Lonely Lullaby

by Vannah Summers

  He moaned low and deep against my lips, and his body relaxed, his control loosening up as he deepened the kiss.

  Where is the light... Where is the hope...

  As the male words entered my mind, I gasped, and Ace’s tongue swept along my lower lip, tasting me.

  To shine down on my noose’s rope...

  My fingers caressed down his chest, seeking out skin. The tips of my fingers skimmed his nipples as I explored his chest, and his hips bucked hard into mine, holding me firm against the door.

  “Ace,” I gasped out as his lips left me, only to find my ear with his teeth. My body was on fire, desperately trying to relieve itself from the heat flooding my body.

  Each cut is an escape from pain...

  The words were a mere whisper compared to our heavy breathing. His teeth grazed across my jawline, and I squirmed in his grasp, remembering how Christian had teased about Ace being a biter. One of his hands came up and held me still, while the other roamed down my thigh.

  The mental kind that drives me insane...

  If I’d had any questions about these words being his heart song, that was no longer the case. The words whispered to me in Ace’s cool, unmistakable voice.

  Whoever had molded his heart song had not been kind to him. If anything, his lyrics hinted at something truly dark and haunting, stemmed from a past of anger, neglect, and pain.

  He moved his hand back up my leg, the heat from his palm searing me through the fabric. His ice-blue eyes glanced down at my legs, and his breath caught in his throat before he turned his gaze back to mine.

  “Let me know if I go too far,” he whispered against my skin as he continued to slide his hands until his fingers skimmed the hem of my shirt. Slowly, carefully, he glided the material up over my stomach. My ragged breathing came out in heavy pants. His mouth found mine again, his tongue fighting for dominance and control of the kiss, and I gladly gave it to him. His lips were so soft, yet firm, as they devoured me, building an ache between my thighs.

  My heart was near bursting, my soul aching to sing as he continued to consume me.

  Pulling away and, at the same time, sliding my shirt back into place, he released an uneven sigh. His eyes resembled the sky before a storm as he held my gaze.

  My breath still came out in pants. “Ace?”

  He closed his eyes and chuckled low under his breath. “Why does my name always sound so sexy coming from your lips?”

  I didn’t have a response for that, my brain still short-circuiting from our kiss.

  When he opened his eyes again, they were satisfied, pleased. He reached up and drew his silver necklace over his head. In one fluid movement, he slipped it over my head so it hung from my neck.

  Curious, my fingers stroked the lines of a music staff that ran along the surface of the small, silver pendant. I held it up to inspect it better, letting the lights glint off of its shiny surface. A string of music notes was engraved into the metal, and my heart fluttered oddly against my ribcage. It looked like the notes to a song, but for all I knew, it could have just been a bunch of random notes put together.

  My eyes met Ace’s as he waited for my reaction, noting the softening of his gaze.

  “Oh,” I said, unsure how to respond. Was he giving it to me, then? “It’s absolutely beautiful.” I touched the markings on the necklace again. Something about them called to me, as if they were something I was supposed to remember and it was on the tip of my tongue. “But I can’t accept it.”

  His icy gaze cracked. “Why not?”

  Shaking my head, I forced a smile on my face. “Because it must have been extremely expensive.”

  His shoulders released his tension, and he laughed “So?”

  “So, you don’t even know me.”

  Ace took another step closer until his body heat radiated next to me. I met his eyes and swallowed hard at the determined look in them.

  “Love,” he said softly. “I may not know everything about you, but I promise you this: I’ll spend every minute you give me learning all there is to know.”

  My mind became scrambled at his sweet words, unsure of what to say to such romantic words. Usually, I would have been deterred by his forwardness, but from Ace, it fit. Coming from him, the words were enticing, like a secret just for the two of us.

  “What song is this?” I asked, more for a distraction from his proximity.

  Studying it now, I knew it had to be a song. I glanced up when he took my hand, the one holding the medallion, in his, his blue eyes on the engraving.

  His thumb traced over the music notes before he met my eyes, and the possessive storm in them nearly overwhelmed me. “Mine.”

