Page 66 of Love & Power

“Pup,” I warned, causing him to retreat behind Astin’s body where he believed he’d be safe.

My dick now softened, I slipped out of her and went to grab the washcloth, but it wasn’t there. Liu rounded the corner with the cloth in his hand after having rinsed it off using warm water. If anyone ever asked me why I was willing to share my girl with other men, I would share this moment. Seven men who loved the same woman, and that meant six other people were looking out for her happiness at the same time I was. Who wouldn’t want that for the person they loved?

“Thanks, man,” I whispered, taking the washcloth. “I can’t believe she actually fell asleep so fast.”

“Goes to show just how scared she was to close her eyes,” Liu pointed out.

Hearing him say that had my stomach clenching, knowing he was right. “When she says she won’t survive losing one of us, I don’t think she’s kidding.”

“That’s why we need to look after each other better,” Luca stated.

I hadn’t even noticed him slip into the room. He must have gone to his room since he now wore sleep pants and a tank top. It made me question whether we should try to get Astin into something, but I didn’t want to risk waking her. Braxton switched places with Hound who must have come in with Luca, the sneaky bastards.

“Seeing as I’m still alive, thanks to Atticus, I’d say we’re doing a pretty decent job so far,” I commented as I stood. “If he hadn’t done what he did, I don’t know if I’d be standing here right now.”

“Part of that is my fault. I shouldn’t have trusted that the guy didn’t have any other hidden weapons. If I’d patted him down, I would have noticed the bomb sooner,” Luca admitted. “Each of us needs to keep the fact that we’re not in Kansas anymore in the forefront of our minds. This isn’t Springmont, and we aren’t the top dogs the others are scared of. Everyone is to be treated like a threat until we end things.”

Hound grunted his approval as he combed his fingers through Astin’s hair. “I think that’s going to happen sooner than we think. She was distracted and caught up in her emotions tonight, but I bet you anything when Astin wakes up, there will be fire coming out of her eyes.”

Running a hand through my hair, I sighed. “That means we need to be ready for her to do something batshit crazy yet fucking brilliant.”

“Then I suggest you clean up and settle in for whatever amount of sleep she’ll allow us to get before hell breaks loose,” Liu commented.

Feeling Liu had the right idea, I yanked on my boxers and slipped out to grab sleep clothes from my room. Before I could get there, though, Ryker stepped out, blocking my path.

“Hey, man, I’m surprised you’re not asleep,” I said. “Everything okay?”

“I need you to be brutally fucking honest with me, all right?” Ryker demanded.

A little taken aback at his tone, I raised my hands in surrender. “Sure, but don’t get mad at me if you don’t like the answer.”

Swiping a hand over his face, he turned away from me. I could feel the self-hatred rolling off him as he stood there.

“Hey,” I ventured, gripping his shoulder. “Talk to me, man. What the hell is going on in that morally rigid brain of yours? Come on, you know you can talk to me. I’m not going to judge.”

“That’s just it, I do judge,” he muttered. “I judge me, you, them, us, all of it. Sometimes I think I’ll eventually be fine with all of this, then moments like now I fucking hate all of you for being able to be there for her, and I couldn’t. Jace, I don’t know how to get over being jealous or worrying that my inability to be comfortable with this relationship is going to make me lose her.”

I let my hand fall from his shoulder as I leaned against the wall, knowing this wasn’t going to be a quick conversation. “First of all, you’re not going to lose her unless you make her choose you or us. Astin is one of the most understanding people I’ve ever met. She’s not going to hold this against you, which means you need to find a way not to hold it against yourself. So what if you never join in on orgy-gangbang nights? As long as you make time for her and show how much you love her, then I don’t see what the problem is.”

Ryker spun to face me. “You don’t see the problem? The problem is me, Jace. I’m possessive of her time, overreactive to the slightest hint of her being in danger, and I challenge her choices all the fucking time. How could I ever possibly learn to be happy sharing the woman I want all to myself?”

“Wooow,” I said, drawing out the word. “You, my friend, are spiraling hardcore right now. What the hell triggered this? It can’t simply be because you didn’t stay for the fuckfest, so what is it?”

“Don’t talk about her like that,” he snapped.

Not willing to rise to the bait, I just stared at him, waiting for him to give me an answer.

“Fine, you want to know what it is? What’s really fucking bothering me?” Ryker pressed.

My answer was to simply raise an eyebrow and gesture for him to continue. There was no way in hell I was going to give him the fight he wanted. I knew Ryker, and when he felt out of control, the first thing he’d try to do was create a situation he could control. However, egging me into a fistfight wasn’t going to be one of them.

Growling in frustration, Ryker slammed his fist into the stone wall, doing nothing but hurting himself. “Those bastards got to her. They stood there face-to-face chatting, taunting us in our own house. Do you know how easy it would have been for them to kill her, throw the acid in her face, or fucking set off the bomb standing right next to Astin? Who gives a fuck about us or Boykov getting hurt. We. Almost. Failed.” Ryker snarled, spit flying out of his mouth as he spoke. “Then what do you all decide to do? Have a fucking orgy. We still don’t know who’s behind this or what their intended goal was. Why the hell should we be bothered about any of that when you could have sex?”

My intention was not to let him provoke me, but I wouldn’t allow him or anyone else to speak about my family like that—even a member of the family. The sting of the slap I landed on Ryker’s cheek registered before I even realized I’d done it. I watched as his jaw dropped and raised a hand to feel the place where a red outline of my hand appeared.

“Did… did you just slap me?” Ryker questioned in disbelief.

“Sure as fuck did,” I answered, owning up to the action. “Don’t even try to tell me you didn’t deserve it for acting like a fucking prick just now. How dare you stand there like a self-righteous ass and tell me I don’t give a damn because I put her needs first. If you could manage to pull your head out of your ass, you’d have realized that the woman you claim to love so much came this close…” I said, shoving two fingers with just a sliver of space between them in his face, “… to shattering into a million pieces.”