BETA TEAM-THE SAVIORS

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 PART ONE
FOREST GROVE SERIES

AMES MILLS

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Copyright © 2024 by Ames Mills
Beta Team, part one
First publication: March 2024
Cover design: RJ Creatives
Formatting: Ames Mills
Editing: Jenni Gauntt
All rights reserved.
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This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, brands, and incidents are the products of
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living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

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 DEDICATION

For all of the thirsty bitches begging for Ari.

You’re welcome.

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 CONTENTS

Authors Note
Warnings
1. Ari
2. Tyler
3. Jason
4. Gavin
5. Keon
6. Kira
7. Ari
8. Jason
9. Keon
10. Gavin
11. Tyler
12. Kira
13. Ari
14. Jason
15. Keon
16. Gavin
17. Tyler
18. Kira
19. Ari
20. Jason
21. Keon
22. Kira
23. Gavin
24. Tyler
25. Ari
26. Jason
27. Keon
28. Kira
29. Gavin
30. Tyler
31. Ari
32. Kira
33. Jason
34. Keon
35. Gavin
36. Tyler
37. Ari
38. Kira
39. Jason
40. Kira
41. Ari
Afterword
Acknowledgments
Also by Ames Mills
About the Author

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 AUTHORS NOTE

Welcome back to Forest Grove! This is part one of a duet and will end on a
cliffhanger. This story will follow Ari, Tyler, Keon, Gavin, Jason, and Kira.

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 WARNINGS

Content and trigger warnings include: murder, assault, explicit sex scenes,
mentions of past trauma, mentions of sex trafficking, mentions of hurt
children, virgin FMC, group sex scenes, mf, mm, mmm, mmmm,
mmmmmf
PS: Mom, *sigh*, I don’t know why we have to keep having these
conversations. This book will make you feel some type of way, and it won’t
be the fun way.

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 1

ARI

I
’ve given a lot of thought to how I would die. Gunned down trying to
take down a drug kingpin, blown up while on a stakeout, hit by a
fucking bus, but never by a pissed-off guy half my size holding a gun on
me thinking I’m fucking his wife.
I hold up my hands, placating him even though I know I can quickly
disarm him. “Man, I don’t know what you think is going on here, but I’m
not sleeping with her.” The ‘her’ in question is an operative I had on a case
with me from a few years back. She called saying she had news that the
case we worked on may not be over, so I came to check it out. Now I have
this dude pointing a gun at my face with shaky hands. “We were just
talking.”
“I knew you were cheating on me!” he yells at Michaela, and she sighs.
“You’re always gone and won’t ever tell me where you are! Is this him?”
I glance at her from the corner of my eye and can tell she’s struggling
with what to say. He obviously doesn’t know who she really is, and I’m not
going to be the asshole that he finds out from. “Put the gun down,” she says
quietly. “I’m not sleeping with him.”
“Liar!” He pushes the gun into my face, and that snaps me into action. I
grab his wrist and twist it while grabbing the gun. I’m already releasing the
clip before he realizes what happened. “Who the hell are you?”
“I’m the guy that’s going to give you some advice. First, talk to your
wife. Second, never hold a gun like that. It makes you look like a douche.
Third, the next time you pull a gun on me, I won’t be as gentle.” I turn to
Michaela and hand her the gun. “I’m going to go. Call me if you hear
anything else.”
I leave the living room, and when I walk past him, he gives me a wide
berth, making me smile. I have to give him points for pulling the gun on me
in the first place, though. I slide into my truck and shut the door. As soon as
I pull onto the main road, my phone rings, Tyler’s name rolling across the
screen. I never know what I’m getting into when he calls, so with a sigh, I
slide to answer.
“What?” I bark.
“Where are you? We’re supposed to go to High Flyer tonight.”
“Do you need me to hold your goddamn hand? I can meet you there.”
“No, because you’ll be a little bitch and won’t show up. Where did you
go anyway?”
“None of your damn business.”
“Holy shit, you need to get laid, you grumpy fucker.”
“I’m really not in the mood for your shit, Tyler.”
“You never are. What the hell is wrong with you?” Everything.
“Nothing. I’ll see you at High Flyer.”
I disconnect the call and roll my neck to relieve some tension. Since
Axel and his team found Chelsea over a year ago, most of the work was left
to my crew and me. I'm not blaming them for lying low; I’m happy as hell
for them. But it means we’re always on the road, fighting the bad guys,
never knowing if we’ll make it home or not. The last couple of missions
have worn on my guys, and we just need a fucking break, especially Gavin.
He’s new to the team and damn good, but this last mission messed with his
head.
We were working on a human trafficking case and thought it was just a
rescue mission of three adult women. What we found was twelve women
and six kids. Most of them were severely ill, and the condition they were
left in will be ingrained in our minds. Gavin took it the hardest, and he
hasn’t been right since we got back. He refuses to talk about it, swearing
that he’s fine, but I know that haunted look in his eye. It means he has
nightmares about it every night and thinks about it all day. I was there once,
too.
I pull into the parking lot at High Flyer and shove my truck into park.
Tyler, Keon, and Gavin are already here, waiting for me, and all I want to
do is turn around and go home. Knowing Tyler will just come to track me
down, I shove my door open and walk into the bar. They’re sitting at the bar
talking to the bartender, Jason.
I slide onto the stool beside Keon, and Jason is already filling my
scotch. When he slides it to me, I wink, making him blush. It’s become my
favorite game to play.
“You actually decided to show up, Gramps?” Tyler asks, leaning around
Gavin’s arm.
“Eat shit and die, Tyler.” I down my drink and set it back on the bar.
Jason refills it and leans his hip against the side of the bar.
“Everything okay?” he asks. “You haven’t been around much.”
“Did you miss me, Sweet cheeks?” Just like I suspected, his blush
deepens.
Jason runs a hand through his dark blond hair and licks his lips
nervously. “I was just worried.”
I tilt my head to the side, studying him. Ever since we found this place
because of Chelsea, we have hung out a lot. Which means we’ve gotten to
know Jason. He’s always smiling, knows our order before we say a word,
and he’s easy to talk to. And if I quit lying to myself, he’s also easy to look
at. He’s small for a guy but not overly skinny. His green eyes stand out
against his pale skin, and his lips are full. I’ve always been secure enough
to admit a man was attractive, but that’s as far as it’s ever gone. The closest
I’ve ever been to another man was watching Keon fuck one, but that was
after too many scotches.
I cross my arms on the bar, putting me closer to him. “You were
worried, huh? Is that it?”
His eyes flash down to my lips and back to my face. “Yeah.” His voice
cracks, and I grin.
“Liar.”
“Grandpa!” Tyler calls out. “Stop making Jason uncomfortable.”
I flip Tyler the middle finger but don’t take my eyes off Jason.
Something about today has made me want to push him to see how he’ll
respond to me. Do I want him to respond to me? “Do I make you
uncomfortable?”
“A little,” he admits. “But in a good way.” With a smile, he heads
toward the stock room in the back, and I watch him until he disappears.
 I’ve been curious about him since day one, so what would be the harm
in finding out if the harmless flirting could be more? I get up from the stool
and go toward the bathrooms until the guys aren’t paying attention and take
a detour. I push open the stock room door and shut it behind me. Jason’s
head snaps up, and I cross my arms over my chest, leaning against it. “How
do I make you uncomfortable?”
His eyes widen. “I didn’t mean to offend you.”
“You didn’t. I’m just curious.”
He goes back to stacking boxes, avoiding eye contact with me. “Besides
the fact that you’re fucking gorgeous and mysterious? You flirt a lot, and I
don’t understand what it means.”
“I don’t either.” He finally looks up, and I see the disappointment all
over his face. “But that doesn’t mean I don’t want to find out.” His mouth
forms a little ‘O’ when I step forward. “Do you want to see what this is?”
I take another step forward, and he stands up straight. I didn’t realize he
was that much shorter than my six-foot-three, but he is by at least five
inches. In this light, I can see the freckles that cover his nose and the scar
on the left side of his top lip. “I would be stupid to say no.”
That’s all the invitation I need. I grab the side of his face and press my
lips against his. He gasps into the kiss, and I press my advantage by
stroking his tongue with mine. I can feel the stubble from his jaw on my
palms, and it’s not a turn-off. I actually like the way it feels. With a groan, I
spin him around and walk him backward blindly until his back is against the
door. I press my body against his and deepen the kiss. His hands slide
around my back, and my body reacts. My hard cock presses against him,
and what sounds like a whimper escapes him. I pull back from the kiss and
start kissing his neck. He tilts his head to the side, giving me better access,
his breathing erratic. “I think that answers that question.”
“What question?” he pants when I suck on the pulse jumping in his
neck.
“Whether it was harmless or not.”
“Was it?”
“Not at all. Now all I can think about is having those pretty lips
wrapped around my cock.”
“Holy shit,” Jason breathes. “I’ve thought about it more than once.”
I pull back with a grin. “You’ve thought about me naked?”
“Fuck. That smile could make a nun sin.”
 “Do you want to sin with me, Sweet cheeks?”
He searches my face and finally nods. When I’m about to kiss him
again, someone bangs on the door. “Come on!” Keon yells. “Axel just
called a meeting!”
“I have to go,” I say, rubbing my thumb across his bottom lip. “I’ll see
you later.”
I reach out for the door handle, and Jason’s lips land back on me,
kissing me hard and fast. “I just needed to do that one more time.”
I lean down until my lips are at his ear. “Trust me. That will happen
plenty more times.”
Jason moves to the side, and I pull the door open. Keon gives me a
weird look. “What the fuck were you doing in there?”
“Jason needed help moving something. What did Axel want?”
“You’ve been acting weird as hell lately. What’s going on?”
I shake my head. “Nothing. Now tell me what Axel said.”
“He just said he had something for us.”
That’s just fucking great. We haven’t even had time to decompress from
the last goddamn mission. I jerk my head for Gavin and Tyler to follow us,
and we make our way to the parking lot.
Let’s see how many more ways he can attempt to get us killed.

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 2

TYLER

W
e pull in front of Axel and his family’s house, and I look at Gavin in
the passenger side seat, then Keon in the rearview mirror. They all
have the same resigned look that Ari had before we left High Flyer.
We’ve barely been home for two weeks, and he’s already planning on
sending us out again.
Ari bangs on my window, making me jump in the seat. I stab the button
to roll the window down with a glare. “What the fuck, asshole?”
“You were daydreaming. Let’s get this shit over with.”
Keon leans up between the seats, bracing his arms on the console, and
looks at Ari. “Before we go in there, I have a question. What were you
doing in the stockroom with Jason?”
“I told you I was helping him with something.”
“Wait,” I say, looking between Ari and Keon. “You were in a locked
room with Jason?”
“It wasn’t locked,” Ari grits out.
“Why is your face getting so red?” Gavin asks with a laugh.
Ari pulls his Glock from the holster and casually lays it on the door
facing Gavin. “We’ve already learned you aren’t indestructible.”
“This conversation doesn’t require a weapon threat,” Gavin says. “And
how come they can talk shit, but I can’t?”
“Because I haven’t figured out if I like you yet,” Ari answers. “Now,
let’s go.”
 He walks away before we can reply, and Keon starts laughing.
“Something was definitely going on when I knocked on that door.” We get
out of the car and go through the outside door that leads into the garage.
“Ari came out of there looking like he won the goddamn lottery.”
“Ari always has that look,” Gavin says.
“Not lately,” I reply. “He’s been more hostile than usual.”
“That’s because you push every button he has,” Keon points out.
“No. Well, I mean, yeah, I do. But this is different.”
“Maybe it’s because he’s human, and not everyone can pretend that
what we saw never happened,” Gavin barks and shoves into the house,
slamming the door in our faces.
“That’s not any better?” Keon asks.
I rake my hand through my hair and shake my head. “No. He won’t talk
to me, he has nightmares every night, and I’ve caught him more than once
just staring into space. This fucked him up. He won’t even talk to Ghost.”
When Gavin first started coming around, I was suspicious as fuck. I
thought for sure he had something to do with the shit happening with Axel.
When he got shot trying to protect Chelsea and Nolan, all of the suspicions
disappeared. We thought for sure he wasn’t going to make it, even the
doctors were shocked he survived, but it showed me how strong he is.
We’ve become close friends, and normally he’ll talk to me, but that mission
messed him up worse than any of them.
Keon opens the door to the house, and we follow the voices to Axel’s
office, where Ari is already sitting, and Gavin is brooding in the corner. I sit
to Ari’s left, and Keon sits on my other side.
Axel tosses a folder in front of Ari. “I have a mission for you guys.”
Ari looks at it and then back to Axel. “Where?”
“All of the information is in there,” Axel replies with a raised brow.
“When are you going to pick up some slack?” Gavin asks, and Keon
covers a laugh with a cough. I turn wide eyes to him, and he’s glaring back
at Axel. “We’ve been going non-fucking-stop. What have you done?”
Axel crosses his arms on the desk. “Do you have anything else to add,
Ace?” he asks between clenched teeth. Oh. This should be good.
“Yeah, I do, since no one else will.” Gavin pushes off the wall and
walks to stand in front of the desk. “You’ve been running the dogshit out of
us while you sit in your fucking fortress. Do you realize what we just got
back from?”
 “If you can’t handle it, maybe this isn’t the job for you,” Axel answers,
leaning back in his chair. “You were warned before you joined.”
“I was never warned that I’d have to see dying kids!” Gavin yells, his
blue eyes wild. “Don’t treat me like I’m fucking soft. Any normal goddamn
person would be bothered by that, and if you want to make fun of me for it,
you can fuck all the way off.”
“I don’t think he was,” Ari soothes. “We’re all struggling with that.”
“Then why am I the only one who still sees them every time I close my
eyes?! I can’t fucking sleep!”
Axel stands from his chair, and Ari jumps from his, standing in front of
Gavin. “I’m not going to do anything,” Axel scoffs, then looks at Gavin.
“I’m sorry. I’m not making light of what you saw. We’ve all been here, Gav.
We’ve all had our firsts, and they’re never easy. I didn’t realize how hard I
was working you guys. I can send Kai and Sean to take care of it. No big
deal.”
“I get you want time with your family,” Ari says. “But I want to make
sure mine comes home, and at this rate, one of us won’t. We just need time
to deal with what happened.”
“You should have said something,” Axel replies.
“Yeah, I should have,” Ari answers. Gavin storms from the room, and
Ari slumps back into his chair, looking at the ceiling. “I don’t know what
else to do to help him.”
“It’s going to take time,” Axel says. “You know how this shit goes. Take
him home and know I won’t bother you guys for a while.”
“We can still work,” I add. “But can you keep us away from trafficking
and near death, at least?”
Axel laughs. “That I can do.”
“Where’s everyone at?” I ask.
“Chelsea is out with Kai and Sean. Cole is out with Nolan. I had work
to catch up on and didn’t want to lock them up in the house all weekend.”
We talk for a bit longer before Ari says that it’s time to go. He walks
straight to his truck without a word and leaves us standing there. We climb
into my car, and Gavin won’t even look at us. Gavin isn’t the only one with
a problem. The only thing is, I think Gavin will eventually get over it. Ari
will let the shit fester until his head explodes. I need to find out what the
fuck is going on with him and Jason. Maybe Jason can help him in a way
that we can’t. I’ve seen Ari flirting with him, but that’s just how Ari is.
There’s something different about this, though. Ari hangs on his every word
and seems almost mesmerized by Jason. I’ve never seen him like this,
which makes me curious as hell.
“What do you think is going on with Jason and Ari?” I ask Keon.
“I don’t think anything is yet. I interrupted something tonight, so it’s
well on its way.”
“Is Ari bi?” Gavin asks, finally turning from the window.
“No?” Keon laughs. “I have no idea. He’s been around a few times
when I’ve been with a guy, but he’s never joined.”
“I think Ari railing anyone will help with a lot of his anger issues,” I
joke.
“You shutting the fuck up will help with all his anger issues,” Gavin
throws in.
“Speaking of shutting the fuck up,” Keon starts, “when did you grow
balls big enough to talk shit to Axel?”
“Today, apparently. I can’t stomach another mission right now, and once
I opened my mouth, it all came out.”
“You know you don’t have to go on all of them, right?” I ask gently.
“We’d never judge you for staying behind.”
“I don’t want to stay behind. I love being a part of this team. It made my
life actually mean something besides throwing money at trafficking
victims.” Gavin flexes his hand, something that he does all the time. It’s the
arm that was fucked up after he got shot, and he still has problems with it. I
don’t even think he realizes that he does it. “I’ll be fine.”
“You were about to be roadkill,” I say. “Talking shit to Axel like you
have nine damn lives.”
Gavin laughs, and it makes me relax a little. “If this would have been a
year ago, he would have shot me on the spot.”
“If this were a year ago, he would have shot you before the first word
left your mouth.”
“True that,” Keon says. “What are we going to do now?”
“We can go back to High Flyer,” I suggest.
“I’m down. I could use a drink or twelve,” Gavin agrees.
“I’m good with that,” Keon adds.
They can have their drink.
I’m going to find out what’s going on with Ari and Jason.
OceanofPDF.com
 3

