“Keir, clean off her bed,” Bastion said, arching a golden brow at her.
“No,” she protested but wasn’t willing to look away from Bastion to see if the others were listening to her or him. “I have that organized.”
“Keir won’t mess it up. He’s anal retentive about organization,” Kade said.
“It sounds insulting when you put it like that, bro. Like I’m OCD or I just literally hold my shit for giggles,” Keir complained.
Her lips twitched in suppressed humour. Damn it. They weren’t taking this seriously enough.
“You like anal, Prince likes to top. Are we going to tell her all our proclivities on the first date or tease it out longer?” War said, clearly amused by the rest of them.
She snorted half a laugh before she could suck it back in. “You guys are so immature.”
“Hard up, I think you said,” Bastion reminded her.
“What the hell, Bastard?” Keir complained. “You telling her we’re all losers that can’t get a girlfriend? Don't get the wrong impression, Pumpkin. Only serial-dater here is that Prince Bastard. He’s living out the fairy tale in real life. Got to fit in with his wicked stepmother.”
Bastion didn’t deny Keir’s insult. “Are you done clearing space?”
“Yeah, yeah,” Keir said. “I have everything in piles on the floor set up by the wall. Who’s getting ice?”
“I’ll be back,” War said, quickly heading toward the stairs.
“March over to the futon and lie down on your tummy,” Bastion ordered. There was no mistaking the command in his voice this time.
Did she give in or tell him off?
Independence screamed for her to push.
Chapter 11
BASTION WAS BEYOND bossy. He was impossible. If he hadn’t let Sneakers into his fancy car with his muddy paws to run free so she would accept a ride home or set up the coffee run to ensure she was supplied with her drug of choice, Tess might say he was an asshole used to getting his own, spoiled way.
Nope, Bastion had a protective streak as wide as Kade and the dominant attitude to demand what he thought was best for her.
Didn’t mean she had to like it, even if compliance might be in her interests right now.
“Whatever, Sir,” Tess said, putting a lot of sass into that address, and then turning around to do what Bastion said with plenty of matching attitude. She swung her hips and rolled her eyes and almost ran into Kade.
His chest was in front of her as she pivoted and she hadn’t been watching where she was going, doing a pouty walk.
“We just want to treat you well. After you stood up for me, first with the Watsons and then with Rob, can’t I give you a little back?” Kade said, catching her against him.
He made her feel bad about not accepting help, as if she was shoving his kindness away out of spite instead of only being shy and used to taking care of herself. Normally, she licked her wounds alone.
“Does Bastion have to do it?” she asked. It was rather nitpicky but she had to split hairs or not make a point at all.
“Who would you rather?” Kade said.
“You.”
Bastion could have been insulted but he took the change in his plans in stride. As long as the ends were accomplished, she guessed the means were negotiable.
“You’re afraid of me and not Kade?” Bastion said with a dark chuckle. “Smart girl, although if we keep telling you that, you’re going to think you’re too smart for us.”
“I’m supposed to be smarter to teach you,” she cooly replied.
The futon had been cleared and the mattress dropped into the bed layout. Kade let her go and she crawled onto it, lying down on her tummy and feeling Bastion come up behind her. He split her legs with one of his knees, the rest of him leaned over to her left as he held himself up, one hand on her mattress at her side. Now, she couldn’t stand back up without brushing up against him.
“For such a smartass, you sure seem to get yourself into stupid trouble,” Bastion commented, moving her hair around so her goose egg was exposed again,
“I resent that,” she said. “None of what happened today was really my fault. Even the kilt was because I barely had any time to prepare and it had already been butchered too short by the previous owner.”
Bastion played with the fine baby hairs at the back of her neck while he waited for War to come back with the ice. “You are currently in a basement with four guys of dubious reputation that you barely know. I hardly think that is smart, although we won’t hurt you.”
“Are you using a carrot or stick right now to get me to do what you want?” she said, burying her face into her pillow. She was so damn tired that it would be easy to fall asleep. Tess wasn’t buying the scary act from Bastion.
Cold ice wrapped in wet paper towel stopped her from resting too deeply.
“Trust me, you’ll know when I’m using the stick,” Bastion whispered into her ear as he bent closer over her.
She shivered and decided that elbowing him off of her was her wisest course. “Kade, I thought you were going to ice it for me?”
“I am,” Kade said from her other side.
“Bastard, get off of her. Leave the sandwiching to the professionals,” Keir said. His body quickly replaced Bastion’s knee, although he laid on his side and gently placed an arm over the back of her shoulders.
“That actually feels nice,” she admitted.
“Do you have a headache?” Keir asked.
She did earlier but it had been minor and already it was eased away, the guys plenty of distraction from her pain. “Not really,” she said.
“Do you want ibuprofen?” Kade asked.
“I don’t like meds,” she said.
“It would help with the swelling,” Bastion pointed out. He was somewhere behind her.
“Would it make you happy if I took some ibuprofen?” she asked.
“Yes,” Bastion admitted. “I would prefer one of us stayed to watch over you tonight. Head injuries are funny things, not always doing what you expect. Even what seems minor can be more serious.”
