by J Bree
I gulp.
Well, maybe I’m not going to text that now, but I wouldn’t write it off for later.
I make both of the assholes sleep on the fucking couches.
Even with the fun of hanging out and just being ‘normal’ for a week, I can feel the dread starting to build deep in my gut as my seventeenth birthday approaches. No amount of fun and games is going to stop the anguish from swallowing me whole.
I warn them both about what to expect, my complete inability to function, but Harley assumes he has superpowers and will be able to get me to move.
He doesn’t.
I don’t.
Harley holds me to his chest and promises me French toast if I get up. When that doesn’t work he promises me a private Vanth Falling concert in the bedroom if I sit up and eat something. Finally, he promises me the world if I’ll open my eyes.
I can’t.
Not even for him.
Eventually, he gets out of bed and snaps at Blaise to watch me. The bed dips as Blaise sits down and begins to stroke my back. I want to thank him, I want to crack a joke about role reversal and me being finally being the morbid one. I can’t. There’s nothing left of me.
Blaise doesn’t try to speak to me, just touches me gently like I’m so fucking breakable. Fuck, I guess right now I am. Then Harley’s voice starts up again.
“She won’t move or speak, I’m freaking the fuck out… yes, Floss… yes, come now…I don’t care, just get in the fucking car and come now.”
Then he stops talking. Blaise strokes the hair away from my face. Eventually he leaves me too, and I can wallow in the silence by myself.
I become aware again to the sound of Avery’s sharp tones as she breathes pure ice at her cousin.
“I told you, she doesn’t do birthdays at all. She functioned for Christmas because it meant something to you. She will not do her birthday, not even for us. Just let her have her fucking space and stop trying to fix her.” I feel her lips brush my cheek.
There’s murmuring by the door and then cool air washes over my body as the blankets lift and someone climbs in next to me. I don’t move or speak. If the heady smell of his skin didn’t tip me off, the fingers tracing patterns on my thighs are a dead giveaway that it’s Ash. It’s fucking hard work, but I manage to sigh.
“Shh, Mounty. We’re not functioning today. Avery is going to babysit the other two and keep them busy. You and me will be nothing in here together.”
I don’t know how long I take, but I slowly move until my head hits his chest, and he takes it as the request it is to bundle me into his arms. I can’t open my eyes or speak, but he doesn’t seem to care.
“When you’re feeling better tomorrow, can you shake that perfect ass of yours for me again? I’ve been thinking about it non-stop and, fuck, I can’t go another fucking day without seeing it in the flesh. The way your hips move, I can’t wait to see how you move on my cock.”
A shiver runs down my spine and he hums under his breath. “Good to know you’re still alive, Mounty. Do you want to hear all about what I’m going to do to you when you’re back in the land of the living? All of the things we have to look forward to?”
Chapter Four
Nobody on this earth can make my coffee as well as Avery can.
To my utter surprise and delight, she loves the townhouse. I was sure she’d hate how tiny it is, especially since she brought more bags than the guys combined, and we’re all tripping over her shit, but having us all in one spot is all she really needs. We only get one last week together before our classes start.
We both wake up hours before the guys do so we can drink coffee and sift through the mess we’re in without their pissy comments. It’s fucking bliss.
“What’s going to happen now the Vulture is dead?” Avery sips her coffee and nibbles delicately on her breakfast.
I eat mine like an animal, zero fucks given. “They’ll run the Game again. It’ll take eight or nine months before we have a new member. A lot of palms have to be greased before they can start, and the Vulture’s empire needs to be assessed, divided, and dismantled.”
Avery cocks her head at me. “How does that work? Who decides that?”
I sigh. “The Crow and the Jackal will go head-to-head for it, I guess. No one else has any interest in selling skin and it’ll be another full-time operation to take on. The Jackal would love nothing more than adding skin to his empire. The Crow… I don’t know. He’ll want to take it on just so the Jackal doesn’t get bigger than him but I don’t see him keeping it. He’s not… how do I say this… he’s ruthless. He’s cold, clinical, and he won’t hesitate. It’s what’s made his empire the only rival to the Jackal, but he’s not a predator. I’ve seen what the Jackal does to girls, I know what he’ll do if he takes over the Vulture’s work. I can’t see the Crow selling unwilling skin. Running willing girls, hell yeah, but importing kidnapped teenagers to drug and sell off? Nope.”