JASON

I
’m just getting my heart rate under control when I watch Tyler, Gavin,
and Keon walk back into High Flyer. I find myself searching for the
reason my heart was racing…Ari. I can feel the disappointment when he
doesn’t appear.
I can still remember the first time I saw him, all black hair and blue
eyes. Ari’s well-built and tall, commanding a room as soon as he walks in. I
see a lot of men owning a bar, but I’ve never had one take my breath away
just from a simple smile. Then there’s whatever the fuck happened in the
stockroom.
Ari’s a flirt, and he enjoys making me blush, but that’s all I ever took it
as. When I ran to the stockroom tonight, I just needed to remind myself that
he wasn’t actually interested. He blew that idea all to hell with that mind-
blowing fucking kiss.
I fill the guys’ drinks and have them waiting on the bar when they slide
onto the stools. Tyler leans forward, bracing his elbows on the bar and
cradling his chin in his hands. “I have a question.”
“Tyler,” Keon warns. “You said you would drop it.”
“No. You said I should drop it. I never agreed.” Tyler crosses his arms
and leans closer. “What’s the deal with you and Ari?”
I control my face and prop my hip against the bar. “Deal?” I don’t want
to say anything and accidentally out Ari. They all seem impossibly close,
and from my observation, Ari’s straight. Until that hot as fuck kiss. “There
is no deal.”
“So, you weren’t playing hide the hotdog in the stockroom?”
“What the fuck is wrong with you?” Gavin laughs. “Hide the hotdog?”
“I’m trying to be discreet,” Tyler huffs, and I can’t help but laugh.
“Okay. Were you and Ari fucking back there?”
“No.” That answer comes out confident, because we weren’t.
“Was Ari showing you his big ol’ dick?”
“How do you know his dick is big?” I ask, turning it around on him.
They’ve been coming in long enough that I know mostly how to handle
Tyler.
“We’ve worked together for a long time. Sometimes you just see things.
But you didn’t answer my question.” I’m dying to know what they actually
do for work. Chelsea and her guys are always secretive about it, too, but it
isn’t my place to ask.
“No,” I answer.
“Then why the hell were you guys in a closed room together?”
“Careful, Tyler, you sound a little jealous,” I tease, walking away to take
more orders. I can feel his eyes on me and choose to avoid going back over
there. My poker face is only so good.
Once everyone is taken care of, I decide to head to the stockroom to
grab a few things. As soon as the door shuts, his cologne hits me first, and
then he’s pressing me against the door. “Ari,” I breathe.
“Hm,” he hums, running his nose up my neck. “I was hoping you’d
come back here.”
“How long have you been waiting?” When the hell did he even get back
here?
“Long enough.” His kisses up my neck to my ear, making me shiver.
“Your friends are out there.”
“I know, but I didn’t come here for them.”
“Tyler’s been asking questions.”
“Of course he has,” Ari says dryly. “What did you tell him?”
I pull back so I can see Ari’s face. “Nothing. I didn’t know what to tell
him.”
“Keon has a big fucking mouth.” Ari goes back to kissing my neck and
makes a noise suspiciously close to a growl when I pull away.
“I won’t be your secret gay fuck, Ari.”
 “I just want some time to enjoy you before they get involved.”
“Maybe this is a bad idea,” I say, ducking away from him. I can’t think
when his body is against mine. “I don’t get involved with straight men
wanting to experiment. You obviously know that I’m gay, but that doesn’t
mean you can use me.”
Ari leans against the door, crossing his arms over his chest, making me
want to run from the room. “Is that what you think of me? I’m not asking
for your hand in marriage, but I’m also not an asshole. Don’t you think I
would have asked Keon if I just wanted to experiment?” I know Keon is
bisexual. We’ve talked about it before, and that thought never crossed my
mind. “You’re right. Maybe this is a bad idea.”
He turns to leave, and I’m moving before I even register it. I slide
between him and the door, putting my hands on his chest. “I’m not asking
for a commitment. I just don’t want to have to pretend nothing has
happened.”
“I’ll go out there right now and tell them I’m about to eat your ass alive.
Is that what you want?” Ari pushes closer until his lips are hovering above
mine. “You want them to know that I’m the reason there’s a smile on that
pretty face, Sweet cheeks?”
Ari doesn’t give me a chance to answer. His lips land on mine, hot and
hard. His kiss overwhelmed me before, but it’s nothing like this one. The
first one was to tease. This one is to mark me. His tongue is expertly
stroking mine, and I’m so fucking lost to the feeling. He pulls back, and his
hand slides down my hip. “I have to go back out there,” I say regretfully.
“I’m the only one working tonight.”
“I know, and I don’t like it.”
“I can handle myself. I’ve owned this bar for a long time.”
“A lot of bad shit happens that we can’t predict.” With that cryptic
remark, he steps back. “I’ll be waiting for you to get off.”
“Why?”
“So we don’t have to fool around in a stockroom. Take me home with
you.” That wasn’t a request; that was a demand, and I have a big enough
crush on him that I’m not going to deny it.
“Okay. We close in about two hours.”
“Perfect. I’ll see you out there.” With a grin, he walks to the back of the
room, where the alley door is. He disappears, and my mouth drops open.
How the hell did he get through that door? It has a code lock on it.
 With a shake of my head, I go back to the bar, and Tyler’s eyes flash to
me. “Jason! I seem to be out of liquid!”
“Did you have a stroke?” Gavin asks Tyler. “First, hide the hotdog, and
now you’re out of liquid?”
“Don’t judge me, asshole,” Tyler answers, waving his glass for me. “I
need more, por favor.” I fill his glass and sit it in front of him. “Gracias.”
Gavin and Tyler start bickering, so I tend to my other customers. I’m
just filling the last order, when Ari walks in the front door. My eyes stay
locked on him until I hear Tyler laughing obnoxiously. Ari slaps him on the
back of the head and, with a wink, sits down at the bar. “Hey, Sweet
cheeks.”
“Goddamnit, Ari,” Tyler says, rubbing his head. “That hurt.”
“Good. It was meant to.”
“Do you want your scotch?” I ask Ari, hoping my voice is steady.
“Nah. I need a clear head tonight.” I don’t miss the hidden meaning, and
neither do the other guys. Keon looks at me and then at Ari.
“For what?” he asks. “We don’t have anything going on.”
“We don’t, but I do.”
“What?” Tyler demands. “To go home and scowl at the fucking wall?”
Ari gives Tyler a hard look. “Do you ever just shut up?”
“No.”
“That’s the fucking truth,” Keon laughs.
“You guys are going to give me a complex, and I’ll end up mute.”
“If only,” Gavin adds.
“You know what, Gavin? Slob on my knob.” Gavin gives Tyler a
disgusted look, and the rest of us lose it laughing.
The rest of the night passes with them throwing jabs at each other and
Tyler trying to find more creative ways to say suck my dick. Ari’s eyes stay
on me the entire time, and I can feel it like a caress. When I flip the lights
on for last call, Tyler acts like he’s melting.
“There is something seriously wrong with you,” Keon declares.
“Let’s go so he can close up,” Ari demands. “Charge Tyler’s card.”
“Hey! Why do I have to pay?”
“Because you’re a pain in the ass, and he deserves restitution from you.
Off your ass and on your feet.”
“Whatever, Grandpa,” Tyler grumbles, scribbling his name on the
receipt. “Keep talking shit, and I’ll break your hip.”
 Ari moves faster than humanly possible and wraps his arm around
Tyler’s neck, squeezing. “One of these days, I’m going to pop your head
right off your fucking shoulders.”
“Just don’t mess up my face,” Tyler wheezes. “It’s my best asset.”
“I don’t know,” Keon says, slapping Tyler hard on the ass. “This is
pretty nice, too.”
“All I am is a piece of meat to you,” Tyler responds.
“That and an available mouth,” Gavin retorts. By this point, I’m
laughing so hard that my stomach hurts.
Ari drags Tyler from the bar, and the rest of them call out goodbyes,
following behind them. I go about my normal tasks of closing everything
down, but my mind is on who’s waiting outside for me. I shut off all the
lights and lock the front door. I exit through the alley where I park, key the
code in to lock up, and turn around. Ari is leaning against the side of his
black truck with his hands stuck in his pockets. I’ve had his tongue down
my throat multiple times, and now I’m a ball of nerves because no one
should ever be that sexy.
“Hey, Sweet cheeks,” he calls out with that grin. “Need a ride?”
“Is that some sort of innuendo?” I joke. He surprises me when he
pushes away from the passenger door and opens it for me, helping me in.
“Aren’t you a gentleman?”
“Trust me, what I have in mind isn’t very gentlemanly.” He shuts the
door before I can answer and goes to his side. He climbs in and shuts the
door before looking at me. “Before we leave this parking lot, are you sure
this is what you want? You can say no.”
“Why does that sound like a warning?”
“Because it is. Once I have you naked in front of me, that’s it.” Ari fires
the truck up and jerks into drive. He pulls from the lot and onto the main
road. I give him directions to my apartment, which isn’t far away. “I’m not
an easy man.”
“I don’t want easy. Are you sure this is what you want?”
“Yes. You wouldn’t be in this truck if I weren’t.”
We drive a few minutes to my apartment in silence, and by the time he
shuts the truck off, my heart is pounding out of my chest. He slides from the
truck and comes to open my door again. I lead him inside and barely have
the door shut before his lips are on mine. His kiss overwhelms all my
senses, and my hands are roaming everywhere. “I want to see you,” I
whisper against his lips.
Ari pulls back and jerks his shirt over his head, letting me see his naked
torso in all its glory. He’s got deep golden skin, well-defined muscles, and a
happy trail disappearing into his jeans. “Your turn,” Ari says gruffly.
“Just a warning, I look nothing like that,” I laugh, gesturing to his chest.
I pull my shirt off, and his eyes lazily climb from the tops of my jeans to my
face.
“You look better.” Ari kicks his boots off and advances on me like a
predator. I back up toward the couch, and he presses against me until I sit
down. He follows until I’m on my back, and his big body is stretching over
the top of mine. “So much fucking better.”
Ari knocks my knees apart and lowers himself between my legs. His
hard cock settles against mine, and I no longer wonder if he’s truly turned
on by me. I raise my hips and rub against him, making the most delicious
groan leave his mouth. “I want to taste you.”
“Jesus fuck, Sweet cheeks. You can’t say shit like that.”
“Why?” I rub against him again, and his hand clamps onto my hip.
“Because just the thought of you having your mouth on me is driving
me crazy.”
“Please, Ari.”
“Fuck. I like hearing you say my name.” He starts moving against me,
mimicking a fucking motion. “You going to beg for my cock?” Ari starts
kissing my neck, working his way down my chest. “Beg me, Sweet
cheeks.”
“Holy shit. Please.”
Ari stands beside the couch, and his hands go to his jeans. I wait with
my breath held as he pushes them from his hips along with his boxer briefs.
He kicks them the rest of the way off and starts stroking himself. “Well, he
wasn’t lying about you being huge.” He’s long and thick, with veins
running down the shaft that I want to trace with my tongue.
Ari’s stroking pauses, and he raises a brow. “Who’s he?”
“Tyler.”
“What the fuck?” Ari laughs. “That asshole doesn’t know what my dick
looks like.” Ari’s hands go to my jeans and starts undoing them. “Are we
really going to talk about him right now?”
 “No,” I gasp when he jerks them down my hips and off my feet, leaving
me naked in front of him.
“Goddamn,” he groans, running his hand down my cock. “So pretty.”
“Are you sure you’ve never done this before?”
“Damn sure.” He jerks me to my feet, grabs my hand, and pulls me to
my room. He stretches out on his back, still slowly stroking his cock.
“Come taste me, Sweet cheeks.”
With pleasure. I get on my knees beside him and grab the base of his
cock. Licking around the head, I move my hand, stroking him, figuring out
what he likes. His breath catches when I slide my mouth further down and
tighten my hand. Ari sinks his fingers into my hair and pushes on my head.
Moving my hand, I take his cock into my mouth as far as I can.
His loud groan is cut short by a phone ringing from the living room. It
stops and immediately starts again. “Fucking hell,” Ari grumbles. “I have to
get that.” I pull back with a pout, and he pecks my lips. “Two seconds.”
He jumps from the bed, and I watch his tight ass on the way from my
room. He’s gone for a few minutes, and I can hear him quietly talking on
the phone. He comes back, a look of regret on his face. “What’s wrong?”
“That was my boss. I have to go.”
“Now?”
“Yeah,” he sighs, suddenly looking tired. “Can I see you later?”
“I guess.” I lay back in the bed, throwing a sheet over my bottom half.
Disappointment doesn’t cover what I feel right now. Was this his way of
getting out of it?
Ari comes over to the bed and leans down until his face is right in front
of mine. “I don’t want to leave you, so please don’t think that.” How the
hell did he do that? “It’s just with my job; I can’t ignore a direct order.”
“What is your job?”
“That’s a conversation for another time.” He kisses me slowly and lays
his forehead against mine. “I’ll message you.”
I watch Ari walk into the living room and don’t breathe until I hear the
door shut behind him. Was he serious about not wanting to leave me? Ari
doesn’t seem like the type who would lead someone on, so I need to give
him the benefit of the doubt since the other alternative is too depressing.
With a groan, I roll from the bed and gather my stuff from the living
room. I’m just climbing back into bed when my phone pings with a
message. I dig it from my pants pocket and can’t wipe the stupid smile from
my face when I see Ari’s name on the screen. He made me exchange
numbers when he found out I sometimes worked the bar alone.
Ari: I told you I would message you.
Jason: So, you did. Are you texting and driving?
Ari: No. I’m still outside your apartment. Do you work tonight?
Jason: Yes.
Ari: I’ll come by, and maybe we can have a redo.
Jason: I’d like that.
Ari: Me too. More than you know. Talk to you later.
Jason: Later.
I plug my phone in and settle into the pillows.
Only to dream about what would have happened if he didn’t get that
phone call.

OceanofPDF.com
 4

GAVIN

I
had just fallen asleep when we got the nine-one-one phone call from
Axel. So when we walk into his office, I’m already pissy.
“Where’s Ari?” Axel asks.
“I don’t know. He wasn’t home when we left,” Tyler answers with a
yawn. “What’s going on?”
“We can wait until he gets here. You don’t know where he was?”
Keon, Tyler, and I exchange a look. “I have my guesses, so he should be
here soon,” Keon says.
Ari comes in seconds later and flops down in front of Axel’s desk. “This
better be fucking good.”
“Where were you?” Axel demands.
“None of your business. What’s up?”
“I need help with an extraction. I got an agent in distress signal from
Baxter and Roland.”
“You’ve been sending them on missions?” Keon asks. “Since when?”
“They called a couple of weeks ago wanting to work, so I gave it to
them. We need to move.”
Axel leaves the room without another word, leaving us to follow behind
him. We pull the gear from Tyler’s trunk and start strapping our vests on.
When I tighten the last strap, I can feel my heart rate skyrocket.
“Just breathe,” Tyler whispers. “It’s just an extraction.”
“That’s what he said the last time.”
 Tyler grabs my arm and pulls me to the back of the garage. “We’re just
going in to give Baxter and Roland an out.” He slings the strap of an AK
around my neck and hands me my thigh holster. I shove my Glock into it
and my knife that was a gift from Ghost. “You’ve done these a thousand
times.”
“Got it.” I push my shoulders back, and he slaps my arm.
“Good. After we’re done, we can grill Ari about where he was.”
“Do you ever let anything go?”
“No. What fun would that be?” Tyler hooks his hand on the back of my
head and pulls our foreheads together. “I know this shit has been tough,
Gav, but we’ll get through it.”
I nod because words are locked in my throat. I knew going in this would
be rough. They never hid that fact from me, and I was fine until that last
mission.
“Let’s roll out!” Axel calls out. “Gavin, you’re with me.” He climbs into
his truck, and I look at Tyler in alarm.
“Have fun,” Tyler laughs, walking over to Ari’s truck.
I get into Axel’s truck, and he pulls out of the garage without a word.
I’m man enough to admit that Axel scares the shit out of me. I glance at him
and sigh. “I’m sorry for what I said.”
“Don’t be. But I need you to understand that just because you guys are
always on missions doesn’t mean we aren’t, and I have other teams now.
Yes, we took a backseat for Ari’s team because I thought you guys could
handle it.”
“We can handle it.”
“I know you can. But I should have seen the strain that trafficking case
put on you.”
“I’m fine.”
“Don’t lie to me. That would fuck anyone up. You need to talk to
someone about it, Gavin.”
“I’ll be fine.” I turn to look out the window, ignoring Axel's hard look.
I don’t want to talk about it. I want to forget everything that I saw that
day. But I can’t with the constant nightmares. Hell, I’m even seeing them
when I’m awake. Everyone who’s ever been involved in human trafficking
should be punished and not thrown in jail. They all need to fucking die for
what they do to these people.
 Axel’s phone ringing breaks me from my thoughts, and he stabs the
button on the steering wheel to answer. “Talk to me, Bax.”
“We’re pinned down on the west side of the gate. It’s our only exit
route.”
“Your whole team with you?”
“Yeah.”
“Hold on. I’m going to connect Ari.” I’m already pushing buttons on the
dash to get Ari in on the call. “Ari, we need a distraction to get them away
from the west side.”
“A distraction, you say?” Keon asks, and I can see him grinning from
here. “I got you.”
“Okay,” Axel answers. “Make it big. The rest of us will go in for the
extraction. Bax, keep your head down.”
“Got it.” The call disconnects, and Axel stomps on the gas.
He roars into a wide spot fifteen minutes later, with Ari pulling in
behind us. I roll my neck and climb from the truck, clutching my AK like a
goddamn lifeline. Keon pulls a case from the back of Ari’s truck and
disappears into the woods.
“Grenade launcher?” I ask Tyler.
“Axel said make it big,” Tyler answers. “Nothing says big like blowing
up half a building.”
“You guys are like fucking kids about those grenade launchers. I’m
pretty sure Cole would sleep with his if Chelsea would let him,” Axel
laughs. “Alright, let’s move. Comms check.” We all say our all clear, and
Keon cackles into comms.
“These guys are about to have a very bad day,” Keon explains. We start
moving toward the compound, and I let my mind clear, focusing on the task
in front of me. “On my count.”
“I think the boom will be enough of a signal,” Ari says dryly.
“Come on, Ari. Let me be great,” Keon answers. “You should have let
me bring a tank.”
“Because nothing says suspicious like stolen government property,” I
joke.
“They left them parked unattended with the keys in them,” Keon retorts.
“Probably because no one would be brave or stupid enough to steal
them,” Tyler replies.
“They hadn’t met me yet,” Keon answers. “You guys in place?”
 “Close enough,” Axel says. “Go.”
Seconds later, a boom splits the air, and fire shoots above the treetops.
We take off running toward the west side of the building and open fire on
the guards spilling out. We get about a foot from the gate when we finally
see Baxter and his team. I haven’t met any of them besides Baxter and
Roland.
“You guys good?” Axel asks.
“Yeah. Our intel was bad. There were at least forty more guards than
what they said,” Baxter answers.
“Keon, destroy the rest and meet us back at the trucks,” Axel orders.
“With pleasure,” he purrs, making me shake my head.
We go back toward the truck, and the next boom lights up the night.
When we get to the trucks, we start taking our gear off. “Ace, this is Asher,
Zeke, and Koa. We picked them up on the last recruitment mission,” Axel
introduces, and I shake their hands.
“Ghost’s brother?” Asher asks, and I nod. “He’s a good dude. Helped
me out of a jam a few years back. He said you were a part of the Saviors
now.”
“Yeah, for a little over a year.”
“Tell him I said he still owes me twenty bucks,” Asher laughs.
“Alright,” Axel says once Keon gets back to the truck. “We need to find
out why they gave us bad intel.”
“We’re on it,” Roland answers, looking more than a little pissed off.
Axel shrugs. “Sounds good to me. Let me know what you find out. Do
you need a ride back to your truck?”
“Nah,” Koa answers. “We’re just over the ridge.”
They say their goodbyes, and I climb into the backseat of Ari’s truck.
Tyler leans up between the seats as soon as we’re back on the main road.
“Where were you?” he asks Ari.
“None of your business.”
“Were you tickling Jason’s pickle?”
“What the fuck is wrong with you?” I laugh. “Where is this shit coming
from?”
“Shhh,” Tyler says. “I’m interrogating.”
“All you’re doing is pissing me off,” Ari retorts. “Sit back and shut up.”
“Look, I’m not judging you. Jason’s hot. Maybe a little skinny for my
tastes, but I’d still bury my dick⁠—”
 Ari slams on the brakes, making Tyler almost fly between the seats. He
jerks over to the side of the road and flicks open his knife. “I’ve had enough
of your shit, like years of it. Unless you want to walk home, I’d suggest you
shut. The. Fuck. Up.”
“I think I hit a nerve,” Tyler continues. “Was it the he’s too skinny or the
fact that I said I’d fuck him?”
Ari moves, but Keon is faster and shoves Tyler back into his seat.
“Look, I really don’t want to wash your blood out of this truck again. So
stop,” Keon says.
“Again?” I ask.
“Ari stabbed me,” Tyler answers.
Ari whips back onto the road and looks at me in the rearview mirror.
“He did get stabbed, but it wasn’t by me.”
“Don’t lie to him. He needs to know what happens when we disobey
you.”
Keon turns around in the seat and punches Tyler in the arm. “Stop
putting bullshit in his head.”
“Trust me, I don’t believe a word he says.”
“That hurts, Ace. Like really hurts.” Tyler crosses his arms in a huff and
looks out of his window. Ari finally laughs at his antics, and Tyler looks like
he won the lottery. We’ve been off since that mission, and it feels like we’re
finally getting back to normal.
We spend the rest of the ride joking around, and I go straight to my
room when we get back. I strip out of my clothes and collapse on the bed,
hoping that sheer exhaustion will keep the nightmares away.

