NICK (Carsonbrothers Book 3)

by S R Dyble

  "Of course not. There has to be some rules though…"

  Kit eyed Nick before looking back at me.

  "Like, I have to pay so much towards living here and I pay for my share of food etc…"

  Kit grinned. "I thought she was gonna start laying down rules like there being no chicks here and no walking around half-naked... That would definitely be a problem with Jason…" Kit chuckled.

  "Does Jason bring back females regularly?" I asked.

  "Not as much these days, but the weekends most definitely…"

  I nodded. "And the walking around half-naked?"

  Although Jason was hot, just like the rest of them, I didn't wanna see him naked!

  "You'll get used to it…" Kit said and I eyed him. Would I though?

  "Okay." Nick smiled at me. "Shower time!"

  My cheeks heated because I knew Nick meant we were gonna shower together.

  "Ugh!" Kit groaned and stared at the pair of us. "I remember sex in the shower…" he complained.

  "Kit!" I yelled at him.

  "Leave him alone—man's deprived." Nick smirked.

  "Just think how special it will be when Eve has had the time needed for her body to heal. The first time together will be—"

  "Jesus, Lilly, stop. I shouldn't be fantasising about that," Kit said quickly. "Or else I'll be needing a cold shower…"

  It made me smile as his eyes seemed to glaze over thinking about it.

  "Okay, now you've pained my brother, upstairs you," Nick said, guiding me up the stairs.

  I rolled my eyes but did as I was told. I walked straight towards Nick's room and waited just outside. We had been here earlier before Nick had taken me to the gaming room, but now that my mind wasn't consumed by the need I had for him, it started filling with memories of the last time I had been here. Nick pulled me inside and shut the door behind me before pulling my clothes from my body.

  "Shower," he said, tapping me on my bare behind.

  "You're not coming?" I said over my shoulder.

  His eyes ignited and like a little puppy he followed after me, pulling his clothes off as he went.

  "You're gonna kill me, woman," he said.

  The loud baby cooing sounds made me stop drying myself mid-body as I ran the towel over my skin. .

  "Oh my God," I said, rushing out of the bathroom and leaving Nick alone.

  "Shit, my clothes, Nick! Where are my clothes?" I demanded.

  "I put them in the wash, take some of mine."

  I glared at him. Really? The last time I saw Eve I was hating on Nick so much, I wouldn't even look at him. Now the first time since the last time she'd seen me, I was gonna show up in his damn clothes? I couldn't even ease my way into this. I heard baby noises again and shifted my arse to Nick's drawers. I quickly dressed in his boxers, pulled a pair of his shorts on that were more like three-quarter trousers on me. Then I pulled on a black t-shirt. In the mirror I platted my hair quickly and decided I didn't care about my face looking so bare. I left Nick there still getting dressed and ran down the stairs as fast I could.

  From the doorway, I could see Erin in her bouncer, gurgling to herself and looking so beautiful in pretty pink. I could tell by the voices that Jax, Jason, and Eric were now home and it was confirmed when Jason made an appearance from the kitchen, a sandwich in his hand that he'd half devoured.

  "She is gonna go nuts when she sees you," Jason said, still chewing.

  "Hasn't he told her yet?"

  "Nope." He shook his head. "He told us you were both back and decided it would be a good idea to leave it as a surprise..."

  I nodded and Jason continued to stare at me.

  "Are you okay?"

  I stared back at him, absolutely astounded that he had just asked me if I was okay.

  "Kit told me everything that happened. He told Jax, me and Eric before Eves got here. I'm glad you're, you know..."

  "Not dead?" I smiled and it made him grin.

  It wasn't an expression I saw on Jason. He was so strict and he seemed so uptight all the time.

  "Yeah," he said. "Are you okay though?"

  I nodded. "Yes, thanks for asking."

  He nodded. "Good luck in there."

  "Thanks. I'm probably gonna need it…"

  "Not as badly as Kit," he said simply and I agreed.

  I took steps forward just as Eric shifted to pick Erin up and hold her, then I popped my head around the corner to see Eves chatting to Jax. She stood straight up and stared at me as I came further into the room. Then I felt movement behind me and saw Nick walking in after me. The first thing he did was head over to Eric and Erin and took her from him. He held her little head so delicately against his chest that I had to drag my eyes away from him attending to her so perfectly.

  "Lill'?" Eve brought my attention back to her and I rushed towards her to hug her hard.

  She squeezed tight around me and held me at arms length to look at me.

  "How are you home and yet I knew nothing about it?" she said, staring at Nick over my shoulder.

  "There's a lot to tell you, I think we would be best sitting down with a cup of tea and—"

  "Whatever it is, tell me now…" She cut me off and I noticed how Kit took gentle steps away. It was probably a wise decision.

