Mr. Bryson always had a beer in his hand and wickedness in his heart.

"You're a lady, so do as you're told," he would often say. "If I tell you to jump off a bridge, that's what you do, you hear? Now go get me a drink. Make it quick."

I did everything he asked, which consisted mostly of house chores; washing dishes, doing laundry, cooking food, and cleaning.

Ethan was often tasked with the physical labor, especially fixing the tables and chairs Mr. Bryson broke while in his drunken stupor. He even had to walk miles to the nearest grocery store to steal a pack or two of hotdogs in order to feed us because Mr. Bryson's money usually went to liquor.

For as long as I could remember, Ethan and I not only had to take care of Mr. Bryson but we had to take care of ourselves. So, it became routine to collect tree leaves to stuff into the cracks between the logs of the shack walls for insulation.

But Ethan's eagerness to go out with Owen and collect the leaves, made me take note. When they returned, Ethan's grin radiated as much as Owen's mood.

"Guess what?" Owen lifted the front of his shirt while he used it as a container to hold the leaves.

I eyed him, trying desperately not to catch a glimpse of his exposed stomach. "What?"

He dropped the leaves in the corner near some collected fire wood, not worried with trying to suppress his excitement. "You can call me Cousin Owen now."

I looked to Ethan. "What's he talking about?"

"He kind of feels left out." Ethan also seemed to glow with newfound energy. "He wants to be more ... connected with us."

"That's right." Owen lifted shirt over his head, revealing his defined torso and a fine trail of hair below his navel that disappeared beneath the rim of his jeans. "Now I'm part of the family." After shaking the shirt to remove traces of dirt and crumbled leaves, he slipped it back on.

Disappointed at my failed attempt to not stare, I couldn't help watching from my periphery.

Ethan pressed a handful of leaves into the small cracks in the wall, so Owen and I joined him.

Owen cleared his throat. "We were talking and decided that we should make this place a little homelier."

"What are you talking about?" I paused. "Aren't you heading back home eventually?"

Owen halted and turned to me. His voice softened as he spoke, "You don't like my company?"

Some question. I couldn't answer because I was torn, so changing the subject was less difficult. "What about your family and friends at home?"

"I don't have any family or friends." He dropped his head, averting eye contact. "That's why we talked about you two being my family and friends." He smiled when he caught Ethan's attention. "We also talked a lot about girls."

Ethan rubbed the back of his neck nervously. "She doesn't want to hear that sort of stuff." He continued stuffing the cracks in the walls.

"Oh, come on." Owen chuckled. "Apparently, this guy's a virgin."

Ethan stopped and stared at Owen, giving him a look. "I think she knows that much. You can stop now."

"Oh." Owen chuckled. "You're not embarrassed, are you? This is stuff we shouldn't be afraid of sharing."

"Just stop." I sneered, seeing how uncomfortable Ethan had become. His jaw tightened and his focus remained on his work as if he wanted to escape the conversation.

When Owen turned to me, I caught the curiosity in his questioning eyes. "Do you know he has thoughts about you?"

When I snapped my head toward Ethan, he dropped the few leaves in his hands and sat on the corner of the bed. A part of me wanted to defend Ethan and demand Owen to shut up, but curiosity wouldn't allow me to say the words.

"If you weren't his sister he would consider having you as a girlfriend," Owen went on.

Shock and intrigue hit me like a wall of bricks.

Astonishment took over my thoughts, especially because Ethan had always held fast to the boundaries he'd placed between us, always schooling me on how a brother and sister should properly behave. He never crossed those boundaries or made me think he ever would.

However, there were times when I'd allow my curiosities about the male species to play out in scenarios that I'd chosen to keep hidden, buried deep down in my mind. There had been times when I imagined what it would be like if Ethan was my husband and we lived in a secluded fortress deep in the forests. Although we weren't biological siblings, the thought of doing similar things the heroes and heroines did in romance novels was as unnerving as it was thrilling.

Ethan's face distorted in embarrassed and anger at the same time.

"It's okay, Ethan." I attempted to make him feel better the best way I could, with understanding. "I know how it feels to allow your thoughts to run away with you. Sometimes you can't control what pops inside your head."

"I don't want to talk about this." Ethan dropped his head between his knees. "You probably think I'm a weird freak." He rubbed his forehead, leaving me to imagine his distress.

I went to his side and put a comforting hand on his shoulder. "I don't think it's so strange to imagine all sorts of things, especially in the position we're in. Sometimes all you have is your thoughts." I took a deep breath and cleared my throat. "Sometimes I think about how things would be if you weren't my brother."

Ethan's head shot up and his face twisted in surprise. "Really?"

I nodded, purposely turning away from Owen and lowering my voice so he couldn't use it as an opportunity to butt in. "I used to pretend that we were married and lived in a castle far away from everyone. Just you and me. When I thought of our situation that way, whatever we were going through suddenly wasn't so bad."

"I didn't know that," Ethan mumbled.

We stared at each other for a minute. It seemed like we were suddenly seeing a different person, a stranger, and trying to figure out how to feel and what to say next.

Owen raised his hand like a child in class, vying for our attention. "Uh, I'm thinking you guys should kiss?"

"What?!" I nearly gasped.

"Why?" Ethan said simultaneously.

"Kiss each other because you love each other." Owen shrugged. "It's perfect timing."

I had always wondered what the heroine in the novels felt when she and the object of her affection engaged in that first kiss. Was it exactly like they described in the books, butterflies and lightning bolts?

