by KC Kean
My hand itches at my side, wanting to reach out and take Eden’s. Her gaze is focused straight ahead, paying no attention to me or the people around us, like she’s lost in her own mind.
Poking her side, she jumps back and glares at me. “What was that for?”
“Just bringing you back to the present.” I grin, but it only makes her squint at me even more. Someone doesn’t like the truth.
“You guys took your time,” Xavier grumbles, his presence catching me by surprise since all my focus has been on Eden.
Turning to face him, I don’t miss the frown on his face as his gaze flickers between us.
“I’m here for my phone,” Eden states casually, and Xavier gives me a pointed look as his fists clench at his side.
Asshole hates it when I go against what he says. “She wouldn’t have come otherwise,” I state, and he looks at me like I’m stupid.
“You don’t give her a choice, asswipe.” With that, he turns on his heels in the sand and starts walking down to the beach, the people in his path automatically stepping out of his way.
Eden instantly falls into step with him, and I’m quick to place myself on her other side.
“No can do, Xavier. We’re working on our manhandling, aren’t we, bubble?” I glance down at her. She’s only about three or four inches shorter than me, but it’s enough for me to feel like the alpha.
“Stop calling me that,” she mumbles under her breath, not looking at me as she pulls my jacket tighter around herself, and I can’t help but enjoy getting under her skin.
“Where’s Hunter?” I ask, giving Eden a break for just a second as I look to Xavier.
“Already back at the house pulling Eden’s phone from the safe because I thought of a fun game.”
I rub my hands together in excitement, the devilish glint in his eyes tells me this is going to be fun. Eden pauses her movements, and I stop to glance at her, surprised that Xavier stops to do the same.
“What do you mean you thought of a game? Tobias just said I had to come and I’d get my phone back.” She stares Xavier down like he isn’t the damn prince of Knight’s Creek, and if anything, it only makes my dick harder.
“Rules, Eden Grady. We make them, you follow them. It’s up to you, but it’s the only way you’ll get it back,” Xavier calls out as he continues to walk away from the crowd.
With a heavy sigh, Eden continues, and her determination is inspiring, even if it is going to be the death of her. I like it. I think.
We walk in silence, the anticipation building with each step we take as it seems only Xavier holds all the cards, but I like it. The surprise sends a buzz through my veins and has me excited to get our little party started.
As Xavier starts to climb the wooden steps to our home, it dawns on me that he’s allowing Eden to come on to our property. Something we never do. Ever. It’s on the tip of my tongue to ask why, but I don’t want to put a stop to the night.
Swinging my arm up in the direction of the steps, I encourage Eden to follow after Xavier, but she gapes at me for a moment, her eyes glancing between me and the back of Xavier’s retreating shadow.
“I thought you don’t let people in here?” she asks quietly, directing her question at me instead of Xavier, and I simply shrug my shoulders.
I don’t lie, so if I don’t have an answer, I don’t offer one.
With another sigh, she brushes past me, stomping up each step. Her blonde hair shines in the moonlight, like a beacon beckoning me closer.
Shaking my head, I take the steps two at a time to catch up to her. When I reach the top, I find the gate shut. It seems Xavier showed no manners in holding it open for her. Typical.
Reaching around her, my chest brushing against her back, I lift my hand to the scanner, the sound of the lock clicks, and the gate creaks open.
“After you,” I murmur against her ear. I don’t miss the sudden intake of breath at my close proximity, but we’ll have plenty of time to play those games later. I want to know what Xavier has cooked up for us.
Standing taller, she lifts her head high and steps through the gate. She glances around slightly but keeps her focus on the kitchen door open ahead.
I try to picture the house from her view, but the grand features don’t really impress me anymore. Not when I know the people who own it and how they get the things that they want.
Eden doesn’t pause at the backdoor like she did at the bottom of the stairs, instead stepping straight in like she lives here, and her confidence blows me away. I could get down with this. With her. Even if it confuses the hell out of me because we are supposed to be destroying her.
