Chapter Eleven: Quinn

Chapter Eleven

Quinn

“Get out of here!” I shriek and madly reach for the blankets. Archer is on top of me, with his bare ass right in my brother’s line of sight. Archer freezes, and I pull his body down on mine once I realize we’re on the blankets and I can’t cover us up. I’m hidden underneath him but still too exposed.

Dean just walked in on us having sex.

It’d be bad enough to have any of my brothers catch me in the act, but it’s a million times worse right now with Dean. This weekend was supposed to make him realize he and Archer can be friends again. That nothing has changed.

But seeing Archer balls deep inside his sister…yeah. Dean’s not going to come around any time soon.

“Close your fucking door,” Dean yells and slams my bedroom door shut. Archer’s cock is still buried inside of me. My legs are still wrapped tightly around his body. I’m shocked. Stunned. Horrified and embarrassed.

Yet I’m not pushing Archer off me.

“Did that really just happen?” Archer whispers, still too stunned to move.

“It did.” Fuck. It really did.

“Is it bad I want to finish?” Archer gives me a cheeky grin.

My head spins and my body is reacting to physical sensations. I was about ready to come for the second time, and while I’m still amped up and ready to go, my mind isn’t. Not at all.

“I don’t know,” I tell him. He relaxes a bit, and his cock rubs in the right spot. “No, it’s not bad at all.”

Archer nods but doesn’t start thrusting again. We’re at a standstill, so to speak, with his cock inside me but not doing anything.

“Should I go talk to him?” Archer asks, and a line of worry forms between his eyes.

I tighten my legs around him, wanting to ease Archer’s tension. “Give him a minute or two to cool down.”

“Okay.”

“You can finish.”

Archer lets out a snort of laughter. “So romantic.”

“Sorry. I’m trying not to let it ruin the mood.”

“It kind of did.” Archer starts to pull out. I grab his ass and push him back down.

“We haven’t had sex in over a week. You’re finishing.”

He blinks. “No pressure or anything.”

“I’ll waive my multiple orgasm rule.”

He slowly circles his hips. “It’s a rule?”

“Mmm-hmm.” I close my eyes, trying hard not to think about the look of horror on Dean’s face. The door is closed but not locked. Though it’s not like he’s going to come back in.

Archer nuzzles his face against my neck. He thrusts in hard and fast, and it only takes a minute to forget about Dean. Well, until Archer tells me to keep it quiet because we’re not alone in the house anymore.

I nod, eyes falling shut. I angle my hips up, and Archer’s cock rubs against my G-spot. I’m close to coming again, but also starting to get a little sore, thanks to pregnancy hormones no doubt. I move against Archer, helping myself out, and clamp a hand over my mouth as I come.

Archer pushes in deep, turning his head down and biting my neck as he finishes. My inner walls contract around his cock, and he lets out a groan, muffled by my hair.

“I didn’t think I’d be able to come,” Archer confesses, moving off me. “You’re distracting.” He grabs his boxers, quickly puts them on, and goes into the attached bathroom to get me a tissue. I clean myself up and dash to the bathroom to pee. When I come out, Archer is dressed again and sitting on the foot of the bed.

“Should we talk to him now?” Archer asks. “Hey,” he says suddenly when I turn to pick up my clothes.

“Yeah?”

He strides over and puts his hand on my stomach. “You’re starting to show.”

“Can you tell it’s a baby?” I put my hand over his and look down. “Marissa says I look like I ate a big meal.”

Archer cradles me against him, splaying his fingers over my stomach. “I can tell it’s a baby. Our baby.”

I melt against him, and all the anxiety over my stupid brother goes away. Archer has a way of doing that with everything bad. It fades away until he’s the only thing left.

“I’m excited to feel her kicking.”

“Her? Did you look at the results?” he rushes out.

“No. I’ve been tempted,” I confess. After giving blood last week, I got the results yesterday. I had the nurse go over everything else—baby is fine—but didn’t tell me the sex. I had her write down ‘boy’ or ‘girl’ on a card and seal it in an envelope. Knowing myself and how hard it would be to resist temptation, I had her use thick paper so I couldn’t hold it up to the light and try to see what she wrote.

Because I did.

“If it turns out to be a boy you’ll have to get used to saying he,” Archer laughs. “But I have a feeling it’s a girl too. Probably because you refer to it as one.”