Avery shudders. “I wonder how much money my father has spent at those auctions.”
I grimace. I don’t want to think about it either, I don’t want to be reminded of how much work I still have to do on the Beaumont front. I’ve only really made strides with the O’Cronin bunch. Having Illi around may become a blessing beyond his ability to kill.
“How’s the bed sharing going? I haven’t been woken in the middle of the night to the sounds of moaning so I’m assuming you haven’t jumped straight into group sex.”
I choke so hard on my coffee that it comes out of my fucking nose. Avery screeches with laughter and I decide I’m breaking up with her.
When I’ve mopped up the mess I croak, “Harley decided to tell the others I’m inexperienced so they’ve become fucking teases.”
And, fuck me, were they good at it.
Blaise refuses to wear a shirt inside the house during the morning and I’m fucking dying over it. Ash saw it as a challenge, to melt my brain and my damned panties, and he has taken to going for his morning run in the tiniest pair of fucking shorts I have ever seen on a man. I now fantasize about those shorts on that ass in the shower. I tell Avery to order fifty fucking pairs of them and she gags at me dramatically. Harley enjoys watching me; his eyes smoldering and intense, undressing me and fucking me with one damn look, and then when I approach him he backs off.
I think they want me to beg.
I also think I’m going to.
Avery cocks an eyebrow at me. “Well, if you want to break Ash just put on some of the lace he picked out for you. I still can’t believe you didn’t realize how much he wanted you back then. He insisted on picking out your damn panties, for Christ's sake.”
I shake my head at her.
She’s been giving me shit about it since the day she joined me in the bathroom and laid it all out for me. I consider it for a second and then smirk at her.
“Wanna help me get back at them? Beat them at their own game?”
She quirks an eyebrow at me over the rim of her cup. “Always, Mounty.”
I lied. I’m never letting this evil queen go.
On our last night at the townhouse, Avery declares that she’s made reservations for us all to eat at a restaurant on the nice side of the city and then shepherds me into her room to get ready. It’s barely three in the afternoon so I have no idea why it would take us three hours to get ready. I grumble this at her.
She clutches her stomach as she laughs at me.
It takes even longer.
Avery treats me like her own freaking doll to play with, and I just shut my eyes and let her. She tames and curls my hair into stunning, gentle waves. My makeup is simple, but with a bright red lipstick that makes my pout look lush and sexy. The black dress Avery pulls out of her wardrobe for me is sleek, stunning, and I tell her to never let it slip how much it cost her. It has a high neckline and from the front it looks modest, even with the skirt landing just above my knee. The show-stopper is the back, where the cutout dips low and ruches up over my ass so it looks rounded and
pert. The neckline buttons at the top to look like a choker, and fuck, even I get a little excited at the look.
Avery cackles.
“Is this what you were thinking when you asked for my help?” She gloats.
I shake my ass at her and she laughs even harder. “This is better. I didn’t know my ass could look this good.”
There’s a thump at the door and Harley grumbles at us both. “Are we going to dinner or a fucking fashion parade? I’m hungry, and if Morrison smokes anymore he’s going to be useless.”
I swing the door open, to find Blaise and chew him out, and Harley takes a step back at the sight of me. I smirk, even though I am having some trouble breathing at the sight of him in black slacks and a white button-up shirt.
“Jesus Christ, you’re both drooling.” Avery grouses as she sidles past me.
Harley smirks and steps forward to tug me into his arms. “You look like a lady. It’s fucking weird.”
I scoff at him and I’d be insulted if he wasn’t looking at me like he wanted to rip the dress the fuck off of me. He hasn’t even seen the best part yet. “I’m assuming Avery is taking us to some uppity place, and I can’t wear a band tee and Docs there.”