Kicking the door shut behind me, I stop right behind Eden as Xavier and Hunter sit at the breakfast bar, staring at Eden like she’s their prey.
“What’s the game then?” I ask, not wanting to waste a single second of fun time, and Xavier waves his hand for us to take a seat.
Placing my hand at the bottom of Eden’s spine, I force myself to not grope her ass, even if it calls to me, I don’t want to piss her off. Yet.
She pulls the bar stool out, facing Hunter, and I slip into the seat to her right, facing Xavier. Smart move. They both look like dangerous motherfuckers, but Hunter is definitely a little softer than Xavier overall, depending how I look at it.
“Where’s my phone?” Eden asks, glancing between them, and it’s Hunter who responds.
“You finding your phone is the game.”
“What?” Her nose scrunches as she frowns at him, and Xavier taps his fingers on the counter as he stares her down.
“We are going to play a game of tag. If you can make it to your phone without being tagged, you get your phone back without question,” Xavier states, his gaze not faltering from hers.
“And if someone tags me?” Eden murmurs, and excitement fizzles in my veins. Fuck, we haven’t played around like this with someone in what feels like forever. Everyone is too scared to find themselves in this kind of situation with us anymore.
“Then that person gets what they want.”
“You have got to be joking with me,” Eden states, but the way Xavier looks at her makes it clear he isn’t. “So you think if you tag me, like we’re fucking children I might add, you get to do whatever you want and I have no say in the matter? Yeah, no thanks.”
Planting her hands on the table, her stool starts to scrape across the tiled floor when Xavier responds. “We aren’t going to pin you down and rape you, Eden. We agree on stakes before we begin,” he states simply, and Eden stops moving.
“Is everything always a game around here?”
“Pretty much,” I answer, leaning forward on my elbows to get a better look at her face. “So, you in?” My hands clasp together as I wait for her to answer, praying she doesn’t chicken out yet.
Slowly, one by one, she stares us down, and I can almost feel her brain ticking overtime as she weighs up her options. How important is her phone? That’s the question, ultimately.
“Fine, what are the terms?” she finally asks with a huff, swiping a lock of hair from her face, and my pulse picks up with excitement.
“If I tag you, I get seven minutes in heaven with you, bubble,” I blurt out, a grin playing on my lips as she scoffs in response.
“That’s childish.”
“She’s not wrong, man,” Hunter chimes in, and I send him a glare.
“Screw you. I want some private time with bubble here, and I’m not going to force myself on her. So, seven minutes in heaven. Nothing scary about it, right?”
Turning my gaze back to hers, she looks at me like I’m crazy but nods reluctantly.
“Fine, what else?” she questions, looking to the others, waiting to see what they say.
“If I tag you, we go skinny dipping,” Hunter says, surprising me, and Eden raises her eyebrow at him. The challenge in both of their eyes is unmistakable, and just as I hope, she doesn’t relent.
“Fine, and you?” she asks, turning her attention to Xavier, a
nd he frowns.
“Is that how you address everyone you’ve fucked?”
“I don’t usually speak to them again, to be honest. You want a medal?” she sasses back, and Xavier doesn’t take the bait, even though I can see he’s affected by the way his eyes round a little.
“If I tag you, you answer some questions I have.” As simple as that, and of course, she eagerly nods in agreement.
“I also want something other than my phone back if no one gets me,” Eden states, pulling the cuffs of my jacket over her hands nervously.
“What?” I ask, quite eager to give her anything right now for the chance of a little cat and mouse chasing.
“I want to ask some questions of my own.”
“Done,” I answer before Xavier can shut her down, and he grumbles under his breath in annoyance like I knew he would.
“Perfect, so where do I have to go for my phone?” Eden asks, rising from her stool.
“My room,” Hunter answers. “We’ll even give you a five second head start.”
“Wait, I don’t know where your room is.”
