“I’m on it,” he answered, before disappearing from the room.
Calder rubbed my leg with his free hand. “We shouldn’t have taken you with us. I’m so sorry that you had to be there for all of that. I know it must have been traumatic.”
“Don’t apologize,” I said through my sobs. “I just… I didn’t realize howrealit would be, you know? I didn’t…”
“Most calls aren’t like that,” Calder explained with a sigh. “But we still should’ve just let you go home.”
“I’ll be fine,” I insisted, though I felt my hands shaking a little, as if the shock was finally actually hitting me. “You’re all alright. Nobody got badly hurt. I just… I need to…”
“Let it out,” Ash said, holding me tightly from the side. “No use in keeping it bottled. You’ll feel better afterward.”
I wondered if he ever followed his own advice in that regard. Would he release his emotions once he was alone in his apartment? Did he channel them in some other way? I knew he wasn’t apathetic about everything that he had gone through, but so far, I had only seen glimpses of his true feelings. I wondered if he would ever be vulnerable enough to show me everything.
Beck eventually returned with a cup of tea, which I took and held in both hands. It wasn’t hot enough to burn, just warm enough to comfort me. Beck sat down beside me, with Ash on the other side and Calder on the floor in front of me, all looking at me with the same concern.
“Thanks, guys,” I said as I took a sip once my sobs had calmed down. Ash offered me some tissues from the first aid box, and I wiped the tears from my face. “I know that you’ll look after each other, and I trust you.”
“Yeah, we’ve got each other’s backs,” Beck smiled brightly, and somehow, that was irresistible.
I put the tea down on the coffee table behind Calder, and turned to Beck. He was still smiling, and I leaned in to kiss him. A firm, deep kiss.
When I pulled back, I turned to Ash. Another kiss.
Then, to Calder.
26
~
Calder
As soon as Rhea leaned in to kiss me, I could tell that the atmosphere in the room had changed from something gloomy to something… else.
I reached up and pulled her forward so that she essentially tumbled into my lap, and deepened the kiss. I was testing the water, and Rhea responded by sliding her tongue into my mouth.
“Well, then,” Ash said from his seat on the couch, and Beck laughed.
I could see where this was going, and I wasn’t going to complain. Sharing Rhea with Ash had been a powerful experience. Having Beck here too would strengthen our brotherhood even further, and solidify that Rhea belonged to all of us.
All they had to do was follow my lead, the same way they did on the job.
Rhea pulled away from me, and glanced over her shoulder at each of the others. Beck had a sly look on his face, and Ash lifted one corner of his mouth.
“You think you can take us all?” I asked, running one hand over her hair. “Are you brave enough to try?”
Rhea worked herself up on her knees. “That depends. You think three of you are enough for me?”
Beck laughed, and Ash shook his head.
“You might regret saying that later,” I grinned.
“We’ll see.”
Rhea got to her feet, and we all followed suit. I could already feel myself getting hard.
“You want to take this to the bedroom?” Ash asked. “I have a fantastic mattress.”
Rhea tapped at her chin. “Sounds like a plan. I haven’t had any of you in an actual bed before. It’d be a nice change.”
