by Tia Siren
He’d have to hose me down after the fire his kiss set in my gut.
One by one, they passed me around, and each had a different sort of kiss. Some were hungry and others were light. Some used tongue while others were just wild lips and wine-tainted breath. By the time I was done being passed around, I was breathless, panting for air as I unraveled myself from Terry’s arms.
“Those lips might ramble, but they sure are magic,” I said, winking.
I loved it. I loved the attention and the heat. I loved the energy and their tastes. And the smiles on each of their faces as their lips stayed swollen told me they enjoyed it, too. But as I looked between the Wolf brothers, I saw Jeremy staring me down. It sent shivers up my spine, seeing how he was openly glaring at me. My hands began to tremble, and Cameron noticed. He reached out his strong batting hands to mine as my gaze flickered up at him.
“Are you all right, Lexi?” he asked.
“Oh, yes. Just getting a fun little glare from my boss. I must be off to work again,” I said.
Quickly, I parted from the eight men underneath the mistletoe as their gazes followed me. I couldn’t look back at them knowing Jeremy was still staring me down as I hustled to the kitchen, but I could feel each set of their eyes on me.
But now all I wanted to do was get out of there.
Chapter 3
Everyone was on the dance floor with drinks in their hands while I helped the kitchen clean up. Glasses had to be gathered and sanitations had to be started. The more we could clean up without destroying the flow of the party, the more time I could spend in my own bed. If I stayed at the hotel too long, I’d have to rent a room just to be able to get a decent amount of sleep, and I didn’t want to do that.
“Lexi!”
“Yes, Chef?”
“Courtney’s looking for you. Want me to send her back?”
Before I could answer, I saw Courtney walking toward me. She started handing me glasses while I threw them into the plastic holder and then slid them into the sanitation machine. She handed me a rag and I wiped my brow, then noticed the hickeys all over her neck, which told me exactly what she’d been up to. I grinned at her, shaking my head as I tossed the rag back at her, and the two of us began to giggle.
“So, how were they?” I asked.
“Can’t remember their names, but they were dark, hung, and chiseled. Oh, girl, I gotta thank you for the invite.”
“You know our holiday tradition consists of you coming to these parties, me stealing a bottle of wine, and the two of us staying up late chatting,” I said.
“Speaking of, what bottle did you swipe for us this time?” she asked.
“A 1986 Gruaud-Larose. It’s the white wine that was on the menu tonight.”
“That shit was fantastic. Is it already in your car?” she asked.
“I’ve got it underneath the sink in the back. Can you take it to the trunk of my car?” I asked.
“Sure. Be right back.”
I couldn’t get Jeremy’s look out of my mind. I kept glancing over my shoulder to see if he was there, and every time I looked out among the guests, I saw him casing the room. He’d never been this attentive to any of the parties I’d hosted before, so I knew this had something to do with the kisses he saw in the corner earlier. I shivered at how their lips had tasted before a shock of dread ricochet through my stomach. I had a feeling Jeremy would use this to try to fire me, but Courtney’s voice ripped me from my thoughts.
And confirmed the worst of them.
“So, I saw the way Jeremy’s been looking at you tonight. He does not look happy.”
“I know. He’s pretty pissed,” I said. “I can’t honestly say I feel good about it either.”
“Well, I’m glad you said something. The look in his eyes is giving me the heebie-jeebies, and I’m not the one he’s pissed at.”
“Did you see what started it?” I asked.
“Oh, sweetheart, I saw all of it, and you looked happy as a clam. They’re all sexy, too. Fucking freaks, passing you around like a piece of meat. I bet you enjoyed it, too.”
“Hell yeah I did. I haven’t felt that alive from just a simple kiss in years,” I said, grinning.
“Lexi, can I be honest for a second?”
“Stop fucking asking and just do it,” I said.
“The looks that are crossing Jeremy’s face worry me.”
It was the first time in my entire friendship with Courtney that she had ever voiced a fear. In my mind, I had figured she simply didn’t have the capability of doing so. She didn’t get angry; she only got even. She didn’t get upset; she only made her point known. She let things roll off her back and never once could you intimidate her.
But right now she seemed genuinely afraid.
“You’re freaking me out, Court. Cut it out,” I said.
“I’m serious, Lexi. There’s possessive and weird, and then there’s what he’s doing. His eyes are looking a bit psychotic.”
“I read you loud and clear. He’s looked like that for months. Good thing I dumped him tonight,” I said. “Now can we please get off the subject?”
“I just don’t want him manipulating you because he’s scaring you,” she said.
“He was controlling in our relationship; I know how he works. Trust me, I’ll be fine. I’m gonna have a sit-down with the HR rep tomorrow and just explain to her what happened and why I left. Maybe she can put me on a different schedule than him or something so we don’t see each other as often.”
I drew in a deep breath and tried to calm my racing heart. I’d just broken up with the guy and then he watched me be passed around by a bunch of men who were superior to him in every single way. This was just an isolated incident that would blow over soon enough. It would go away and everything would be fine.
Right?
“I am worried, Court.”