  "Eves, you know the friends of the brothers that we met in Australia? I spoke about them with you on the phone…"

  "Yes…"

  "Well, one of them was called Omar. He used to work for—"

  "Kit's father, yes, I know this…" she said slowly as if tryna work out what the hell was going on.

  I turned around to stare at Kit. "Kit, what exactly have you told her?"

  "Everything apart from the most recent events…" he answered trying to plead with Eves with just his eyes. I knew Eve was currently giving him the daggers.

  "Omar is still working for him, and well, he kidnapped me and was supposed to kill me but let me go—told me their father knows more than they think he does and well, sort of kissed me and left—then we had to stay in a hotel for one day and use fake IDs—had to swap cars and get a private jet back that Kit organised, with Delta guards to meet us. And well, here we are." I took a deep breath after speaking so quickly then stared at her.

  Eve looked absolutely gobsmacked as she stared at me and then at Kit.

  "He ordered Omar to kill you?" she asked and I nodded.

  "You were nearly murdered and I knew nothing about it?"

  I was about to speak but she glared at Kit even more than what she already was. Nick passed Erin back to Eric and came towards us. I wanted to tell him to back the hell up unless he wanted the full wrap of Eves’ meltdown as well.

  "Why didn't you tell me? I thought we had passed all of this, Kit. You promised me no more secrets!"

  "Eves, this wasn't a secret," I pleaded and it felt strange to be sticking up for Kit for a change.

  Eve silenced me with her hand and I decided to shut the hell up.

  "Baby, I wanted to tell you but it all happened so fast and I couldn't even tell Jax, Eric or Jason. I had to act fast and there was no way of being able to tell you. You were home alone, I didn't wanna scare you. I swear I was gonna tell you the second you got home but they arrived home first so I thought I'd keep it as a surprise… Surprise!" He did his best to smile at her.

  "Well, I'm definitely bloody surprised now, thanks!" Eve started pacing the small section she had to herself.

  "That's why you had extra security following us to my grandparents, I knew something was happening."

  Kit looked ashamed but nodded.

  "I had to ensure you were safe. I'm sorry, I couldn't tell you sooner. None of that matters now. Lilly is safe, they're home and we have to decide what happens now."

  "What happens now?" She repeated after him.

  "We have to plan as we always do, there has to be a strategy and tomorrow we're meeting at Delta to discuss everything. Lilly, you'll have to be there, okay?" Kit asked and I nodded.

  "One
thing is for certain, though…" Kit stood up straight and stared at Eve. "Eves, we have to leave here."

  What?

  Kit hadn't mentioned anything about leaving. He'd spoken to me about living here only a short while ago. I had no idea what he was talking about.

  "What are you talking about?" Eve eyed him in confusion.

  "We have to move, we have to leave the beck because right now we don't know who knows our location."

  She was about to speak but then stopped.

  "No, we can't…" she said, holding her hands to her head. "This is our home."

  "Baby, I know that. I wouldn't be telling you this unless I knew we had to." Kit moved towards her and she stared up at him as he neared.

  "Who knows? You're not telling me something…"

  Kit looked at me and Nick, then lowered his head.

  "We have intel that they know we live by the beck. Omar said he knows more than what we think he does. It could be a bluff, but I won't take that chance with my family. None of us will."

  I could see Eves' chest rising more frequently as if a great weight had been placed upon it and she was trying to catch her breath.

  "No, this can't be happening… we…we did everything right, we kept our heads down and…."

  "Eve, baby, listen to me. It's him. It's always been him," he said, holding her shoulders. "It's always been our father, even from the first moment I met you. It was always him."

  "No, it was—"

  "Ralph was the front we all saw, all in order to hide the root of the problem. It was always my father."

  He let go of her body and slumped beside her, not taking his eyes off of her.

  "He wants Delta and he wants me back. He wants us all back. With all of that, he will be unstoppable. I wasn't supposed to fall for you, it wasn't something I ever did and he knew that. I ruined his plan, and now he's even more eager to put me back into my place, fighting for him. Regaining his honour because right now I've shamed him. He won't stop until he has what he wants. Killing Lilly was just his first attempt at weakening us. He won't ever stop."

  It took a few moments for it to sink in and I saw the realisation spread across Eves' face.

  "It doesn't matter where we go…" Eves turned to stare at Erin still being held in Eric's arms, tugging at his arm hair.

  "They're gonna keep coming for us… and our baby will…" Eve started to sway as I saw the pure fear filling her eyes. I knew what Eve had been through, and the fear she had to feel whilst staring at Erin spread thick though the room. The terror took over her body until I shouted at Kit as she began to sway. I rushed over to her limp body, now encased against Kit as he held her close. He stared at me, showing me a look I'd never seen before. If I was in a fight circle with him, I'd have been absolutely shitting bricks. There was no describing the mix of anger and determination in his eyes.

  Jax rushed to our side, checking Eves' pulse and nodding at Kit to let him know that she was okay. It was as if the nod and stare they had shared wasn't only to let him know that Eve was okay, but in agreement of what had to be done.

