Her face contorted. “How the fuck do you know why he gave them to me. You don’t know him. He gave them to me because it was my birthday and he wanted me to have something nice. He cared about me; something you will never understand.”
I didn’t even bother to acknowledge her statement. “Don’t make this harder on yourself. Come clean. Where are the shoes?”
She reached into her back jean short pocket and pulled out a letter. I couldn’t help but notice how fucking sexy she looked in those cutoff shorts. I was dying to eat her pussy again, watch as she sucked my cock, fuck her from behind. I didn’t even care she just fucked Crow while Lev and I watched. Hell, I wanted to join them.
I’d share her.
But first I needed to figure out if she was telling the truth.
She opened the letter and took another long breath. “My Aunt Glinda gave this to me.”
She read me this stupid letter that said nothing, except for the fact that Uncle Henry was a liar which I already knew.
“And that’s all I have. All I know. I swear. I know you don’t believe me, but I’m telling the truth.”
I didn’t believe her. Not at all. But it didn’t matter. I had one way to get the shoes.
And that was getting closer to her. Then she would break and tell me. Once she thought I was a good man.
And I knew what was in the Emerald City.
The wizard.
“Fine. Pack your things. We’re leaving.”
“I’m not going anywhere with you.”
“The hell you ain’t. Look, babe, the tornado is coming in. We aren’t safe here. We are moving out now. I’m not letting you out of my sight.”
She pouted, and I wanted to kiss her. “No. I’d rather die than go with you.”
I pulled her to me and forced her to look at me. “Dammit, Dorothy. Listen to me. I believe you that you don’t know where the shoes are,” I lied. “Do you want to know what’s in the Emerald City?”
She nodded rapidly.
“The wizard. And I’m taking you to him. Because if you are telling me the truth, this entire trip was for nothing. You aren’t going to get any answers from me because I don’t have any. I’m a hired hitman, like Lev over here. So, if you want to find out what happened to your uncle come with me.”
She still shook her head. Damn this girl was defiant. “No, it’s too dangerous if the tornado is close.” Just then we hear the sirens. “Come with me. There is a bunker down below. We will be safe there.”
And with that, I lowered my gun. And Dorothy led us to the bunker. We locked the door and hunkered down for the night.
18
Dorothy
The door slammed behind us with a finality. Lev threw the bolt just as the power went out. Brandon and I stumbled blindly down the stairs. I felt along the wall and knocked into a bookshelf. Using only the sense of touch, I felt my way around until I found a flashlight, then clicked it on.
I worried about Aunt Glinda and even my mother. I was hoping that they had found shelter.
The bunker was pretty standard for the area. Thick concrete walls surrounded us on all sides. The only opening was the thick steel door at the top of a short flight of stairs where Tin now stood with his ear lifted to the opening as though to try to hear the storm threatening on the other side.
The storm must be closer than I thought.
I couldn’t believe I didn’t pay attention to the storm warnings. I’d been through enough to recognize the signs. It had been stupid of me to be caught so unaware. For all my planning to escape, I hadn’t accounted for mother nature.
Then again, neither had Tin nor Lev. They were stuck here, too.
And I was going to get answers whether they wanted to give them or not.
Brandon and I had gone to one of the few pieces of furniture in the place, a couch with a pull-out bed. Next to it was a small, cheap bookshelf with a battery-powered lantern, a couple other flashlights with extra batteries, and a weather radio on the top shelf. The rest were filled with canned foods and other non-perishables.
While I got my bearings, Lev went straight for the radio and tuned into the weather forecast.
The thin sound of a meteorologist’s voice spilled out. “Funnel spotted on Laramore Road heading northeast. If you’re in the line of the storm you should be in your safe place. Don’t take any chances folks. This is a life-threatening storm. I repeat, if you live northeast of Laramore Road, take shelter now.”
It was heading right for us.
