by Sarah Bailey
“Sorry, little star… I’m not feeling myself.”
“I know, it’s okay. Do you want to sleep again?”
I nodded so she helped me out of sitting position, getting the covers settled over me. Leaning down, she kissed my cheek and stroked my hair back.
“You’re going to be okay. I’m right here watching over you. I love you, Ror.”
“Love you too.”
I closed my eyes and let my exhaustion take me under again. Maybe tomorrow I wouldn’t feel so groggy and annoyed. I could fucking hope, couldn’t I?
Chapter 4
The past couple of days in our household had been particularly quiet. Nothing we’d planned to get done actually happened. I suppose when you’ve got two car crash victims to look after, the rest of the shit goes out the window. We hadn’t dealt with the Isabella or Julian situation yet as we’d been taking care of Rory and Ash.
The day after the crash, Eric and I had found the other three fast asleep in Rory’s bed. Quinn was squashed up against Ash’s back with barely any room. How he was remotely comfortable was a question to me. When we woke them up, Ash had been stiff and sore, complaining about how much her chest hurt. Rory was quiet and moody. And Quinn had been up half the night keeping an eye on them. Eric and I went to scrounge up breakfast. When Quinn came down, he asked for a vat of coffee to keep him awake and said he’d cancel dinner with Viktor. Instead, it’d been rearranged for today so we could discuss Julian.
Fucking Julian. As if I wanted to deal with him being on the run. The manhunt for him had intensified. We’d had the police over yesterday asking questions about whether I’d seen or heard from him. Fucking lucky I hadn’t, so could easily give them the truth. The last time I’d been in the same room as Julian was the day he’d been admitted to hospital and he’d fucked us over royally. All I wanted was for him to be back in prison where he belonged so he couldn’t hurt anyone else. I doubted he’d actually try to attack anyone like he had done Mum and Katie, but you never knew with him. He had been an enforcer for Russo.
Ash had helped Rory have a shower earlier since he couldn’t do it by himself. He was on the sofa downstairs now as he was feeling a little better after being in bed for two days doing very little. Eric was making dinner and keeping an eye on Rory in the process whilst Quinn was in his office.
Ash and I were in Eric’s bathroom. She was nestled in the bath and I had my sleeves rolled up as I washed her hair. As she was still in a lot of pain, I offered to help her. For once, I was not perving over my girlfriend since she’d told me off about it.
“Did anyone ever tell you, you’re good with your hands?” she asked as I massaged shampoo into her scalp.
“Only all the time.”
“I should have known that would be your answer.”
“You know only you and E have access to these fingers these days.”
I waggled them in front of her face only to have her bat them away.
“Better be the case or I’ll be hunting these men and women down and putting them in a headlock for daring to go near you.”
I snorted and shook my head as I got a jug to rinse her hair out. Inside, I fell a thrill of delight she’d go to all that trouble if someone attempted to steal me away. She had nothing to worry about there. I loved this girl to death.
“Possessive much?”
“You’re mine.”
“You’re beginning to sound like Quinn.”
Ash bit her lip and looked up at me as I poured water over her head, careful not to get it in her eyes.
“I would only sound like Quinn if I threatened to kill them.”
“That’s not what you were doing?”
She shrugged and didn’t say another word whilst I finished rising out her hair. Then I applied the conditioner. She moaned whilst I massaged it into her hair.
“Damn, angel, quit making sex noises or you’re going to get my dick hard.”
“Can’t help you with that, you know.”
I grumbled but continued to massage her hair. Ash needed to get better. That was far more important than fucking.
“Besides, E said he’d been keeping you occupied.”
Admittedly he and I spent every night we weren’t with Ash together, but it didn’t mean we fucked all the time. They might accuse me of being sex-mad, but more often than not I just wanted to cuddle and fall asleep. Being with Eric was comforting in a lot of ways. He kept me grounded and sane, especially whilst I worried about Ash, Rory and the fucking Julian situation.