  He opened the door for us before I could say another word. I peered up at him, my mouth still slightly swollen from his lips. “Ace,” I tried again. I didn’t even know what I planned to ask him. Maybe if he knew about the situation with the others?

  He passed me but paused in the hall. “I’m sorry for coming on so strong, but I just had to be sure, love.” Smiling over his shoulder at me, I just about melted as the corners of his full lips curled up into a blazing smile. “And thank goodness for the answer I got.”

  Chapter 17

  I trailed after Ace as he headed for the others, still wound up from our kiss, and it made me a little disgruntled. I had all these men wanting to kiss me, and yet I just kept getting more and more frustrated.

  So, like a sulking child, I ignored him once I entered the living room.

  Whitney sat squished between Parker and Kai, and the three of them were an odd sight to see. Her small shoulders hunched as she focused on beating them at their auto racing game, and she didn’t even notice me walk in the room.

  Leaning my hip against the wall, I watched the three of them for a while with a small smile playing on my lips. It was a relief to watch her having fun. She didn’t get enough opportunities to be a kid, and seeing her enjoying herself with a carefree smile made my heart lurch with joy.

  “You wanna sit down?” Parker asked me with a lopsided grin.

  I nodded, still brimming with irritation at the guys but joy for my sister.

  My heart thumped against the new weight of the necklace as I followed the others. It kept me aware of Ace’s words.

  Mine, he’d said. But was I?

  Ace said he wanted to be sure... So, he thought I was his soul mate, too. That meant he hadn’t understood what we were feeling either.

  Spotting Samantha in the corner of the room, I almost chuckled as I watched her crocheting. She wove the purple thread with her proficient fingers, and I wondered what she planned to make.

  Oliver squatted by Christian’s side, attaching a few pieces of chain to his jeans while Hunter watched them in amusement as he sat casually on the arm of the couch. Ace joined Kai, Whitney, and Parker by the couch, watching them play their game without actually seeing as his eyes glazed over, deep in thought. Kai observed Ace from the corner of his eye and said something that caused the tips of Ace’s ears to tinge pink.

  “There you go,” Oliver said with a sigh as he stood up from Christian’s side. “Now you and Hunt can be twinsies.”

  “Great,” Hunter deadpanned, and I laughed at his dry tone.

  Oliver turned to me with an impish simper. “Okay, beautiful. Let’s get to work on you.”

  My laughter ceased, but he acted as if he didn’t notice and snatched my arm to drag me back to Parker’s room. The others gave me sad smiles. Kai even sent me another salute, but no one tried to help me. Whitney grinned and gave me a tiny finger wave before returning her attention to the game.

  Once we were back in the other room, Oliver tossed me the shopping bag from earlier and instructed me to get changed. I did as I was told, taking privacy in the bathroom, and, when I returned, found he had donned a loose shirt in shades of green and teal.

  He held a mirror, finishing up some eyeliner around the corners of his eyes when I walked in. He’d parted his hair over to the side, and I realized
the right side of his head was shaved. When he wore his hair normally, I couldn’t see it.

  His jeans were more shredded than they were put together, and his black high-tops seemed brand new based on the lack of scuffs and marks on them. The telltale signs of his abs peeked through the slashes in his shirt, and the oddest urge to go over and touch him seized me.

  I mean his shirt. I want to touch his shirt.

  “Well, you look nice,” I complimented

  Grinning widely, he set down his eyeliner. “Thanks.”

  Crossing over to the bed, a small grin formed on my lips. “So, are you going to use your makeup voodoo on me?”

  He chuckled and studied my face. I wasn’t expecting him to take my words so seriously, and it was hard to shove down the blush creeping up my neck at his intense stare.

  “Only if you want me to,” he said slowly, like he worried about overstepping his boundaries, and I nodded.

  “Sure, I think it could be fun,” I said. “Oh, that’s if you have time. I’m fine if not.”

  He shook his head, grinning to himself as he dug through his bag and hauled out some makeup.

  “Okay, this should be good for you.” He began applying something creamy. Maybe moisturizer? He followed it by some foundation and powder.

