Shuttered Affections (Cornerstone #1) (25 page)

“I was either in heaven or hell. I couldn’t figure out
which.”

“Hey, you two lovebirds, let’s get a move-on. I’m fucking
starving!” It was Coda and he was seriously going to get it from Aiden. I could
tell by the look in his eyes that he was clearly not happy with his brother’s
interruption.

Before Aiden could respond to Coda’s intrusion, I brought
his attention to me and said, “He’s right. I really gotta get ready and I’m a
little hungry too. You drove me hard today and I need to eat before a long
night of work.”

“Fine. For you, I will concede. But I’m still going to kick
his ass… later,” he said with a little bit of jest.

I smiled and turned underneath him to crawl across the bed. Aiden
grabbed my ankle and quickly pulled me back under him, making me squeal and
giggle like a schoolgirl
again
. I
loved playful Aiden.

“Just one more kiss, Angel mine.”

I didn’t need to respond, I just kissed him—wrapping
my legs around his waist and pressing my body into his.

Once I thought he was good and teased, I pushed him away and
said, “Okay, now we must get ready.”

Aiden quickly dressed and decided to go wait downstairs with
Coda so he wasn’t tempted to haul me under the covers again. I was thankful for
the reprieve because this meant I could surprise him with my choice of attire
tonight.

I chose to wear something that would clearly drive Aiden
wild. Of course, I knew he loved my red garters and matching red heels, so I
decided to wear red satin panties and a matching bra along with my sheer, black
stockings and black skirt.

Since my only dress code was white shirt, black bottoms, I
easily picked out a white shirt that would look decent with the red bra, which
is hard to find, but this one was perfect. Not only did the red bra look sexy
with this top, but the blouse cut low in the front and even lower in the back,
clearly showing off my tattoo.

I’ve never shown my back at work before, so I was likely to
get several comments from my fellow workers. Only Sid knew about my tat, and
tonight, that was going to change.

I quickly pinned my curls into a purposeful messy twist on
top of my head. Several large spirals dangled down around my face, touching my
shoulders and back. I applied my makeup hurriedly and grabbed my phone as I
headed out the bedroom door.

I could hear the boys’ voices from downstairs and swiftly
bounded down to meet them.

As soon as I hit the bottom step, both their heads whipped
in my direction and two Stone jaws dropped to the floor. Their reaction made me
feel powerful, sexy, and uninhibited.

Standing there on the bottom step, my hand still on the
railing, I waited for them to speak. Both men just stood there dumbfounded and
completely tongue-tied.

In an attempt to feign indifference, I cheerfully asked,
“So, are we ready to go?”

My optimism plummeted as I saw what they were wearing. Both
men sported sexy, dark blue jeans with a purposefully disheveled look. Their
black, button-up shirts were plain with faint pinstripes decorating the fabric.
Their sleeves were tight against their strong biceps and the shirts effortlessly
showed their flawlessly chiseled chest muscles.

I couldn’t believe they were both wearing the same thing. Luckily,
I was able to see a hint of their tattoos peeking out from underneath the
sleeves. Regardless of whether I could tell them apart or not, they clearly did
this to mess with me.

I narrowed my eyes and scowled as I pointed to the two of them
and accused, “You two did this on purpose, didn’t you?”

Coda started laughing. At least I think it was Coda because,
if I was getting my left and right correct, the tattoo was on his left arm. Aiden
still stared at me in shock until he finally found his voice and said, “And
what about you? You clearly dressed like that to drive us fucking insane all
night.”

“I dressed like this to drive
you
insane, but if I just so happen to make Coda crazy, too? Well,
that’s just a bonus,” I said in my best seductress voice possible.

At this point, Coda was clearly having a ball, as he was
about to fall over with laughter. He slapped his knee and howled, “Well, your
attempt is a success, darlin’. You sure as hell know how to drive me wild, that’s
for sure.”

While Aiden still stood there with a stunned look on his
face, Coda walked over and offered me his arm, still crying with laughter.

“Come on. He’ll come up for air in a few minutes. Just let
the shock of your fine ass wear off,” Coda said, while wiping away his tears of
amusement.

Aiden quickly snapped back to reality and offered me his arm
on my other side. The fact I affected him so made me feel potent. I couldn’t
believe I had two hot-as-fuck guys on my arms. I was either in heaven or hell. I
couldn’t figure out which.

Just when I started to worry that I may have pissed Aiden
off, he leaned over, pecked me on the cheek, and said, “You look ravishing,
Angel. And I can tell you’re wearing my favorite garters. You do realize I will
have lots of fun later…”

With that statement, he leaned away, winked, and mouthed the
word
later
, as if he needed to affirm
what he meant.

My insides coiled into a fiery knot of desire as we walked
out the door into the cool spring afternoon.

We casually walked up to a Chevy Impala and I was thankful
once I realized we weren’t taking the Jeep. Not that I didn’t like the Jeep, I
was just worried it would mess up my hair. However, I would never admit to that
fact because I couldn’t stand when whiny girls get all bent out of shape over
their hair.

