlling. They seemed to know that to make this work, we all had to make an effort and be careful.

It wasn’t a game anymore. From the moment we’d all decided to carry on with this, it became something more. I respected them and the relationship we were trying to create. If that meant one needed more from me than the others, then so be it.

I woke up the next day with a smile on my face. I went into the kitchen to find Mom having breakfast before she went in for work.

“Hi, baby. How are you?” She kissed my cheek when I paused beside her, and I kissed hers.

“I’m good, Mom. How are you?” I asked sleepily and headed for the coffee pot.

“I’m good, too. I may, uh, may be late tonight.”

“That’s good.” I turned to grin at her with a cup of coffee in my hand. “I might not be at home at all tonight.”

“Oh?” She gave me this ‘do tell’ kind of look and I grinned even more.

“Well, I’ll be in a hotel in Charlotte, my, um, boyfriend is going off to Spain tomorrow and won’t be back for a month.”

“I see.” She paused, thought something over, then frowned. “He’s not married, is he?” She frowned and looked at me closely.

“No!” I said with a burst of laughter. “Not at all. Just busy.”

“Okay. I hope you’re right. If not, I’ll cut his balls off and feed them to him.” She growled a little as she said it.

“Rawr, Momma!” I kissed her cheek and headed for the fridge. My coffee needed cream.

“You’re my little girl, even if you are all grown up, honey.” She looked at me with all the love she could feel in her eyes. “I’ll always worry for you and protect you when I can.”

“I know you will, and I love you for it.” I hugged her and put the cream away. “I’ll be okay with this, I think.”

I wasn’t sure I would be because I’d already become attached to the Rome brothers, in more ways than one.

“You can deal with anything, baby, you’re strong. You’ve always had to be.”

“So, have you. I’m glad things are working out with your dentist.” He seemed like a decent guy, wasn’t married, and made my mom smile. I couldn’t object to that.

“I’m glad you are, Nic. It means a lot to me. It’s been so long since your dad passed away, and well, it just seemed like the right time.”

“As long as you’re happy, Mom, I can’t object, can I? You need a life outside of me. You worked hard to make sure I had a roof over my head and food in my belly. You deserve to take a break now, enjoy life for a bit.”

“Thanks, baby. Oops, I better be off. Don’t want to be late!” She pushed away from the counter she’d leaned against and stood up straight. “I’ll see you sometime tomorrow then? I’ll be home tomorrow night.”

“Yeah, I’ll be home. We can catch up then,” I said, which only made me tense. I wanted to tell her my secret so much, but it wasn’t a drive-by kind of conversation. I could picture it as she left.

“Oh, hi, Mom. Good morning, by the way, I’m fucking four guys at once. Oh, and they’re brothers too!”

“Good for you, baby, have a good day.”

More like she’d slap me and ask me what the hell was wrong with me. I didn’t want to think about that right now. Maybe I’d put it off for a while longer.

I went into the bathroom, fought with wax that wanted to rip off my skin but nothing else, until I found a video online that said to shake baby powder on my skin first, then went back to it. I had a shower after that, then dried my hair. A little eye makeup, some lipstick, and I was ready to put the dress on.

Mom had it dry-cleaned, so when I slipped it on it was as good as new. She’d been very careful with it, anyway. Apparently, it had made an impression because the good doctor took Mom on a mini-shopping spree of her own. She now had quite a few lovely dresses in her closet.

I put on my heels, went out to my car, and started the car. I plugged my phone into the radio, found the playlist I wanted and headed for the interstate. I blasted down the road at 70 mph, some old school jams blaring out of my speakers. It was something I’d never admitted to anyone, my love of driving down the road, deafening myself to bands that had albums older than me.

I rocked out until I got to the exit for the hotel and turned off. I turned the radio down then to look for the hotel, one of those silly things it seemed we all did and pulled it when I found it. I stopped the car and looked around. I saw a black Bentley, a white Audi, and a red Porsche that I wanted to drive desperately. That little beauty would fly down the road. Maybe one day I’d be able to drive down the Autobahn in Germany in a car like that, with my favorite German band playing along.

I had a feeling that, if I mentioned it to one of the boys, I’d get that trip sooner rather than later. If they went along with their Dad’s wishes. If not, we’d all have to work very hard to get a trip like that. It was up to them, what they decided, and I wasn’t money-hungry, so I wasn’t going to try to convince them to do something they didn’t want to for my own benefit.

I didn’t want them to be poor, for their sakes. It was hard as fuck, but at the same time, maybe it would be good for them. They’d have to rise on their own two feet, not the back of their father’s name. It seemed to be the direction they were headed for, so I wouldn’t be surprised if that’s what they did.

I pushed my door open, put my heels back on, and stood up out of my old, beat-up car. It looked out of place in the parking lot and I wondered if I should have parked it in the employee parking lot maybe. I didn’t want to embarrass the guys.

I decided it didn’t matter and walked into the lobby of the hotel. It was very expensive, as I knew it would be, and went up to the desk. “Hi, I’m Nicolette Howell. Have the Rome brothers checked in yet? I’m expected by them.”

“No, miss, not yet. It shouldn’t be too long though. They left instructions to give you a key and send you up to their suite.”

“Oh, good.” I didn’t know what else to do, so I stayed silent as he did his thing with the key card and then gave me instructions for the elevator. It was much the same as the hotel in Vegas.

This hotel didn’t have as many floors as that hotel, but it was still pretty high. It took a while to get to the top floor and when I did, all I could do was gape. It was a very open space, with a small roof-top garden, a lounging area, a small, walk-in hot tub, and then the house that they’d called a suite. It was mainly glass, and the only rooms that had any kind of privacy were the bedrooms and bathroom.

This was going to be fun.