“Baby… What are you doing?” Colton says, his voice filled with unease. It seems our guy is still a little petrified of our girl.
“I want you to mark me. I want you to know there’s no one else I could ever want more than you three.” Bailey holds my knife, her eyes darting between the three of us, and fuck, I think she’s serious.
“Come here,” Jace says, and she does. She hands him the knife, her face glowing with pure excitement, and it only makes my pulse skyrocket. “Are you sure you want this?” Jace questions, and she nods. “Your words, baby girl.”
“I want you to mark me. I need this,” she whispers,her eyes steady, full of burning determination. He lifts her with one hand and gently places her on her back.
“You’re sure,” he questions again, and she smiles.
“As sure as I am of you three.” That must be enough for Jace, because he stands, walking over to retrieve a towel, before he kneels in front of her. He is as tall as I am, which means even on his knees, he’s towering over her.
“Hold her arms,” he says, and we do. I lean in and press a kiss to her lips, sliding my tongue into her mouth, as Jace presses the blade against her upper thigh. She tastes so fucking sweet, moaning into my mouth with each slice of skin, and before we’re ready to part, Jace is done.
We all look at the same time, and see the thin trail of blood dripping from the cut, one that spellsOurs, and the smile that reaches all our mouths makes this feel real.
“Our own oath,” she says, rising from the bed, and I can’t explain the tightness that builds in my chest when Jace presses his lips to hers.
I love this woman, and I’ll never stop.
“Who wants hot chocolate?” Cole announces over the silence, and it’s so fucking random that we shake our heads.
“What? I’m thirsty, and it’s the holidays,” he shrugs, bending down to grab his sweatpants from the floor.
“I’d love hot chocolate! Do you want company?”Bailey says, moving across the room to look in the closet mirror, her eyes tracing her mark, and the pride in her expression fills me with warmth.
We’re messed up. Far as fuck from perfect, but we’re perfect for each other.
She disappears into her closet to get dressed, and Jace and I head to my room to do the same, when a loud crashing noise rips through the house like shattered glass, and we both freeze.
Trepidation coils around my heart like an ice-cold serpent, and when Jace’s wide eyes meet mine, our instincts are immediately on high alert.
“Cole,” he whispers, and within seconds, we move. Jace leaves the room in a blur, and I reach for my Glock in my nightstand, heart pounding in my ribs, before I’m hot on his heels.
When we reach the kitchen entrance, everything stops.
Colton stands beside the counter, his arms outstretched wide in surrender. The look on his face is one of pure fucking hatred, and when I round the doorway, my stomach drops.
There’s a gun pointed at his temple, and the person holding it is… Alice.
My stepmother.
CHAPTER 17
ROMAN
My blood runs ice-cold, disbelief and fury colliding in a single spike, and it’s all I can do not to put a bullet straight through her fucking skull. Then, I remember that Bailey is upstairs, and that’s her mother.
“What the fuck are you doing here, and why do you have a gun?” Jace says, and my heart feels weak at the thought of him not having a weapon on him. He’s slowly moving further and further into the kitchen, trying to get as close as he can to Cole. There’s a gun in the second drawer, and if Jace can distract Alice long enough for Cole to grab it, we have a chance of sorting whatever the fuck is going on here out without any blood being spilled.
For Bailey’s sake.
“Oh, cut the shit,” she spits, and my jaw clenches at her disdain toward my Jace. My instincts are screaming, and every move she makes has my finger brushing the trigger.
“Put the gun down, Alice,” Jace says, his voice a lot fucking calmer than we’re feeling in this moment. Her eyes dart to Jace, though her gun doesn’t leave Colton’s head. She surveys Jace’s body, realizing he doesn’t have a weapon on him, before turning back to face Cole.
Cole stands stock still. He’s calculating her every movement, and so am I.
Why the fuck is she in our house, and why is she doing this?