“We were talking about how we’d like it if you slept in between us last night.”
Ash had been with Rory since they’d got home from the hospital.
“Just sleeping?”
“Yes, just sleeping. You know, E likes being the big spoon.”
She grinned as I began to rinse the conditioner from her hair.
“Oh, I know. I wake up with him draped over me, hands all possessive and shit.”
“Snap.”
You’d think it’d be me who was all over him like that considering how I liked to top. The number of times I’d woken up on my side with him curled around my back, hand wrapped around my abs like they might disappear any second didn’t bear thinking about. The man got possessive as fuck at night.
“You’re all different. You like to have my face and tits pressed up against your chest. Quinn likes to sleep on his back with me half across his chest. Ror… well, he’s the clingiest of all.”
“No shit, our Rory?”
“Oh yes, it’s like these tits are mine, this pussy is mine, this arse is mine. Doesn’t matter how we fall asleep, he’s always grabbing hold of something as if I might bolt any second.”
I could see it. He’d never slept next to a girl before. Probably his subconscious telling him to keep Ash by his side. I wouldn’t rib him about it though. Rory was sensitive as fuck when it came to Ash and him. He’d never been in love before, the poor sod. Then again, neither had I until Ash and Eric, but at least I knew how to be with another person. Now I had two. As much as it’d fucked me up for a while with jealousy and insecurity, I was over it. Ash and Eric had their own relationship with each other, but it didn’t mean they loved me any less. Didn’t mean they compared what they had to what we had.
“That’s cute. Our baby Rory has grown a pair finally.”
“Don’t say that to him, he might bite your head off.”
“Oh Jesus, don’t remind me. Old grumpy balls has put a damper on my libido.”
“I didn’t think anything could achieve that.”
“You try getting it up when getting a death glare from him for so much as looking at you.”
I’d finished rinsing her hair. Ash laid her head back against the lip of the bath and looked at me with understanding in her blue eyes.
“He’s been worrying about my recovery when he should be worried about his own.”
“Yeah well, he’s suffered worse, angel. He’s got a thick skin when it comes to physical pain.”
She flinched. I knew Rory had told her some of what happened to him and Quinn fessing up to the night where we’d done unspeakable things to everyone who’d abused Rory. It felt easier now Ash wasn’t ignorant of the truth. Like one of the worst nights of our lives wasn’t a sordid secret any longer. For a long time, it worried me I’d turned into Julian, but Eric reassured me that could never be the case. Julian was psychotic whereas I had still maintained my morals despite what we’d done.
All I could say now was never a-fucking-gain.
“I wish he didn’t.”
“Me too.”
If we could’ve spared Rory all that pain, we would’ve done it in a heartbeat. Being kids made it impossible. At least we’d given him a sense of closure.
“Right, time to get out since Daddy V will be here soon.”
“Oh god, don’t call him that!”
“Why not? He is your Daddy.”
She sp
lashed me, which had me laughing.
“Stop it. That’s just wrong. He’s Dad not… I can’t even say it. And don’t you dare say it to his face. Ever.”
I put my hands up in defeat.
“I promise. Though I do wonder if Isabella ever called him Daddy.”
I jumped up and got out of the way before Ash full-on attacked me.
“Xavier!”
“Ooh, am I in trouble, my queen? Should I bow down and grovel at your feet for making you think such disturbing thoughts about your parents?”
“Fuck off.”
I grinned and winked.
“You sure? Don’t you need my help getting out the bath and dried off?”
She gave me daggers.
“You are fucking lucky I love you so much.”
“Oh, I know. I’m one incredibly lucky fucker.”
“And don’t you forget it, tesoro.”
There was no way in hell I ever could. When I looked into those beautiful baby blue eyes of hers, I saw my future mapped out. Me, Ash and the boys… and perhaps a few little ones running around after us too. Now all I had to do was make sure that picture-perfect snapshot became a reality for us.
