Queen of Quarantine

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Queen of Quarantine Page 57

by Caroline Peckham


  We were visiting the Marquesas Islands in French Polynesia after flying here as soon as Troy Memphis had stopped kicking. We were owed a celebration, but this place was flashy even by Saint’s standards. And it felt like a whole world away from anywhere I’d been before.

  Our balcony overlooked our private infinity pool which sat above the tropical rainforest, sweeping down to a beach just for us and the purest blue water of the sea beyond.

  Saint had disappeared before we all woke up and I lounged on the decking in the shade of the awning, my feet up in Nash’s lap as he massaged them. His trunks were short, showing the tattoo Kyan had inked there to cover up the brand on his left thigh. It was of five wolves with their snouts raised as they howled to the moon above a snow-capped mountain. And I’d spent time kissing it more than once since he’d had it done.

  Kyan was swinging in a hammock to my right and Blake was back inside the suite ordering more pastries from the reception desk.

  The warm air floated around me and brushed against my bare skin, my little pink bikini feeling like too many clothes with the humidity pressing in. But all the heat in the world couldn’t dislodge the peace washing through me as I bathed in the afterglow of Troy’s death.

  I got out of my seat and dropped into Nash’s lap, pushing my fingers into his hair. We’d all stayed up half the night drinking, dancing and fucking. There were scratches along Nash’s shoulders which I’d left there when he’d claimed me in the early hours of this morning with the fury of a beast and I scored my thumb across them as he smirked.

  “How are you today?” I murmured in his ear as his hand ran up the length of my spine.

  “Never better, princess,” he sighed and I leaned back to look at him. I could see the weight lifted from his shoulders like it had been a physical thing he’d carried around all this time. He’d tried to let his need for vengeance go when it had seemed like we’d never find Troy, but I knew what a relief it had been to finally pay him back for all he’d done to his family and rid the world of him for good. His eyes held a sea of light and there was a permanent smile on his lips. Lips that had done a thousand filthy things to my body last night as he celebrated his victory. “But I’ll be even happier when you let me finish that foot rub.”

  He lifted me by the ass, dumping me back in my seat before dropping into his and grabbing my foot to run his thumbs up the centre of the sole. It was fucking incredible.

  I released a long breath, unsure I’d ever been this relaxed before as I watched my gorgeous dark angel over the top of my kindle.

  “You’re staring,” he teased.

  “You look so fucking hot when you’re worshipping me, Jase,” I said and he smirked at the use of that name.

  “When I’m finished here, I plan to get down on my knees between the legs of my goddess and pray for rain.”

  “You’re a savage,” I laughed and he grinned wolfishly to confirm it.

  Blake marched out onto the deck in his blue swimming trunks, his skin kissed deeply bronze by our days in the sun. He’d gotten the best tan already and he was a smug bastard about it too.

  “Who’s up for snorkelling today?” he asked, dropping down beside Nash and stealing one of my feet into his lap. I grinned at them, placing my Kindle on the table and leaning back in my seat.

  “I’m in. I’m gonna bring my phone to get some pictures,” I said. Saint had bought us all the latest iPhones which were completely waterproof and had pro cameras. He made us upgrade to the latest model every time a new one was released even though year old phones worked just fine. But that wasn’t the point apparently.

  Our pastries arrived and the maid laid them on the table before hurrying away again. I nabbed myself a croissant and picked it apart, sighing as I pushed a piece into my mouth and the buttery goodness melted on my tongue. “Where the hell has Saint gotten to?”

  “He’s probably gone to war with that seabird who shat on him yesterday,” Kyan called over with a snort, his inked arm falling out the hammock and his fingers grazing across the wooden floor.

  “Well he’s going to miss out on the fun,” I said with a laugh as I remembered Saint’s horror at the bird shitting on him. He’d lamented over his ruined Ralph Lauren shirt and cursed the creature and several generations of its family.

