Any Given Sunday (22 page)

“It is?” Sean asked.

“Yes. I’ve come to the conclusion I wanna have sex with you two on any given

Sunday or Monday…” Chad confessed.

“Or Tuesday,” Lauren added with a laugh.

“Don’t forget hump day,” Sean teased.

“Definitely can’t forget hump day.” Chad grinned and let sleep claim him easily.

He heard Sean and Lauren whispering, his last thought that, for the first time, he was falling asleep first.

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Any Given Sunday

Lauren walked into Pat’s Irish Pub on Thanksgiving morning with Sean and Chad.

The pub was closed for the holiday. Keira told her they’d always held the family

celebrations in the pub downstairs rather than the smaller upstairs apartment—a

tradition begun by Sunday before she died. Looking around at all the adults and small children milling around the place, Lauren understood the need for more space.

Sky was sitting on the stage, singing Christmas carols with Keira’s daughter

Caitlyn. His wife Teagan joined in, along with Keira, each of them cradling a baby on their laps. Killian and Justin were wrestling around with Tristan’s twins—the young

boys laughing loudly.

“There they are,” Pop said, coming over to hug each of them warmly. “I was about

to send out reinforcements to track you three down.”

Lauren laughed. “I had a heck of a time dragging these two out of that basement.

They’ve been working on the damn thing nonstop this week. They seem determined to

finish it.” Her words were a bit of an exaggeration. Though Sean had taken the week off to complete what he and Chad were now referring to as their man-cave, they’d actually spent the majority of the week in bed with her. Since Sunday, her life had turned into one long, wonderful sex dream from which she never wanted to wake.

“Finally,” Riley said, coming up behind her pop. “I was about to call and give you a

piece of my mind, brother dear. It’s the holidays. Time for you to stop hogging Lauren.”

Riley gave both her brother and Chad kisses on the cheek and then she grabbed

Lauren’s arm, dragging her aside.

Lauren wasn’t surprised. She’d turned her cell phone back on after muting it a

week ago and discovered nearly thirty calls and texts from her friend. Riley was

obviously busting at the seams to find out what the hell was happening.

“Where the hell have you been?” Riley asked once they settled in one of the corner

booths. “You don’t answer your phone anymore.”

Lauren smiled and shrugged nonchalantly. “I’ve been busy.”

“You’ve been fucking. You stink of it.”

Lauren fought the urge to sniff her arm, but refrained when Riley started laughing.

“So let’s have it. I need all the nitty-gritty details.”

Looking around the room, Lauren spotted Chad and Sean rummaging around

behind the bar, each of them helping themselves to a beer. Sean caught her gaze and

winked. Then he pointed to his beer bottle to ask if she wanted one. She nodded and

turned toward Riley.

“It’s a dream come true.”

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Mari Carr

Riley grinned. “So the plan worked. You guys are an official threesome?”

Lauren nodded. “And then some.” They’d already decided that they’d announce

their relationship—all aspects of their relationship—to Sean’s family today. They

planned to pull his pop aside later and explain their changed circumstances.

“And then some?” Riley asked.

“Sean and Chad are…well, they want…um… Riley. Sean and Chad don’t just sleep

with me.”

Riley went through the roof. “
What the fuck
? I’ll kill them! They’re screwing around on you?
Already
? With who?”

Lauren quickly explained lest Riley put her words to action. “With each other.”

Riley fell silent and for a moment, Lauren struggled to remember if she’d ever seen

her friend at a loss for words.

“
What
?”

“They want me, but they want each other too.”

Riley’s forehead crinkled. “In a sexual way?”

Lauren giggled, the conversation pushing her to the edge of what little sanity she

had left. She loved this family, but she was a nervous wreck about the news they were about to impart. She’d decided Riley would be the best person to practice on. She took a deep breath. “Yes, they’re having sex too.”

Riley nodded slowly. “Shit. Didn’t see that coming. Oh well, the heart wants what

the heart wants.”

Lauren stared at Riley, dumbfounded.