“And you should be. Listen, the party’s dying down. Why don’t you tell the chef you’re heading out and let the rest default to the crew? You’ve trained them well. They can handle this shit.”
“No, no. I gotta stay and wrap up,” I said.
“No, you don’t. You always say you do, but you know it falls to the catering crews to clean up their own space. Now grab a tray of treats, slip them into a container, and meet me at your car.”
I nodded as my eyes drifted out to the dance floor. People were beginning to trickle out, some stumbling over themselves while their siblings clung tightly to them. Most parties like this went well into the small hours of the morning, but this party hadn’t even hit midnight before people began to trickle out. My eyes drifted along the floor, looking for any sign of the men I’d seen earlier. Disappointed, I was about to give up my search.
Until I shifted my position and my eyes landed back in that same corner I’d met them in earlier.
The eight of them were standing there, talking and laughing underneath that mistletoe. Logan Castle, one of the firefighting brothers, caught my stare and waved. His motion prompted the other men to slowly look over, and I watched as smiles bloomed upon their faces. Courtney elbowed me, smirking as I turned my face toward hers, and I handed her the glass I was shining before I busted through the doors.
I wanted one last chance to revel in their glory before I left for the night.
“Glad you decided to stick around,” Logan said, grinning. “I wasn’t sure how long you’d be here before you retired for the evening.”
“I usually wind down the parties and then help clean up, but my roommate is convincing me to get out of here a little early,” I said.
“Well, I don’t know about these fellas, but I won’t take much of your time. I just wanted to know if you’d do me the honor of presenting me with the digits that would allow me to call you on your cell phone sometime,” Logan said.
“Do you always have to be so fucking convoluted all the time?” Liam asked. “He just wants your number so he can text you pictures of his abs.”
“You can text me pictures of
your body whenever you’d like,” I said as I held out my hand.
“Well, what if a certain someone wanted to send you pictures of, say, a beautiful sunset?” Tony asked.
“Are there many sunsets over the sign of Wolf Energy?” I asked.
“Oh, sunsets can occur anywhere. Sunsets have less to do with the actual setting of the sun and more to do with the atmospheric pressures that create clouds that obscure the view,” Terry said.
“I would probably just send you pictures of me practicing on the field,” Cole said.
“I don’t know much about football, Mr. Oakley, but I’m sure those would be just fine,” I said as I typed my number into Logan’s phone.
“Would you send pictures back?” Cameron asked. “I’m sure a beautiful woman like yourself has much to share with a man like myself.”
“And myself,” Kevin said.
“And me as well,” Kyle repeated.
“Ah, I see the doctors want onboard, too. I was beginning to think the two of you didn’t like me,” I said, winking.
“That’s absolutely impossible,” Kevin said. “You are the epitome of beauty.”
I was being showered with attention and I reveled in it. Their smiles were bright and their eyes were kind. Their bodies were strong and their minds were in sync. One by one, they handed me their phones, and one by one I entered my number into every single one of them. I took pictures of my face and set them as my contact photos in their phones. I was blowing each of them a kiss in the pictures.
“A beautiful face with a beautiful pair of lips,” Tony said.
“You guys can call or text me anytime you wish,” I said. “But my roommate’s waiting with a very expensive bottle of wine that we’re going to open after we get into our pajamas.”
“I feel a rousing round of pictures coming on,” Tony said, smirking.
“Only if you’re feeling lucky, Mr. Wolf.”
I turned my back and sashayed away as my eyes scanned the room for Jeremy. I didn’t see him anymore, much to my relief, but I did see Courtney gawking from the kitchen. She was leaning against the edge of the counter, her eyes as big as the sun as I pushed through the doors that led into the bustling room. She ran over to me and linked her arm with mine, giggling as she walked me straight back and out the door.
“I already got the snacks in the car. Some fruit and those puff pastry things. You have so much to tell, I grabbed another bottle of wine, just in case,” she said.
“You’re bad.”
“Oh, but you’re so much worse. And those men loved it,” she said.
The moment I got in the car and drove away, I felt like I had nothing to worry about. I looked for Jeremy, for any indication that he was following us, and as we got out onto the highway with no sign of him, relief flooded my body. I was out from under his prying eyes, out from under his title of boss overlord, and out from under his judgmental gaze.
Now I could think about each of the eight men I’d kissed, all who now had my cell number.
“So, which one do you like best?” Courtney asked.
“Is it bad that I don’t know yet?” I asked.
“Sweetheart, if you actually chose, I’d be sorely disappointed. You’ve got four sets of fucking twins drooling over you. Ride the wave of the single woman until you drown in your own fluids!”
“Could you be any grosser?” I asked.
“Want me to try?”
“No, thanks. I’d actually like to enjoy my drinks and snacks tonight,” I said.
We pulled up into the parking lot of the apartment we were renting together. I sighed, leaning my head back against the seat of the car as we sat there for a while. My eyes kept darting toward the mirrors, clocking who was coming and going and who was simply passing us by. I hated feeling this way—like I was being watched or followed. It pissed me off that I had allowed some idiotic man-child to make me feel this way.