Chapter 5
The minute my dad walked in with the doctor and André, my face grew hot remembering what Xav said to me earlier in the bath. I could murder him for it and the disturbing images of Viktor and Isabella flashing through my head. Sometimes, just sometimes, Xav took his jokes way too far.
As if Quinn noticed my discomfort, he leant over to me, “What’s wrong?”
“Nothing,” I muttered.
“You seem hesitant to say hello.”
“So would you if you’d been subjected to Xav and his jokes earlier.”
I plastered on a smile when my dad approached and embraced me. His hug was very gentle, as if he was scared of hurting me further.
“How are you feeling, kotik?”
“Sore, but okay.”
The muscles in my chest had loosened up a little, but I still felt like I’d been run over or something. Alekhin had said something about the seatbelt having likely given me internal bruising.
“I’m glad to hear it.” Viktor turned to Quinn. “Good evening.”
Quinn nodded but was still eying me with a raised eyebrow. He wasn’t about to let what I’d said go.
Great. Just fucking great.
Viktor moved on to say hello to the others whilst Alekhin had made a beeline straight for Rory to check him over and André stood off to the side.
“Little girl…”
“No. Just no.”
“Tell me what he said.”
I shook my head, zipping my lips with my fingers. Quinn decided that wasn’t acceptable as his hand, which had been on my waist, fell to my arse and he gave me a warning pat.
“None of that,” I hissed. “Not until I’m better.”
His eyes darkened and I knew I was pissing him off.
“Do I need to remind you, secrets aren’t allowed?”
I scowled and almost turned away.
“Xav suggested my mother had a daddy dynamic with Viktor,” I whispered, wishing the ground would swallow me whole. “He called him Daddy V and, quite frankly, I’d rather die than hear that come out of anyone’s mouth ever again.”
Quinn let out a snort and covered it up with a cough. I noticed Xav grinning at me and indicating Viktor with his head. I almost stuck my middle finger up at him. The little shit was determined to ruin my evening with this crap.
“I swear that man will be the death of me.”
“Xav? I’ve thought that on many occasion myself,” Quinn mused with a stupid smile on his face. He clearly found this situation far more amusing than I did.
“Can we get this evening over with before everyone ruins my dad for me?”
Quinn raised his hand from my behind and cupped my head, pressing a kiss to my temple.
“Of course, little girl.”
Eric had slipped out to go get a drink for Viktor and Alekhin was still looking Rory over. I wanted to go to him, but we’d know soon enough whether he felt Rory needed a cast. He’d been feeling a lot better today with his concussion. Hadn’t been so irritable and was able to come downstairs after I’d helped him shower. He’d been adamant none of the boys were going to do it. I think it had more to do with him not wanting to be vulnerable around them even though they were his family.
“Do you think he’s going to be okay?”
“Considering what he went through as a kid, I think so.”
I shuddered. The reminder of Rory’s childhood and what Quinn had told me leaving a sour taste in my mouth. I didn’t care about what they’d done to Rory’s foster family, but the thought of how much pain and suffering my man had gone through made me sick. No one should go through that, least of all a defenceless child.
“You’ve changed your tune, what happened to ‘I might lose him’?”
I looked up at Quinn in time to see his brows drop and his face turn grim.
“He’s going to be fine,” he replied through gritted teeth.
I leant closer to him, wrapping my arm around his waist and pressing my face into his side.
“He’s got us, we won’t let him be anything but fine.”
Quinn met my eyes. His were dark with frustration.
“If your father wasn’t here, I’d kiss you for that.”
I bit my lip. Viktor had seen how much they all cared about me, so I didn’t think it would be a big deal if Quinn kissed me.
“What’s he going to say? Get your hands off my daughter?”
“You know very well the way I want to kiss you is far from innocent, little girl.”
I ran my free hand up his chest.
“Yes, sir. I do.”