Riley noticed her silence and appeared startled. “I mean, as long as you’re okay

with it. You
are
okay with it, right?” Lauren nodded as Riley continued. “You’re not squicked out by it or anything?”

“No,” Lauren said softly. “Definitely not squicked out.”

Riley’s eyes narrowed. “You think it’s hot, don’t you? It turns you on.”

Lauren gave her friend a dirty look, hoping to distract her from the flush she felt

heating her cheeks. “I’m not discussing this with you.”

Riley burst out in a laugh so loud, several of her brothers turned to look at her. “Of course you are. There’s no way in hell you can start a conversation like that and then just drop it. I need details. Lots of dirty, sweaty, hot details.”

Lauren leaned forward, placing her elbows on the table. “You really want me to tell

you how hot it looks when your baby brother puts his cock in—”

“On second thought,” Riley said, interrupting her, “maybe the sex part of this

conversation is finished.”

Lauren grinned smugly. “Yeah, I sort of thought it was too.”

“So, it’s obvious you’ve told me about Chad and Sean for a reason. What is it?”

“We’re telling your pop today. I wanted to give you a heads-up.”

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Any Given Sunday

“Cool,” Riley said.

“You think he’ll be okay with it? Chad and I are sort of nervous about telling him

about our new relationship. I mean, while Lily, K and Justin are a threesome and your family is fine with that, I think Chad’s a bit concerned about how the abundance of

alpha Collins men will feel about the idea of him sleeping with Sean. He’s especially worried about your pop’s response.”

“Have you told Sean your worries?”

Lauren rolled her eyes. “Yes. And we get the typical Sean reply.” She deepened her

voice and imitated Sean. “My family will be fine with it. It’s
your
folks you need to worry about.”

Riley laughed. “He’s right, you know.”

Lauren sighed. “Yeah, I know he is. I guess I’m hoping we don’t lose the Collins

family, because God knows how
my
family’s gonna react and Chad’s pretty sure he’s going to push his family around the bend with his announcement. It took them years to get used to Lily sleeping with two guys. Chad thinks they’ll flip when they find out he’s having sex with a woman and a man.”

“You’ll never lose us, Lauren, especially not me. We’re friends. Better yet, now

we’re family. Sisters.” Riley looked over and saw Pop walking toward the food table.

“Pop’s gonna carve the turkey. Come on. We better grab a seat at the big table.”

Sean crossed to the large table Keira had created by bumping together every table

in the pub. It seated the eighteen adults present—Pop, Sean and his six siblings and

their significant others, as well as Bubbles, and the three older grandchildren. There were two highchairs on each end for the younger ones. The table was loud, bustling

with enthusiastic conversations and laughter, and Sean soaked it all in. Thanksgiving was one of his favorite holidays. Hell, any time when his whole family managed to get together was his favorite day.

Tris started passing around the bottle of Crown Royal, everyone taking a tiny nip

straight from the bottle. Sean tried to imagine a more wonderful way to spend the

holiday.

Pop clinked a spoon against his wineglass and gradually everyone fell silent. “As

most of you know, we have a couple of family traditions we like to carry out every

Thanksgiving. Tris lost no time in starting the first one, I see. I’ll have you know I don’t appreciate you passing the bottle the opposite direction from me, son.”

Tris apologized for the oversight as everyone laughed.

“Oh ye’re forgiven. The main tradition is the one where we go around the table and

each of us says what we’re thankful for. I have to confess, when Sunday introduced this idea, it took a helluva lot less time.”

Sean reached over and grasped Lauren’s hand, placing a quick kiss on her knuckle

as the family laughed again. He released it when Chad passed him the bottle and Sean

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Mari Carr

took a drink before handing it to Lauren. He grinned at the face she made after taking the tiniest sip of whiskey he’d ever seen.

“You see, when we first started giving thanks,” Pop continued, “it was just the two

of us—Sunday and me—sitting together in our tiny apartment on the east side of the

city. Then you lot came along and as you all grew up, Sunday’s words never changed.

I’d like to share them with you today.”

Sean watched as Keira wiped away a tear and he tried to swallow down the lump

in his throat. His father never failed to share their mother’s words with them and it was this tradition that meant the most to Sean.