“I blame my mom for putting that idea in my head.” I bend over, purposely rubbing my ass against Archer’s pelvis as I pick up my underwear. “She’s the one who said it’s a girl. It’ll be nice to know either way so everyone can stop calling the baby ‘it.’ That’s too impersonal.”

“Yeah, it is.”

I get dressed, run my hand through my hair, and apprehensively open the bedroom door. Rufus is at the top of the stairs, looking at me and wagging his tail. The rest of the house is quiet, and I start to feel sick as we walk down the stairs. The nausea hasn’t faded at all. I don’t think it ever will.

“Dean?” I call softly, seeing him in the kitchen. He’s bent over his phone, no doubt texting our brothers to tell them what he just walked in on. I put on a fake smile and resist the urge to slap him upside the head. Archer and I are together. He needs to fucking deal with it.

Dean flicks his eyes up for half a second. “Good. You have clothes on now.”

“I’m sorry,” Archer blurts. If I could elbow him in the gut without being seen, I would. “We didn’t know you’d be here.”

“Quinn fucking invited me.”

“Yeah, I did.” I wrinkle my nose. I kind of forgot, though I didn’t think he’d show up this early. Our plans were for the evening. “We had dinner plans though.”

“I came over early because I thought we could hang out or something. I felt bad for getting mad at you before and wanted to make it up to you.”

I bite my lip. “Do you still feel bad?”

“Nope.”

“Dean. Stop.”

He shakes his head. “I’ve seen more of you than I ever wanted to see.”

“Be glad I wasn’t on top.”

Dean responds with a glare. “Hilarious, Quinn.” He sits back, shaking his head. “You said this weekend would feel like old times.”

“You’ve walked in on me having sex before,” Archer tries to joke. “And I’ve walked in on you.”

“That was college. And not my sister.” He shudders. “I can’t unsee that.”

“You’re the one who came upstairs,” I remind him.

“I didn’t know Archer was here. Where’s your car?” he asks.

“Mom has it,” I tell him. “Archer got here early to surprise me and—it doesn’t matter. You’re acting ridiculous. Look, I’m sorry, okay? We didn’t know you’d be here, so we didn’t close the door. It’s not that big of a deal.”

“How’d you like it if you walked in on me and Kara?” he counters.

“I wouldn’t like it, but I wouldn’t sit there pouting like a baby.”

“I’m not pouting. I’m scarred for life.” He makes a face like he’s going to throw up.

“Oh my God.” I let out a sigh. “It’s not like you walked in on Nana having a threesome.”

“I’d rather see that.”

“Really?” I put a hand on my hip. “You’d rather see Nana naked and sweaty getting groped by two sexy men?”

“Who says they have to be sexy?”

I narrow my eyes. “You’re such an asshole.”

“I’m not the one fucking my best friend.”

“Grow up, Dean.”

“You can’t get mad that I’m upset about walking in on you two. I don’t care who you’re with, Quinn, I don’t want to see it.”

“And I said I’m sorry! Maybe Owen was right, and you do want Archer all to yourself. Well sorry, he doesn’t swing that way!”

“Quinn,” Archer says softly, hand landing on the small of my back. He’s been around us enough to have seen a fight or two between me and one of my brothers. He knows how over the top and dramatic I can get. Though Dean is just as bad if not worse. When the two of us get into it, it’s like a scene from The Real Housewives or something. We’ll keep going until someone cuts us off. Usually, I’m mad at him for a few hours—maybe a day—and then we’ll be back to normal. Things haven’t been normal between us since I told him I’m pregnant. I’ve never had a feud going with any of my brothers for this long.

“That’s a fucking low blow, Quinn. Even for you,” Dean shoots back.

“Really? Because you’re acting like you’re jealous Archer won’t play a private game of Operation with you right now.”

“Guys,” Archer says, stepping in front of me and looking right at Dean. “Quinn and I are together. We’re having a baby. Don’t like us being together? Fine. But you have to accept it and move on. If not for us, then for this kid.” He slips his arm around my waist. “Stress isn’t good for the baby, and I know this whole thing upsets Quinn. We just want you to support us.”

He’s trying to make things better with his best friend, and Mom’s words echo in my head. Dean was there for Archer when no one else was. Dean and Archer being friends is part of life. They have to be friends again. I know Logan and Owen are dying to start up the bromance jokes again at least.

