Nathanial Winters
Stepping out of the shower on a particularly cloudy morning I wrapped my towel around my waist before looking out at the low fog adding to the allure of the outside world.
It was the weekend and I knew that everyone else wouldn't be up just yet. Why would they. Zavier had gone out with Lea last night and the two of them had slept with one another which luckily for me his bedroom was on the opposite side of the house. Theo slept downstairs in the living room despite both Lucian and I saying he could take one side of the bed if needed.
He needs sleep regardless of if he's gay or not.
Theo's sexuality never bothered any of us it meant Lucian's and my own sisters had a gay best friend.
He also had ran into Michael more recently in school leading to the two of them talking one day in class while Arilynn and I made jokes about how long before we see them holding hands.
The other girls also were all in the same house on the same street as Arilynn which made me slightly concerned that my sisters would talk to her and blow my cover as the heir to Winters Group.
I wanted nothing to do with my familial reputation while at university which was also why I had been so focused on Nexus which I did have a meeting planned later in the semester that I had to attend in Connecticut because the company was expanding to interenterprise deals.
Walking out of the bathroom I picked out a hoodie and grey faded jeans to bum around the house in.
I then picked up my phone and saw a message on it.
Arilynn
Good morning Nathan
Received 6:15
Good morning Arilynn, how did you sleep?
Read 6:16
I slept okay, what about you?
Received 6:17
Alright I guess, I've been up for about an hour, already gone to the gym and home
Read 6:18
That's like five-thirty why would you get up that early on a Saturday?
Received 6:19
Couldn't sleep
Read 6:20
You need melatonin, also would you mind if I came over today, the girls are being chaotic and I don't want to be around all the drama
Received 6:21
Don't like drama?
Read 6:22
Fuck no
Received 6:23
She curses, noted. Also no one else is up yet as far as I know so sure but you'd have to be quiet
Read 6:24
Okay, what's the address?
Received 6:25
I'll send you the location once I'm dressed
Read 6:26
Okay, I have to finish getting coffee made then I'll be over
Received 6:27
Okay, door will be unlocked so just come in
Read 6:28
See you soon
Received 6:29
Yes you will
Sent 6:30
Pocketing my phone after sending her the address I walked out of my room and down to the kitchen where I bagan making French toast for breakfast since it was easy to make and I wouldn't end up being loud while I made it.
Theo was still asleep on the pull out bed and under about three blankets since he often got cold while sleeping.
Quietly I slipped into the kitchen and collected the ingredients before walking out back to the outdoor kitchen ao that making breakfast would be silent and the whole house could keep sleeping.
When the food was done cooking I carried the plate of food inside right as the boys walked into the kitchen.
"Breakfast, I actually didn't even think you were up" Zavier comments before Lea comes into the room.
"Lea, I hope you had fun last night. Kinda surprised any of us got sleep" Lucian mutters darkly as he walked into the kitchen the bags under his eyes could probably hide a corpse, and I immediately knew he was up all night.
"I made coffee mate" I say gesturing to the full pot of coffee.
"You're a saviour" he says patting my shoulder before he filled a mug.
"Who is the new comer thought this was a boys house not a mixed dorm?" Arden muses seeming puzzled rather then mocking.
"That's Lea Paris, Zavier's girlfriend" I say, "for those of you who haven't met her" I say tossing four slices onto a plate and douching them in maple syrup.
My parents got me hooked.
Everyone dished up before I heard an engine and looked outside to see the TTS I'd parked behind settle next to my car before the as expected cute yet elegant Arilynn got out and walked towards the house.
"Is that the girl you went out with the other day?" Theo asks.
"Yup" I respond nonchalantly yet I could feel my heartbeat increasing.
She then, as I told her she could walked right into the house before removing her shoes and walking into the kitchen and raising her eyebrows.
"There are a lot of you. I hope I didn't just walk into a six guys one girl shoot" she teases and Theo practically chokes up all his orange juice across the counter before breaking out into a coughing fit.
"He'll be fine, he's just gay" Zavier says and I shoot him a glare before turning Theo so that his head was below his knees so he could more easily cough up any remaining orange juice all the while August and Arden cleaned up the juice mess.
"Theo are you okay?" I ask and he nods.
"She's been here for a minute and almost killed someone" Zavier says.
"She's perfect for him then" Theo coughs out before Arilynn blushes and ducks her head to avoid sight.
"Only because you just about died are you saved" I mutter dryly and he just smirks.
"Arilynn these are the boys, the idiot who opened his mouth is Zavier, and this choking blonde is Theo" I introduce.