“Monday’s child, Keira, is fair of face, but it’s your inner beauty that shines

through. Tuesday’s child, Teagan, is full of grace, with a voice and a heart sweeter than the angels. Wednesday’s child, Tristan, is full of woe that is combated with an

overwhelming hope and optimism. Thursday’s child, Killian, has far to go, though may

he never lose sight of home. Friday’s child, Ewan, is loving and giving and smart and kind. Saturday’s child, Riley, works—and plays—hard for a living. My word, girl, did

your mother have you pegged from the start or what?”

Riley shrugged playfully, though Sean knew she loved her father’s words and took

them as a compliment.

“And baby Sean,” Pop said.

Sean shook his head. Even at twenty-four, his family still considered him the baby.

While that fact drove him nuts in high school, it didn’t bother him so much anymore.

Pop smiled at him. “The child that’s born on the Sabbath day, is bonny and blithe

and good and gay, and our fair Sean is all that and more.”

Chad snickered at the end and wiggled his eyebrows—the double meaning of the

last word of the poem not lost on either of them.

Pop picked up his glass and raised it. The adults all followed suit. “To Sunday,” he

said, his voice catching on the word.

“To Sunday,” they all repeated and Sean fought his tears, though his sisters were

crying freely. His mother had been gone for sixteen years, but they all missed her as if she’d only left yesterday.

“And now,” Pop continued, “I’ll give my thanks before we start around the table.

Oh and be ready, Tris, I’m starting in your direction.”

Pop always managed to break up the sadness with a laugh. Sean thought it was the

thing he cherished most about his father.

“Being a sentimental soul myself, my thanks has never changed for the past forty-

some years either. I’m grateful for the whiskey in me glass and the gal in me bed.”

As he spoke, Sean and his brothers raised their drinks and repeated the last line in

time with Pop, the rest of the family laughing as they spoke.

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Any Given Sunday

The family took turns saying what they were thankful for, some of the sentiments

thoughtful and moving, others hilarious. Two stood out as it got closer and closer to Sean’s turn.

Natalie said she was grateful for labor pains. Everyone except Ewan laughed,

realizing his wife wasn’t joking. Everyone hugged them goodbye quickly as his brother whisked his wife off to the hospital, promising to call the second the doctor declared her close to delivering, so Teagan and Sky could be there for the birth.

Riley announced she was grateful for the seventh grandchild. When her husband

Aaron tried to correct her, reminding her Nat’s baby would be the sixth, Riley simply rubbed her stomach and repeated her number. While everyone offered the dumbstruck

father-to-be congratulations, Sean leaned over to kiss his beloved sister on the cheek.

“I hope your baby is a girl and she’s just like you,” he whispered.

Riley grinned widely at his words, kissing him on the cheek. “Twenty bucks says

you’re the only one in the family making
that
wish.”

Sean laughed. It wasn’t just the Collins
men
who were prone to betting. “You may want to reconsider that bet, Riley. Pop counts as family.”

Riley nodded and for a moment, Sean thought he caught a glimpse of a tear in his

sister’s eye. “Bet’s off. Thank you, Sean.”

Finally, it was Sean’s turn. He looked at Lauren and Chad and announced he was

thankful for finding true love—twice. He kissed Lauren and then, though he knew his

actions would shock everyone to the core, he kissed Chad—a full-out, on-the-lips kiss that couldn’t be misinterpreted as anything other than what it was.

The table fell silent for only a moment before Riley and Justin both declared they

were the ones who deserved the thanks for the set-up. A mini argument ensued as to

who played a bigger role, while the others at the table simply laughed and offered their congrats.

Finally, as the last thank-you was shared, Pop stood to raise his glass once more.

“No father could be more proud of his family than I am. Here’s to my Wild Irish.”

The End

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About the Author

Some people fall apart on their 30th birthday, others on their 40th. For Mari Carr, 34

was the year that took her down. After she spent the day crying and saying, “I haven’t done anything I thought I would,” her husband finally asked what was left undone.