I open my mouth to tell Dean I’m sorry for overreacting, more than ready to pull the pregnancy card, but quickly clamp my hand over my mouth and close my eyes.

“Are you going to be sick?” Archer asks, stepping in closer. Most people move away when someone looks like they’re about to throw up—myself included—but Archer does everything to comfort me. Tears burn behind my closed eyelids.

I feel so strongly for this man right now.

“I think I’m okay,” I croak out.

“Go lay down upstairs.” He brushes my hair back. “Do you want crackers?”

I nod, keeping one hand over my mouth, and go back upstairs to lay down. I discovered over the last week or two, that if I lay really, really still, the nausea isn’t as bad. Problem is, I can’t lay down and be motionless most places.

“Is she okay?” I hear Dean ask.

“She’s had bad morning sickness since the beginning,” Archer answers. “It sucks but it’s nothing abnormal. But…no. She’s not okay. I told you, this stupid shit upsets her more than she’ll admit.” The pantry door creaks open, and all the dogs go running. “Get the fuck over it. We’re family now.” There’s venom in his voice, and I don’t want him to be mad at Dean too. Being angry at Bobby is enough negativity for this wonderful man to have to deal with.

I get into bed, getting under the covers this time, and feel like I’m about to burst into tears. I’m such an emotional wreck, and I have six months left of this.

“Quinn,” Archer whispers, and just hearing his voice calms me. “You okay, babe?”

“Yeah. Just tired. Mentally and physically.”

He gets in bed with me. “Take a nap.”

“Will you snuggle with me?”

“Of course.” He’s holding the bottle of anti-nausea pills, and I reluctantly take one. Archer yawns, and it’s then I notice how worn out he looks. It’s more than the long shifts. It’s the stress of Bobby, Dean, and being away from me and the baby.

“Tired?” I ask.

“Yeah.” He lays down and pulls me with him. We get under the covers this time and keep our clothes on. “I was in surgery before I came.”

“I thought you were going to sleep before you drove.”

He shrugs. “I was too anxious to see you.”

I roll over and sit up, hands going to his shoulders, and start massaging his stiff muscles. He sighs happily, eyes falling shut. It only takes a few minutes before he’s asleep. I lay down next to him, and in his sleep, he reaches out and puts an arm around me, hand landing on my stomach.

*

Someone knocks on the door. My eyes flutter open and I sit up, blinking rapidly to try and focus my vision. I was in the thick of my nap and feel all groggy now that I’ve been woken up.

“Hey, sis,” Owen calls. “You decent?”

“Yeah,” I mumble and go to the door. I twist the knob and pull it open.

“You look like shit,” Owen says as soon as I open the door. He grins and pulls me in for a hug.

“I was sleeping,” I grumble, hugging him back. “What are you doing?”

“Mom asked Dean to come up and get you guys, but he was worried he’d catch you in the act again.”

“Oh God.” I bury my face in my hands. “I knew he’d tell you guys about it.”

Owen laughs. “I’m glad I missed it, but I would have liked to have seen Dean’s face. He’s been downstairs pouting like a baby since we got here.”

“That’s what I said!” I shake my head. “He’s being more dramatic than me and I’m the pregnant one.”

“You’re starting to look like it too.”

“Did he tell Mom?”

“Probably in hopes you’d get grounded.”

I let out a snort of laughter. “Why did Mom want us? Is dinner ready?”

“She says it is, but you know how Mom is. We’ll sit around talking for half an hour before things are even close to being ready.”

“Are Wes and Jackson here too?”

“Just Jackson. We picked him up on the way.”

“I’m going to let Archer sleep,” I say and close the bedroom door. “He was in surgery before he drove here. I know he’s tired.”

“So sweet,” Owen teases and holds out his hand, letting me go down the hall first. The kitchen is bustling, and Jackson runs to me, jumping into my arms for a hug.

“Is Uncle Archer here?”

“Uncle Archer?” I raise my eyebrows and look at Mom. “Yeah, he’s here. He’s upstairs sleeping.”

“Why’s he sleeping? It’s not dark yet.”

“He works at night sometimes and is tired.”

“Daddy works at night,” Jackson says. “Does Uncle Archer work with Daddy?”

“Uncle Archer is a surgeon. He does operations,” I add in case he doesn’t know what a surgeon is.