Lev consulted his phone which was somehow still working, though I wasn’t sure how he still had service. Maybe the cell towers hadn’t been hit yet. His eyes flitted to Tin, who was still at the door.”
Dammit, didn’t he know he wasn’t safe there?
“Tin!”
I pushed off the couch and shoved at Brandon’s hands when he tried to keep me from going to Tin’s side. He had to get away from the door. It wasn’t safe. Bolted though it was, I’ve learned from a lifetime of experience anything can happen during a tornado.
“You have to move. Come over this way,” I told Tin.
Maybe he couldn’t hear me over the roaring wind that tore through every crevice in the bunker it could find. It was coming. I took a step closer, though getting nearer to the door made my knees quake. I’d been through countless tornados, it was just a fact of life living in Kansas, but that didn’t mean I wasn’t reminded of my own mortality every time I had a brush with one.
“Tin,” I said and braved the remaining steps between us. At the sound of his name, he turned toward me, his lips—those beautiful, sexy lips—pulled into a frown. “You should come down where it’s safe,” I told him.
“I’m fine up here.”
“Stop being a stubborn ass for once and listen to something other than the sound of your own voice.”
He grinned a little at that and lifted a shoulder. “Whatever you say, sweetheart.”
“Is everything a joke to you?” My voice broke, and I was surprised to find I was worried. Not only for myself but for him. When had that happened?
“Don’t work yourself up. I’ll come with you if it means so much to you. I didn’t realize how much were worried about me.”
“Shut up,” I said, but I was filled with relief. I didn’t have to like him, but that didn’t mean I wanted him sucked into a goddamn tornado. At least not until he took me to this stupid, fucking wizard so I could put this all to rest.
Lev was still listening closely to the radio, not paying anyone too much attention. I still couldn’t read him. Brandon had opened the couch out to the bed, which smelled musty from disuse, but it was something. And I was so goddamn tired after everything that had happened.
But there wouldn’t be any sleep. Not until after we were certain the storm had passed.
I crawled up onto the bed next to Brandon, who opened his arms for me. The arcing light from my flashlight momentarily illuminated Tin—Zac’s, I reminded myself; I was so over his stupid nickname and his sneering face. My eyes flitted to Lev again, who was now watching the two of us too.
My skin began to prickle with… something. The growing electricity in the air, the charged atmosphere. I didn’t know. Suddenly I was aware I would be alone with the three of them until it was all over.
I wasn’t sure if I was more worried about the storm or them.
Forcing myself to think about something, anything, else, I narrowed in on the weather announcer’s voice spilling from the radio. He narrated the progression of the storm, but I didn’t really need his comments. I could hear the howling wind growing closer and closer from the top of the stairs. I was grateful we were relatively safe underground.
I caught Zac’s eyes again.
Relatively safe.
Brandon’s arms tightened around me as everything began to intensify, then all of the sudden it went quiet. The threat of the storm getting close, just before the tornado struck. That’s how it felt in this little bubble inside the bunker. The calm
before the destruction. On the precipice of falling.
The silence was palpable, electric. I could hear the three of them breathing. I swear I could almost feel it, rustling against my bare skin. I glanced up again and saw Zac’s eyes closed, his throat bobbing with each swallow. My gaze moved to Lev, who was no longer listening intently to the weather report. He was looking at me. The memory of him watching as Brandon touched me was so visceral, my core tightened and my mouth went dry.
Then a terrible roar filled my ears, and I pushed my face into Brandon’s chest. A loud crash reverberated against the door, shaking the whole structure around us. Breath sobbed out of me as I wondered if the tornado would suck up the dirt around the bunker like a vacuum.
I don’t know how long it lasted. It felt like an eternity.
When it was over, Zac went to the door, unlocked it, and tried to push it open, but it wouldn’t budge.
“Goddammit,” he growled. “There’s something jammed against the outside.”
“You’ve got to be joking,” I said.
“You wanna come see if you can open it? Be my guest.”
