by Nova Blake
He leaned in, kissed me again, capturing my mouth with more confidence, more assertiveness than before. I matched his passion, letting go of some of my worries, running my hands across his chest, reveling in the feel of the muscles under his shirt. He'd been hiding these from me, and all I wanted was to pull that shirt off and see them, lick them, taste his skin on my tongue.
What crazy beast had he awakened? I pushed him away and brushed my fingers across swollen lips. This all felt new, but also like it was totally normal. I couldn't get my head around it.
And what did he mean that they all adored me?
My mind boggled at the thought, but it was there now. I couldn't bring myself to ask him what he meant because a) what if I had it all wrong and b) how blind was I if I completely missed those undertones?
I guess we'd just have to wait and see.
CHAPTER FOUR
When we went back inside everyone was acting normal. Hunter had left, and half the guys were at work. Rafe and Colton were the ones going out to interrogate whoever this person was. And I had all the time in the world to watch those who remained at home and try to decipher what Brax had said to me in the garden.
He was at work too, so I didn't feel bad at all that I was checking out my protectors like an animal in heat. Which is exactly what I felt like.
And I was starting with Arien.
He was training hard in garage, which the guys had decked out like a gym; mats on the floor, boxing bags and weights and other gym machinery spotted around the room like a circuit. They got me in here a couple times a week, but I felt awkward and uncoordinated next to them.
Arien had his headphones on, rivulets of sweat ran down the back of his neck, his bare back, sparkling against his dark skin as he attacked the boxing bag with ferocity. He moved in a slow circle, ducking and weaving as if he faced a real opponent, throwing in a kick when it fit. His fighting style was seamless and watching his muscles move, the speed at which he lashed out, the focus on his face as he worked his body... Well, it was doing things to mine, that was for sure.
He didn't look up, even when I was in his line of sight. So focused on his task.
I couldn't help but imagine what happened when he turned that focus to something else. Would I melt under it if he turned it on me?
I slipped out the door and leaned against the wall, exhaling deeply to try and calm to feelings in my body. I was going to need a cold shower at this rate. Pronto. Or at least some alone time in my room. Brax had loosened something in me with his kisses, with his words of devotion, and I kind of wished he hadn't - though at least thoughts of escaping the house were the last thing on my mind right now.
Hunter wouldn't need to get on my case about breaking the rules.
What would he be like if he wasn't always breathing down my neck? Or rather, if he was doing that for some other reason.
"Get a grip on yourself," I muttered as I peeled myself off the wall and stalked back to the kitchen. I dumped a load of clean washing on the table and put all my attention into folding it, making sure to get everyone’s clothes in the right pile. Despite the fact there were seven of them, they were all different and had their quirks. I had to appreciate it because it meant life was never boring.
"This pile never really shrinks, does it?"
I gasped and spun to see Zephyr coming down the stairs.
"I've told you so many times that you need to stomp when you walk, you're like a ninja." I shook my head. "You're right though. Every time I get to the bottom, there's another basket waiting. Why don't we have a maid?" I threw a towel at him and he caught it then joined me at the table.
"Isn't that what we keep you around for?" He quirked an eyebrow, and then laughed, but there was no meanness in it. "Not that you're a very good one. You'd have lost your job on the second day."
"Why the second?" I asked, making sure not to look at him too hard. He was a little older than Brax, with a pout to his bottom lip that I'd always been attracted to, and right now I needed to do anything but look at that.
Dang, I needed to blow of some steam.
"Well, the first day we got here you were still in shock I think. You were trying to adjust to all the change and we just did our best to make you feel at home."
"And the second day?"
He grinned. "The second day you started getting shouty about things, and nothing has really changed. Injustice, it's not your bag, and you never really thought it was fair you were assigned laundry duty without being involved in that conversation."
"Laundry duty sucks, you're not wrong. But, I guess I have to pull my weight somehow." I chewed on my bottom lip, wondering whether to press further. "What was it like, coming here?"