“The kids can check on me,” Tess said. “I’ll take the ibuprofen,” she compromised.
“Where do you keep the ibuprofen?” War asked. He sounded close. She turned her head and looked up to see him hanging over the top of the futon to look down at her.
“I don’t think we have any,” she said. “I’ll go out and buy some because Bastion is right. It really should help with the swelling and I’ll be less sore tomorrow.”
“I’ll go out and get it,” Bastion suggested.
She felt like she was kicking him out, as if she'd been pouting after a fight between the two of them and told him to leave. He had honestly been trying to help her. Bastion might be pushy about it, but she had the feeling he meant well.
“If you are okay to go out and get some ibuprofen, I'll let Kade ice my head for ten more minutes, and then the rest of us can all sit quietly and go through what will need to be done for everyone's tutoring,” she said. “Maybe you could stay last to go through a tutoring plan for yourself and also to make sure I'm okay before you leave?”
She hoped Bastion could hear the compromise in her suggestion.
“Keir, don't let her butter up your brother into letting her start working a minute earlier. And War has to be satisfied you're ready to sit up and work,” Bastion said.
She stopped feeling sorry for Bastion. He really was a bossy asshole with a tarnished heart. Babying his feelings wasn’t going to polish it up. He needed someone abrasive to rub against him.
“If you get lost, we're not sending someone out after you. We’re going to be too busy huddled around books and having fun without you,” she said.
“That was a weak attempt to make me feel left out,” Bastion said, his voice already getting further away.
“I can lock the door,” she threatened.
“I can ring the doorbell,” Bastion said.
Kade laughed, shaking the ice
on her head. “Are you guys done?”
She groaned because as soon as she tried to laugh that headache came back.
“Keep quiet for a few more minutes,” War said. “Trust me. I’ve had a concussion before and time does make a difference. How about Keir and I get the books organized so we can show you what kind of things would be useful for the tutoring lessons while Kade finishes icing your injury?”
“You want to do my job? That doesn't seem fair,” she protested.
“At our age, we ought to be able to direct our learning,” War said. “You should really consider it part of the lesson. Once you get to know us better, I'm sure you'll be able to pick out our strengths and weaknesses on your own. Anyways, Kade kind of set you up for this last minute. You shouldn’t feel bad about accepting our help to get things going.”
Kade hadn't wanted her to take the job because he was desperate for a tutor. She doubted that any of them really needed her services. It seemed more like an excuse, a reason to hang out, and it did provide her with some much-needed funds. She was embarrassed to admit it, even to herself, but Kade had no doubt noticed her strained financial circumstances. The secretary at the school had made it loudly obvious that Tess was dirt poor.
“Look, it’s not too late to say ‘no’ to tutoring,” Tess said with a sigh.
“I took advantage of an opportunity. If you don’t want Tess to tutor you, speak up now,” Kade said.
“You’re going to have to share her, bro,” Keir said.
“I know you guys are not the typical kinds of students looking for a tutor, but working together might be good for all of us. It’s like a study group but more individual. I swear, my grades are good enough that I will be a help, not a hindrance,” she said.
“I’m not doubting your smarts,” Keir said. “To be honest, I was really impressed by how you handled yourself in class, especially for a first day when the semester has already started.”
Tess felt mollified somewhat. She would have to prove herself to them, which was the only way to justify her new position. “Get set up and prepare to be worked,” she warned them.
Kade lifted the ice from her head and blew a cool breath over her goose egg. “I’m sorry you got hurt,” he told her.
“I’m not sorry,” she said, shifting to rise up on her hands and knees. “It means that I’m already considered your friend if people are transferring their stupid hate to me as well.” She turned her head and looked at Kade. His face was a complex mix of strain and relief, mouth relaxing but eyes tightening. “It’s nice to know I met the right friends. I don’t have any regrets at all.”
“You know I want to be more than friends,” Kade said, eyes dropping to her lips.
She shifted forward and kissed him on the cheek, quickly pulling back. “That’s all you’re getting for the first day.”
“Hey,” Keir said from beside her. “You know the rules.”
“I’m sure Bastion didn’t plan on us getting into an orgy while he gets medicine for her concussion. You have to work up to that kind of physical exertion, Pumpkin,” War said.
“Okay, no kissing. You heard the boss. He’s supposed to say whether I can even sit up on my own since I’m a helpless girl that can’t decide that on her own,” Tess said, rolling her eyes as she stood up, obviously not planning on listening to Baston’s orders.
“Come on, let’s all sit on the floor and go over the books. I’ve got them laid out in order of importance,” War said.
She turned around and saw that he had arranged everything nicely. It seemed Keir wasn’t the only one with an organizational streak. Kade pulled a pillow from her bed and tossed it to War. He put it on the floor, obviously planning on cushioning her bottom.
Well, she hadn’t been hit there but the gesture was appreciated.
“Uh, so we’re starting with biology?” she said once she was seated.
Kade quickly sat beside her and his twin next to him. “Why is chemistry on the bottom? It’s the first period.”
“I said the order of importance,” War repeated.
Keir flipped the pages of the text. “Importance being judged on the courses that need the most work? You suck at memorizing, War.”