Harley smirks. “Blaise is still going to try.”
Avery’s screeching cuts through the air and we both laugh at Blaise’s pissy reply. Harley’s hands smooth over my ass as he leans down to kiss me. I think he was only planning for it to be a quick peck, but I open my lips to his the second they touch and I swallow his groan. Footsteps in the living room pull us apart.
“Are we still going to dinner, or are the two of you just going to fuck in the hallway?” Ash snarks and I smirk back at him.
“I’m not wasting my dress. Let’s go.” I pull away from Harley, and walk to the door without looking back. I hear gasps and curses, and I smile like an idiot. Avery’s smug face tells me everything I need to know about their reaction to the back of my dress.
“Pretty sure you could get any of them to bend you over something right now if you wanted.”
I smirk back at the guys. Blaise has joined them, and has paused in buttoning up his dress shirt to stare at me, his eyes ravenous.
“I’m hungry. Let’s go eat.”
Take that, assholes.
Blaise drives us in the Maserati and I sit between Ash and Harley in the back. Harley tucks his hand into mine and lets his head drop back against the headrest with his eyes closed. Ash scowls out of the window and traces patterns into the exposed skin on my thigh. When I shift in my seat he looks over at me and smirks.
“Black?” he whispers and I know exactly what he’s asking.
“Nothing. I didn’t want there to be lines.”
Ash sucks in a breath and Harley’s hand spasms in mine. I grin at Avery when she glances back at me, satisfied I’ve finally one-upped them in their own game.
The restaurant is ridiculously ritzy, the type of place I imagine Ash and Avery frequent because they fit right in. Blaise is at ease, but looks around with thinly veiled disgust. Harley is the only one who shares my outraged looks when we see the prices of the dishes.
“Is the lobster going to serve itself to me for that fucking price? I haven’t spent that much on groceries for the entire fucking break.”
Avery smirks at me, but Ash looks confused. “How much do groceries cost in the slums?”
Blaise cackles like a madman at the look I throw at the spoiled asshole. “I’m no longer feeding you. Also, you’re on the couch tonight.”
“Snap, motherfucker,” Avery murmurs under her breath, mocking me the way only she can get away with.
Ash glares at her and Harley slings a smug arm around the back of my chair. I’m tempted to order the mango chicken, as a threat to Ash because I know he’s allergic, but I decide not to play with fire and order a pasta dish to eat my feelings. Plus, it’s the only dish under a hundred dollars on the menu that isn’t a salad.
“So, how are we all feeling about Hannaford tomorrow?” Avery asks sweetly, and Blaise throws a linen napkin at her.
“I’m glad we don’t have to worry about Joey breaking down your door,” Ash says, and drinks his bourbon. Yep, the spoiled, seventeen-year-old asshole ordered a bourbon and no one questioned him.
“I’m going to join the state team for swimming. I’m going to apply for some scholarships for college, see if that gives me a better chance,” Harley mutters. Avery meets my gaze and I give her a tiny shake of my head. I haven’t told him my plans yet and I’m not going to.
“I’m getting my neck tattooed. And my hands. Oh, and I’ve signed up for the highest classes this year because I’m clearly fucking insane, but the Mounty has promised me she’ll get me through it. If she succeeds in getting me to follow you lot to college, I’ll have to get the marks to get in,” Blaise says, cheerfully.
I smile at him, but the other three all stare at him with various degrees of shock on their faces. Ash recovers first. “Your father will disown you if you tattoo your hands and neck.”
Oh. So, he hasn’t told them all yet. Shit.
Blaise clears his throat. “Too late, he already has. Family announcement; my mom’s pregnant. It’s a boy. I’ve been cut out of the family now there’s a replacement son on the way. Oh look, dinner’s here.”
The stunned silence continues until the waiters have left. Blaise and I tuck into our dinner happily, but it takes the others a minute to start in on theirs.
“Congrats, I guess?” Harley says, and Ash snorts at him.