“Whose car is this?” I asked as curiosity got the best of me.
I didn’t direct my question to anyone in specific, but Coda was quick to answer
me.

“I guess you could say it belongs to both of us. All three
of our vehicles do. But I usually drive this one to work since the Jeep is not
quite suitable when I’m in my office suit,” he explained as Aiden opened the
passenger door for me.

“Scoot to the center, Julia. I want you near me,” Aiden
whispered into my ear as I began to duck into the car.

As soon as both men squeezed in next to me, Aiden to my
right and Coda to my left, I said, “I don’t think I’ve seen a newer car with
bench seats.”

Again, it was Coda who spoke up as he put his arm around me
to back out of the driveway and explained, “Impalas are the last cars to still
be made with bench seats. I’ll be pissed when they finally do away with them
next year. I like being all cozy.”

Aiden just chuckled and placed his hand on my knee.

We rode in silence for a few minutes. Where was the music or
the comfortable banter between brothers? Was I the cause of them acting all
weird? I decided to break the ice.

“So, where are we going?” I asked. There were tons of places
to choose from in this town, both chains and mom-and-pops littered the city. There
was never a shortage of good places to eat.

“I was thinking of that Mexican place downtown. The one with
the mural painting of the man in a sombrero taking a siesta under two palm
trees. They have the best quesadillas. Does Mexican sound okay?” Aiden asked.

“I love Mexican!” I exclaimed honestly.

“That’s my kind of woman, right there,” Coda said as he
placed his hand possessively on my other knee, surprising me with the intimate
contact. “Mexican is my favorite.”

Darting my eyes back and forth, I noticed the Stone brothers
shared a knowing smile, leaving me completely breathless.

I have to give a huge thanks to my editor and freak
cyber-twin, Cynthia Shepp. Without her, my stories would be a mess.

Cynthia, thank you for bringing me balance and keeping me
from falling flat on my… face.

I would also like to give a shout out to my family: my
sister, Michelle, for constantly putting up with my writing ADD and character
addictions, my husband and kids for leaving me alone when I so desperately
needed the quiet time, and my favorite authors for fueling my reading
addictions.

Lastly, I want to mention my online family for all their
support: Amanda Phillips, Shannon Dearing, Jayce Grayson, and even the douche,
Jason Brant. I also can’t forget my lovely street team. I’m so glad y’all
haven’t gotten sick of me yet.

If
you enjoyed
Shuttered Affections
, try
Rene’s Paranormal Romance, the Soul Seers series.
 
Go on a journey wtih Ella and Jonah in the
Soul Seers Boxed Set
.

The
first novella in this series is always FREE! So, give it a try.

Voices of the Soul (Soul Seers #1)

Eyes
of the Soul (Soul Seers #2)

Truths
of the Soul (Soul Seers #3)

Blood
of the Soul (Soul Seers #4)

Secrets
of the Soul (Soul Seers #5)

Hearts
of the Soul (Soul Seers #6)

Throughout
her entire life, Ella has heard voices. Voices inside her head. She’s never
given much thought as to why she has this gift… or this curse, depending on
which way you look at it. It’s not until she meets the mysterious Jonah that
she begins to question her inherited abilities as a Soul Seer. Learning to deal
with loss and love, Ella manages to live a seemingly normal life… or so she
thought.

Jonah
has never experienced a woman more stunning than the beauty that haunts his
dreams. Making his way through life, Jonah’s love of art becomes his outlet.
His talents prove to be the only way to recreate his dreams. Her beauty is his
constant.

In
life, a happy ending is something you only find in chick flicks. Yet no matter
how often they are left with disappointment and struggle, Ella and Jonah still
strive for their happily ever after.

Purchase the
Soul
Seers Boxed Set

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Heart You (Roommate Romance #1)

Bind
Me (Roommate Romance #2)

Share
You (Roommate Romance #3)

Soul Seers Series

Soul Seers Boxed Set
(All Six Novellas in One Download)

Voices of the Soul
(Soul Seers #1)

Eyes
of the Soul (Soul Seers #2)

Truths
of the Soul (Soul Seers #3)

Blood
of the Soul (Soul Seers #4)

Secrets
of the Soul (Soul Seers #5)

Hearts
of the Soul (Soul Seers #6)

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Anthology with a Twist

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Rene Folsom, author of paranormal romance and erotica, lives
in Florida with her husband and three kids. She has officially diagnosed
herself with creative ADD and, if it weren't for her day job as a web
programmer, she would have a million and one writing projects going at once. In
addition to web design, she is also a graphic artist who loves to create custom
book cover designs for indie authors. She is definitely an artist at heart and
would love nothing more than to be elbow deep in clay during her waking hours.

Rene believes that all fiction is based on some form of
reality—otherwise we would never have the inspiration or knowledge to
dream up the realistic situations we portray with our words. She is proud to
say that her personal experiences have been inspirational, though perhaps not
always identical to that of her fictional characters. Where reality and fantasy
diverge, however, must remain her little secret…