  I was about to question it when Eve started mumbling. At first it was just murmuring until she shot up, calling out for Erin and searching around all of our faces.

  "Shh." Kit held her head against his shoulder. "She's fine, everyone is fine, Eves."

  She calmed after seeing Erin in her bouncer. Eric had placed her there the second Eve had fainted. I felt almost as if I was intruding on their moment as Kit and Eve shared a look before he lifted her to her feet, her long blonde hair swaying around her body as he lifted her straight.

  "We have to move," Eve nodded, rushing away from Kit.

  "Eves wait, you've just fainted, sweetheart, give yourself a moment," Jax said trying to hold her arm.

  "No, we have to start packing. We have to get far away from here."

  "Eves," Kit spoke after her, urging her to listen.

  "Come on," Eve said frantically, picking up Erin's changing bag to leave. She shared a look with me and I knew she wanted me to help her. Nick followed after her while I stood still, absolutely useless right now.

  "Why aren't you coming?" she shouted at Kit, before she started crying.

  Nick was standing closest and he grabbed a hold of her as she began sobbing.

  "My little girl, how am I supposed to protect…" The sobbing became so overpowering she couldn't speak and Nick held his hand around the back of her head, cradling her against his body and kissing her forehead before Kit took her from him and made her look at him. He held onto both sides of her face, demanding she looked at him.

  "He tried to kill her, Kit. My best friend, my sister! How can we protect them all?!"

  "Listen to me. I will never let any harm come to our little girl, to our family, do you understand me? I'm so sorry, Eves, I suspected he'd attempt something like this, I just didn't think they'd target Lilly. Now I know the game they're playing, we have to stay together."

  "It's not your fault. I was supposed to be protecting her…" Nick butted in and I chose now to end my silence.

  "Nick… don't… please," I begged. "This was no one's fault, if anyone is to blame it was me. I should have done things differently but I didn't…"

  Everyone seemed to shake their heads together, all denying what I had said. It didn't matter because none of that mattered now.

  "All we can do now is be strong and keep each other safe," I concluded.

  Eventually, Eve nodded and Kit pulled her head into his body to hold her in a tight embrace.

  "I won't rest until they're all dead. Until he's dead," Kit said and all of his brothers stood up or shifted near them, either placing their hand on Kit for support or cuddling into the back of Eves' body. Eric held Erin close, eventually giving her back to Eve so she and Kit could hold her between their bodies.

  Until that moment I had felt almost as if a fly on the wall, stunned and observing the scene that had played out in front of me. Then to my shock, I felt a tear falling down my cheek and Eric placed his hand on my shoulder before pulling me into a hug.

  "It's gonna be okay," he told me and I nodded, trying to be strong as I stared at how beautiful and tiny Erin was. Then Nick made his way towards me and smiled at Eric before pulling me into his chest. He held me there, and as my face pressed against his chest, I could see Kit and Eve holding Erin.

  They were never going to hurt her, I swore to myself. I would die before I'd let any of those sick fucks use that little girl like they had tried to with me.

  I swore to it, and my eyes darted to Nick's before placing a kiss to his lips.

  I stared around at this beautiful family, a family I guessed I was now part of in some strange way. Despite all the fear and pain—the decisions that had to be made and the difficult steps I knew had to be taken in order to find Nick's father, I knew I didn't wanna be anywhere else but here with them.

  Little did I know, this moment was about to be imposed on. In that second, my phone rang again and I reached into my pocket to check the caller ID when I saw Eves’ name displayed on my screen. My eyes darted to Eve, then back at my screen and to where her phone had been placed on the coffee table.

  "Eves, why are you ringing me when you're right in front of me?"

  The look that then spread each and every one of their faces set a thick sickness in my stomach.

  Dare I say it?

  To be continued…

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  S R Dyble currently lives in a town called Beverley, a short drive away from her home, the city of Hull (UK). She is a mother to
two beautiful children. When she is not chasing after them, she enjoys nothing more than daydreaming about new story plots.

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  Wow. Book 3!

  I still can't believe I get to write and publish my books!

  As always, there is an army of people I need to thank and no words will ever amount to how much I appreciate and love you all.

  Firstly, to my bestie Georgina. You are literally my rock most days, I love you!

  Sophie Ruthven, you're always there to offer me support and advice and it means so much, thank you!

  To my editor, Anna-Marie, you work so hard and I can't thank you enough.

  To my cover designer and formatter, Abigail, over at Pink Elephant designs who created a beautiful cover for me, thank you so much!

  To all of my bloggers, authors and readers who I know will share the shit out of NICK, again, thank you so, so much!

  My readers, you make my dream a reality. Thank you so much for following my journey and raving about The Carson Brothers, it makes me smile—sometimes cry with happiness.

  As you know, there is more to come. So watch this space!