  I tugged my feet out of the grip of Nash and Blake’s hands and used my toes to caress their dicks. They grinned demonically at me as I bit my lip, but before I could get carried away with that idea, the door banged and Saint came striding out onto the veranda. He leaned down to press a kiss to my cheek then swept past me to the edge of the balcony, looking like he had some announcement to make. He was dressed in chinos and a white shirt which brought out the rich, earthiness of his eyes. Saint made dressing down look like he was on an expensive photoshoot at all times.

  “Where have you been hiding?” I asked, sweeping my hair away from my shoulders so it hung over the back of the chair.

  “I’ve been finishing up the final arrangements,” he said, his eyes dancing with some secret and I frowned.

  “For?” Nash pressed.

  “For our wedding day,” Saint announced, grinning at me.

  “What?” I laughed in confusion as Kyan sat upright in his hammock and nearly fell out of it.

  Blake and Nash shared a look as I drew my feet out of their laps and gave Saint my full attention. If there was one thing I knew about Saint Memphis, it was that he didn’t joke about matters to do with our relationship. If he said there was a wedding organised, there was a freaking wedding organised.

  “I spent some time researching where we could have a wedding which would cater to our needs. A few countries in Africa were an option for a while, but I would have had to pay off too many corrupt people to allow a woman to marry multiple men rather than the other way around. So I decided that route was too complex. That was when I discovered the polyandrous laws on these islands where a woman can lawfully wed several husbands if she is of higher status than the men. Which of course, was easy to prove as our girl is a queen and the Marquesans seemed more than happy to accommodate our situation without very much persuasion at all.”

  “Are you serious?” I asked, hope filling my voice. “I can have all of you as my husbands?” The idea made me so freaking giddy that I got out of my chair and ran over to grab Saint’s arm, waiting anxiously for his answer.

  He cupped my cheek, his thumb carving a line up to the scar on my temple. “Yes, siren. You can. And I truly beg that you do.” He dropped down onto one knee suddenly and I gasped as he took a white ring box from his pocket, popping it open. The sun flashed on the most beautiful round cut diamond I’d ever seen sitting in a delicate clasp with a vintage design. It was huge, a fucking boulder of a diamond and I was utterly speechless as Saint offered it to me, his eyes full of hope and happiness.

  “I’m a commoner before a queen,” he rasped. “Begging to enter her palace and lay all he is at her feet. I am yours whether you accept this ring or not, but if you were to wear it, I would want for nothing more in all the years left to me in this lifetime.”

  “Hang the fuck on,” Blake balked before I could answer, my heart pounding as I got lost to the question Saint had sprung on me. “You can’t just show up with a ring looking like a damn prince while we’re sitting here half-naked with nothing to offer her but goddamn pastries.”

  “I’m hardly responsible for if or when you decide to propose to Tatum,” Saint said dismissively.

  “You planned our wedding without telling us,” Nash interjected. “You could have given us a heads up and maybe we all could have a ring to offer her today.”

  “You also need my permission,” Kyan tossed in.

  “Don’t even try it, Kyan,” I growled then beamed at Saint, holding out my left hand. I still wore the skull ring Kyan had bought for me, so I didn’t really have room for the meteor Saint was offering, but we’d figure that out later. “Of course I’ll marry you.” He slid the ring onto my middle finger and I real
ised the sneaky bastard had already planned for the issue of me wearing more than one as he stood up, pulling me to him and kissing me with leisurely strokes of his tongue as the others were forced to watch. I smiled my head off as I turned to them, bouncing on the balls of my feet.

  “I don’t need a ring from you guys,” I said seriously as I took in Blake and Nash’s sad expressions. “And you don’t have to marry me if you don’t want that. Don’t let Saint make the decision for you. But…” I stepped away from Saint and dropped down to one knee in front of them and their eyebrows shot up. “I want you both. There isn’t an us without you, Blake and Nash.” I looked between them intently. “Will you marry me? Make me the happiest woman in the entire world, make me whole. Because each of you hold a piece of my heart and it can’t be held together without us all as one.”

  They shared a look then both of them reached for one of my hands and pulled me up. They stood, hugging me between them, taking it in turns to kiss my mouth then my neck until I was sighing and arching between them.