  He powdered my eyelids with eyeshadow, and I bit my lip to stop from smiling since I didn’t want to move and mess him up. But dang, it tickled! I didn’t normally wear the amount of makeup he put my face, but then again, I didn’t often go to rock concerts. There was no reason I couldn’t have some fun and go all out.

  These guys pushed me out of my comfort zone, and it felt kind of invigorating.

  “I never get to use this stuff,” he sighed as he lined my lids with some metallic eyeliner and used some spare mascara wands to apply a couple coats of mascara to my lashes.

  “Why not?” I asked, and the tender feel of his calloused fingertips rubbed at a spot at the corner of my eye like he was trying to fix something.

  “Because we never have girls around.” He shrugged. I didn’t know why relief filled me, but it did. “Okay, pucker up, buttercup.”

  My gaze drifted to the partially open door, then back to him. He wanted to kiss right now? With the chance of the others walking in?

  Throwing caution to the wind, I closed my eyes and pouted my lips slightly, making him inhale sharply and swear under his breath.

  His lips fastened to mine in an instant, and unlike before, he kissed me slowly, taking his time. Reaching up, he ran a gentle hand through the strands of my hair, and I savored every stroke of his tongue against mine. It was a dance I didn’t want to end, and I hummed against his warm lips, feeling him smile with one last peck to my mouth.

  “Well, that turned out better than I planned,” he breathed, still smiling as he pulled back.

  I didn’t know what he meant, but as he held up a tube of crimson lip gloss, I realized my mistake, embarrassed I’d misread the situation. “Oh!”

  “I think I like your version of puckering up better, beautiful,” he said softly. “But now, pout those lips so I can paint them.”

  Unable to stop the blush warming my face, I obeyed, and he smoothed the gloss over my lips. It smelled fruity with a hint of sugar, and it tempted me for a taste. Darting the tip of my tongue along my bottom lip, I stole the briefest sample, and the flavor of sweet strawberries teased my taste buds.

  “No, you don’t eat—” He groaned. “Strawberries and cream, that was actually kinda hot.” He handed me the tube of lip gloss and rubbed a hand through his hair. “I wonder if you’re trying to test me.”

  I raised my eyebrows. “No, it’s just that fruity lip gloss is my kryptonite.”

  He gave me a strange look, which I pointedly ignored. Why make it taste good if I shouldn’t eat it?

  I checked in the compact mirror he handed me and grinned at my reflection. Keeping my hair in the messy bun seemed to help keep the look casual without being too much. “Nice, I look like a badass.”

  “A butter pecan,” he interjected, and I snorted.

  “I’m not going to start swearing in ice cream.” I stretched my arms out in front of me.

  When he reached up to caress a single finger along my collarbone and out to my exposed shoulder, I shivered lightly. “Good, because it was actually sexy hearing you swear.” His fingertip lingered on my bare skin.

  A light knock on the door interrupted the moment. Whitney peeked inside, a shy smile on her face as she entered.

  “Hi,” she said, playing with the sparkles on her shirt. “Is it my turn?”

  Oliver’s face beamed as he ushered her to sit on the bed. “Of course. We can’t forget the guest of honor now, can we? We need to do something special for you. What do you think about some face paint?” Her feet hovered over the floor, and she kicked them happily as nodded. Oliver searched through his makeup until he found some sparkly face paint. “Okay, what design do you want?”

  Whitney pondered his question for a moment. “Can I have a butterfly?”

  “You sure can.” Oliver held out the colors and let her pick. She chose green and purple.

  Enjoying the moment, I watched as Oliver pulled up a picture on his phone to follow and got to work. He messed up a few times, cursing in ice cream and making Whitney giggle, and he had to use the makeup removing wipes a few times to clean up his mess.

  Once he was finished though, two butterflies, a large and small one, soared over her right cheek. Swirls danced around them like sparks of magic.

  Oliver held up the mirror for her to see, and she squealed in delight. She bounded into his surprised arms. “Thank you!”