"The tired brunette with glasses behind me is Lucian, the girl Zavier is hugging is Lea, Cali surfer is Julian, brownie is Arden, the sharp featured boy in the living room is August" I complete and one by one they all waved or just nodded politely.
I expected jokes from all of them or a comment but not one sound left their lips.
That's new.
"So you're the girl he's whipped for" Zavier remarks with a wry smirk.
"I will skin you with a potato peeler and douse you in vinegar" I seethe.
"If that's true that's really cute" Arilynn says and I am the one guilty of blushing this time.
"No one has ever called him cute" Lucian says, "well except for his parents".
"She doesn't know who my parents are kinda trying to keep it that way for this whole year" I mutter as I returned to eating my breakfast and handing the remaining two pieces to Arilynn who took the vinyl stool beside me.
"And she doesn't question it" August pipes up.
"Yes, it makes sense to judge someone off how they are rather then their family name" she says and I see the flash of recognition cross Lea's face as I said something similar to her less then a year ago. I also caught the smile from her out of the corner of my eye.
"Nathan say that to you?" Lea asks and Arilynn nodded.
"He told me that when I was going through something" she adds.
"Nathan told me that the day he met me. Made sense so I just haven't asked what his surname is".
"And I appreciate the trust in my secrecy" I say casting her a smile as I took a final bite of my food while Lucian passed out coffee mugs to everyone.
"I have no reason to worry about what you keep secret, we just met a week ago" Arilynn laughs and I smile pressing my lips against my tongue as a odd thought enters my mind.
Secrets are dangerous and we all know it, including who we care about.
Over the months of being around my parents I knew what it was like to be around powerful people. A piece of me craved the gala's, and charities, the events where I belonged. Where reputation voided family. I'd made my own as the CEO of Nexus Software. I was powerful and I knew it but that also meant that I was getting closer to making enemies. I had, I was my fathers son after all.
I had so many traits of the man I could never over shadow and we all knew it. I had his confidence and I was working on it. I saw proof of this as my friends put faith in me. I had made it worth while to be here. Here was my family my friends and their significant others. Brothers couldn't cover what it was like here. I even sometimes imagined what it would look like if all of us arrived at an event. The long row of luxury saloon cars that we'd all get out of. Even the mental image made me feel powerful.
That was a one day though, and I had promised myself to stay here in the moment, to enjoy being around the people I cared about.
"I'm going upstairs I need to work on something then we can all come up with some sort of plan for the day" I say and they nod before I retreat upstairs and into my room to get my laptop.
Shutting the door I then sat down cross legged on my bed and opened the screen so that I could check a series of things, sales, costs, profits, stock, and expansion. The latter specifically, the larger my company got the more I'd be able to become a legitimate businessman and not just my parents spoiled son.
Out of fifty thousand stock points they were all currently valued at at five hundred dollars that was going to change though if I managed to pull a deal in Japan, I needed to mass produce many of the electrical components for software so if I was in a key hub of electronics I could change that number to about ten times it's current value, privatize it and then grow in the shadows with only estimation for how my company made money.
When I finished a particularly stressful email I watched the door to my room open a crack and Arilynn's face poked through.
"May I come in? It's a little awkward meeting all of them for the first time and then being there with them" she explains and I nod deciding I could afford a break I'd just have to do what I didn't tonight before going to bed.
Setting it in a special drawer that wirelessly charged it I closed the drawer and turned back to Arilynn who sat on the end of my bed before I let out a soft laugh.
"What?".
"You don't have to sit at the end of the bed come sit, we'll find something to watch" I say and get off of the bed, "sit wherever you want".
Once I found a movie I walked back to find that Arilynn had slipped half under the covers in the middle of the bed.
"Where is a safe place to sit?" I ask and she pats the spot next to her where I sit though carefully before I feel her head rest on my shoulder as the movie begins.
I then feel her progressively get more and more heavy until I glance over to see that she had fallen asleep against me.
She looked beautiful but I couldn't tell her that it would be too soon. I also don't intend to have her freak out that I was next to her when she woke up. Trying to get away I found that her arms were around my torso and I was stuck wrapped in her grasp.
When had this happened?
I then let out a breath and moved both of us to be in a better position for sleeping while I remained wide awake as I lay with one arm over her more to keep her warm than anything else. I couldn't pretend that I didn't like knowing she was safe here.
If the boys ask questions I'll answer just vaguely.
Shutting my eyes I began to deep breathe until I felt weightless and I slipped into slumber.
So little cuddle scene sort of this book will move fast but slow at the same time you'll all see what I mean in a little bit, comment, vote, and share. Anyways
Peace✌