Zephyr finished folding the towel - with much crisper lines than I ever did - and set it aside before grabbing another. "It was strange, at first." He looked like he was considering his words, choosing them wisely. "We were kind of rushed, pulling this together after what happened and I think all of us were a little shocked. The living arrangements are a little cramped, but you can't find many places with eight rooms."
Guilt crawled in my belly. I was the only one with a room of my own. Everyone else had to share with at least one other, and there was only the main bathroom too. Not only had they put their regular lives on hold for me, they were crammed into a smaller space than they might like.
"I'm sorry. That you have to live like this, that you've had to leave everything else behind, at least for now."
"It's fine, Ebony. We had a choice, and we chose this. We chose you." He flashed me a grin, his eyes hooded, dark with emotion.
He was sounding a bit like Brax now, and I had to wonder if they'd had a conversation. I needed to change the mood so I laughed it off. "Even Colton? He seems perpetually pissed off about things."
"Especially Colton. That guy's determined to make things right, and I think the fact it's taking so long is pissing him off more than anything else." He finished the last towel and grabbed the stack, heading towards the stairs. He turned around at the bottom step. "We are trying. You know that right?" His blue eyes shimmered in the dull light of the stairwell.
I nodded, stepping towards him and placing my fingers on his arm. "I do. I know I get frustrated, but that doesn't change the fact that I know you're all working as hard as you can. Thank you."
He grinned and headed upstairs and I was left realizing that I never said that enough. Had I ever really said it?
That had to change. I'd hurt their feelings last night, and I'd put everything at risk by taking off into the world outside. I needed to do better. Play my part, even if it was passive and annoying and drove me crazy.
If I could hold that line between sanity and madness, then I'd play by the rules, and tonight I'd show them how grateful I was.
CHAPTER FIVE
After the dining room table had been cleared, I headed to the kitchen and opened the fridge door. There was plenty there. Enough. I could do this. I could craft a magnificent feast.
"What are you doing, Princess?" Felix asked.
I turned to find him leaning against the bench.
"Where did you come from? Why are you all so quiet on your feet?" I said, shaking my head with exasperation. It was no wonder I was going crazy, everyone was always sneaking up on me.
"I asked the first question. I'll trade you an answer for an answer." He winked and came around into the kitchen proper, grabbing a glass and nudging me aside with his hip as he reached for the lemonade.
I was trying very hard not to inhale as he moved away from me, because he always smelled good and my stupid libido was still in overdrive. I was unable to deny the tingle that sped across my skin when he brushed past though.
I shut the fridge door and turned to him. "I'm going to cook dinner."
His mouth fell open and he thumped the bottle down on the bench. "You're what? You don't cook."
"I don't normally cook. But I'm going to, tonight." I bit my lip and then moved towards him, casting a
look over my shoulder to make sure no one else had snuck in. "I want to do something special, something nice. To say I'm sorry for being an asshole and to thank you guys, for everything."
Felix narrowed his eyes. "Where is Ebony and what have you done with her?"
I smacked him as he cracked a grin, but I couldn't help but grin too. "Maybe I don't want to thank you then, just the others."
"Oh, you wound me, Princess." He pouted, his green eyes sparkling with mock sorrow, those lips... "I thought I was your favorite."
He stepped closer and I inhaled, hyper aware of his closeness. My heart thumped in my chest and before I knew it I'd closed the gap, my lips meeting his, a jolt of desire washing through me as he returned the kiss with a heat to match my own. I pushed my body against his, the feel of his hard chest against my breasts unbearable. I had too many clothes on. I was ready for anything, a day spent imagining all the possibilities setting me on fire. I wrapped my arms around him, my nails raking his neck.
And then I heard the shattering of glass. I jumped, pulling away and putting a few feet between us.
"Oops." Felix grinned. "I guess you distracted me, Princess. Is there more of that on the menu later?"