  “Is that a yes?” I begged.

  “Yes, princess,” Nash growled against my ear while Blake murmured it against my lips.

  “I consent,” Kyan said, pushing out of his hammock with a smirk as the guys parted from me.

  “We do not need your consent,” Saint growled. “We will marry her because she wants it, regardless of what you want.”

  “I still give my agreement, just so you know. And technically I’ll be marrying her twice now, so I’ll be the official head husband,” Kyan taunted, catching my hand and eyeing the ring that sat beside his with a low whistle.

  Saint barked a laugh. “You will be the page boy at the wedding, not a groom. You cannot marry her twice even here.”

  Kyan’s jaw ticked. “I’m not gonna be the fucking page boy.”

  “Nah, he’s the best man,” Blake announced with a grin. “Aren’t you, brother?”

  “Kyan?” I whispered, looking up at him as I rested a hand on his chest. “Don’t ruin this.”

  Kyan sighed, gripping the back of my neck and drawing me closer. “Never. In all seriousness I want you to have them. Because we’re equal. And I’m gonna be right there cheering you on because this makes our family official. We’ll all be Roscoes-”

  “Rivers,” Saint cut over him, raising his chin in a challenge. “We will all be a Rivers.”

  My brows lifted and I looked to Nash and Blake who beamed, seeming happy with that idea, but they couldn’t possibly be as thrilled as I was. Oh my god, this is one of the best days of my life and it’s barely even begun.

  “Then I’m changing my name too,” Kyan growled furiously.

  “Of course you will. I already have the paperwork ready for you to sign,” Saint said with a smirk. “Now everyone go and shower and get changed, we only have two hours until the ceremony.”

  I started to jog away with my boys, but Saint caught my arm. “Not you, siren. You need to go down the hall and open room five-oh-two.” He slipped a key into my palm and my lips parted as he kissed my cheek, giving me an intense look before directing me away.

  I did as he asked, slipping out of our room and heading down the long hall, unlocking the door at the end and stepping inside.

  “Surprise!” a group of girls screamed and Mila suddenly dove on me, squeezing me tight. Dione and Kayla from college were there too and I nearly burst into tears at finding them all here together. They were wearing beautiful flowing, pale pink gowns and I gazed at them in awe as excitement blazed through my chest.

  The whole room was decked out for me with hair stylists and a makeup artist as well as ten goddamn designer wedding dresses hanging in bags along the rear wall for me to choose from.

  “Time to get ready, girl.” Mila beamed as she led me toward the bathroom. “It’s your freaking wedding day!”

  ***

  I wore a white dress which had delicate straps, a lace bodice and a skirt which flowed out around me in several layers of soft material. It split up the thigh and when the wind blew, my garter peeked out and I imagined the guys would be fighting over who got to take it off later. Lucky I’d secretly put another three on my other leg to stop them fighting over it then, isn’t it?

  I was led down to the beach by my beautiful friends in their dresses with lilies clasped in their hands. We wore sandals and mine had diamonds on the straps which wound around my ankles and between my toes. As we made it to the white sand, I was guided into a marquee so I couldn’t see my boys beyond it and they couldn’t see me.

  Inside, I found Kyan waiting there in light grey trousers, loafers and a white shirt. His hands were in his pockets, his hair styled back and his head cocked to one side as he took me in. Hell he looked good all done up like that. But nothing could hide what he was, no matter how many fancy clothes he wore. He was my monster through and through. And that outfit could just as easily be stained in blood and I’d still want him as my husband. Maybe even more so.

  “Fuck, baby, you look like a fallen star. The heavens are gonna want you back when they realise you’re missing.”

  “Well they can’t have me,” I said with a smile that had been permanently stitched into my cheeks since Saint had announced the news.

  “I wouldn’t let you go even if they did,” he purred.

  Mila stepped in front of me, checking over my dress, adjusting the glittering tiara in my hair and the veil which trailed down my back. “You look fucking perfect, girl,” she said, her eyes glistening as she squeezed my hand. “Are you ready?”