“G avin !” I sit up in bed, covered in sweat, wildly looking around. “You

were having a nightmare.”
I shake my head, trying to clear it, but all I see are the emaciated women
and children. There’s blood everywhere and dead bodies. “Shit,” I groan
when my breathing speeds up.
Tyler sits on the edge of the bed. “Breathe, man.”
“Turn the light on,” I gasp, and he reaches over, turning on my lamp.
He’s in nothing but boxers, and his reddish brown hair is disheveled from
sleep. “I’m fine. You can go.”
“Will you stop that shit?” Tyler barks, surprising me. “You aren’t fine,
and it’s okay not to be fine. Stop bottling everything up.”
“What do you want me to say?!” I yell, exploding from the bed in front
of him. “That I’m fucked up?!”
“You aren’t fucked up, Gav,” Tyler says softly. “You saved lives that
day.”
“They might be alive, but they’ll be messed up for life because we can’t
stop this shit.”
“We’re trying. That has to count for something.”
“It doesn’t. Get out of my room.”
“No. We’re getting somewhere.”
“The only place you’re getting is out.”
Tyler pounces before I have a chance to protect myself. He wraps his
arms around my neck and slings me to the bed, keeping me in a chokehold.
“I said no.” He squeezes harder when I struggle against him.
“What are you going to do?” I wheeze. “Cuddle with me?”
“If that’s what it takes to help you get a full night’s sleep, you can bet
your ass I will. You have to be the big spoon, though. I like to feel dainty.”
That shocks a laugh out of me, which I’m sure was his intention. He
feels the fight leave my body and relaxes his hold. “I don’t know what to
do.”
“Take it one day at a time.” He pops a sloppy kiss on my cheek. “This is
a start.” Tyler lets me get up and slide back into the bed. “Do you want me
to stay? I wasn’t joking about that part.”
I take a deep breath and swallow my pride. “Yeah.”
“Cool,” Tyler shrugs, turning the lamp off. He settles against the pillows
on his back and I lay beside him. “This doesn’t make you weak. Sometimes,
you just need to know someone’s there to keep the nightmares away.”
“Thank you,” I say gruffly.
“No thanks needed. Now shut up and go to sleep. I need my beauty
rest.”
With a laugh, I roll over with my back to him. For all Tyler’s teasing
bullshit, he’s the only one who knows how to handle me. He knows when I
need stern or when I need jokes. Keon and Ari try, but they seem to be
struggling through this, too, just a little better than me.
 I let Tyler’s even breathing lull me to a sense of comfort and close my
eyes.
Tomorrow has to be a better day.

OceanofPDF.com
 5

KEON

I
shut the door to Gavin’s room after checking on him like I always do.
Gavin is on his stomach, and Tyler is on his side with his hand resting on
Gavin’s back. I hear him screaming at night, but I also hear Tyler bust
ass to get to him. What Gavin doesn’t know is Tyler sleeps in there every
night now, just in the chair in the corner instead of the bed. I want to help
Gavin. We all do, but we can’t until he opens up about everything.
I make my way downstairs to find Ari in the kitchen making coffee.
Deciding now is the time to talk to him, I slide onto the stool at the kitchen
island.
“Talk to me, Ari.”
Ari glances at me and then back to the coffee pot. “Nothing to talk
about.”
“Bullshit. You’ve been on edge for weeks, and that’s not like you.”
He slams his mug down harder than necessary and pours coffee into it.
“Maybe I’m just sick of this shit. I’ve been doing this for a long goddamn
time, and I’m tired of always showing up too late to these missions.”
“Is this about Avina?”
“No. Drop it, Keon.”
“For fucks sake,” I sigh. “Look, we stay on Gavin to talk and now
you’re clamming up?”
He turns around and leans back against the counter. “That’s the worst
trafficking case that I’ve seen since…her. It brought back a lot of old stuff I
thought I’d dealt with.”
“You know shit like this doesn’t have a timeline. It can come back to
bite you in the ass at any given time. We’re doing everything we can to save
these people, Ari.”
“Are we? It’s always a little too late.”
“We go as soon as we have the intel. We can’t be everywhere at once.
What did Michaela have to say?”
“Oh, I forgot about that,” Ari chuckles. “Besides her piss-ant husband
pulling a gun on me, not much was said.”
“Wait? What?”
He pulls a stool out on the other side and sits down. “He came home
while I was there and accused us of fucking. I have to give him points for
flair when he aimed a gun in my face. Anyway, you remember the Dimarco
case?” I nod. It was a fucked up drug smuggling case that went way deeper
than that. “She said she got word that it might not be over. Someone might
be rising up to take over.”
“Did you tell Axel?”
“No. We’ll handle it if that’s the case, but it’s just rumors right now.”
“Can I ask you another question without you punching me in the face?”
“If it’s about Jason, no.” Ari’s always been able to read me like a book,
and I’m the same way with him until Jason. Ari flirts shamelessly with
everyone. He uses it to disarm people in the field or for fun. But something
about Jason has Ari acting differently. “I’m not ready to talk about it yet.”
“So there is something?”
Ari shrugs. “Yeah, and that’s all you need to know.”
“Just know that I’m here when you’re ready.”
“You aren’t going to question my motives since he’s gay and I’m not?”
“Are you questioning your motives?”
“No.”
“Then no. It’s a little shocking since you’ve never really shown an
interest in guys before.”
“There’s just something about him, Ke.”
“He’s innocent and not tainted by all the bloodshed.”
“That’s some of it.”
“Then go for it but don’t fuck him over. Jason seems like an awesome
dude.”
 “He is.” Ari checks the time on his phone and sips his coffee. “We have
a meeting with Axel in like ten minutes.”
I laugh. “We aren’t going to make it in time. You want me to wake up
Tyler and Gavin?”
Ari shakes his head and stands up. “Nah. Gavin needs the sleep, and
Tyler seems to be the only thing that calms him down.”
“You do know that Tyler sleeps in there every night, right?”
“Yeah. I might want to slit Tyler’s throat every day, but he’s good for
Gavin.”
Tyler might not know when to shut up, but he knows how to chase all
the darkness away.
I just hope he’s dealing with his own.

“Y ou want us to what ?” Ari asks Axel at the meeting. He flips through

the folder again and then hands it to me.
“You said you wanted to work but wanted less heavy missions. This is
perfect.”
“You want us to babysit a spoiled mafia princess?” I ask. “For fucking
Kane Lyubava?”
“We’ve never had any issues with Kane. And if you would keep reading
you would realize she’s not a spoiled princess. It’s not babysitting. It’s a
protection detail.”
“He reached out to you?”
“Yeah. Apparently, she wants a break from New York and wants to go to
school in California. He talked her into Forest Grove Community College
since it’s smaller. You can stay home and still work.”
I keep reading, and my skin crawls when I see what she’s been through.
Burns on over seventy-five percent of her body and extensive rehab. “What
happened to her?”
“When Kane’s dad was still in charge, his enemies set the house on fire,
thinking Kane and Blaze were in there. It was Kira. They trapped her in,
and by the time Kane got to her, it was almost too late. She spent the better
part of three years in a rehabilitation center for burn victims for rehab and
therapy. So you can see why he wants the best protecting her.”
 “Is she aware of this protection detail?” Ari asks.
“Yes, and she’s not happy.”
“That’s just great,” I say dryly. “Is she staying with us or a safe house?”
“She’s refusing both. She wants to stay on campus.”
“When does this start?”
“Next week when classes begin. He wants to meet the rest of the team
before then.”
“When?”
“He’s in California now. He was just waiting for my confirmation.”
“I’ll call and wake Tyler up,” I say, pulling my phone from my pocket.
His groggy voice answers, and I lay out what’s going on.
Tyler laughs and relays the message to Gavin. “This should be fun.”
“Kane wants to meet you and Gav.”
“Okay. We’ll be there in like an hour.”
Tyler disconnects the call, and Axel sends a message to Kane. After he’s
done, Axel lays his phone down and looks at Ari. “I’m going to ask you this
just because my wife is worried. What’s the deal with Jason?”
“How the fuck does she even know anything is going on?”
“Tyler has a big mouth.”
“Jesus Christ,” Ari mutters. “There is no deal, and I’m sick and fucking
tired of people nosing around in my business.”
Axel raises a brow. “That’s my wife you’re talking about, so unless you
want me to splatter your brains on the wall behind you, I suggest you adjust
your tone.”
“When there is something to tell, I’ll talk to Chelsea. Until then, I just
want everyone to back the fuck off.”
Ari gets up and storms from the room, making Axel look at me in
question. I shrug. “Let it go. You know this mission brought a lot of old shit
up, so he doesn’t need people questioning him constantly about Jason.”
“Chelsea’s just worried Jason’s going to get hurt. She’s known him for a
long time.”
“I get that, and I mean no disrespect, but it’s not up to her. Jason’s a
grown man making grown-man decisions. Ari’s different with him. I think it
will be good for Ari.”
“Does Ari even like men?”
“Did you?” I retort. “Things happen we can’t control, man. I’m sure you
never saw yourself with Nolan, but here you are.”
 Axel holds his hands up. “I get it. I’ll back off, but I can’t promise Chels
won’t shoot Ari if he hurts Jason.”
“I have no doubt,” I laugh.
We spend the rest of the time waiting, talking about nonsense. Tyler and
Gavin show up, and Kane arrives a few minutes later. We introduce
ourselves and Axel leads us all back to his office, gesturing in front of his
desk for Kane to sit. His second-in-command, Blaze, takes up the other
chair.
“Everything is in order, yes?” Kane asks, his Russian accent thick.
“Yeah. They’ll take shifts at the dorms until Kira is more comfortable
with them. Then they can use their place as a safe house if she wants.”
“We don’t have to explain what will happen if she gets hurt on your
watch, right?” Blaze asks, looking around the room. I’ve never been able to
put my finger on it, but there’s something very off about him. Cool dude,
but crazy eyes. “She’s important.”
“I can assure you we will do everything we can to keep her safe,” Ari
says. “We take our jobs very seriously. No matter how big or small they
might be.”
“I always thought the Saviors were a myth,” Blaze muses. “Alessa
Poletti speaks very highly of you.”
“We’re the best at what we do,” Axel says. “When would you like to
introduce Kira to the guys?”
“She refused to come,” Kane answers between clenched teeth.
“She doesn’t want to show up at a new school with a full security
detail,” I soothe. “I get it. Since we can’t be discreet, we’ll figure out how
to make it easier for her.”
“I appreciate that. Kira understands the danger of being a Lyubava.
She’s not stupid. She enrolled under an assumed name, but that doesn’t
guarantee protection. She just wants to try and live a normal life
independently. I can’t allow that, but I can grant her a reprieve from New
York.”
“At least they’re all hot,” Blaze laughs, earning a glare from Kane.
“What? At least she doesn’t have to look at a bunch of ugly-ass old men all
day.”
“Ari’s an ugly-ass old man,” Tyler throws in. I cover my mouth so I
don’t laugh when Ari takes a deep breath to compose himself. “We’ll make
sure she can still have fun.”
 “No one lays a finger on my sister,” Kane growls.
“They’ll be professional,” Axel assures him, giving us a warning look.
“They just don’t want her to feel like she’s in a prison.”
Kane nods but still doesn’t look happy. “She’ll meet them at her dorm.”
He stands up and buttons his suit jacket. “We need to get back to Jaxon and
Elijah.” Blaze and Kane shake everyone’s hand, and we look at each other
when Axel shows them out.
“He’s intense,” Gavin says.
“That’s putting it mildly,” Ari replies. “Kane doesn’t fuck around. Keon
and I worked on a mission he was involved in a few years ago. He’s a scary
motherfucker. And Blaze? He’s not kidding when he says he’ll gut us if she
gets hurt.”
Tyler shrugs, unaffected. “This is what we do.”
“We’ve never done a protection detail like this,” I argue. “This isn’t a
game.”
“I didn’t say it was,” Tyler scoffs.
“Make sure you don’t treat it like one,” Ari retorts. “Keon and I are
going to have a hard time blending in. On the other hand, you and Gavin
look like college students, which means you’ll be the public face of this
mission. Don’t fuck it up.”
“No pressure,” Gavin says sarcastically. “We’re just guarding a Russian
Mafia kingpin’s sister. No big deal.”
“I don’t think I like you,” Ari replies. “You’ve been around Tyler too
much.”
“Because he knows where the fun is at.”
I was looking forward to lighter duty, but I’m not sure this is what I had
in mind. So many things can go wrong on protection details, and this isn’t
something we can take lightly. Axel really threw us for a loop with this one.
Asshole.

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 6

KIRA

I
slam my last suitcase shut, ignoring Jaxon’s chuckle. If my brother
weren’t hopelessly in love with him, I would have shot him by now.
Okay. Maybe not because I actually like him, too, but I’d punch him in
the face.
“Nothing about this is funny,” I grouch, sitting on the side of the bed.
“Not only am I going as the fucked up freak, but I have to have security
follow me around.”
“First of all,” Jaxon drawls. “You aren’t a fucked up freak. Second of
all, Kane just wants you to be safe. He has a lot of enemies, Kira.”
I flop back on the bed with a sigh. “I know. Who are these guys
anyway?”
Jaxon shrugs and sits beside my hip. “I don’t know. Kane called them
the Saviors or something. It’s apparently like a whole team of badasses.”
“Oh, great. So he’s sticking me with a bunch of ‘roided-up assholes.”
“The Saviors are legends,” Kane says, walking into my room. “And
they aren’t what they seem.”
Blaze takes off running and leaps onto the bed. He kisses Jaxon and
then kisses my forehead. “They’re cool. And hot.”
“Say that one more fucking time, Blaze,” Kane warns, making Blaze
laugh.
“Hot, you say?” Jaxon replies. “Tell me more.”
 “Litso kukly,” Kane barks. “Get out. Both of you.” Blaze jumps from
the bed, throws Jaxon over his shoulder, and runs from the room, making
me die laughing. I love their relationship more than anything. Kane shakes
his head and sits down at my desk. “You’re going to cooperate, yes?”
“I already said I would. I don’t need another lecture.”
“I’m not lecturing, Kira. I’m worried.”
I sit up to look at him. “I know you are. This just fucking sucks. I just
want to go to school and hopefully be Kira Croft instead of Kira Lyubava. I
want to make friends, go to parties, all the stuff I never got to do.”
“I know you do. They promised to stay low-key so you can still do
those things just with them at your side.” Kane gets up and kisses my
forehead. “You’re the most important person in this world to me. You
already got hurt once because of me. I won’t let it happen again.” He heads
toward the door without another word, not giving me a chance to argue.
“It was because of Dad!” I yell at his retreating back.
No matter how many times I say it, he won’t believe me that the fire
wasn’t his fault. I’ve never blamed Kane or Blaze, even when it first
happened. Going to the rehab center helped me so much; now it’s time to
live my life as Kira. Not the fire victim.
I grab my rainbow beanie and put it on. These guys are the only ones
who’ve ever seen me without it. The fire scarred my head so badly that my
hair only grows back in certain places, and even then, it’s thin. I’ve tried
wigs, but I hate them. Blaze says they hide my pretty, dark eyes, so I quit
trying.
I set my suitcase with the others so I’m ready to go in a couple of days.
I’m nervous but excited about this new step. I’m going to miss Kane, Blaze,
Jaxon, and Elijah since they can’t really come to see me without giving it
away about who I am. But I need to do this for me.
I know I should have gone with Kane to meet these guys, but I couldn’t.
I know they’re going to judge me, and I’d rather wait until Kane isn’t
around to kill them.
I go downstairs and enter the kitchen, only to find Jaxon and Blaze
making out. I make a gagging noise, and they split apart. “I’m not going to
miss this.”
“I’m sure,” Jaxon laughs. “I was trying to convince Blaze to tell me
about all this hotness.”
 Blaze whips his head back and forth like he’s looking for Kane. He
pulls Jaxon over to where I’m standing and pulls our heads together. “Like,
next level fucking hot. Their leader? Black hair and blue eyes.”
I sigh, playing along. “My favorite.” Blaze and I used to people-watch
to pick out all the hot guys. I see he still plays this game.
“Then one with dark blond hair and blue eyes. Not as hot as Jaxon, but
hot.”
“I think you’re biased, Blaze,” Jaxon laughs.
“Maybe, but anyway. One with reddish brown hair and brown eyes.
Last but not least, one with pretty caramel skin and greenish eyes. Covered
in tattoos. He was my favorite.”
“How close were you to these guys?” I ask.
“I mean, I’ve worked with Ari and Keon before.”
“Oh, so they have names?” Jaxon asks dryly.
“Yes,” Blaze says in exasperation. “Leader is Ari, blondie is Ace, Tats is
Keon, and the other one is Tyler.”
“Are they nice?” I ask quietly.
“I think so.” Blaze shrugs. He’s probably not the best to judge who’s
nice, and if he’s worked with them before, that means they’re somehow
mixed up in this life.
I just don’t know how.