  The door clicked open as Parker popped his head into the room, and his sea-green eyes lit up when he spotted us.

  “Hey, we’ve got to get a move on, or we’re going to be late.” Parker’s eyes dropped to my outfit, and a faint blush colored his cheeks before he collected himself and smiled, nodding his chin in my direction. “You look very pretty, Tessa.” Turning to Whitney, he added, “And wow, what beautiful butterflies, Whitney!”

  “Thanks!” Whitney flounced out of the room, probably to show off her face to the others.

  Oliver smiled and waved me forward to where Parker waited. The others’ voices came from the end of the hall, and a knot coiled uncomfortably in my stomach. I knew I looked nice, but did it seem like I was trying too much to fit in with their group. I wanted to look up to par, especially since I was going out to a concert with a large group of pheromones in pants.

  The guys waited in the hallway, and my heart beat wildly in my chest as the buzz of energy completely surrounded me. Whitney stood in the center of them, animatedly talking about her upcoming birthday party.

  “There will be cupcakes and pancakes.” Her eyes glossed over. If she were a cartoon, she’d have had a line of drool on her chin.

  “Wanna know who makes the best pancakes?” Kai wrapped an arm around Hunter. “This guy. He has three younger sisters he used to make them for.”

  Hunter swatted Kai’s arm off with a scowl. “I never said they were any good.”

  “Ooh! Will you make me some pancakes?” Whitney hopped up and down while tugging on the sleeve of his plaid shirt.

  His gaze warmed as he tugged gently on her ear, a soft smile spreading over his lips, and my steps faltered in shock at witnessing it. So, he could smile! “Sure, but I can’t promise they’ll be any good.”

  She squealed and hopped some more. “They will. If not, I won’t tell you. Don’t worry.”

  He choked out a bark of laughter, and we all joined him.

  “Are we ready to go?” I snatched Whitney’s coat off the counter and held it out for her to shrug on.

  She seemed reluctant to release Hunter’s arm but did so to put on her coat, and I zipped it high enough to cover most of her shirt. Once I finished, she skipped straight back to Hunter and grabbed his large hand in both of hers.

  “Dibs!” she called, gazing up at Hunter with a
triumphant smile, and his expression melted further.

  “Text or call me if you need me to watch Whitney tonight,” Sam called, walking ahead of us to leave. When she glanced back over her shoulder, she smiled. “You all have a lovely evening.” Her eyes held a mischievous twinkle as she stared around our group, and I couldn’t help but notice the resemblance between her and her nephew.

  Confused, I waved at her, only dropping my hand once she’d disappeared out the door. What was that look for?

  Christian wrapped a large arm around my shoulders and hugged me close, allowing the fresh, sweet scent of cinnamon infusing the fabric of his shirt to envelope me. He also wrapped his other arm around Parker, pulling him with us as he lugged us toward the front door. “Let’s get this party started,” he said.

  I could hear the others trailing behind us. I thought I felt eyes on my back, but when I glanced behind me, all the guys were suspiciously looking away, pretending they hadn’t been staring. Well, except Oliver. He just winked and grinned unabashedly at my butt.

  An extra SUV sat in the driveway with what looked like several security teams standing outside it. My gaze darted up to Christian in worry as the guys stopped in front of the men, and Ace stepped forward to talk quietly with one of them.

  “Christian?” I asked. “Why do you guys have bodyguards?”

  Christian simply shrugged. “Kai’s famous, remember?”

  I looked over at Ace as he spoke to the men, and he raised his brows at me. Humor filled his face, but all he asked was, “Is there a problem?”

  “Umm…” Nervously, I watched as the security team gathered closer to us. “I don’t think so.”

  Whitney was already hauling Hunter into the far backseat of a vehicle, and I chuckled under my breath as some tension died away.

  He was going to be squished.

  Oliver followed the two of them into the back before Christian herded me forward into the middle row of the first SUV and climbed in after me. Parker slipped inside the car using the other door, leaving me to sit in the middle of the two of them.

  The security members climbed into the driver and passenger seats of their SUV as Ace and Kai hopped into the front of ours.