“He’s not the one who’s fucking pregnant, and who the hell said that this is a good thing?”
Avery cocks her head. “Did your dad definitely disown you? Can I start ruining his life now?”
I smirk at her. “We, Aves, can we start ruining his life now? I have some very creative plans for Mr. Blaine Morrison.”
Blaise looks between us. “What plans?”
“I’m going to royally, and viciously, fuck that man up.”
Harley and Ash both whoop with excitement and Blaise looks vaguely concerned. Avery continues to eat her salmon delicately, pausing to say, “Are they going to name the baby Blaise, too? Just completely replace you?”
It sounds harsh as fuck, but the scorn isn’t directed at Blaise. He scratches the back of his neck awkwardly. “Blaire. They’re naming him Blaire.”
I cringe for him. “At least it’s not Eclipse?”
Chapter Five
Driving through the gates at Hannaford feels different this year.
Granted, I’m in the front seat of the Maserati, earplugs in and singing along to the new and unreleased Vanth record like a total fucking groupie, and Blaise keeps biting his lip as he shoots me these little awed looks. Harley and the twins are in the ‘Stang behind us and when both cars pull into the staff parking Blaise leaves the car idling until the song finishes.
When we finally get out, Avery is there with her phone, grinning at me and when the boys’ phones all ping at the same time I know she’s fucking recorded my singing through the open car window.
“Ash threatened me, Lips, I was forced,” she purrs and I don’t believe her for a hot second.
Harley slings my bag across his shoulder and I give him a little nod. My safe and the diamonds are in there. I trust him implicitly so I don’t mind him taking it, but I want him aware they’re there. Fuck it, I’ll probably get them to help me pick the hiding spot this year.
Blaise and Ash bicker happily while I tuck myself under Blaise’s arm, still nervous about being so open about touching them. I mean, the Jackal knows about Harley and I’ve made it clear I’m not interested in submitting to him, but it’s still fucking nerve wracking to do this. What if I paint a target on them too? Fuck.
Blaise notices my hesitation and curls around me protectively. I swallow roughly at the lump that forms in my throat. I’m never going to get used to being protected and cared for.
We get the same room as last year, thanks to Avery, and she pitches a
fit to get the guys to leave us alone. It’s nice to get settled by ourselves. School starts tomorrow and we all have to adjust to being back amongst the snakes we share the halls with.
By the time I’ve helped Avery unpack her shit, I already miss the little bubble we’d been in at the townhouse.
Avery shoves a tub of ice cream at me and when I grumble about it she waves her own at me. We watch Ghost together after she finds out I’ve never seen it, and we mope about being stuck here for another two years. Okay, I mope, Avery plots on her phone and snarks at my shitty attitude.
I wake up just as pissy as I went to bed and it’s only as I get dressed into my uniform that I finally remember I have something to be fucking thrilled about this year.
Three words: Thigh. High. Socks.
Junior year is going to be the fucking best year at the shitty snake-pit known as Hannaford Preparatory Academy. Avery laughs her ass off at me when she sees me twirling around our room in my uniform, squealing like a child at the socks pulled right up my leg.
Fuck yes!
Now if only I could convince the school board to ditch the kitten heels and let me wear my Docs, I’d be fucking set. Avery winces at me when I suggest it to her. Traitor.
“What class do we have first? I’ve barely looked at my schedule,” I grumble as I finally tug the kitten heels on.
Avery hums under her breath as she fusses with her already perfect hair. “We have a full school assembly first. It’s a late addition, I’ve messaged Mr. Trevelen and the head of the school board, but haven’t heard back from either of them to say what it’s for.”
I frown.
I’m not a fan of surprises and life just keeps throwing them my way.
The sound of our door unlocking startles me and I shoot Avery a look. She rolls her eyes. “Ash insisted on having a copy. He says it’s for emergency use only and apparently having a locked door between him and his Mounty this morning counts as an emergency.”
Ash strides into the room, Harley and Blaise following closely behind him. They all look fucking devastating in their uniforms and I swear I ruin my panties.