T he next day , Kane convinced me to go ahead and meet the guys, so they
were flying out to New York. I’m a ball of nerves when Kane goes to
answer the door. I keep tugging at my beanie and make sure my sleeves are
covering my arms.
“Stop,” Eli whispers.
“I can’t help it.”
Kane comes back into the living room with four guys trailing behind
him. I can spot the leader even without Blaze’s description just by the way
he carries himself. Ari. Kane introduces them, and to their credit, none of
them bat an eye at the puckered scars on my face.
“I’m going to leave you to get to know each other,” Kane announces,
kissing my cheek and putting his arm around Eli’s shoulders. He leads him
to the back of the house, and I suddenly don’t know what to say.
“Why does this feel like one of those awkward birthday parties your
parents made you go to in middle school?” the one with the reddish hair
says.
“Tyler,” Ari sighs.
“No, it’s fine,” I assure him, relaxing a little. “It really does. Let’s sit.”
They all sit on the couch while I take up the chair in front of them.
Ari sits forward, bracing his arms on his knees. “Look, we know you
don’t want this, but we know why Kane wants it. We’re going to make it as
painless as possible. Tyler and Ace will be with you most of the time since
they can blend in better. Keon and I will be backup if needed. You can still
do all the things you want to do. You just have to take them with you.”
“I know, and I’m not trying to be difficult. I just wanted a normal
experience, and that isn’t going to happen with you tagging along.” I know
that sounds harsh, and I don’t mean it to be, but I’m still not happy with
Kane taking this decision from me, even if Blaze was right about them
being hot.
“I take offense to that,” Tyler says. “I’m barrels of fun.”
“Tyler. Shut up,” Ari replies, making my lips twitch. “No one will ever
know they’re security.”
“It’s not like I have much of a choice.”
“Sure you do,” Ace speaks up. “It just wouldn’t be the smart one. You
obviously know who your brother is, so you know you can’t escape this.
Take it from someone who had absolutely no clue who his father really was
and found out the hard way. You at least have a heads-up. We aren’t here to
babysit you.”
“I’m sure you have more important things to do.”
“We make every mission important,” Keon throws in. “In this case, it’s
you.”
I sit back in the chair, trying to relax. How the hell am I supposed to
concentrate on doing anything with them hovering everywhere? Every
single one of them has those unnerving assessing eyes like Kane and Blaze.
“Do you have any questions for me?” I offer.
Tyler raises his hand, earning a hard look from Ari. “I have one.”
“Of course you do,” Keon mutters.
“She offered,” Tyler defends.
“It’s fine. What’s your question?”
 “This is an important one.” I nod for him to continue. “Do you like the
movie Legally Blonde?”
“Oh my God,” Ace groans. “Not this shit.”
“Bend and snap,” I laugh.
“Yes!” Tyler pumps his fist in the air, making me laugh harder. “Please
say we can have a movie marathon. These assholes won’t watch it with me
anymore.”
“Because you know it word for word, weirdo,” Keon retorts.
“It’s a cinematic masterpiece,” I argue. “The dumb blonde going to
Harvard for a law degree and being an amazing lawyer?”
“What? Like it’s hard?” Tyler mimics in a high-pitched voice, and Ari
collapses back on the couch.
“I give up,” Ari declares.
“Don’t give up, Gramps. You have so much to live for,” Tyler replies,
slapping Ari on the shoulder.
Meeting them and seeing some of their dynamics makes me feel better
about this.
I just hope it doesn’t blow up in my face once we’re in California.

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 7

ARI

W
e make it back to California at almost closing time for High Flyer.
I’ve had one thought, and Jason consumed it. Just that little taste of
him has me wanting more.
I park behind the building and watch the alley door for him to exit.
When he does, he looks disheveled, and I’m out of the truck in a flash,
making my way to him.
“What’s wrong?” I demand, scaring the shit out of him.
“Holy shit, Ari.” He grabs his chest and blows a breath out. “Warn me
next time.”
“I said I’d be waiting for you.”
“Yeah, but that didn’t mean you’d materialize out of thin air. And
nothing’s wrong. It was just a busy night.”
“I missed you,” I say, pulling him into my arms.
“You can’t say shit like that and expect me not to get attached.”
I pull back with a frown. “What does that mean?”
“I know what this is, so we have to keep it simple.”
“Simple?”
Jason turns around and locks the door but I don’t miss the look on his
face. “Yeah. Simple.”
“Where is this coming from?” I know he got quiet on text earlier, but I
just figured he was busy at work. Is he second-guessing this? Whatever this
is.
 “You don’t want a relationship with me, Ari. You’ve made that perfectly
clear. So you can’t text me all the time, tell me you miss me, or sleepover.”
I back him up until he’s pressed against the side of the building and
brace my hands on either side of his head. “I’ve not said one goddamn thing
about not wanting a relationship, so don’t put words in my mouth. The only
thing I’ve said is I want you all to myself before the guys find out. Which,
by the way, they already kind of know. I don’t know what is going to
happen in the future. All I know is you’re all I can think about.”
Jason’s eyes stay locked on my face, and I can tell he’s searching for
that hint of deception. He won’t find any. “Me too.”
“Then why are you trying to mess it up before it even starts?”
“Because I’m scared, okay? There are so many things already working
against us.”
I grab his hand and lead him to my truck. He looks just as surprised as
he did the last time when I opened the door for him. He slides in, and I shut
the door, collecting my thoughts as I walk to the driver’s side. I get in, shut
the door, and stare out the windshield. “We do have things working against
us,” I agree. “You have every right to be scared, but don’t make it all out to
be me.”
“I’m sorry.”
“Don’t be sorry.” I turn to look at him. “Just talk to me. We were fine.
What happened?”
“It’s going to sound stupid.”
“Try me.”
Jason sighs and leans back in the seat. “There was a group of girls in
there tonight. I see them all the time. Anyway, they were talking about you
guys. More importantly, you. It just got me thinking that you were better
matched for her than me.”
“Were you jealous, Sweet cheeks?”
“This isn’t funny.”
“I’m not laughing.” I brace my arm on the console and lean closer. “You
know how many girls I’ve noticed in that bar? Zero. My sole focus has been
you. So, now you have a decision to make. Are you going to trust me? Or
are you going to miss out on something that I know will be mind-blowing?”
Jason slams his lips against mine, answering my question. He lets me
take over, and I kiss him until he’s trying to climb over the console. “Take
me home, Ari.”
 “With pleasure.” I start the truck and jerk it into gear. When I pull from
the lot, Jason leans over and starts kissing my neck. His hand wanders to
my thigh, inching closer to my dick. “Fuck, Sweet cheeks.”
“I want you so bad,” he whispers, making me shiver. “I had a dream
about you.”
He massages me through my jeans, making me press harder on the gas.
“You did?”
“Yes.”
“Did you stroke your cock thinking about me?”
“Yes,” he hisses when I close his hand in mine and make him squeeze
me harder. “But I want the real thing.”
“I can promise the real thing is so much better.”
I pull into his apartment complex minutes later, and we’re both out of
the truck, meeting at the hood. My lips land on his, and I kiss him hard,
pushing everything I can into the kiss. I pull back and grab his hand,
practically dragging him to his apartment. As soon as the door shuts, our
lips are locked back together, hands roaming, hips rotating. Clothes are
coming off until we’re both naked, bare cocks rubbing against each other. I
turn him around without taking my lips from his and walk him toward his
room. We land on the bed in a tangle of limbs, going between kissing each
other’s lips and necks. My hand goes to his cock, stroking him hard, and he
makes the sexiest moan I’ve ever heard.
“Please, Ari.”
“Please, what, Sweet cheeks?”
“Fuck me.”
“Oh no.” I roll over until I’m on top of him and grind against him. “I’m
going to take my time exploring every inch of you.”
“Oh,” Jason breathes when I suck on his neck.
“Your skin marks up so pretty.” I lick over the spot I just made and
make my way down his chest, making sure to leave a mark on his chest.
“And even better that they’re my marks.”
“You’re a caveman,” he gasps, but I feel his needy hips lifting to try and
get friction.
“I’m your caveman.” I kiss down his abs, his hips, and the tip of his
cock. “What are you going to do with me now?”
Jason licks his lips, trying to get his thoughts together. I grin and lick up
the underside of his cock. I’ve never done this before, but I’m going to
make sure he loves every second of it. I want him begging for more. I grab
his cock by the base and lick the precum leaking from the tip. I brace
myself for the taste, waiting to find it repulsive. When I don’t, I gently suck
on the head, getting harder until his eyes roll back into his head. “Are you
sure you haven’t done this before?” I slide my mouth further down, testing
my limits. “I want to taste you too.”
I let his cock go and turn on the bed, so I’m lying on my side. Jason’s
greedy mouth sucks me into his mouth, and I groan, going back for his. I’ve
never been this turned on in my life. Something about his taste and his
mouth on me has me so hard that I hurt. I change speed and pressure until
he’s sucking me so deep in his throat that he swallows around the head.
I drop back on the bed. “Goddamn.” I thread my fingers through his hair
and push his head down until he gags. “You like my cock, Sweet cheeks?”
He moans against the head, and it makes my fucking toes curl. I let my
hand slide from his hair, down his back, and across his ass. He flips to his
knees, never letting my cock go, and pushes his ass out. I grab his thigh to
lift it and slide underneath him. “Brace your feet on the bed.”
Jason moves his feet so he’s squatting over my face. “What are you
doing?”
“Tasting all of you.” I lean up and lick across his asshole. His answering
whimper is all the incentive I need. I spread him open and bury my face as
deep as it will go.
“Oh, God.” His hand slaps down on my abs, trying to stay upright.
“That feels good.” I nip, lick, and suck around his hole before fucking him
with my tongue. I’m like a starved man, and his ass is my first meal.
“Please, Ari. I need you inside me.”
I pull back, biting on his asscheeks. “I need to get you ready for me.”
“I’m ready,” he pants. “So fucking ready.”
“I’m big, Sweet cheeks. I refuse to hurt you.” I smack his ass, making
him jump. “Get me some lube.”
“Yes, Sir,” he laughs, letting his knees drop to the bed and leans toward
the bedside table. I slide out from under him and dive back between his
asscheeks. “Holy fuck.”
I’m like a man fucking possessed, and I know when I slide inside him,
that’s all it’s going to take. With shaky hands, he passes me the lube bottle. I
squirt a generous amount on my fingers and pull my mouth away. I circle
his back hole with my finger and gently start to push it inside him. While
kissing all over his gorgeous ass, I add a second finger and start scissoring
him apart. I wasn’t bragging when I said I was big. It’s just the simple truth,
and I’ll never do anything to hurt him.
“How do you want me, Sweet cheeks?”
“I want to see your face.”
I remove my fingers and am already lubing my cock as he rolls over. He
gets comfortable on his back, and his eyes go to my hand on my cock. “You
want this?”
“You’re so cocky,” he laughs breathlessly. I raise a brow and squeeze
the head of my cock. “Yes, I do.”
“Condom?”
Jason chews on his bottom lip and shakes his head. “If you want one,
there’s some in the drawer, but I haven’t been with anyone in a really long
time. I’m clean.”
“I haven’t either.” He looks surprised by that admission, and I rub my
hand down his cheek. “No desire until I met you. I get checked regularly.”
“I don’t want anything between us.”
With a nod, I move between his thighs and brace one hand beside his
head. Still holding the base, I line up with the other and feel him bearing
down against the head. The slide inside him is so hot and tight it takes my
fucking breath away. “Damn,” I groan when I feel him flexing around me.
“You feel so fucking good.”
“You do, too,” he sighs when my thighs settle against the back of his.
I stay like that just enjoying the feeling when he swivels his hips. “Stop
it.”
Jason laughs and hooks his arms around my neck. “But it feels
amazing.”
“I’m trying not to come. Holy shit.” I slowly pull out, and his ass feels
like it’s sucking me back in. I’m holding on to every bit of control I have
when he digs his heels into my ass and pulls, making me slam back inside
him.
“I want you to fuck me. Make me yours, Ari.”
I slide one arm under his leg, bracing the bend of his knee on my arm. It
tilts his pelvis so I can slam into his sweet spot. I take him at his word and
start hammering into him. His fingers are sliding through my hair, jerking
my lips to his. The kiss is rough, just like my thrusts. He’s moaning and
whimpering into my mouth, making me feel like I’m on top of the world.
Nothing has ever felt this good, and it’s not just the sex. I’ve had tons of
sex, but I’ve never felt that connection people talk about until now. It just
took a blond-haired, green-eyed man to do it.
“Ari,” he breathes against my lips.
“I want you to come for me. Stroke your cock.” His hand slides between
us, and he starts stroking in time with my thrusts. Our eyes lock together,
and I can’t look away. “You’re so sexy.”
Jason starts stroking faster, making the tendons in his neck stand out. I
adjust my hips, and his back bows off the bed. “Right there. Oh my God.”
I lean down until my lips are at his ear. “Say my name when you come.”
“Shit. You’re dangerous.”
“You’re going to be addictive.” I brace his other leg on my arm and lean
my hands on the bed. I slow my strokes, making him push against me,
begging for my cock without words. “Your ass was made for me. Taking me
so good.”
I drop his legs, slide my hands under him, and sit back on my heels,
pulling him with me. Jason starts lifting and falling, riding me fast and hard.
I wrap my hand around his cock, stroking him in a tight grip. He slams
down on me and throws his head back. “Ari,” he moans as his cum starts
landing on my chest.
I grab his hips and start slamming into him from the bottom, fucking
him through his release. Three more hard thrusts and I bury myself as far as
I can. “Sweet cheeks,” I groan, coming inside him.
Jason runs his hands through my hair, pecking my lips and cheeks while
I get my breathing under control. “That was amazing.”
“It was.” I seal my lips over his, stroking his tongue with mine. “I want
to see it leaking out of you.”
With a shy smile, Jason lifts up, letting me slide free, and flips to his
hands and knees. I spread him wide open and, with rapt attention, watch my
cum leak onto his balls. Without a second thought, I run my fingers through
it and push it back inside him. “Ari.”
“Fuck, you’re incredible.” I lay down beside him and pull him to lie on
my chest. “Still against sleepovers?”
Jason throws his arm across my chest and his leg over my waist. “No.
You aren’t going anywhere.”
“Good,” I breathe. After his fit in the parking lot, I was still worried
he’d kick me out. I pull him closer and bury my nose in his neck. I’ll clean
him up in a minute. For now, I just want to hold him.
Something I haven’t wanted in years.

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 8

JASON

I
roll over and freeze when I encounter a huge male body. Last night
comes back in full force, and I open my eyes to Ari’s sleeping face.
When I heard those girls talking about him at the bar, I couldn’t stop
the jealousy or self-doubt. I know I’m the first man Ari’s ever been with, so
I’m just waiting for him to figure out that it’s not enough because I’m never
enough. I just have to remind myself that this is temporary and squash my
huge crush on him.
I take a second to appreciate how truly gorgeous he is. His jet-black hair
is tousled, and his face is relaxed. Taking my finger, I rub it across his dark
brows and down his stubbled cheek. Ari’s plump lips should make his face
less masculine, but they make him sexier. I let my eyes roam down his arm
and chest, losing count of all the scars I see. What does Ari do for a living
to have that many marks scarring his golden skin?
“Morning, Sweet cheeks,” Ari says, his voice still rough and sexy from
sleep. He opens his eyes, and I’m struck by the vivid blue.
“Morning.”
“You were watching me sleep.” His lips kick up in that sexy half-smile,
and he hooks his arm around my waist, dragging me closer. “How are you
feeling?”
“A little sore,” I admit. Ari wasn’t lying when he said he was big, and
we fucked more than once last night. It was like we couldn’t get enough.
 “You want me to kiss it and make it better?” Ari starts at my forehead
and kisses down the side of my face until he gets to my neck. He lifts up
and chuckles. “You’re going to have a hard time covering that one up.”
“If you didn’t mark me like some caveman, we wouldn’t have that
problem.”
“I like seeing my marks on your skin, and you weren’t complaining last
night.”
“That’s because you had me dick drunk.”
Ari laughs, and it’s something that I wish he’d do more. “Dick drunk is
a thing?”
“Yes. A very serious thing.”
“Hm,” Ari hums, burying his face in my neck. “Last night was amazing,
so I think I like you dick drunk.”
“It was.” I slide my hand down his back, and his arm tightens around
me. “But how am I going to explain the marks to your nosey friends?”
“Tell them to fuck off,” he mumbles and then pulls back. “You can tell
them whatever you want them to know.”
“I thought you wanted to keep it a secret.”
“I said for now,” he elaborates. “Now I don’t care who knows.”
“What changed?”
“A conversation I had with Keon. So, scream it from the rooftops if you
want to.” Ari rolls from the bed to his feet, still completely naked. He
stretches his arms over his head, and I have to wipe drool from my chin. I’m
in so much trouble with him. “Just be prepared for the never-ending
questions from Tyler.” He grins and disappears into the bathroom.
I groan and flop onto my back. I hear Ari laugh from the bathroom
because he knows Tyler is relentless. “It’s not funny! You know he’s going
to mess with you too!”
I listen to the toilet flush and then the water running. Ari comes out of
the bathroom and goes straight to the living room, coming back with our
pile of clothes and his phone. He drops the clothes and climbs back onto the
bed. “You want to mess with him first?”
“How?” I ask, not liking the smile creeping up on Ari’s lips.
Ari leans down until his lips are on my neck and chuckles against it. He
leans back and flips his phone so I can see the screen. He took a picture
where you can tell someone is under him, but you can’t see the face. Just
the fact that it’s most definitely a man by the short hair and the lack of
boobs. “I’ll send him this and then ignore him. It will drive him fucking
crazy.”
“Please do it,” I answer, laughing.
Ari loads Tyler’s chat screen, sends the picture, and Ari’s phone rings
within seconds. He hits ignore, and it immediately starts again. Ari moves
to lean against the headboard, pulling me up so I’m against his chest to see
the screen. The phone rings one more time before a voicemail notification
pops up. Ari turns on the speakerphone and hits play.
“You dirty old fucker. You can’t send me shit like that and then ignore
me! Is that Jason? Please tell me that’s Jason, and you finally did the no-
pants dance to get some aggression out? You’ve been mean and grumpy.
Holy shit! You just fucked a dude! This needs to be on the company website
or something. Wait. We don’t have one. I’ll call Nolan and have him make
one. Congratulations! Someone found you hot enough to get naked with
you.”
“I regret my decision about him knowing,” I joke.
“Too late now, Sweet cheeks.” Ari’s phone starts dinging with
messages, so he silences it and opens the screen.
Tyler: Why would you do this to me?
Tyler: Just at least tell me it’s Jason.
Tyler: I might cut your dick off if it’s not.
Tyler: I’ve been rooting for this from the beginning.
Tyler: ARI! Answer me *insert crying face emoji*
Tyler: I see you reading these, dickhead.
Tyler: A
Tyler: R
Tyler: I
Tyler: I hate you.
Another message rolls across the screen, and Ari changes to Keon’s
chat.
Keon: Why the fuck would you send him something like that and
then leave us to deal with the aftermath? He’s freaking the fuck out.
Just an FYI, the whole team knows now.
Ari: I don’t care, and I wanted to mess with his dumbass first.
Keon: I can’t say I wouldn’t have done the same thing, lol. That is
Jason, right?
Ari: Of course it is.
 Keon: Good. I’m confiscating Tyler’s phone for this bullshit. See
you later.
Ari throws his phone on the bedside table and kisses the top of my head.
“Why don’t we take a shower and go get breakfast?”
“It’s like eleven o’clock, babe,” I laugh. Ari’s brows furrow, and I think
I fucked up somehow until he slides down the bed so he can see my face.
“I like that,” he says gruffly.
“Like what?” I ask breathlessly from the intense look on his face.
“You calling me babe.” Ari pecks my lips and stands from the bed.
“Fine. We’ll go get lunch.”
What kind of life has Ari led that something as simple as being called
babe makes him happy?