"I..." I frowned, not knowing how to respond.
Arien solved it for me though, as he came through the living room door. "What was that?"
"I just dropped a glass. You know me, ever the fool." Felix winked and then moved past me to grab the brush and shovel. He dropped to his knees on the floor to clean up the mess. "Princess here is going to cook dinner for us tonight. I think she shocked me a little."
"You're cooking?" Arien raised an eyebrow in question.
"Not you too." I rolled my eyes, moving away from both of them, this time to scour the pantry. "I know how to cook," I said over my shoulder. "I'm around when Rafe is doing it all the time."
"Watching is not the same as doing. I've told you the same thing about fighting, Ebony. Practice is important."
"I'll practice. Okay? But tonight I'm going to cook dinner, and we're going to drink wine and watch a movie. All of us. Even Mr. Grumpy."
"Don't start calling Colton that again, you drove him mad and he took it out on the rest of us," Felix said with a sigh.
Arien laughed. "She is right though. The guy could do with getting laid."
I stiffened, then forced myself to relax my shoulders. He couldn't know that I'd been thinking about sex non-stop, could he? He hadn't even noticed me when I watched him train. And he was definitely not suggesting that I be the one to take Colton to bed.
I wouldn’t think about that. I couldn't.
I turned back to them, hoping my cheeks weren't red, and thankfully Felix was totally straight-faced. "Anyway... Seeing as you two have ruined my surprise, you can help me out."
"I thought you were trying to say thank you?" Felix said indignantly.
"She was? Well, that's nice. Thanks Ebony." Arien crossed the floor and dropped a chaste kiss on my cheek before grabbing the lemonade Felix had left on the bench and putting it back in the fridge.
"At least some of you know how to be grateful." I gave Felix a pointed glare, and Arien a smile. "Can one of you get wine, and we need a movie, something you'll all like. Arien?"
"I'm on it," he said with a nod.
"You trust his judgment over mine?" Felix adopted his wounded puppy look again and I sighed dramatically because I knew that was the response he wanted.
"At this point, yes. Besides, I need you to distract everyone else. Keep them busy and out of the kitchen."
"I'll tell Rafe you've locked yourself in here in protest of laundry."
"Tell him whatever you want, as long as he stays out. Now go. I need to think and I can't do that with you both in here." I couldn't think straight at all. They were too close, and I needed to get some focus back. "I'm going upstairs to get changed, and then the kitchen is off limits. Can I trust you?"
"With your life," Arien said, he bowed his head in a reverent manner, catching my eyes in a glance heavy with meaning before he headed out the door.
"He stole my line," Felix said.
And the breath in my lungs.
I looked at Felix and grinned. "Yeah, but you would have said it in a jokey way."
Felix shrugged, stepping closer. "Doesn't mean I wouldn't mean it." He grabbed my hand, placing a kiss on the back of it like I really was a princess, and then headed for the lounge. "And you can trust me to keep everyone out. I've got this covered."
I waited for a few seconds, trying to gather myself, but there was no point. I needed to go upstairs and relieve this tension or I was going to burn dinner and possibly the whole house down because of sexual frustration.
I might not cook an amazing meal, but I could definitely get myself off.
I BLINKED MY EYES AND I tried to remember what the hell was happening in the movie. Must have fallen asleep. I yawned, covering my mouth with my hand and trying to covertly wipe away the little bit of drool I could feel there. Damn. I hoped no one else had noticed that.
I was squished between Sheehan and Rafe on the couch, while Arien leaned against my legs, possibly not my first pick for who to cozy up to, but at least it had put some space between me and the two men I'd already made out with today... Which was a good thing. Definitely a good thing. I still hadn't worked out what the hell I was doing, and until I'd had time to think - and maybe make a pros and cons list - I was going to try not to jump anyone else.
But damned if they weren't going to make that hard on me.
I wriggled my legs and Arien scooted forward, giving me some room. He looked over his shoulder, watching as I yawned again.