Jackson’s eyes widen. “Does he cut people open?”

“Yeah.”

“Cool!”

I laugh and set Jackson down. He’s getting heavy. Dean, Kara, and Logan are sitting at the island counter, eating the appetizers Mom always sets out as she’s making dinner. It’s nothing fancy, just chips and dip along with various cut up vegetables.

Logan flicks his eyes from me to Dean and makes a face, trying not to laugh. I shake my head, too irritated with Dean to feel embarrassed. Though it’s not like it’s a surprise Archer and I are sleeping together. I’m pregnant after all.

“Quinn!” Mom exclaims. She drops the spoon she’s holding and rushes over.

I freeze, thinking she’s going to tell me there’s a spider in my hair or something. “What?”

“You have a bump!”

“Oh.” My heart is still racing. I hate spiders. “Yeah. It just popped up overnight.”

Mom puts her hand over my stomach. “You’ll be able to feel the baby moving soon. It’s the best feeling. Though it can get quite painful, especially in the end.”

“I’m excited.”

“You should be. I can’t wait for tomorrow! But if you want to tell me what it is—”

“Mom,” Logan interrupts. “She doesn’t know either.”

“I really don’t. Neither does Archer,” I assure her.

Mom takes her hand off my stomach. “Where is Archer?”

“Sleeping upstairs.”

Logan gets up and goes to the fridge. “Why is he so tired?”

“Yeah,” Owen goes on. “He must be pretty worn out.”

“Stop it, you two,” I say through gritted teeth.

Logan grabs two beers and gives one to Owen. “I don’t know what you’re talking about? I’m asking a simple question.” He’s not looking at me as he talks, but at Dean. Dean is staring at his phone, pretending to be so into whatever he’s reading he doesn’t hear them.

“Right,” Owen says. “What was Archer doing earlier?”

Mom, who’s oblivious to everything, picks up the spoon and goes back to the sauce she was stirring on the stove. “He told me he came from work. He was checking on patients.”

“Yeah,” Owen snickers. “I’m sure he was doing thorough exams.”

“Seriously,” I warn, shooting him my best shut the fuck up look. Taking a spot next to Logan, I reach over and grab a carrot. “How’s wedding planning going?” I ask Kara, though that’s a sore subject on its own.

“Good.” She sets the bridal magazine she’s looking at down and fakes a smile. If I haven’t given birth by the time their wedding rolls around, there’s a good chance I’ll go into labor during the ceremony. She perks up, happy to talk about the wedding. “I finally picked the colors and I think I found my dress.”

“Oh, that’s exciting. Do you have a picture of it?”

“I do!” She pulls out her phone and comes around, not letting Dean see.

“It’s gorgeous,” I whisper. “You’re going to look stunning.”

“Thanks.” She goes back to her spot and opens the magazine, showing me centerpiece ideas she likes. “I’m starting to go into panic mode though. We don’t have much time and there’s so much to do.”

“You know we’re here to help with whatever.”

“Thanks,” she says again. “We’re leaning more towards something low-key yet elegant.”

“I like that idea.”

Kara smiles and looks down at the magazine again. “So far, we’re thinking of having the ceremony in the late afternoon, then do pictures, a cocktail hour, and then the reception.”

“That’ll be really nice.”

“We hope so. If only the weather would be nice then, right?”

“It can snow in March,” Owen says.

“Everything is inside, so we should be fine,” Dean finally speaks for the first time.

“I saw the new renovations to the venue on their website,” I say. “It’s so pretty.”

“It’s like a fairytale!” Kara agrees.

“I forgot to ask you, Quinn,” Mom says and turns the burner off. “Is Jamie coming to the reveal tomorrow?”

“Yeah, she’ll be here.”

“I’m so excited for another grandbaby!” Mom beams.

Kara purses her lips together, annoyed talk of her wedding was interrupted with baby talk. It’s going to be that way until the baby is born, and I can totally understand both her and Dean’s frustration with it. It’s their day, and they deserve to have it be about them.

Then again, I shouldn’t have to downplay anything just to spare their feelings. I sigh, putting my hand on my stomach. Can’t we just all get along? Though really, having Dean’s panties all in a wad over the fact his wedding and my due date are two days apart is nothing compared to the strained relationship between Archer and Bobby.