“Not my problem. Five…four…”
Panicked eyes look at mine, but if she thinks I’m going to help her, she’s rudely mistaken. I’m probably the most excited here.
“Three…two…”
“Fuck,” she curses, taking off through the door that leads to the hallway, and seconds later, I hear her feet pounding up the stairs.
“One. Ready or not, here we come.”
17
Eden
Adrenaline courses through my veins as my feet carry me up the stairs on autopilot.
What the fuck are we even playing right now? And why the hell am I even playing along? I can’t deny the fact that excitement tingles across my skin, though.
My phone. I need my phone. Every picture or memory I have with my dad is on there, and if I have to outrun these assholes to get it back, then I will.
Quickly unzipping Tobias’ jacket so it doesn’t restrict my movement as it gathers around my thighs, I reach the top of the stairs, panicking for a moment as I try to decide which direction to go. Rooms lead off in both directions, the hallway lit, doors everywhere, and I have no fucking clue which way to take.
The sound of chairs scraping across the tiled kitchen floor kick me into action, and I opt to go to the right, paying little attention as I swing each door open carelessly. A closet, a bathroom, and finally what looks to be someone’s room, but other than a bed and a chest of drawers, there is nothing personal in there.
I hear them creeping up the stairs, not chasing after me like I expected them to, but it doesn’t calm the spike of nervousness that beats through my body. If they know which direction I turned, then they’ll know if I’m close or not.
Swinging open the next door, I instantly know I’m in one of their rooms. The man cave vibes overwhelm me immediately. A guitar sits on a stand perfectly in the corner, while paper is scattered across the desk beside the huge bed in here.
I don’t see my phone on the bed, and the whole room strangely screams Tobias, so I leave the door open and move on to the next one.
Bathroom. Fuck.
Glancing over my shoulder, I see all three of them standing at the top of the stairs, smirks marking their faces as Xavier makes a show of lifting his phone in the air and pressing a button. I frown in confusion, but mere seconds later, the whole house goes black.
I try to blink through the darkness as I realize he just turned off the fucking lights and stumble to try the next door.
“No fair, you cheating motherfucking bitch faces,” I yell, finding the doorknob for the next room, but it’s pitch black when I swing the door open wide.
Nothing. Fuck.
Stumbling in the dark, I rush for the next door, hearing their footsteps near, and my heart is in my throat.
“Turn the fucking lights back on,” I growl out, but all I hear is a snicker in response. Swinging the next door open, I pause as I realize it’s a bedroom.
Squinting as my heart pounds in my chest, I try to make out the room. I can see the outline of furniture, but I don’t think I see a bed. As I go to step back, I move straight into someone’s chest, and before I can surge forward out of their reach, arms band around my waist, holding me close.
“Put me the fuck down. You turned the lights off and that was no way near a fucking decent head start. You don’t play fair,” I grind out as I swing my legs and arms about, trying to wrestle out of their hold.
Whoever holds me captive chuckles in my ear, but it’s so low, I can’t place which douchebag it is. It sends a shiver down my spine as I feel their hands hold me tighter.
“I said. Put. Me. Down,” I growl out, holding still against them as they say nothing in response. Wait, did he— “Did you just fucking sniff my hair? Creep, get off.”
Throwing my elbow back, I get him in the stomach, making him grunt. “Fuck, bubble, I was starting to think I was your favorite,” Tobias murmurs, his lips brushing the shell of my ear, and I freeze.
A dim light suddenly comes on from across the room as an alarm sounds from Xavier’s phone, and I see Xavier raise his finger to his lip, telling me to be quiet.
What the fuck is going on?
“What the hell is your mom doing here, X?” Hunter mutters quietly, glancing down at his phone too as he comes to stand to the side of us, and I realize I’m still letting Tobias hold me.
“Put me down,” I whisper, but even that seems like too much noise for Xavier as he storms towards me, sandwiching me in between him and Tobias.