"Never!" Ethan turned away.

I shouldn't have been shocked by his refusal. So, why was I?

"Why not?" Owen scoffed. "I know you want to. We know you want to."

Ethan glared. "Because she's my sister!"

"Don't you want to know what it feels like for someone's lips to touch yours?" Owen stroked his chin. "You'll never know Heaven until you press your lips to another's for the first time. Believe me."

The way Owen said those words made my heart race. For so long I wanted to feel good, to feel Heaven.

"I am curious, but I can't kiss her." Ethan wouldn't even look my way.

Owen stopped stroking his chin and flicked his tongue across his lips. "Would you kiss me?"

Silence occupied the room as a weird expression transformed Ethan's face. Ethan's stubble free jaw clenched and the muscles along his neck pulsated briefly as they contracted and relaxed.

Was Owen serious or just teasing?

Either way, I'd never seen Ethan so unsettled.

A nervous laugh escaped Ethan, as he ran his hand through the long strands of his hair. "What are you talking about?"

"Come on." Owen licked his lips again, turning them a soft rosy color. "It's really not a big deal. I have no problem showing you what it's like ... how good it feels."

How ridiculous was it that Owen would ask such a bizarre question? What made Owen think that Ethan would engage in such an intimate act with a mere stranger?

Ethan looked down at the wooden floor and mumbled.

"I can't hear you?" Owen stepped forward.

Ethan said it again, but this time in a whisper so low I couldn't make out all the words.

"Ethan—" Owen sighed, moving closer. "You gotta speak up."

"Yes." Ethan finally made eye contact. "Yes, you can show me."

My heart dropped to my stomach and a bit of anger rose to its place. How can he say yes ... to him?!

"Nice!" Owen had a skip in his step as he closed the distance between them.

What was happening? What should I do? Should I move over and allow it? Should I voice my disapproval? What reason did I have to prevent such a thing if Ethan himself decided to go along with it?

"Tilt your head up towards me and close your eyes," Owen instructed. "When you feel my lips on yours, press yours back against mine. Okay?"

Ethan lifted his chin, closed his eyes, and nodded.

My stomach twisted in knots but the pain kept me attentive.

Owen knelt before Ethan and placed his fingers along Ethan's jawline as a hero would do the heroine. My heart grew heavy with anger as Owen inched forward. My jaw dropped as Owen's lips brushed Ethan's. Ethan's bottom lip gently quivered until Owen's soft kiss stilled it. When Owen's fingertips traveled from Ethan's jawline and down his neck, I nearly screamed in anger.

Enraged, I stood and stomped to the door.

"Where are you going, Allison?" Ethan called out.

"To give you two your privacy," I spat and walked out the door into the chilling air. Frost nipped at my fingertips, but my rage didn't allow me to care.

How could they do that in front of me, knowing how eager I was to experience a kiss myself? Who did Owen think he was to instigate a kiss that should have been mine? And why didn't he offer to show me how it felt?

I pressed my back to the side of the shack as the sound of footsteps grew louder and closer.

"Allison?" Owen called. "Are you mad at us?"

"Don't bother me right now." I stared out at the trees on the far side of the lake as he emerged from around the corner.

"What's the problem?" He raised his palms innocently, only fueling my rage.

"You're the problem," I wanted to say, but kept quiet instead. A part of me didn't want my attitude to rub off on him. I imagined he didn't look at good or wasn't as charming if he were angry. I enjoyed Owen much more when he presented a smile.

Snow crushed beneath his feet and he approached. "Are you upset that Ethan didn't want to kiss you?"

How dare he even say those words? I shot bullets at him with my eyes. "Why did you offer to kiss him but not me?"

"Oh," Owen grinned as if he had a sudden revelation. "Is that the problem?"

"Whatever." I crossed my arms over my breasts, less out of anger and more to keep warm.

"I'm sorry." His tone was direct and gentle. "I knew how much he wanted to know how it felt. That's why I offered."

"Yet he turns me down?"

"Because you're his sister."

I rolled my eyes. "As much as you're his cousin."

"Come on, Allison. I don't want you to be angry with me." He moved closer, so close his body heat radiated intensely. "If you want, I can show you how good it feels too."

The closer he got, the more the cold melted from my limbs. His golden gaze locked onto mine as he moved in. I uncrossed my arms and allowed him to press his taut body against me and push me back to the wall. Heat immediately traveled my spine, pulsating in my stomach like electric butterflies and back up to the nape of my neck.

"Close your eyes," he whispered against my lips, and in no time his soft, pouty flesh was on mine.

His mouth; soft, warm, and inviting.

My hands moved to the sides of his body, clenching his shirt in my fists as he brought his palms to my face just as I wanted.

His lips parted and his warm, wet tongue separated mine. When our moist tongues met, I felt every inch of myself sinking and melting into the snow piece by piece. I suppressed a moan and puckered against the corner of his mouth.

He breathed against my lips. "Better?"

"Huh?" I didn't want it to end, so I kept my eyes closed, wishing it wouldn't.

He smiled against my cheek. "Do you feel better now?"

"Oh, yes," I panted. "Much better."

Now I knew exactly what Juliet felt when kissing Romeo. Pure bliss.   

This is no romance, but how's that for a twist?  Who else has that feeling that not all will remain butterflies and rainbows? More Allison, Ethan, and Owen next. Thanks for the support!