A low growl sounded in the back of his throat. Next thing I knew, my feet were dragging along behind me as Quinn hustled me out of the room and almost pinned me to the wall of the dining room. His touch was gentle so as not to hurt me, but his mouth crashed against mine and I lost all sense of pain. Everything morphed into pleasure. Pleasure I hadn’t felt in days. I gripped his shirt, tugging him closer. His body caged me in. He dominated my mouth, making my toes curl and my skin tingle all over.
“Quinn,” I moaned breathlessly as he kissed down my jaw and the column of my throat.
“You’re such a bad girl,” he muttered. “The things you do to me.”
There was a cough from behind us. Quinn pulled back slightly but kept me against the wall with his body as he turned his head. Eric was standing a few feet away from us with a raised eyebrow and a drink in his hand.
“Are you two quite done? Dinner’s ready.”
I snuck out from under Quinn’s arm and sauntered over to Eric, which only made his eyebrow raise higher. Raising on my tiptoes, I kissed his cheek before hovering over his mouth with mine.
“Did you want one too?”
“What?” he breathed.
“A kiss.”
The flush across his face spread from his cheeks down his neck and if I looked, I was in no doubt the tips of his ears would be red too. So I took the drink out of his hand and carefully placed it on the dining table next to us. Then my hands were in his hair, dragging him closer as our lips met in a clash of urgency. He fisted my t-shirt in his hands at my waist, holding me still as he deepened the kiss. I felt an extra set of hands curling around my hips and a mouth planted against my neck, teasing and sucking at my skin.
Oh. Holy. Fuck.
Sandwiched between Quinn and Eric was somewhere I could stay forever. The soreness of my chest didn’t matter when I had their hands and mouths on me. I turned my head as Eric kissed down my jaw and Quinn was there, kissing my lips and making me feel like I really was their queen.
“You have to stop,” I all but moaned when both of them ground against me. “We have guests.”
“We’ll continue this later,” Quinn said althoug
h he didn’t pull away.
“What, the three of us?” Eric questioned as he nuzzled my neck.
“Yes.”
“But I’m still not better,” I interjected.
Quinn chuckled.
“Don’t worry, little girl, there are many ways we can pleasure you that don’t involve fucking the two of us at the same time.”
I wriggled my way out from between them and scowled.
“No. Bad boys… And I suggest you sort yourselves out unless you want my dad to know what we were doing in there.”
I pointedly looked at the distinct bulges in both their crotches. Quinn looked nonplussed whilst Eric shuffled away from him, his face still very much on fire.
“You can’t talk, little girl. Perhaps try checking yourself in the mirror.”
My scowl deepened and I flew over to the mirror above one of the cabinets, realising he was right. My pupils were dilated, my face flushed and I had that glow about me.
“For fuck’s sake,” I muttered before storming away into the living room. I didn’t have time to hide it.
Of course, the moment I walked in, Xav winked at me and gave me a thumbs up, which only promoted me to give him the middle finger in return. I tried to compose myself when Alekhin stood up and levelled his gaze on me.
“What’s the prognosis?” I asked with a shaky voice.
“The swelling is going down but I don’t think he needs a cast. He needs further rest and to stick to light activity. It is still early days, but I think your friend will make a full recovery.”
I was about to retort he wasn’t just my friend but kept my mouth shut. Instead, I went straight to Rory and checked him over myself, running my hand across his cheek. His hazel eyes had been dull since the crash but a spark of life was there as I touched him which flooded me with relief.
“I’ll be going then, enjoy the rest of your evening,” Alekhin said.
I sort of waved at him as I stared into Rory’s eyes.
“Little star…”
“Shh, let me be happy you’re going to be okay, Ror.”
Leaning forward, I pressed a kiss to his cheek which made him sigh quietly.
“I’ve been so fucking worried,” I whispered. “Seeing you hurt ripped my heart out of my chest.”