“If you value anything about your life, you’ll shut the fuck up.” His words are laced with venom, and I can’t tell if the tone is aimed at me or the situation, but for once, I listen and keep my mouth shut.
The sound of a door slamming shut in the distance is followed by heels clicking on the ground floor.
“Why the fuck aren’t the lights coming on?” A woman’s husky voice complains, and Xavier quickly pulls his phone from his pocket and presses a few buttons, not moving from where he stands before me, and in the next moment, the lights outside of the room flicker on. She sounds familiar, but I can’t place it.
“Xavier must have been playing around with the security again, don’t stress so much, mi amor,” a man responds to her as I strain to hear them coming up the stairs.
“He shouldn’t be messing with anything, Reza. We give him too much fucking freedom as it is.”
“Let’s just get what you wanted to grab, and then we can go home, okay?” the man soothes, and they sound much closer now.
Xavier mouths for Hunter to shut the door, and he’s stealthy for the bulky size of him because I don’t hear a single sound.
The couple continues to mumble, but with the door closed, I can no longer hear what they’re saying. My eyes finally take in the room around me as I try to remain quiet.
A navy bedspread lies perfectly on the huge Alaskan-sized bed, a walk-in closet and access to a bathroom are just off to the right, while very little of anything else is in here. If there weren’t pictures on the wall to my left, I wouldn’t have believed someone slept in here.
That’s when I spot my phone sitting centered on the bed. This is Hunter’s room?
“I want my phone,” I murmur, nodding towards the bed, but Tobias doesn’t release me, and Xavier continues to stare at his phone. I spot Hunter over by the window ignoring us all, and my blood starts to boil. “Somebody passes me my phone right now, or I start fucking screaming,” I snap, and that finally makes Xavier lift his head from his phone.
Lifting his hand to my chin, he holds me in place as he leans in. Whatever he is about to say is cut off by Tobias planting his palm on Xavier’s face. The strength he has surprises me as he continues to hold me with just one arm around me.
“I caught her, I get my seven minutes in heaven,” Tobias mutters before dropping his hand back to my waist. His fingers skim across my tummy, and the feel of his skin on mine re
minds me I undid his jacket earlier, leaving my tiny tank top and short shorts on display.
Trying to pull the jacket closed, Xavier’s hands stop me, holding the jacket out wide as he looks me over. I feel his eyes graze every inch of my skin, just like they did that night, and I refuse to be embarrassed about my body.
“Nobody gets anything if I don’t get my phone,” I repeat, and Xavier’s hand on my chin tightens, almost to the point of pain.
“What did I tell you about your mouth ruining shit?” he rumbles, finally bringing his eyes to mine, and I give him a pointed look.
“Tobias, please put me down,” I whisper sweetly, and to my surprise, he does, although he makes sure to drag my ass across his hard length beneath his shorts. Once I’m comfortable on the floor, I wrap my hand around Xavier's wrist and try to pull him off me, but he doesn’t move.
He must sense my mind going into overdrive, thinking up all the ways I can hurt him, because he, too, releases me, and I rush for my phone.
Pressing the button, the screen comes to life, the photo of my father and me filling the screen, and I hold it to my chest. Thanking my lucky stars those bitches didn’t do anything crazy with it.
“They’re leaving,” Hunter murmurs from beside the window, and I can’t help but step towards him so I can look down at the people he’s talking about.
It sounded like they were Xavier’s parents, but then why would they not all live together? Why would they come to get something and then leave just as quickly?
The second I stand beside Hunter at the huge open window, he pulls me back.
“We’re snooping, Eden. Don’t stand so openly while you do it. Ilana has eyes like a hawk. She’ll fucking sense a small thing like you from a mile away,” he mutters, and just as he says that, the woman looks over her shoulder directly at the window, and my heart stops.
My legs go weak, and if Hunter didn’t have hold of me, I’d be flat on my face. I can’t pull my gaze from her, but eventually, she climbs into the back of the waiting SUV.