"Looks like it's bed time," he said. "Thanks for dinner."
"Even if I burned it?" I cringed. So things hadn't gone quite to plan - but the wine had been good, and not all of dinner had been ruined. Felix had saved my ass by ordering pizza to go with the salad.
It was hard to stuff up salad.
"As they say, it's the thought that counts." Rafe nudged with me his shoulder, a sleepy smile on his face. He'd had a little more wine than the others and looked more relaxed than he had in ages. "You did good, Ebony. Thanks."
"No, thank you guys." I glanced around the room - Colton had the single seater to himself, and Brax was sprawled in a beanbag while Felix and Zephyr had taken the other couch. "You do so much for me, and I know I was a brat yesterday."
"Ha!" Felix said, covering it with a cough.
I rolled my eyes and ignored him. "Okay, a brat a lot of the time. I do want out of this house, but I don't ever want any of you thinking that's because of you. You're all...wonderful, in your own ways. I'm going to try and play by the rules."
"We'll accept foot massages instead of cooked meals," Felix quipped.
"Or cookies, I bet you could bake cookies," Brax added.
"I could try." Not that I thought I’d do any better at that. "Right. I'm going to bed, and I promise not to sneak out in the night."
Rafe winced, and I caught Colton's frown out of the corner of my eye.
"Too soon to joke about it? Sorry." I shrugged, then pried myself up from between Sheehan and Rafe, who held a hand out to steady me as I stepped out from behind Arien. "See you in the morning. I promise not to make breakfast," I called over my shoulder. A cushion hit me in the butt and I spun back but the guys were all pointing at different people. My shoulders shook with laughter as I headed for the stairs.
Life wasn't so bad. In fact, it was looking pretty good. So long as I could find a way to tamp down this sudden onset of lust I was having, life could be sweet. It was looking a bit like I might be able to have my pick of men, and it was just up to me to figure out how that was going to work.
Heat flooded my body at that thought as I walked up the stairs. Getting off earlier had certainly released some tension, but it was coming in hard and fast again now. I wondered how on earth I'd been so blind to the way they looked at me before now, so deaf to the things they said.
It was like I'd been sleep walking through life since we got here. Hell, maybe I had been. I couldn't remember much of before, and I was beginning to think that the depth of feeling I had for these guys – a warmth that stemmed beyond just lust - were rooted in the past, as well as the present. There was a level of comfort and security there that didn’t happen over just a few weeks.
I flung my door open and locked it behind me, stripping off my clothes as I headed to bed. The window was open and a chill blew through the room, hardening my nipples. I brushed my fingers over them, teasing them, imagining that they were rougher hands; it almost didn't matter whose.
Walking towards the full length mirror I looked at my body, saw the firm lines, the long dark hair, my luscious lips, a deep red despite the lack of lipstick, and blue eyes like sapphires. I was a looker, there was no denying that, was it any wonder that at least some of the men in this house wanted me? Hell, I wanted me. I tweaked my nipple, the sensation shooting through my body. My core tightened in response and I headed for bed, slipping between cool sheets that felt divine against my skin.
Time for another round of self-love, because there was no way I was going to sleep wound up like this.
IT WAS DARK AND THE cool air flowed over my naked skin. I could hear...something. A song, calling me in the darkness, a chant, music from some magical instrument that drew me from my bed. The pounding beat of a drum came up from the ground and vibrated against my toes. I didn't know the words, didn't even know the language, and yet it wavered on the edge of understanding, like if I could just focus, if I could hear it a little better then I'd know what they were.
This was a dream. I knew it was, because I was outside and the woods called to me. I could hear owls in the distance, their mournful sound calling to a deep sorrow inside me.
And that song, it played on. I looked up at the moon, her gorgeous light shining down on my body making my skin glow with a surreal light. I raised my arms, looking at them in awe as they shone like mirrors reflecting the moon's glory.