“F or the third time , I’m not telling you shit,” I tell Tyler later that night
at the bar. He’s been sitting here for twenty minutes grilling me about Ari.
“But you have hickeys,” he whines. “I just need to know if Ari is the
one that put them there.”
“Ask Ari,” I deflect, gesturing to him. Ari laughs and gets up from the
bar, going toward the bathroom.
“He won’t tell me,” Tyler pouts, laying his head on the bar top.
“You know good and damn well that Ari is the one who did that,” Gavin
says. “Now shut up.”
“Fuck off. I need to hear the words.” His head pops up, and he looks
around the bar. “Where’s Keon?”
“You just noticed he’s not sitting here?” Gavin asks. “He left like ten
minutes ago.”
“Where did he go?”
“It’s not my day to keep up with him.”
Tyler huffs and crosses his arm over his chest. “You’re an ass, and
frankly, starting to hurt my feelings.”
“Oh, poor baby,” Gavin mocks. “You want a shoulder to cry on?”
I bust out laughing, and Tyler turns narrowed eyes to me. “I will find
out, and when I do, I will make your life hell for not telling me.”
 “No, you won’t,” Ari announces. To my surprise, he walks behind the
bar straight to me. I can see the intentions all over his face, and he gives me
a second to stop it. When I don’t, he hooks his hand on the back of my neck
and jerks my lips to his. His kiss is not meant for public consumption, but I
don’t fucking care. I hear several catcalls and drown them out because Ari
just publicly claimed me.
“Holy shit!” Tyler exclaims when we pull apart. “Ari, you animal. Did
you see what you did to his neck?”
“Yes. Because I was there,” Ari says slowly. “And I love the way they
look.”
“You’re a dirty, dirty man,” Tyler says. “Tell me more.”
“You’re worse than a woman,” Gavin replies and then looks at us.
“Congratulations. I’m happy for you guys.”
“We aren’t together,” I explain.
“I just kissed you in front of everyone, so that makes you mine,” Ari
replies, his voice practically a growl.
“I don’t get a say so?” I ask, but my heart is doing flips in my chest
from happiness.
“No.” He pecks my lips and starts backing away. “You have customers.”
Ari goes to the other side and sits beside Tyler. How the hell am I
supposed to concentrate after all this? I start filling orders, picking up little
parts of their conversation. It’s mostly Tyler asking questions and Ari telling
him to shut up. I get several congratulations from my regular customers,
and it’s still surreal. Does this mean Ari and I are together? Or was this for
show? I’m so confused by the time I make it back to Ari, and he sees it
written all over my face.
“Yes. I was serious,” he says before I can ask.
“How do you read my mind?”
“With ease, Sweet cheeks.”
Before I can answer, Keon comes running back into the bar. “We have
to go. Now.”
All the guys go on high alert, and Ari jumps from his stool. “What’s
going on?”
Keon’s eyes shift to me and then back to Ari. “Not here. We need to
move.”
Ari gives me a quick kiss. “I’ll call you later.”
“What’s going on?” I ask, worried.
 Ari exchanges a look with the other guys. “Not now.”
He kisses me one last time, and they all run from the bar, confusing me
even more.
What am I getting myself mixed up in?

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 9

KEON

I
kick a burned piece of what’s left of Baxter and Roland’s house and look
around. I was getting last-minute things in place for the protection detail
with Kira when Baxter called, screaming about someone blowing up
their house. They’re lucky they weren’t here.
“Who the hell did you piss off?” Tyler asks, his boots crunching under
him.
“I’m guessing this is retaliation for the warehouse raid,” Baxter
answers.
“From who?” I ask.
“That’s need to know,” Ari replies. “Axel won’t say a word because we
can’t be caught in the middle while protecting Kira.”
Tyler spins in a circle with his arms out. “It looks like we’re already in
the middle.”
Ari shrugs. “The less we know, the better. Axel’s on his way to process
the scene.” He looks at Baxter and Roland. “His orders are for you to
disappear.”
“He wants us to fucking run?” Roland asks.
“I’m just the messenger. Call your team and get out of town. That’s a
direct order.”
Baxter pulls out his phone, looking a little more than pissed off. He
relays the message and, without a word, jumps into Roland’s truck, and they
take off. “What are we going to do about the authorities? No way someone
didn’t call,” I say.
“Nolan somehow got in and made it look like a false alarm. We might
still have company, though.” Ari walks around the shell of the house,
kicking things out of his way. “This was professional. Several detonators
placed for maximum damage.”
“Who did Axel get them mixed up with?” Tyler asks.
“You don’t need to know that,” Axel answers, walking up to us.
“Since when?” I demand. “We don’t keep secrets.”
“We do when it puts Kira at risk. You shouldn’t even be here,” Axel
says. “I have it handled.”
“They called me,” I explain. “What did you want us to do? Ignore it?”
“No. But you need to leave. Kai’s going to get the detonators so Nolan
can trace it back to who it was.”
“You know who it was,” Ari replies. “Bax and Roland’s team is in too
deep.”
“That’s for me to decide. I’m not trying to be an asshole, but until Kane
feels Kira is safe and you guys are off protection duty, you can’t know. I’ve
put the Saviors back on the map since Charlie’s finally dead. That’s going to
bring out enemies.”
“So, you think putting a green team on this is the answer? Why the hell
aren’t they doing the babysitting? We should be on this,” Tyler retorts.
“Because Kane is an important client, I need my best to watch his sister.
Don’t underestimate Bax’s team. They’re good.”
“We aren’t arguing that,” Ari throws in. “But it seems a little short-
sighted to bench your beta team right when shit is heating up.”
“You are the ones who said you wanted a goddamn break,” Axel argues.
“I gave you what you wanted. Kai and Sean will be here soon. You can
leave.”
Ari opens his mouth to say something, snaps it closed, and marches to
his truck. I climb into the passenger side, and he pulls away with a bark of
tires. “He’s not wrong,” I soothe. “We didn’t want any part of this.”
“Fuck!” Ari smacks the steering wheel in frustration. “I know. Fuck, I
know, but he’s going to get them killed. I know what their team is made of,
and they’re good, but not good enough for this.”
“Getting them out of town until they figure it out was smart. We knew
there would be backlash when people learned that the Saviors weren’t
gone.”
“I know.” Ari scrubs his hand down his face and slows the truck to an
acceptable speed limit.
“You have more important shit to worry about. Like, what are you going
to tell Jason?”
“I have no damn clue. He’s not stupid. He’s known this whole time that
we aren’t exactly who we say we are. I should have never gotten him in
deeper.”
“Don’t think like that. Man, I’ve never seen you like this. We all need a
little good in our lives. Jason is yours.”
“What am I supposed to tell him? I’m a mercenary that kills people for
a living? That I work for a secret society that everyone thinks is a myth and
have a fuck ton of people who want me dead?”
“Why don’t you start by telling him your real name?”
“What?” Ari demands, looking at me like I’m insane. “My name is a
cover for a reason.”
“He’s not an undercover agent, Ari. It’s not like he’s going to go
digging.”
“What if he does? Do you know how many red flags my real name will
throw up? We’re talking National Security level red flags.”
I know he’s right, but I feel like him hiding his real identity will ruin
whatever he’s started with Jason. Jason hears more than anyone thinks he
does. He’s learned that skill as a bar owner. For whatever reason, people
talk freely in front of him, thinking he’s not paying attention. We’re even
guilty of it. “I still think you should tell him. If he finds out later, he’s going
to be pissed.”
“Why are you pushing this so hard? If he gets pissed, that’s on me to
fix. Unless there’s another reason.” Ari gives me that all-knowing look that
pisses me off, so I face toward the windshield, my face carefully blank.
“Ke, what aren’t you telling me?”
“Nothing. I’m just looking out for you.”
“Bullshit,” Ari laughs. “We’ve been doing this a long time together. I
know you better than that.”
Fuck it. “I was going to ask Jason out until I figured out he wanted
you.”
Ari pulls over to the side of the road and throws his truck in park.
“What?”
 “Then I realized you wanted him too and didn’t want to overstep that.”
“Why the hell didn’t you say something?”
“Because you finally looked happy, man. We hide a lot behind humor
and bullshit. But like you said, we’ve been working together for a long
time, so I saw through it.”
“I don’t know what to do with this information.”
“Nothing. You continue like you don’t know shit.”
“Is this how you knew I was attracted to him? Because you felt it, too?”
“Can we drop this?”
“How the fuck am I supposed to drop it, Keon? You just told me you
want Jason.”
“Wanted,” I clarify.
“Who are you trying to lie to? Me or yourself?” Ari pulls back onto the
main road, and I know he’s pissed.
“It doesn’t change anything.”
Ari laughs, but it’s without humor. “It changes everything.” Ari’s phone
ringing interrupts anything I can say, which I’m thankful for because I don’t
know what to say. Ari stabs the steering wheel to answer. “What?” Ari
barks.
“Man,” Tyler groans. “I was really hoping your horizontal tango with
Jason made you quit being a dick.”
“Now is not the goddamn time, Tyler. What do you want?”
“Okay,” Tyler says slowly, already sensing that he shouldn’t push. “I
was just calling to see if you were going to High Flyer.”
“No. I’ll message Jason and get him after work.”
“Is Keon? I just need to know whether to wait or not.”
“No. He won’t be coming either.”
“I’m sensing a lot of hostility, and it’s making me uncomfortable.” Tyler
disconnects the call, and I shake my head.
“Are you going to keep me away now?”
“I don’t know. The thought of you even looking at him more than a
friend makes me want to slit your throat.”
“It was just a date, Ari. It’s not like I’m confessing my undying love for
him. Jesus fuck.”
Ari roars into our driveway and comes to a screeching halt in front of
the house behind Tyler’s Camero. “Get out.”
“Come on.”
 “Get. Out.”
“For what it’s worth, I’m happy for you two. And I think you should tell
him.” I get out of the truck before Ari can pull his Glock. He speeds out of
the driveway, and Tyler walks out onto the front porch.
“What did you do to him? He was fixed, and you broke him.”
“Shut up, Tyler.” I walk past him but can feel him right on my heels.
Dog with a fucking bone.
“You know that’s not going to happen. So, what did you do to piss off
Gramps?”
“Nothing. He’s pissed at Axel.”
“You sit on a throne of lies,” he says, quoting the next dumbest movie
he watches, Elf.
“Isn’t Gavin here somewhere for you to aggravate?”
“He’s on the phone with Ghost. I’m hoping he’s finally talking to
someone.”
I flop down on the couch, and Tyler sits beside me. “He still hasn’t said
anything?”
“Kind of? He gets pissed and will let stuff slip, but he won’t tell me
everything.”
“Does he know you sleep in his room at night?”
Tyler’s eyes narrow. “How do you know that?”
“Because I worry about him, too. You’re doing a good thing, Tyler.”
“Yeah, well, he can’t know.”
“Why not? He let you the other night.”
“I caught him in a moment of weakness.”
I lean against the arm of the couch so I can see his face. “Is there
something going on between you and Gavin?” Tyler and him immediately
had a connection. Tyler is the one who spent most of his time helping Gavin
through physical therapy, pushing him so he could gain use of his arm back.
Tyler taught him everything he knows, including how to fight, and guns.
“No. We’re just friends.”
“Do you want there to be?”
“Don’t turn this around on me. Tell me what you did to Grandpa.”
“I was honest with him.” I give Tyler a look, and he starts dying
laughing.
“You told him about Jason, didn’t you? You big fucking dummy. He
was ready to murder me over a joke.”
 “He banned me from High Flyer.” Tyler starts laughing even harder, and
I join him. “It was stupid, but I didn’t have a choice. Ari has some kind of
mind-reading powers or some shit.”
“He’ll get over it.” Tyler jumps from the couch, and I can already tell
he’s about to say something smartass. “Or let you join.”
“I don’t want to join.”
“Right. So, you’re saying if Ari had Jason bent over right in front of
you, you wouldn’t try to get in on it?”
“Quit putting shit in my head.”
“My point is proven.” He bows at the waist like an asshole and heads
toward the stairs. “I say, fuck the rules!” he yells before he runs up the
steps.
I’d never disrespect Ari like that. Family is few and far between, so
they’re all I really have.
I won’t fuck anything up just because I needed Jason’s light too.