Courtney’s hand landing on my knee pulled me from my trance, however, before I had enough sense to cut the car off.
“He’s not here,” she said. “It’s just us.”
“You ready for some of that wine? Because I am.”
“Then let’s get upstairs and get them open,” she said.
“And screw glasses. I’m just sticking a straw right into the fucking top of it.”
“That’s the spirit! Like a massive Capri Sun or some shit!” Courtney exclaimed.
“I want to hear all about this encounter with those twins you suddenly disappeared with. I wanna know how you got each and every one of those hickeys,” I said as I got out of the car.
“Oh, Lexi, you don’t have a choice tonight.”
Chapter 4
I woke up the next morning and made myself a pot of coffee. I had the day off because of the party last night, and I was looking forward to spending the time with Courtney. I poured myself a cup of coffee and drowned it in sugar, then sat back on the kitchen counter as I drank it down. The winter sun was pouring through the windows, casting a white ray across the stainless-steel refrigerator. I had to admit, I was a bit disappointed that none of the twins had messaged me last night, but then again, I wasn’t sure what I was expecting. Eight hot men to just fall at my feet?
Not likely.
A knock came at my door, and I sighed. Whoever it was pounded and pounded until it began to wake up Courtney, so I sat my coffee cup down and charged the door. I ripped it open, ready to cuss out whoever the fuck was standing on the other side of it. But all I was met with was an empty front stoop.
“Hello?”
I poked my head out and looked around as Courtney dragged herself out of her room. I heard her fumble with the coffee pot before it went crashing to the floor. She hissed in pain before I heard another crash, and I sighed as I turned my head.
“Can you not go one morning without making an insane mess?” I asked.
“I’m stealing your coffee. Did you pour a half a gallon of sugar in it?” she asked.
“Nope. Just a pint this morning.”
“Who the fuck was at the door?” she asked.
“I don’t know, but if they come back, they’re getting a face full of hot-ass coffee.”
I went to shut the door but a box caught my eye. I bent down and picked it up before shutting the door. There wasn’t a delivery or return address, and for a split second I thought maybe this wasn’t meant for us. Our neighbors had packages delivered all the time for heaven knew what. Maybe this was something they were returning or some shit.
But then why would they have tried to bang down our door?
“Don’t just stand there like an idiot. Open it,” Courtney said.
I ripped the box open, but it tumbled from my hands. A picture fell to the floor as I gripped a note in my hands. My eyes scanned the words as Courtney dipped down to pick up the picture. Tears prickled the backs of my eyes as the note pricked my fingertips. I took the picture from Courtney before I handed her the note to read.
It was a picture from the party last night. I was standing underneath the mistletoe with the twins, and we were all smiling. Logan had his hand on my back and all their eyes were trained on me.
Courtney’s voice pierced my mind.“You need to call the police.”
“Who the fuck took this picture?” I asked.
“You know damn good and well who did this. ‘You’re going to pay for this with your life’? The fuck kind of edge has Jeremy dove off?” she asked.
“Jeremy’s possessive, but he’s not murderous. This has gotta be someone else.”
“Wake up, Lexi. This is serious. Someone took a picture of you with those dudes and gave you a note that threatens your life. I’m calling the fucking police.”
I took the note from Courtney and ran through it again. The words were typed and there was nothing on the back of the picture. I had no idea what the police would do, but the more I studied the angle of the picture, the more I knew it had to be him.
Jeremy.
My ex.
> “Yes, we need an officer to come down to our apartment. My roommate’s life has been threatened.”
I heard Courtney talking on the phone but paid it no mind. I kept scrolling across the words as tears rose to my eyes. The picture was taken at an angle, almost like the person had been standing in the back corner of the room. The camera had been off to my right, back behind the guys at the part of the dining hall that sat toward the front of the hotel lobby.
Right near where Jeremy’s office was located.
“Why is he doing this?” I asked.
“I don’t know, but a couple of officers are on their way. They told me to put the letter and the photograph in Ziploc bags. Gimme.”
I handed them over to her as I reached for my coffee cup. I tipped up the cup and drank the last of what Courtney hadn’t gotten already, then allowed a tear to roll down my face. How the fuck did things get so messed up so quickly? I just wanted to be free of Jeremy so I could do my own thing. Why did that have to make him so angry?
Another loud knock came at the door, and I jumped.
“Police.”
I grabbed the bags from Courtney before I went and opened the door. I ushered the officers in while Courtney made another pot of coffee, and then I handed them the two bags. The officers looked at the note before taking a look at the picture. Then the officer with a heavy southern accent spoke up.
“Did anyone else touch these things?” he asked.
“Just the two of us,” I said.
“All right. You know if y’all’s apartment complex has any surveillance or anything? Didn’t see any cameras walkin’ up. Didn’t know if you knew of any.”
“Not that I know of, but I can call down to the office and ask,” I said.
“No need. That’s our next stop. I’m gonna be honest, with this message bein’ typed and all, I doubt we’ll get much.”
“It’s her fucking ex,” Courtney said.