“So, you are terrible at vectors. I don’t even know why you took physics. That’s like half the course,” War volleyed back.
“I failed chemistry. Beat that,” Kade said.
“You only failed because you hardly ever went to class,” Keir said. “That’s cheating.”
“How can you cheat to fail?” Tess said, getting annoyed at all of them. They were obviously smart guys. No need to pretend they were each stupider than the other. She thought they had covered that she knew they were at the top of the class and she was going to be helping them push themselves to their own personal bests.
“He hated the other chemistry teacher, Dickerson. Filled out every test card with all the wrong answers on purpose,” Keir revealed.
Holy crap. Kade really had cheated his way to failure. “Why?” she asked, looking at Kade.
“It is Richardson, and he... it had to do with my mom,” Kade said. He had a closed off look, eyes not quite meeting hers.
Too much. Too deep.
“Okay, put Kade’s book on top,” she ordered.
The other two didn’t protest. She started going through the text and realizing that although Kade had purposely failed, he must have paid attention in class or studied on his own because his knowledge base almost met hers. He had a bit of a weakness in organic chemistry, but the class was just starting this unit. It still made her smile since that had been exactly what she had teased him about in class this morning.
“Okay, Kade’s done. Who’s next?”
War somehow beat out Keir. All of them could agree that there was no easy way to memorize loads of information and new terminology. Tess knew a few websites that had ‘pop’ quizzes with flashcards online and that were free to access. She had used them a lot herself and War was able to quickly pick up the Kreb cycle after trying out one of the quizzes a few times. Repetition was key.
“I didn’t know that one came as a phone app,” she commented as War opened up the new learning app on his iPhone.
“Yeah. It’s not free for the app but I can see the usefulness in having it available to practice whenever I have a free moment. Thanks,” he said.
“Hey, can I see your group chat with all of us?” she asked, suddenly thinking of the nicknames Keir had left on her phone’s chat.
“Uh uh, Pumpkin. A guy’s phone is his black book,” Keir said.
War didn’t look as reluctant to share. “What do you want to see?” he asked.
“The nicknames,” she admitted.
“Those are picked by each person on their own phone. Go ahead and see mine,” he said. He handed her the phone after he had thumbed to the group chat.
She read the messages and noted that War had nothing to hide. He had inputted all of their names in short form as they were usually addressing each other, even his own. War, Bastion, Keir, Kade and Tess. Pretty simple and straightforward.
“Spoilsport,” Keir muttered when she handed War back his phone without another word.
“Okay, last but not least,” she announced.
Keir smiled. “She’s saying my dick’s the biggest, in case you two buffoons can’t read between the lines.”
Tess blushed and tried to focus her concentration down on the physics textbook. She hadn’t really had many friends before and certainly not guys she had felt comfortable enough with to hang out after school. She had only one serious boyfriend previously and they spent most of their time alone, making out.
This teasing between her and all of the guys wasn’t something she knew quite how to handle. Did they feel the same sort of attraction at first sight that she had gotten? It wasn’t going away, either, with all of them teasing her still.
Maybe she should tease them back and see how they reacted.
“Gee Keir, if you’re dick�
�s full of hot air, will it deflate with your ego? Once I show you that my attention is only on the head above your shoulders, I don’t know if there will be anything worth bragging about. At least, for right now, when we should be studying,” she said.
“Right now?” Keir repeated, latching onto the part of her taunt that obviously was the most important to him.
“I don’t want to be your tutor all the time,” she said.
“Just him?” Kade said. And that was the crux of it. She was attracted to all of them.
“Not just him,” she answered.
War surprised her, coming up from behind to gently but firmly clasp her upper arms, tugging her back. His warm lips met her neck, smoothing down toward somewhere midway to her shoulder, then he bit her.
She made a breathy sound that said so much.
“Technically, it doesn’t count as hanky-panky on the job when our lesson is over, right?” Kade said, eyes glued on hers.
He wanted her to use words? She shook her head and debated if she should tell War to behave himself. Given that War had been a gentleman most of the time, she really hadn’t expected him to make the first blatant advance in front of the others.
“Kade, you asshole. Don’t you dare. You should have to wait, too. It’s not fair that I had to go last for tutoring,” Keir complained as his brother shifted closer to her.
Oh god, he was going to—Kade’s lips were soft and tasted like her chapstick. She had changed it after the shower to a minty one, wintermint or something, sweet and refreshing. He kept his kiss light, licking at the seam of her lips but his tongue darting back into his mouth before she could engage. She parted her lips and started to lick back at his mouth when he met her tongue with his own, just barely touching sensitive tips and exhaling so softly against her.
He groaned. Damn, if that wasn’t sexier than any of the slobbery deep kisses she’d suffered before with her ex-boyfriend. Her tongue brushed against his lip piercing cautiously, the metal tasteless but smooth. She wanted to feel it pressed against her mouth again.
She leaned forward against the hold War had on her arms, trying to get closer to Kade’s teasing mouth. War’s grip tightened and he sucked harder where he had started to leave a hickey. Kade smiled against her mouth, a soft chuckle-
Impetuous (Victory Lap Book 1) Page 16