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 10

GAVIN

ou need to talk to someone, Gav,” Ghost says. “If it’s not me, you
“Y have a whole family willing to listen and have already been through
it.”
“I’m getting real fucking tired of people telling me I need to talk.”
“If you’d quit being such a hard-headed dick, people wouldn’t have to
keep repeating themselves.” Ghost sighs, and I hear a door shut through the
line. “You can’t let this shit go. You don’t want to turn into who I used to
be.”
“Yeah, but you had Bridget and them.”
“You have Tyler and the rest of your team. Does Tyler know?”
“There’s nothing to know. He’s my best friend.”
Ghost laughs, and I have to grit my teeth to keep from snapping at him.
I should have kept my goddamn mouth shut. “Yeah. I said the same thing
about Caden. We are both full of shit. Take it from me? It’s better if you’re
just honest about how you feel. Do you want to come hang out in Abbs
Valley for a little while?”
“I can’t. We start guard duty in a couple of days.”
“Or you don’t want to leave Tyler?”
“I fucking hate you.” Ghost laughs again, and I feel my lips twitch. It’s
been damn good to have him back in my life, and I’m glad that my dad
didn’t fuck that up. Unlike my sister, Gemma.
 “No, you don’t. You just know that I’m right. Look, I have to go. Nik is
taking me out tonight. Please, talk to someone and talk to Tyler. I think
that’s also a lot of what’s been going on.”
“Whatever. Have fun with Daddy Nik.”
“Goddamnit, Bridget,” Ghost growls. “I’m going to kick her ass for
spreading that nickname.”
“She would destroy you.”
“Yes, she would,” Ghost chuckles. “Call if you need anything. Love
you, brother.”
“Love you too.”
I disconnect the call and lay back on the bed, staring at the ceiling.
Growing up, Ghost and I were close, always banding against our father to
protect Gemma. Then one day, he was gone. I did everything that I could to
keep her safe, and she turned on us anyway. But now that Grant is gone, I
have at least my brother back. I know he’s right, and I need to talk to
someone about the shit I saw, but the one thing I won’t do is tell Tyler a
fucking thing.
My door busts open, and before I can move, Tyler is flying through the
air and lands on top of me, making all the air whoosh from my lungs.
“Fuck, Tyler. What the hell?”
“Keon told Ari about his crush on Jason,” he answers, rolling to my
side. I take a deep breath, willing my heart rate to return to normal. “Ari
banned Keon from High Flyer and kicked him out of his truck.”
“You’re worse than a woman.”
“Don’t act like you aren’t interested. Anyway, you want to go get
something to eat?”
“Nah, I’m good.” I usually keep a tight lid on my feelings around him,
but Ghost opened that box when he brought it up. Plus, it might just be
because he took care of me, and I see it as something that it isn’t. I won’t
fuck up our friendship because I want to know what it feels like to kiss him.
“Take Keon.”
“Keon’s boring,” Tyler whines. “I want you to go.” Tyler rolls from the
bed and onto his feet. “Off your ass. Let’s go.”
“I’m not going.”
“The fuck you aren’t. I will drag you from this room. Try me, bitch.”
“Just order something.”
 Tyler leaps, and I don’t have a chance to move before we’re both
tumbling to the floor on the other side. We wrestle for the upper hand, just
like we’ve done a thousand times, and I can never pin him. He’s been doing
this longer than I have and is fast. “Come on, Gavin,” he taunts, trying to
flip me to my back. “Pin me.”
“Fuck. You.” I twist and slide out of his hold like Ari taught me. He
cackles and locks his legs around my waist. My body reacts to him, and
he’s seconds away from finding out what these wrestling matches really do
to me. “Fine. I give. I’ll go.”
He laughs, jumps to his feet, and sticks his hand down for me. I slap
mine into his, and he jerks me to my feet. “You almost had me.”
“Almost doesn’t count, asshole.”
“Look, I can’t help that I’m a fucking beast.”
“And not at all cocky.” I push him playfully away from me because he’s
standing entirely too close. “I’ll meet you downstairs.”
“I’ll be in the car. I could literally eat a whole damn cow right now.”
“What else is new,” I mutter when he walks out of the room. I take
several deep breaths, willing my cock to go down. My reaction to Tyler is
new and becoming way more frequent. It makes it hard to hang out with
him like we used to.
“Maybe you should just tell him.”
My head jerks up to Keon’s voice, and he’s leaning against my door
frame. “What are you talking about?”
He raises a dark brow. “Don’t play dumb with me. I see how you look at
him.”
“I don’t look at him like anything.” I go to brush past him, and he grabs
my arm.
“If you’re worried about your friendship, hiding this will fuck it up
worse.”
“I’m not hiding anything,” I grit out. Am I that transparent?
“Change of plans!” Tyler calls from downstairs. “Ari called a meeting at
High Flyer!”
Keon’s brows furrow, and I follow him down the steps. “Why at High
Flyer?”
“Fuck if I know. But he said to haul ass.”
We go out to the driveway and make sure Tyler’s car is stocked with
whatever we might need. He pulls out onto the main road and goes the
opposite way. “Where are you going?” I ask.
“To get food. Ari’s not stopping me from eating.”
“He’s going to kill you,” Keon laughs.
“A man needs to eat. It’s not my fault Ari’s not human.”
“Please don’t start with the cyborg theory again,” I groan.
“It makes sense!” Tyler exclaims. “He doesn’t eat. He doesn’t sleep.
And until recently, he didn’t have sexual relations.”
“You’re an idiot,” I reply. “I’ve seen him eat. You know he fucking
sleeps, and maybe he was just waiting for the right person.”
“The right person just so happens to be a man. Something that Ari
wasn’t interested in until recently. I think someone reprogrammed him.”
“I think you need to stop watching so much TV,” Keon says, leaning up
between the seats. “Sometimes the right person isn’t always who we
thought it would be.” He pointedly looks at me, and I glare at him.
“This conversation is getting entirely too deep,” Tyler says, whipping
into the drive-thru of a fast-food chain. He orders too much food and pulls
to the window to pay. “Oh, did you guys want anything?”
“You better have ordered for everyone,” Keon warns.
“You guys were the ones giving me shit for stopping for food, so you
can starve.” Tyler grabs the gigantic bags of food from the young girl at the
window. “Thank you, sweetheart.” She blushes a deep red, and I roll my
eyes even though I know what she’s feeling. Tyler doesn’t even have to try,
and girls fall at his feet. He passes the bags over to me, and I refuse to take
them. “Stop being an ass. There might be a fry in the bottom of the bag for
you.”
“I hope you choke on your food,” I grouch, jerking the bags from his
hands.
“Just for that,” Tyler says, pulling out of the parking lot. “You and Keon
can fight over it.”
We drive the rest of the way to High Flyer, bickering. We go inside,
looking for Ari, and we find him on high alert at the bar. He sees us and
motions us to a booth in the back. We slide in, and Ari glares at the food.
“Seriously? Haul ass to you means stop for burgers and fries?”
Tyler huffs and starts pulling everything out. “We were going to get
food when you called. I got something for everyone.”
“You asshole,” Keon laughs.
“What was so important?” I ask.
 Ari leans in close. “Someone was in here asking about us earlier.”
“And?” Tyler prompts.
“Not us in particular. They were asking about The Saviors.”
“What the fuck?” Keon exclaims.
“I was at the end of the bar, and they were questioning Jason. They
looked right past me, so they don’t know specifics, but they know that
name.”
“What did they look like?” Tyler asks around a mouthful of food.
Ari wrinkles his nose in disgust and shakes his head. “About my height.
Blond hair. Blue eyes. He looked like a cop.”
“I’m sure our names have come up in certain cases,” I shrug. “We’ve
been involved in a lot.”
“We never mention that name,” Keon points out. “We don’t even show
our faces.”
“I have Nolan pulling the video footage,” Ari says. “He’s going to run
facial recognition.”
“What did you tell Jason?” Keon asks, making Ari’s eyes narrow.
“Nothing. He doesn’t know anything, and he doesn’t need to.”
“Ari,” Keon starts.
“No. This isn’t your decision. I called Axel and gave him a heads-up
that someone was sniffing around. It’s not a coincidence that we brought the
Saviors back out, and there’s a cop asking questions.” Before anyone can
reply, Ari’s phone starts ringing. He checks behind him to make sure Jason
is still at the bar and slides to answer before flipping to speakerphone.
“What’s up, Nolan?”
“Your guy’s name is Lincoln Miller. Thirty-four. He’s CIA.”
“CIA?” Ari sighs.
“Axel said to take care of it,” Nolan answers. “Whatever that means in
Axel speak.”
“Do you have an address?” Keon asks. Nolan rattles it off, and Keon
types it into his phone. “That’s not far from here.”
Ari thanks Nolan and disconnects the call. “What does that mean?” I
ask.
“It means that he wants us to go scare the shit out of a CIA agent,” Ari
answers and rubs his temples. “What the hell am I supposed to tell Jason?
That I have to leave again and can’t tell him why?”
 “Tell him the truth,” I say, earning the same glare that Keon got. “You
asked.”
“I wanted a helpful answer,” Ari replies. “I’ll figure it out. Are you
ready to test what you’ve learned?” Ari asks me. I’ve been training with
Ghost and Sean to learn how to slip in and out of places unnoticed. I’ve
gotten good but could still be better.
“You’ve got this,” Tyler answers, slapping me on the back. “Team
Sneaky!”
“Let’s do it,” I say with more bravado than I feel.
Ari goes and talks to Jason, and I see the disappointment all over his
face, followed by confusion when Ari kisses him and walks away. We go to
the vehicles and grab our stuff from Tyler’s trunk, shoving it into Ari’s
truck.
“Ari!” All our heads whip up at Jason’s voice, and Ari curses under his
breath, tossing an AK into the backseat.
“Yeah, Sweet cheeks?”
“I want you to tell me what’s really going on.”
Tyler gives me a wide-eyed look and crawls into the backseat of Ari’s
truck like he’s hiding. He peeks over the seat, and I have to turn away to
keep from laughing. “I did.”
“You lied straight to my face,” Jason answers, not backing down when
Ari walks up to him. “What’s going on?”
Ari looks at us, and Keon shrugs, telling him without words what we’ve
been telling him. “I can’t tell you,” Ari finally says. “We have to go.”
Jason nods and takes a step back. “Then you can go home. Don’t worry
about stopping at my place.”
Jason turns on his heel and disappears back inside. We wait for the
explosion from Ari and don’t have to wait long. “FUCK!” Ari yells, turning
to face us. “Let’s move,” he barks, climbing into his truck and slamming the
door.
I slide in beside Tyler, and he’s biting his lip, trying not to say anything.
Ari jerks the truck into reverse and pulls out of the lot with a squeal of tires.
We drive the ten minutes to Lincoln Miller’s, and he pulls over a street
away. We put all our gear on, including the skull masks.
“You good?” Tyler asks.
“Yeah.”
 Ari turns around to face me. “I just need you to get in and find out
where he is. Don’t engage unless you need to.”
“Got it.” I strap on my thigh holster with my Glock and knife. I get out
of the truck and slip into the shadows. I know this is a test but wish Ari
would have done it against someone who isn’t a damn CIA agent.
The agent’s house comes into view, and I run through everything Ghost
and Sean have taught me. I make it to the back porch and strain to listen.
“In position,” I whisper into the earpiece. “No lights. Car in the driveway.”
“We’re right behind you,” Tyler whispers back, and I feel myself relax
at his voice. “You can do this.”
I pull the lockpick kit from my pocket and insert it into the lock. Two
twists, and I hear the click on the other side. I gently turn the handle,
holding it tightly so it doesn’t rattle. I let it swing open and step to the far
side of the door, so I miss any squeaks. Pulling my Glock from the holster, I
move further into the house on silent feet. I sweep downstairs, and my foot
has just hit the bottom step when I hear a door open upstairs. I swing my
Glock up and wait. I hear another door shut, then a toilet flushing. I wait
with my breath held until they shut the other door again.
“Upstairs,” I whisper. “I’m on my way up.”
Ghost and Sean showed me where floors and stairs usually have creaks,
so I move around them, trying not to put too much weight on my feet. I
didn’t realize how hard this actually was until they started training me. It
was Ari’s idea, stating that shit had to be in our bloodstream, and he was
right. I picked it up quickly but still have so much to learn.
I get to the top of the stairs and turn into the hallway. There’s only one
door shut, so I head that way. “Last door on the right,” I report.
“Don’t engage,” Ari barks. “We’re coming in. Hold your position.”
I train my gun at the door and wait. I feel the subtle shift in the air then
Tyler’s stepping up beside me. Ari walks in front of us and counts down
from three on his fingers. When he hits one, he kicks the door open. We
spill in, looking everywhere, only to find it empty.
“I swear, he was here,” I tell them, jerking the closet door open.
“Over here,” Tyler calls out, standing beside the wide-open window.
“He gave us the slip.”
“How the fuck did he gets past us?” Ari growls.
“I’m sorry. I gave our position away,” I say.
 “No. You didn’t,” Ari assures me. “He knew we would be coming. Let’s
get out of here.”
“This isn’t good, man,” Keon says.
“No fucking shit.”
I follow them from the house, and Ari fumes the whole way back to the
truck.
Coming up against a CIA agent is never good. Coming up against one
that’s better than us?
We’re fucked.

OceanofPDF.com
 11

TYLER

I
t’s the first day of our protection detail, and we have found nothing
about this CIA agent. Nolan has dug into him non-stop for days, but all
his files are sealed, so it’s taking him longer than it normally does.
I pull into the parking lot of Kira’s dorm with Gavin and shove the car
into park. “This is going to suck ass,” I say, watching the people walk
around. School was never my thing, and now I have to pretend to be a
college student.
Gavin laughs and slips a black ball cap on backward. “At least Kira
seems cool. It could be worse.”
“Whatever,” I grumble, shoving my door open. He follows me up to
Kira’s door, and I unlock it. We want to make sure it’s secure before she
gets here. All her stuff has already been delivered, and she’s due to arrive
soon. “Did you like school?”
“I went to a private school in Rose Hills. No, I didn’t like school.”
“I always forget you were a precious princess.”
“Fuck off. All clear back here.”
“Same,” I answer, pulling back the lid on a box in the living room.
“Stop snooping through her shit,” Gavin says, walking up behind me.
“What if there’s something hidden in there?”
“I hope whatever it is bites the shit out of you.”
“Oh!” I exclaim. “Maybe it’s a radioactive spider, and I’ll turn into
Spiderman.” I hold up my hands like I’m throwing a web, and he shakes his
head. “You can be my sidekick.”
“I truly regret ever joining the Saviors.”
I noisily kiss his cheek. “No, you don’t. You wouldn’t have met me.”
“I wouldn’t have gotten shot either if I hadn’t met any of you assholes.”
He subtly rubs the wound on his chest and walks to the other side of the
living room. He’s been acting weird for days, and I can’t put my finger on
it.
“Are you okay?”
“Yeah. Why?”
“You’re being weird as hell. Like weirder than normal.”
“I’m not weird, first of all. And I’m fine.”
“How are you sleeping?” I ask, even though I already know he still
sleeps like shit.
“Fine. Will you stop trying to be Dr. Phil?”
“Do I look like an old, bald guy to you? I’m just making sure you’re
good.”
“I’m fine,” Gavin snaps.
Before I can answer, the front door opens, and Ari walks through with
Kira and Keon. “Aw,” I say. “Dad bringing his daughter to school on the
first day.”
Kira slaps a hand over her mouth to keep from laughing. I barely dodge
Ari before he grabs me by the throat. “Tyler,” he says slowly. “I wouldn’t
fuck with me right now.”
I roll my eyes and sling my arm around Kira’s shoulders. “Everyone is
so moody. Gramps is just pissed because he isn’t getting laid,” I whisper
loud enough so he can hear.
“Tyler,” he barks.
“I think you might be in trouble,” she whispers back.
“What else is new,” I laugh. “We checked the place out before you got
here and it’s clear. You want to walk the campus? We can all get a feel for
it.”
She nervously pulls down the sleeves of her long sleeve shirt and fixes
her gloves. “I don’t know. It was a really long flight.” I can’t imagine what
she’s going through right now. I peek at Gavin, and he shrugs, not offering
any help.
“We need to figure out where your classes are,” I say gently. “Plus, Ace
can go and scare everyone off with his pissed off face.”
 She looks over at Gavin and giggles softly. “He does kind of looked
pissed off.”
Gavin throws his hands up. “It’s his fault I’m pissed off.”
“I’m sensing a pattern,” she jokes, some of the tension leaving her
shoulders.
“It’s what I do best. Do you have your schedule?” She reaches into her
jeans pocket and passes it to me with shaky hands. I unfold it and memorize
it, already comparing it to the map of the campus I already looked up.
“Looks like most of them are in the same two buildings.”
“They have it mostly separated by level. The middle buildings are for
freshmen,” Keon answers, sitting on the couch. “Makes it easier to keep an
eye on her but not interrupt her classes.”
“So, you’re just supposed to blend in?” Kira asks, eyeing Ari and Keon.
As much shit as I give Ari, he doesn’t look old but carries himself better
than a college student. Keon is covered in colorful tattoos and looks more
like a gang leader.
“We are,” Gavin answers. “You’ll mostly be with me and Tyler while on
campus. Keon and Ari can watch from here.”
She nods, accepting that. “I’m going to freshen up, and then we can go.”
Kira smiles, but I can see how strained it is. She disappears down the
hallway, and I turn to Ari when the bathroom door shuts.
“Is she going to be able to do this?” I ask.
“Yeah,” Gavin answers instead. “Kira’s strong. If she can go through
what she did and still be holding her head up, she can handle this.”
“Just keep an eye on her,” Ari says. “She gets the least bit
uncomfortable, you bring her back. While you guys are gone, I’m going to
see if Nolan has any more information. I don’t like that he’s still lurking
somewhere.”
Kira walks back into the living room, looking more than a little pale.
“I’m ready.”
I nod for Gavin to come with us and lead her outside. I put my arm back
around her shoulders and pull her into my side. The further we walk onto
the actual campus, the more crowded it gets. I see people stop, stare, or give
her a second look. Her eyes drop the more this goes on, and Gavin steps up
on her other side.
“Hold that head up,” he whispers.
“I don’t know if I can do this,” she whispers.
 “Sure you can,” I assure her, squeezing her shoulders. “Most of these
people wouldn’t know struggle if it bit them on the ass. Look them right in
the eye and tell them to eat shit.”
She laughs quietly. “I don’t know if that’s a good way to handle it.”
“It’s not,” Gavin says dryly. “But I do agree about looking them right in
the eye. People judge what they don’t understand. Plus, they’re probably
looking at Tyler’s stupid shirt anyway.”
I look down at my gray shirt with white writing that says, ‘Woke up
sexy as hell again,’ and look at Gavin, offended. “This shirt is not stupid.
Your face is stupid.”
“Your haircut is stupid.”
“Your shoes are stupid.”
Kira starts laughing, so our plan worked. Gavin and I might have been
off the past couple of days, but we can still read each other’s minds. “You
bought me these shoes, dumbass,” Gavin says.
“I actually bought them for me but realized how stupid they were and
gave them to you.”
We spend the rest of the campus tour joking back and forth because it
keeps Kira at ease. People are still staring, which by the end starts to piss
me off. She goes straight to her room when we get back to her dorm.
I’m going to show her she has nothing to be ashamed of.