  I nodded, taking a shaky breath. I wanted this more than anything. All of us joined as one, bound in every way we possibly could be.

  “You’re gonna be fine. Just don’t fall over your own feet, kay?” she laughed and I did too, then she moved to the front of the marquee with my friends just as music started up out on the beach. A harp was playing a beautiful tune as the girls stepped out, disappearing from sight and I gasped as I recognised the song Saint had composed for me all those years ago. He’d written me many more since, but that one would always hold a special place in my heart and of course he knew that. He was Saint Memphis. Though I guessed he was about to become Saint Rivers.

  Kyan moved to my side, offering me his arm. “I know your dad should be the one walking you to my brothers today, but would you be happy for your husband to do it instead?”

  I blinked back tears at the mention of my dad, nodding firmly and taking his arm. “He’d have chosen you in his place, Kyan.”

  “You reckon so?” he asked hopefully and I leaned up to kiss his cheek.

  “I know so,” I said and he beamed as he led me to the exit. The music changed to Baby Mine by Betty Noyes and my heart squeezed at the familiar tune my dad had sung to me when I was a child, the same one Saint had hummed to me in my time of need a long time ago. Kyan led me out onto the beach and the midday sun poured down on us, making my white dress gleam.

  My breath caught at the sight of the rows of chairs in the sand covered in white cloth and wrapped with pink bows to match the bridesmaids. I’d never spared much thought to what my wedding day would be like. I hadn’t ever imagined I’d get married before Kyan and now I was finding myself about to walk up another aisle with three more men at the end of it.

  Saint, Nash and Blake wore outfits which matched Kyan’s and my heart fluttered wildly at the way their eyes raked over me with a fierce desire.

  I remembered the first time I’d seen my Night Keepers all together at Everlake, their eyes filled with a hunger I’d felt deep in my soul too. It was the same look they gave me now, and I realised the five of us had always been inevitable. Fate had woven our destiny and there wasn’t a regret in my heart over how we’d come to be here. The good, the bad, the dark days and the light. They were each threads in a tapestry that was uniquely us. And I’d treasure it always.

  Nerves warred in my stomach as I moved through the aisle of chairs. The back rows were filled by locals who seemed as pleased to be here as if they
really knew us. At the front was Blake’s dad with his girlfriend, Christina, a redhaired woman who’d been his housekeeper back in the days of the pandemic. She’d brought him meals every week and ensured he made it through, being there for him when no one else could be. He’d introduced us to her as his close friend, but after a few months Blake had finally called him out on it and said he loved Christina and was just happy his dad wasn’t lonely anymore. Not long after that, Cooper and Christina had moved to Sunset Cove to be closer to us and I adored them both now like they were blood.

  Sitting beside them was Danny in a pair of smart cream trousers and a white shirt, his eyes flicking from me to Mila who was standing at the front with the other bridesmaids. The two of them were more in love than ever and a little birdie had told me (AKA Blake) that Danny was planning on proposing soon. It was so freaking exciting.

  All of the faces of the people I loved were angled toward me as I walked up to the arch of delicate pink flowers which my boys were standing under. A Marquesan man stood in white robes beside them, smiling kindly at me as I approached. I was so ready to be joined to them like this, I was practically bursting with excitement.

  Kyan released me and squeezed my hand in goodbye before moving to stand beside the Night Keepers. My throat thickened with emotion as I gazed upon each of their faces, unable to believe I was lucky enough to claim one of these men as my own let alone all of them.

  We’d fought battles together, spilled blood for one another and I knew we would cross any ocean in any land to be together if we had to. We’d proved that there was no force in this world which would keep us apart. So now there was just an eternity of life waiting for us to come and claim it. And I couldn’t wait to answer its call.

  ONE YEAR AFTER THE WEDDING

  "O h fuck, fuck, Jesus, shit," Blake muttered, carving his hands into his hair as the midwives flapped their arms at us and made us all get out of their fucking way for the hundredth time. They weren't pleased about there being four of us in here, but every time they demanded to know which one of us was the father, we adamantly told them that we all were.

 

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