Lev shoved himself against the door without a word. It barely moved.
“What about your cell phone?” I said to Lev. “We can call a rescue crew to help get us out.”
He did as I asked and spoke for the first time. “No signal.”
“We’ll have to wait here until they have a temporary service restored. Then we can call someone to help us out,” Brandon suggested.
No one voiced the obvious truth. We’d be stuck here together until then.
Great.
“We might as well sleep in the meantime,” Zac said. “I’m fuckin tired.”
The obvious solution was to share a bed. “You don’t mean…”
“Scooch over, sweetheart. It’s not like we haven’t slept together before.”
Brandon positioned himself at my front and Zac at my back. Without thinking, my eyes went to Lev, but he only took a seat on the concrete floor across from the bed and leaned his head back against the wall. I caught myself before I offered him to join us, too. I already had enough on my plate.
Before I could worry too much about it, I passed out.
***
I woke trapped between the Tin and Brandon, but not frightened at all.
I should have been.
Brandon was at my back, like he always seemed to be, ready to protect me from hidden threats. Heat speared through me as I realized his cock was hard against my ass and one of his hands was low on my stomach underneath the thin material of my shirt. The rasp of his calloused hands against my skin sent my nerves alight with sensation.
Tin—Zac—was at my front, his legs tangled between mine, the flat of his thigh pressed high between mine. One of my arms was thrown around his waist and my face was pressed into his throat. If I wanted to, I could lean forward and lick or bite him there, taste him.
I hated myself for it, but I wanted to.
Almost as much as I wanted answers.
Almost.
I moved to disentangle myself from him when I caught movement at the end of the bed. Without waking the two around me, I shifted until I could see Lev standing at the foot of the bed. The flashlights were off, but the lantern was on. Its battery must have been running low because the light it was emitting could barely illuminate past where Lev was standing.
His eyes met mine, and I was struck dumb by the heat in them. He didn’t say much most of the time, but I was beginning to see that was because he didn’t need to. Even in the dim light, I could read his expression effortlessly. Lev knew what I was thinking, what I was feeling.
And he liked it.
God, but I liked it, too.
And all thoughts of finding those answers disappeared as need swarmed inside of me.
I liked how Lev watched me as though he knew my deepest, darkest desires and wanted to set them free. Hell, maybe he did. I’d liked what Brandon had done with me while he watched and I liked this, too.
They believed me, or they were starting to. Maybe I could trust them with this. God knew, my body wanted to.
Frankly, my body didn’t give a shit either way.
It just wanted.
Lev nodded, just once, but he didn’t have to say anymore.
I moved against Brandon, just enough to press his cock more firmly against my ass. His hands tightened around me in response even in sleep. I loved how much he wanted me without even trying, without even thinking. In all my life, I’ve never had someone need me so effortlessly. It was addictive. Most of my other relationships were one and done because I couldn’t let myself get close to anyone. With these men, I didn’t have a choice.
Brandon’s hand began to dip beneath the material of my shorts and my breath caught in my throat. Was I really going to go through with this? What the fuck had happened to me? Lev jerked his head toward Zac. What the hell did he want?
Then I realized. He wanted me to touch him, too.
Oh, but God, maybe I was as fucked up as he was because that sounded like a great idea.
So, I kissed Zac throat, licking away the salt. He shuddered underneath my lips and groaned. My hips began to move of their own accord, pressing into Brandon and then grinding against Zac’s thigh. Lev’s shoulders heaved as his breathing intensified.
What had happened to him to make him like this so much? It surprised me that I wanted to know. I crooked a finger at him, but he shook his head, his hand going to the bulge between his legs. Maybe he couldn’t. Maybe he didn’t want to. He sure enjoyed what he was looking at though, so I didn’t push. One day I’d find out.