S omething wakes me from a dead sleep, and I sit up in the chair in Gavin’s
room. He whimpers quietly, and I stumble to the bed. Ari and Keon stayed
with Kira tonight, and we’ll meet them at campus in the morning. I know
Gavin wouldn’t feel comfortable sleeping there with his nightmares, which
is why I suggested it.
“Gav.” I sit on the side and shake his shoulder. “Gavin.”
He makes the whimpering noise again, so I pull my leg up to grab both
shoulders, and he reacts faster than I expect. He wraps his arms around my
waist and rolls, so I’m underneath him. His eyes are open, but I can tell he’s
not awake. He straddles my waist, and his hands slap beside my head.
“Gavin. You need to wake up.”
“Tyler,” he breathes, his eyes still glassy.
 “It’s me,” I reply. “You were having a nightmare.”
He relaxes the bottom half of his body, letting it rest against mine. “Not
a nightmare.” His voice is still dreamlike, and I have no idea how to wake
him up without scaring the shit out of him. He’s hard as a goddamn rock,
confirming that he was not having a nightmare this time.
“Gavin,” I say sternly. “Wake up.” Gavin buries his face in my neck and
sighs. What the fuck is going on? “Gavin.”
“Hm?”
“What are you doing?”
“Sleeping.” No shit.
“You’re really fucking heavy.”
“You feel good.”
My hands pause halfway to shoving him off me. Does he know it’s me?
He said my name, but that doesn’t mean he knows he’s currently lying on
top of me. He shifts his hips to rub against me, and I know I need to put a
stop to this when I feel his lips on my neck. “Gavin! Get up!”
Gavin jerks awake and scrambles off the end of the bed. His eyes are
wide and panicked. “Shit. I’m sorry.”
“No need to be sorry,” I laugh. “You were having one hell of a dream.
Was she hot?”
“I…what?”
“The chick in your dirty dream. Was she hot?”
Gavin’s eyes drift down my body, sprawled on his bed, and down to his
obvious erection. “Get out.”
“What?”
“Get out of my room.”
“Why do you have to be such a dick?” I jump from the bed and march
over to where he’s standing. He’s two inches taller than me, but that will
never stop me from getting in his face when he needs it. “I thought you
were having a nightmare.”
“I obviously wasn’t. Get out.” He pushes me back a step and narrows
his eyes.
“Are you embarrassed? People have sex dreams all the time.”
Gavin rakes his hands through his hair. “Why can’t you ever listen? Get.
Out.”
“Whatever.” I step around him and head for the door. “Somebody else
can come to your rescue when you have nightmares.”
 “No one asked you to do it.”
“I do it because I care.”
“Well, don’t.” I turn around to Gavin’s soft tone, and he’s sinking to sit
on the edge of the bed.
“Why won’t you just talk to me?”
“I can’t.”
“Can’t or won’t?”
“Both.”
“Fine. Fuck you then.”
Gavin explodes off the bed, and I’m about to defend myself. “It was
about you!”
“What was?”
“The fucking dream! Are you happy? I was having a sex dream starring
you.” I try to keep my reaction off my face, but Gavin catches the shock
and laughs without humor. “Get out.”
“Stop saying that. I’m just trying to wrap my head around it.” Gavin
climbs back onto the bed and collapses on his stomach, burying his head
under his pillow. “Was I the top or bottom?”
Gavin groans and pulls the pillow tighter around his head. “Please go
away.”
“No. This is an important question. I want to know in Gavin’s
dreamland if I’m pitching or catching.”
Gavin slides back out of the bed and marches me backward until my
back hits the door with a determined look. I’ll let him do whatever he needs
to so we can move past this. It was just a little sex dream. “We weren’t there
yet.”
I waggle my brows. “Were we naked?”
“Close,” Gavin says gruffly.
“Is this why you’ve been weird? Have you been having these a lot?”
“No.”
“Damn. I was hoping it would explain why you’re an ass.”
“You’re the reason I’m an ass.”
“That’s usually the general consensus.”
“You don’t get it,” Gavin says raggedly.
“Get what?”
I watch it all play across his face before he slams his lips against mine.
I’m so fucking shocked that all I can do is stand here. When he licks my
bottom lip, and I don’t react, he pulls back. I see the disappointment on his
face, and something comes over me. I sink my fingers in his hair and jerk
his lips back to mine. Opening for him, I let him stroke my tongue with his.
My cock goes from semi-hard to rock hard in seconds, just feeling his lips
on mine.
Gavin wraps his arm around my waist, and we stumble to his bed,
falling onto it in a tangle of limbs. Our hips are moving. Our hands are
roaming, trying to get closer. What the fuck is going on? I’ve never been
this fucking turned on, and I’ve never been turned on by a guy. All that
went out the window the second Gavin’s lips touched mine.
“Fuck,” he groans against my lips. He seals them back over mine and
rolls so he’s on top of me again.
“What the hell is happening?” I mumble against his lips, and groan
when he grinds against me.
“I don’t know.” I hear the uncertainty in his voice, and he tries to pull
away. I hook my ankles together behind his back and tighten my legs, so he
can’t move.
“Damn it. Will you stop trying to run away from me?”
“You don’t want this.”
I give him a dry look and raise my hips so he feels how hard I am. “I
think this says otherwise. I’m not ready for you to put your key in my
ignition, but I’m willing to see where this goes.”
Gavin gives me a look of disbelief and starts laughing. “Key in your
ignition? Where do you come up with this shit?”
“I have a whole database in my brain. But that’s beside the point. Did
you like it?”
Gavin lays his forehead against mine. “It’s all I’ve thought about for
weeks. That’s why I’ve been weird.”
“That makes me feel better, at least.” I rub against him again and watch
his eyelashes flutter. “What are we going to do about these?”
“I don’t know.”
“I have an idea.” I unhook my legs and push him to sit up on his knees.
I get on mine to face him. “Mutual gratification.”
“What?”
“Shut up and get your cock out.”
He takes a deep breath and steps from the bed. He shoves his boxers off,
and his long cock slaps his stomach. I get mine off and pat the bed in front
of me. Gavin gets back on the bed, so his knees are touching mine. “How
are you okay with this?”
“I’m not one to judge what others like. That felt damn good, so I’m
willing to give it a shot.” I wrap my hand around my aching dick, and his
eyes drift down to watch. “Stroke yourself.”
Gavin’s eyes slowly crawl to my face, and he wraps his hand around
himself. His whole body jerks, and I know he’s turned the fuck on too.
“Have you ever been with a guy?” I shake my head. “Me either.”
“Have you ever been attracted to a guy?” It’s his turn to shake his head.
“Me either.”
“Until now?” he asks, his voice still unsure.
“Until now,” I agree.
I let my eyes wander over his body. Something is sexy about seeing his
abs bunch when he twists his hand around the head of his cock, or the tight
grip he has on it. Gavin is attractive. I’m completely fine with admitting
that. He slides his other hand onto my thigh, his fingers squeezing, and I
find myself wishing that he’d touch me more. “Can I touch you?” he
whispers, answering my unspoken question. I grab his hand from his cock
and wrap it around my dick, squeezing to show him how tight I like it.
I reach out to grab his cock, stroking in a tight grip. Gavin lets out the
sexiest moan I’ve ever heard, and it makes me crave more. “Fuck. Those
noises you’re making are driving me crazy.”
I lay my forehead against his, and our hands start moving faster. I’ve
never felt another guy’s cock before, and I don’t hate the feeling or how it
feels for his big hand to be wrapped around mine. Is this where my and
Gavin’s friendship has always been heading? I instantly liked him, which is
hard for me. I normally have more of a problem trusting people, but I didn’t
with him. I’m closer to him, too, than I am with anyone else on the team,
even though we’ve been together for years.
Gavin’s breathing speeds up, and his breath rushes across my lips. “Are
you going to come?” I ask.
“I don’t want this to end.”
“This is just the beginning.” No way I’m passing up experimenting with
him. I think it will just bring us closer together.
Gavin’s fingers dig further into my thigh, and he starts fucking my fist. I
lock my eyes on his face and soak it in when his eyes roll back in his head.
“Tyler,” he groans, and I feel his cum landing on my stomach and my cock.
 He quickly wipes up with his hand and starts stroking my cock faster,
using his cum as lube. Something about that action makes my release race
down my spine. “Fuck,” I pant. I latch onto his biceps and start moving my
hips.
“Come for me, Sexy,” Gavin says, and that’s all it takes.
“Gavin,” I groan, coming so hard that black spots dance in my vision.
He strokes until I’m too sensitive and lets my cock drop. I look into his
eyes, expecting weirdness, but it never comes. “I’m definitely the catcher,”
I say, making him laugh. There’s no way I can have that sort of reaction to a
man telling me to come for him and not be the bottom. At least most of the
time.
“You said you like to feel dainty.”
I lock my lips over his and knock him flat on his back, not giving a fuck
that we’re both covered in cum. I haven’t felt this free in a long fucking
time.
And I’m going to soak it in for as long as I can.

OceanofPDF.com
 12

KIRA

I
t’s freshman orientation today, and I can’t leave my room. I spent last
night hanging out with Keon and Ari, well, mostly Keon because Ari
was on the phone most of the time. But it didn’t feel super weird to have
them here. I felt safe and comfortable, which is what I wanted.
“Kira?” Tyler’s voice filters through the door. “Are you ready?”
“Yeah. Give me a minute.” I pull my beanie on and look at myself in the
mirror. I turn my face to look at the right side, the only place that’s mostly
clear. When the fire started, I buried my face in my arms and laid on my
right side, so my left side took most of the damage. There was entirely too
much damage for skin grafts, but they tried. Why did I decide I needed to
go to college? If I go home now, Kane will just say I told you so. Taking a
deep breath because I’m not a punk, I march over to the door and jerk it
open. Tyler half falls in because he was leaning against it.
“I did that on purpose,” he jokes, righting himself.
“Sorry,” I laugh.
“It’s okay. I have reflexes like a cat.” He slings his arm around my
shoulders and leads me into the living room. I hate to admit how good it
feels to have his arm there. He seems to know when I need it. “Queen Kira
is ready for classes.”
Ace turns around with a shake of his head. “Queen Kira?”
“Uh, yeah, and that makes us her royal guard.”
 “There’s something wrong with you,” Ace says, then looks at me. “You
ready?”
I blow a breath out. “As ready as I’ll ever be.”
“Freshman orientation is it for today. This school’s pretty big, so we can
slip in with you for that. Classes are a different story. We’ll have to blend
while we wait,” Ace says.
“Why didn’t you just enroll in the same classes?”
“You shut your dirty mouth,” Tyler gasps. “I don’t want to sit through
this shit.”
The others might get irritated with Tyler’s joking, but I love it. It makes
me feel at ease. “Allergic to a little higher education?”
Tyler flaps his hand at Ace. “He has all the smarts that I need.”
Ace checks the time on his phone and nods his head toward the door.
“We need to move.”
He walks out in front of us, and Tyler shuts and locks the door. “Ari and
Keon will be back in a little while. We have perimeter alarms hooked up,”
he explains.
“I still think this is overkill.”
Tyler shrugs. “Maybe, but I agree with Kane about your safety.” We
walk further onto campus, and people immediately start staring. Tyler pulls
me closer and leans down beside my ear. “Doesn’t his ass look edible in
those pants?” he says, jerking his head toward Ace.
I look at him in surprise. “You and Ace are…?”
“Something,” he laughs.
“No judgment here. My brother has three husbands.” I tilt my head to
the side, looking at Ace’s ass. “It does.”
Tyler laughs loudly, making Ace turn around with his brows furrowed.
“What’s so funny?”
“Kira said she wants to take a bite out of your ass.”
“I did not!” I elbow him in the ribs, making him laugh even harder. “He
said it.”
“I did,” Tyler agrees. “Like, it’s just so plump and juicy.” Ace’s cheeks
darken, and he turns back around, walking faster. “Come back here and
hold my hand!”
“Shut up,” Ace hisses.
“Are you ashamed of me?” Tyler asks, making his voice shake. People
are staring, but they’re looking at them now. I know Tyler did it on purpose
to get the focus off of me, but these two are still funny together. “After last
night, I thought we had something special.”
Ace stops dead in his tracks, almost making us run into him. He whirls
around on Tyler. “Was this all a joke to you?”
“I was just messing with you,” Tyler says gently. “And no, it wasn’t a
joke.”
Ace slams his lips against Tyler’s, not giving a shit that Tyler’s arm is
still around my shoulders. I find my eyes getting drawn to their lips moving
together. Well, okay. This just got a whole lot more interesting. Ace pulls
back with a grin, and it transforms his whole face. “Now I know how to
shut you up.” He pecks Tyler on the lips, spins on his heel, and starts
walking toward the building for freshman orientation.
I look at Tyler’s face and laugh. “Are you good?”
“Did that asshole just one-up me?”
“I think he did.” I wrap my arm around his waist and pull to get him
moving again. “And better.”
“Hey, now. We aren’t going that far. He’ll pay for that.” We walk the
rest of the way to the building to find Ace leaning against the side, waiting
for us. “Do you think he’s sexy?”
“Am I allowed to agree?”
“Yes.”
“Then yes.” Ace is tall, like really tall compared to my five-foot. They
all tower over me but Ace even more so. He has messy dark blond hair that
he keeps covered with a backward ballcap. But it’s his eyes that draw you
in. They’re a beautiful blue, but they look…sad, like he has so much on his
mind that his eyes show it all.
“I’m going to like you. You play my games.”
“I grew up with Blaze. Nothing can shock me.” The crowd around the
door gets heavier, waiting for them to open the doors. I start getting more
and more tense, so Tyler pulls me in front of him and drapes his arms over
my shoulders. Ace walks over and stands in front of me, blocking me in.
“Thank you.”
“Grab his ass,” Tyler whispers, making me choke on a laugh. I shake
my head, so he reaches forward and grabs a whole hand full. Ace whips his
head over his shoulder, and Tyler points at me. “It was her.”
“I couldn’t help myself,” I say, playing along.
 “Not in public, Kira,” Ace says loudly, making several people give us
curious looks. Maybe if they think I have two hot boyfriends, it will take
their mind off my scars. “Save it for later.” He seems a lot more relaxed
today, smiling and joking more. I decide I want to keep him that way.
“I’m sorry. It’s just that I didn’t finish earlier.” Ace’s mouth drops open,
and Tyler huffs a laugh. I smile at him, and his lips kick up in a breathtaking
smile.
“You guys are trouble together,” Ace laughs. “I’ll take care of you later,
Baby girl.” My face flushes even though I know he’s joking. I can’t take
anything they say seriously because they are obviously into each other and
would never give me a second look. My smile slips, and Ace looks at me in
concern. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to take it too far.”
“You didn’t,” I assure him and breathe a sigh of relief when they open
the doors.
We walk into a huge assembly hall, and they sandwich me between
them. The dean steps forward, and I find myself daydreaming about Tyler
and Ace even though I shouldn’t be. It doesn’t help that Keon and Ari are
also devastatingly sexy. There’s something up with Ari, though, and I can’t
quite put my finger on it. I asked Keon last night, and he laughed, telling
me to ask Ari. I need to keep myself together, or I’ll end up doing
something stupid, like thinking they’re interested in me. Hot guys don’t find
the scarred girl attractive.
“Are you okay?” Ace whispers, and I nod. His brows dip down,
showing he doesn’t believe me. “I was out of line outside.”
“It’s not that,” I whisper back. “I promise. I can take a joke, Ace.”
“Gavin,” he says. “My real name is Gavin.”
“I like that.” It fits him better. I don’t even ask about the nickname
because many people in this business have code names. I hook my arm
through his, accepting his olive branch for friendship. I can at least have
that out of this protection detail bullshit. Once Kane sees that I’m safe, he’ll
pull them, but I can enjoy it while I can. I need more friends besides Kane,
Blaze, Elijah, and Jaxon.
I tune back into the dean and try to retain what he’s saying. I want to
give this college thing a real try before running back to my brother because
I can’t take a few people looking. I’m sure it will stop the more that they
see me, but it doesn’t make it any easier.
 The guy in front of Tyler keeps turning around to glance, and
whispering to the girl beside him. This goes on until their whole group
keeps looking. Tyler leans forward. “If you don’t turn the fuck around, I’ll
carve your eyeballs out with a melon scoop.”
“Tyler,” I whisper, trying not to laugh. “You can’t threaten everyone
who has a staring problem.”
“The fuck I can’t.” Tyler stares the guy down until he gulps and turns
around. “Punk ass bitch.”
“I’m used to it. It’s okay.”
“You shouldn’t be,” Gavin says. “And it’s not okay.”
I’m in so much trouble when it comes to these two.

A fter orientation , we decided to order some food and hang out in my

dorm. We’ve spent most of the day joking and talking.
“I have a question,” Gavin asks. “What made you want to go back to
school?” He’s sprawled on the floor with his back propped on a bunch of
pillows. Tyler is relaxed on the other side of the couch.
“I don’t know,” I say honestly. “I needed to get out of New York for a
little while and push myself out of my comfort zone. I can’t spend my
whole life hiding.”
“You shouldn’t have to. I’m sorry people fucking suck,” Tyler says.
“Most people just want to know what happened. Curiosity and all that.”
“I get that,” Tyler replies. “One of my really good friends is scarred, and
it always pisses me off when people stare.”
“People stare at Kai because he’s a beast,” Gavin laughs. “Dude’s
huge.”
“Kai?”
“He’s part of the alpha team of the Saviors,” Tyler answers. “We’re the
beta team.”
“So they stuck me with the B team?” I joke. “I didn’t even get first
string.”
“We’re the superior team,” Tyler argues. “Better and hotter.”
“And unattached,” Gavin adds.
“They’re in relationships?”
 “Yeah, with each other,” Tyler responds. “All of them are with Chelsea
and each other.”
“So, a poly relationship like my brother, just with a woman involved.”
“Yeah. My brother is too,” Gavin says and sits up. “You’d love that girl
group.”
“I don’t usually get along with girls,” I say sadly. “All the ones I’ve
encountered since the fire just want to “fix” me, thinking makeup will cover
up the mess on my face.”
“They aren’t like that,” Tyler argues. “Alessa and them would welcome
you with open arms.”
“Wait? Alessa Poletti?”
“Yep,” Gavin answers.
“Oh man,” I sigh. “I’d fangirl so hard. She’s a badass.”
Tyler laughs. “She is one of the best people I’ve met. So are the other
girls, Evie, Bridget, and Chelsea.”
“Bridget’s my brother’s wife,” Gavin adds.
“Doesn’t Alessa have many men?” I ask with a laugh.
“She does, and so does Evie,” Tyler answers. “Maybe you can meet
them sometime.”
“I’d like that,” I say honestly. I’ve looked up to Alessa for years because
she beat social norms to become one of the most feared Mafia bosses.
“Oh!” Tyler exclaims. “Maybe you can get in on the elusive girls’ group
chat.”
“Is this a big deal?”
“You have no idea. The guys try constantly to get into it just to see what
they talk about,” Gavin says. “Including my brother.”
“Why don’t they just hack into it?”
“Because they would murder whoever did it,” Tyler says. The front door
opens, and Keon steps through. “Where’s Ari?”
“Hopefully, trying to fix what he fucked up.” Keon flops on the couch
between me and Tyler. “How was your first day?”
“It wasn’t too bad.”
“Did they behave?” he whispers, making me smile.
“I don’t think you can expect much from Tyler.”
Tyler leans forward, looking at me around Keon. “I’m not the one who
told the whole school that Gavin couldn’t get her off.”
“You did what?” Keon splutters, looking at me in shock.
 “I didn’t say he couldn’t. I said he didn’t,” I defend. “And he started it.”
“Good girl,” Keon laughs. Something about that coming from him in his
deep voice makes my stomach flip.
I’m so fucked.

