“Or they could be perfectly healthy and not a part of your fucking delusion,” I retort. When I see that little vein across his forehead start to pulse, I have to swallow down my triumph. I love setting this big guy off. He’s so easily riled, and when he gets riled, I get riled. But in a hot kind of way. I would love to strip him bare and ride his grumpy face until his frown drips right off.
I turn my head to Theo. “Was it a man? Was he cute?” I ask.
A frown appears on his face. “What?”
“The man we’re running from whose car is stuck in the mud. Was he hot?” I clarify. I get immense satisfaction when Theo’s frown deepens so much that I could fit a dime in the crease between his brows. All three of the guys shoot me a look.
“What?” I ask with mock innocence.
“You kissed me, then Madix, and youjusthad your tongue down Theo’s throat not even two minutes ago, and you’re asking about another fucking guy?” Brant asks.
My eyes narrow at his tone. Suddenly, what was supposed to be me teasing them, has now morphed into them judging me. I fucking knew it. I shouldn’t even be surprised. It was only going to be a matter of time. “You know what really irks me?” I ask. “Guys are all about fucking more than one girl at a time, and that shit is celebrated. But if a girl wants multiple guys, she’s suddenly a whore or a selfish bitch. There’s nothing wrong with being attracted to more than a single person for your entire life. Consensual sex is beautiful. It should be celebrated, not shamed. Just because I have a pussy, doesn’t mean I can’t have a healthy sexual appetite,” I say, crossing my arms. “I happen tolikeliking guys. And let’s be honest, men would be much better equipped to please a woman ineveryaspect, if you guys banded together and learned to share.”
Madix gives an incredulous snort at the same time Brant asks, “What do you mean?”
His tone surprises me, because usually when I talk about this, the guys always get defensive and pissed. “I mean, we women are complicated creatures. At least, I know I am. It’s why I’ve always struggled to settle down with just one guy. Sometimes I want the nice guy, you know? With sweet romance and lovemaking,” I admit. Then I flick my eyes to Madix, catching his gaze in the rearview mirror. “And other times, I want to be spanked and fucked and bossed around,” I say, and I see his nostrils flare slightly.
Yep. I wasn’t wrong in the woods when I kissed him. He wants me just as much as I want him. When I peer at the other guys, my surprise goes up a level when I see the hungry expressions that they’re wearing. I instantly sit up, intrigued. I’ve never had people react this way. It usually turns to some form of disgust or disbelief.
“Then there are the times where I need a little bit of both, a happy medium of naughty and nice. There’s too much out there to decide on just one person. The thing about me is, I always seem to need more than what a single person can give me. I guess you could say I’m a handful.”
Snorts and chuckles sound off around the car, and I roll my eyes.
“You sound like you’ve thought about this a lot,” Theo tells me.
I nod. “I have. Just haven’t met the right men to take me on.”
I watch my words settle across them, and the air inside the car churns with their spinning thoughts. There. I’ve set the challenge. I’m not expecting anything in return, but damn, it would be so satisfying if they would be game. Still, I fight not to get my hopes up. I’ve been with guys before who say they get it, but ultimately, they really don’t.
Aside from wanting to be fucked nine ways from Sunday, plus wanting to be emotionally stimulated by multiple minds, as well as supported and not judged, sometimes I also just like to be alone. I need time to be one with myself to take stock, center myself, and live off my own hard work and merits. And finding one person—let alone multiple people—who really understand that, has proven to be impossible.
Oh, well. A girl can dream.
* * *
Idreamed. A lot.
It’s one of my things. If I’m not driving but am stuck in a moving vehicle for more than fifteen minutes, I just drop right off to sleep. It's probably not the most useful talent in the case of an abduction, so it’s good that I’m half okay with what’s happening.
Well, maybe more than half, I admit, as I nuzzle against a muscular chest and feel a hand slightly tighten on my waist. Air is huffed into my face and I smile towards it. I slowly open my eyes and find dark brown orbs staring back at me, surrounded by multicolored fur and a long strand of drool hanging off one of Puddles’s jowls. Not exactly the good morning I was hoping for, or should I say good afternoon, or maybe evening?
I sit up, now very aware that I have no idea what time it is or where exactly I am. The sun is still out, which makes me think it’s late afternoon, and the sky is gloomy and looks about as grumpy as Madix usually does. I realize that Brant is now in the backseat acting as my pillow, and Theo is in the front. I’m not sure when they switched places or why, but it doesn’t really matter. There’s a weird scratching noise coming from somewhere, but it doesn’t last long enough for me to hone in on where it’s coming from.
“There it is again. Do you think it’s coming from the roof?” Theo asks as he pulls back the tan colored shade that normally blocks the moon roof. He peers up through the glass, trying to figure out if there’s anything up there to see. When nothing obvious presents itself, he closes the shade. I turn to look at the pet carrier in the back, thinking maybe the rats got out, but they’re cuddled together, taking a nap of their own. That’s when I know what’s making the noise.
“It’s Coon!” I announce, and then try to roll down the window to invite her in, but of course, the child lock is still on.What do they think I’m going to do? Shove myself face-first out of the window of a moving vehicle? I’m pissed, not brain dead.
“What? How the hell would she be outside? We’ve been driving for hours, and she didn’t come with us. I couldn’t find her when I grabbed the rats,” Theo objects.
“I saw her sneak in,” I offer with a shrug. “You think I really would’ve let you leave without her?”
I would’ve lost my shit on them if I hadn’t seen her in the back. Good thing Theo had the wherewithal to grab the rats, because if Coon didn’t have her babies, there would’ve been a problem. Coon loves those damn things, and she’s the only pet I was really worried about leaving behind, but I knew she’d follow without a problem. She can get just about anywhere. She’s always been a little adrenaline junkie. She loves to climb to impossible heights, and then try to scare the piss out of me by doing some crazy ninja moves and falling in my lap when I least expect it. It wouldn’t surprise me if she snuck out the back window while I slept so that she could go full Teen Wolf, hanging-ten on the roof of the car.
“You guys want to give me access to the window, or am I still deemed too much of a flight risk?”
No one answers me, but Madix flips a switch on the armrest of his door and when I try the window again, it rolls down. Looks like me taking a nap instead of trying to make a break for it has lulled them into a sense of security and trust. I’ll see what I can do later to change that. They may complain, but I can tell that they like that I’m making them work for it, cute little alpha dudes that they are. I gotta keep them on their toes.
Cool mountain air whooshes past my face like it’s eager to caress me with its fresh, chilly touch. The air is laced with moisture, and from the looks of the trees and mountain grass on my side, it looks like it rained again while I was sleeping. I put my hand out the window and lay it flat on the roof of the SUV, tapping the tips of my fingers against the metal.