A hand fisted in my hair and dragged my gaze away from Lev’s. I met Zac’s eyes which were glints of coal in the shadows. “You wanna play games now, little girl? Think you’re in control?” He tugged at my hair, baring my throat, leaving me vulnerable. I shivered as his lips touched the sensitive spot just under my ear.
Control? I hadn’t been in control since he walked into my life.
“What? You don’t like it when a woman makes the first move?”
He chuckled against my skin. “Oh, I like it just fine, sweetheart. I’m not gonna stop you. But I don’t think your boyfriend is going to be too happy about it.”
“Dorothy knows what she wants. I’m down for whatever.” Brandon shifted closer, his hand sliding farther into my shorts. “I only want to make her happy.”
Zac snorted. “You mean you liked what he made you do up there when he kept you captive. Admit it to her.”
Brandon lifted a shoulder. “She knows how I feel about her.”
I did. God, I did. It made me light up inside, a different, softer kind of heat than their touch inspired.
But Zac wasn’t as easily placated. “Bullshit. That wasn’t what I fucking asked. You like sharing her as much as you like fucking her.”
Zac leaned closer and looked over my shoulder, presumably at Brandon as he kissed me deep. When he finished, he said, “You’re as much of a freak as we are, don’t try to deny it. You like watching her with me, like being watched by that creep,” he jerked his head toward Lev, “as much as we do. You can pretend to be a pussy whipped bitch as much as you want, but like recognizes like and, brother, we’re more alike than you want to admit.”
“What do you want from me?” Whether he knew it or not, his fingers were tightening at my stomach, pressing me closer to his rock-hard erection. He might not want to admit it out loud, but his actions said more than words. He did like it.
Zac showed no mercy. He really was heartless. “I want you to tell her you want this, too. I want you to say that you want to share her with us. Tell her.”
Brandon’s mouth found my ear. “God help me, but he’s right, Dot. It turns me on to think of sharing you with them. But I won’t do it if you don’t want to. We can stop right here and right now if this freaks you out.”
This was it, my moment to turn back from…whatever this was turning into. Brandon would stop i
f I wanted.
But that wasn’t what I wanted.
“Are we going to keep talking?” I asked impatiently. They were so close, and I was burning up inside. These weeks of running and playing games and weaving through all the secrets and lies had left me itching with frustration. This I could control, like Zac had said. This made me feel powerful.
This time I was the predator, and they were the prey.
With a look at Lev, who nodded, I pulled Zac in for another kiss—if only to shut him up. Brandon tensed slightly behind me, hesitation causing his hands to tighten against my stomach. Then he relaxed, his hips bumping forward, and his fingers coming out to unbutton my shorts, then sliding between my legs to find me wet and wanting.
I hissed against Zac’s mouth as his tongue pressed forward at the same time Brandon’s fingers plunged deep. Lev moved silently around the bed until he was in my line of sight. It was an assault of the senses. Zac’s kiss, the weight of Lev’s stare, and Brandon’s masterful fingers. The orgasm came without warning, as strong as the tornado we’d weathered.
Zac took my moans into his mouth, then helped Brandon strip me bare. In the growing darkness, as the batteries in the lantern began to fail, I heard the clinking of belt buckles and the rasp of zippers being drawn down. Zac took my hand and wrapped it around his length while he said to Brandon, “Take her from behind again. Like Lev told me you did in the cabin. She likes that.” It wasn’t a request.
But we didn’t protest. Fucking Brandon was beginning to be as second nature as breathing. His cock was long and thick and stretched me wide enough that the sweet ache made my eyes roll back into my head. I hissed out a breath, my fingers spasm over Zac’s length, then working into a rhythm as best I could.
Lev knelt down behind Zac and pulled my leg over Zac’s hip, opening me wide and forcing Brandon to switch positions so he was on his knees, fucking me deep. Lev kept his hand on my thigh, a single point of contact, where his nails scratched up and down my skin. A single, but effective point of contact. He was like a puppet master.
I guess I wasn’t the only one who liked control.
Desiring Dorothy Page 10