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 13

ARI

J
ason hasn’t talked to me in three goddamn days. I messaged him after
we got fuck all from the CIA agent, and he asked if I could tell him the
truth. I told him I couldn’t, and he’s ignored everything since. Even
went as far as kicking me out of High Flyer. I left because I didn’t want to
cause a scene. But I have to see him.
Taking a deep breath, I knock on his apartment door. “Please, talk to
me.”
“Go away, Ari!”
“I’ll stand out here all fucking night if I have to. Open the door.”
“Are you going to tell me what’s really going on?”
“It’s not that simple.”
“It is that simple. You’re hiding something.” I’m hiding a lot of shit.
I lean my forehead against the door, and somehow, I just know he’s
standing on the other side. “I am. But telling you isn’t safe.”
Jason jerks the door open, and just seeing him takes my breath away.
“What does that even mean?” I go to step inside, and he blocks my path.
“No. Something has been going on for a while, and I ignored it because it
wasn’t any of my fucking business. But the second we got involved, it
became my business. Who was that guy the other night?”
A million thoughts are running through my head. If I don’t tell him
something, he’ll shut me out of his life. I can’t handle that. As much as I
just wanted this to be a fun fling, that’s not possible now that I’ve gotten a
taste of him. “Will you let me in?”
“Are you going to be honest?”
“As honest as I can be. That’s all that I can do right now.”
I see the decisions play across his face, and then he steps to the side,
letting me walk in. He shuts the door and leans against it. “Start talking.”
I collapse on the couch and run my fingers through my hair. “I can’t tell
you everything.”
Jason walks over and sits in the chair in front of the couch. “You have to
give me something here, Ari. You’re constantly getting called away, running
from the bar like your ass is on fire, and you’re always looking over your
shoulder. Are you in some kind of trouble?”
I laugh and sit back on the couch. “You could say that.”
“What is it?”
Axel is going to kick my ass. “That guy that was asking about the
Saviors?” Jason nods. “He was asking about us. We are the Saviors.” That’s
as far as I’m willing to go with the truth. He can’t know about my past
before the army or who I really am.
“I don’t even know what that means.”
“That’s the point. We keep our identities hidden.”
“Why?”
I lay my head on the back of the couch and look at the ceiling. “We’re
mercenaries.” I can’t even look at his face when I say that word. I’ve never
been ashamed of what we do, but I can see how it looks from the outside.
To them, we’re just a bunch of hired guns that kill people for kicks. They
don’t see all the good we do, and no amount of saying that makes what we
do any better. We’re judge, jury, and executioner. You don’t get a trial when
you cross us. You get a bullet between the eyes. “The guy that was asking
questions was a CIA agent.”
“Am I in trouble now?”
I lift my head to look at him. That’s not what I expected him to ask next.
“No. But being associated with us could cause you to be.”
“That’s where you went, isn’t it? Did you kill him?”
“No.” Not for lack of trying. I still have no damn idea how he got past
Gavin on the inside and three of us on the outside. It’s been a long time
since I’ve found someone that plays the game better than we do. “We need
to talk to him.”
 “I don’t know what to say.” Jason gets up and starts pacing. “Everyone
has been lying to my face, including Chelsea, apparently. Then I find out
you’re all a bunch of murderers.”
“Hold up. We don’t just go around killing people. We only kill for a
cause.”
“You still kill people! Holy shit. I knew something was off. I’ve known
this whole goddamn time and ignored it because I wanted you.”
“No one can know about this. I’m telling you in hopes that you’ll trust
me.”
“Are you threatening me?”
“No! Jesus fuck.” I jump from the couch and block his path. “I’d never
hurt you.”
Jason steps back, and I can feel my heart start to shatter. “I don’t know
what to say right now. I need time to think.”
“Sweet cheeks, please don’t do this. I’m still the same person.”
“No. You aren’t,” he says sadly. “Out of everything you could have said,
I never expected that. You’re dangerous.”
“Not to you. You can trust me. Please, don’t make me leave.”
“I don’t know if this is something that I can handle. You and your whole
team are criminals.”
I can see in his eyes that he won’t hear a word I have to say. I nod and
walk toward the door. Before I open it, I turn to look at him. “There’s more
to us than meets the eye. I just wish you’d give me a chance to prove it.” I
jerk the door open and shut it behind me, then slide down to sit on the floor.
Just because he won’t let me stay inside doesn’t mean I won’t be here to
protect him.
I pull my phone and text the one person that I can think of that will help
with whatever I’m feeling.
Ari: I told him the truth. He hates me.
Chelsea: You have to give him time. This is a lot to digest. Why
don’t you come by the house?
Ari: I’m not leaving his apartment. We’re still under threat until we
find this asshole.
Chelsea: Okay. Axel wants to know what you told him.
Of course, he does.
Ari: He knows we’re the Saviors and what we do.
 As soon as that message is sent, my phone starts vibrating, Axel’s name
flashing across the screen. I hit ignore, letting it go to voicemail. I can’t risk
Jason overhearing me talking while camped out in his hallway. The
voicemail notification pops up, and my finger hovers over the delete button.
Knowing I’m going to get my ass chewed out, I hit play.
“Hey, man. Chelsea told me what’s going on because she’s worried
about you. None of you have been the same, and I see the change most of
all in you. I get why you told him, and for what it’s worth, I think we can
trust him. But what about when you have to tell him who you really are?
That day is going to come because you can’t run from your past your entire
life. Maybe you should start by telling the rest of my team. It isn’t going to
change how they look at you. Don’t give up on Jason. He’ll come around.”
The message ends, and I just stare at the phone like it has four heads. I
thought for sure Axel was going to be pissed because I told our secret. I
know he’s right about being honest about where I come from and how I got
involved with the Saviors to begin with. There’s so much more than just
breaking ranks with my black ops team and getting dishonorably
discharged.
Maybe it is time to face my past.

I’ m still outside Jason’s apartment the next morning when he leaves. He

sees me, and panic flares in his eyes.
“I’m just watching over you.”
“Watching over me or watching me?”
I drag myself to my feet, tired and defeated. “I just wanted to make sure
you were safe. I couldn’t stand the thought of leaving you.”
“You can’t keep doing this. Not after what you told me last night.”
“I get it. I just have something to say, and I’ll leave. I care about you.
I’m not sure what that means for me, but being with you, even for this short
amount of time, has made me the happiest I’ve ever been. I hope one day
you’ll hear me out.”
I tuck my hands in my pockets and make a fast clip down the hallway so
I don’t pull him into my arms and demand he forgive me. I jump into my
truck with one thought in mind. I need to get some of this off my chest.
 I pull into Axel’s driveway twenty minutes later and knock on his door.
He pulls it open with a confused look on his face. “It’s time.” That’s all he
needs to know before he steps back and sweeps his arm toward the living
room. Chelsea runs to hug me as soon as she sees me.
“I’m sorry,” she whispers.
“Maybe I’ll just steal you away.” I hear Axel growl and get some sick
satisfaction out of pissing him off.
I kiss the top of Chelsea’s head and sit in the chair in front of the
window. “Whole crew is here then?”
“What the fuck is going on with you?” Sean demands. “You look like
you’re about to explode.”
“I have something to say. Something that I haven’t said in a long
goddamn time.” I sit forward and brace myself. I feel like saying the words
will bring them down on my head. “My real name is Aryeh Cohen.”
“Wait,” Nolan says. “I thought your real name was Ari Levy.”
“That’s a cover of a cover. It’s the name I used when I joined the army,
and Ari Smith is my Savior’s name.”
“So, why so much cloak and dagger?” Cole asks. “And why didn’t we
know?”
“Because it’s not just a name. I can’t tell you anymore than that. Just
know that name will alert every government agency you can think of.”
“It’s that big of a risk?” Kai asks in disbelief. “How the hell did that
even happen?”
“I cut ties with a certain part of my life. I changed my name, and my
final fuck you was joining the army. I busted my ass to be a part of the
black ops team and even harder to become its leader.”
“How were you dishonorably discharged?” Chelsea asks softly.
I look at Axel, and he nods, letting me know it’s okay. I thought I had
long forgotten this part of my life, but talking about it makes it feel like it
just happened. “We got word that a shipment was coming into port. Our
intel was weapons. We staked it out and soon realized it was much more
than that.”
“It was human trafficking,” Sean guesses.
“It was. Only when we reported back what it was to my commander, he
told us to pull back and not engage. He told us it wasn’t our job, and he was
calling in federal agents.”
“And you ignored a direct order?” Cole asks.
 “Not at first. We watched it for a while, and I saw a familiar face. I
begged my commander to let us go, and he shot me down each time. My
team and I decided to take it down anyway, even though it was a threat to
national security because we weren’t on American soil.”
“Who was the familiar face?” Chelsea asks, tears already in her eyes.
“It was my little sister, Avina.”
“Oh my God, Ari,” Chelsea says, clapping a hand over her mouth.
“What happened?”
“We took down the entire transport and reported back what we had
done. My commander had us thrown in their form of prison and then threw
us out of the army.”
“Wait a fucking second,” Sean says, sitting forward on the couch. “You
served your country, took down a human trafficking ring, and were still
thrown out?”
“Stripped us of our medals, benefits, and everything. I met Charlie
shortly after, still very pissed off and looking for blood. That’s how my life
started as a Savior.”
“Where’s Avina?” Chelsea asks.
“Home.”
Chelsea goes to open her mouth, and Axel rubs his hand down her back.
“I think that’s all the questions he needs about that for now.” I look at him
gratefully, and he nods back. “I’ll admit I knew all this, but it wasn’t my
secret.”
Nolan looks around the room and then back to me. “Do you think this
CIA agent is targeting you?”
“I have no damn clue. He looked right over me, and I was sitting right at
the bar. He asked specifically about the Saviors, and it wouldn’t be the first
time we had federal agents breathing down our necks. We knew they would
find out when we started getting loud again.”
“I’m still trying to unlock his files,” Nolan adds. “I’ve never seen that
much encryption.”
“That means he’s deep cover,” Kai says.
“He’s also a goddamn ghost,” I spit. “He slipped us better than I’ve ever
seen.”
“That’s what they’re trained for,” Sean replies. “They’re also like
chameleons. So watch your back. Also, I’m really pissed that Axel always
gets to know all the cool shit.”
 “It’s not cool,” I laugh. “And my real name needs to stay hidden. It will
send up red flags everywhere with just a simple search.”
“I think this is bullshit,” Chelsea says angrily. “You saved people that
day and got kicked in the teeth because of it.”
“All they saw was me ignoring a direct command and putting my team
at risk at the same time.” I stand from the chair, feeling like a thousand
pounds is sitting on my chest. “I need to go. Kira starts classes today.”
I say my goodbyes and head to the door. “Ari?” Chelsea’s soft voice
stops me, and I turn around. “Jason will come around. I’m so happy you
found someone.”
“I did finally find someone and fucked that up too.” I kiss her forehead
and leave the house before I fall the fuck apart. Between the last mission,
Jason, and talking about my past, I feel like I need to curl up in a bottle of
liquor and sleep for days.
Or forever.

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 14

JASON

I
watch with my heart in my throat as Chelsea walks into High Flyer with
Kai and Sean. They look the same, but after everything that I found out,
they somehow look different. Kai and Sean go toward the pool tables,
and Chelsea comes to the bar.
“Scotch on the rocks,” she orders.
I still remember the first time she came in here with that piece of shit,
Amber, when she was pretending to be her friend. Chelsea wouldn’t look
anyone in the eye, and she tried to hide. The night she met Sean, all of that
changed. I watched him like a fucking hawk to make sure she was
comfortable, and it was sort of a relief when she left with him. The girl
staring back at me is still that Chelsea, but she smiles all the time now. I fill
a couple more orders and feel her eyes on me.
I go over and lean against the bar. “Go ahead. Get it out of the way.”
“I just wanted to make sure you were okay.”
“You aren’t here for Ari?”
She snorts. “Ari’s a grown man and can handle himself. I was worried
about you.”
“I’m fine.” She spots that lie a mile away and raises a brow. “Fine. I’m
not fine. This fucking sucks. I feel like I don’t know any of you.”
“I’m still Chelsea, Jason. We can’t just tell everyone who we are.”
“You’re one of them?”
 “A Savior? Yes. I just work in different ways than them. They do bad
shit for the right reasons. It’s all in the name.” She grabs my hand,
surprising me. “You can’t give up on Ari. None of us want to lie, but it’s not
like we can go around broadcasting what we do. They will hate this, but
they’re fucking heroes. They are the ones who take down the bad guys
everyone else is afraid of and don’t want recognition for it. They do it
because they want to help in any way they can.”
“I’m just so confused.”
“The one thing you don’t have to be confused about is how Ari feels
about you. I’ve never seen him like this. I’ve never even seen him approach
anyone until you.”
“He’s still not telling me everything.”
“He can’t tell you. Some things put your life at risk, and he won’t do
that. Just focus on what he does tell you. That will always be true. Ari’s one
of the best men that I’ve ever met. His whole team is. He’ll never lie to you,
but he has to keep some things to himself.”
“I miss him,” I whisper, and she smiles.
“And he misses you. Call him.”
I pull my phone from my pocket and am just pulling up Ari’s contact
when the door flies open. Ari storms in and marches right up to the bar.
“This isn’t working,” he declares. “I tried to stay away, but I can’t. When I
said you were mine, I damn well meant it, and I’m not letting you go that
easy. I’ll stake out the bar, your apartment, wherever I need to until you
realize I’m it for you. I’ll get on my knees and beg if I have to. Please, put
me out of my fucking misery and tell me that you forgive me.” Chelsea
props her chin in her hand, grinning from ear to ear.
“I forgive you.”
Ari opens his mouth, gearing up for more of his speech, and snaps it
closed. “What?”
“I already fixed it,” Chelsea laughs. “But that was something special to
witness. I kind of wish he would have made you get on your knees,
though.”
“You want to see me on my knees for you, Sweet cheeks?” Ari comes
around to my side of the bar and to my shock, drops to his knees in front of
me. “I need you in my life, Jason.”
I run my fingers through his thick black hair and feel the world settle
again. “I need you too.”
 “Thank fuck,” Ari breathes, jumping to his feet. He pulls me in for a
kiss, and the bar erupts with catcalls again. Most of them are my regulars
and have been rooting for us.
“Get it, Gramps!” I hear Sean yell.
“I can’t wait to take you home,” Ari whispers against my lips.
“I have help tonight. Take me to the back.” Ari jerks back to look at my
face. “Please.”
I toss the towel to my bartender, and Ari grabs my hand, practically
dragging me. I don’t even care that everyone knows what’s about to happen.
I just need to feel him against me. Ari jerks me into the stockroom and has
me pressed against the door, his lips sealing over mine. We only pull away
long enough to get our shirts off, and then they fuse back together. My
hands go to Ari’s jeans, and he pulls away. “Are you sure you want to do
this here?”
“I want to feel you inside me.”
“Fuck, Sweet cheeks,” Ari groans when I jerk his jeans and boxers over
his hips. “I want to take my time.”
“You can. Later.” I wrap my hand around his thick cock and start
stroking. “For now, I want you to bend me over those crates.”
“Goddamn,” Ari growls, stepping back. He kicks his boots off and pulls
his jeans off his feet. “Do you have lube?”
I dig my wallet from my back pocket and pull the packet from inside. I
wave it in front of him, and he roughly undoes my jeans. Ari pulls them
from my feet and drops to his knees to help me take them the rest of the
way off. His lips seal over the head of my aching cock, and my back slams
against the door. “Holy shit, babe.”
Ari groans deep in his chest and starts sucking me fast. I look down into
his blue eyes, and they’re glued to my face. How the hell did I ever think I
could give him up? Ari lets my cock go and starts kissing my thighs,
stomach, and up my chest as he stands. He jerks the packet from my hand
and spins me around, marching me toward the stack of crates. “I don’t
know if I can hold back.”
“Don’t. I want to know you were there.”
“Trust me, Sweet cheeks, you’ll never forget. Turn around and bend
over.”
“Yes, Sir,” I breathe, doing as he says. I brace my arms on the crates and
prop my foot on the bottom one, opening myself for him. I’ve never done
anything like this, and the fact that it’s Ari makes it even fucking better. He
kisses down my spine, across my asscheeks, and buries his face to lick
around my back hole. My hips jerk, and he locks a hand on it to keep me
from moving. I hear him tear the lube packet open. “Just fuck me, please.”
“I don’t want to hurt you.”
I look over my shoulder at him. “You won’t. I just need you so damn
bad.”
Ari takes me at my word, and I watch with rapt attention as he spreads
the lube all over his cock. He lines up and, still holding the base, starts to
push inside. I bear down, and the head pops inside me. I breathe through the
burn and slowly push against him to take him all. “You need to see how
good you take me. You stretch so pretty.” He uses his hand and spreads my
asscheeks apart. “So pretty.”
“Holy fuck,” I gasp when I feel his thighs settle against the back of
mine.
“I’m going to take you home later, and I’m staying buried in this ass all
night long, Sweet cheeks. You feel so goddamn good.”
“Please,” I moan, and his fingers tighten on my ass.
Ari starts moving slowly, making sure I feel his cock rub against every
nerve ending. Mine is flexing and throbbing between my thighs, leaking
everywhere. Ari wraps his arm around my waist and slowly pulls out,
making me moan loudly. “You like the way my cock feels?”
“Yes.”
I hear the door to the stockroom open, and I whip my head over my
shoulder. Tyler walks in, stops in his tracks, and his eyes widen. “Well.
That’s not what I expected to see when I walked in here.”
“Shut the fucking door,” Ari growls. Tyler shuts it and leans against it.
“I meant with you on the other side.” I feel Ari’s cock twitch inside of me,
and I look at his face. Does he like that Tyler is watching? “Now, fuckface.”
“Hell no. This is the best thing I’ve ever seen. Sweet ass, Jay.”
“Oh my God,” I groan, dropping my head forward.
I feel Ari lean against my back. “I feel you flexing around me. Do you
want him to stay and see how good I fuck you?” His hand wraps around my
cock, and a whimper leaves my mouth. “I’ll take that as a yes.” Ari wraps
his arm around my waist and pulls me to stand. He turns me toward the
wall. “Brace your hands.” I put my hands on the wall, and he jerks my hips
back, making me arch.
 “Well, goddamn,” Tyler comments. “I could use some pointers.”
“If you’re staying, shut the fuck up,” Ari rasps.
“Fuck me,” I beg. Having Ari inside me is enough, but now that Tyler is
watching, it makes it even hotter. I’ve heard some of their conversations,
and they’ve never shied away from talking about sex, so I know they’ve
done this before. But I didn’t know I was into it until now.
“Listen to him beg, Ty.” Ari slowly pulls out and slams back inside me,
making me choke on a moan. “That’s even better. Hold on.”
That’s all the warning I get before Ari’s hands tighten on my hips and
starts slamming inside me so hard that all I can do is brace myself. My cock
is swinging with each thrust, and Tyler can see it all from where he’s
standing. I should be embarrassed that he caught us in this position, but I
can’t find it in myself to care. I look over my arm at Tyler, and his eyes are
glued to where Ari’s cock is disappearing inside my ass. Like he can feel
me watching, his eyes drag to my face, and the grin he gives me has me
whimpering loudly. Tyler slowly takes his hand, rubs it down his stomach,
and massages himself through his jeans. “Holy fucking shit,” I pant.
“You want to see him?” Ari asks. “You want to see him stroking his
cock for you?”
“Yes.”
“Get it out, Tyler,” Ari demands, and Tyler raises a brow. “Now.”
Tyler’s brows furrow, and his hands go to his jeans. He pulls them down
enough to pull his cock out, and my mouth waters at his thick length.
“Stroke it. Show Sweet cheeks how much he turns you on. Or is it me?” Ari
taunts.
“It’s the whole fucking thing,” Tyler admits, slowly moving his hand up
and down his cock. “It’s hot watching you glaze Jason’s donut.”
Ari huffs a laugh. “I hate you so much.”
“Boss me around some more. I kind of liked it,” Tyler quips. He
tightens his hand around the head of his cock, making a bead of pre-cum
leak from the tip.
Ari’s thrust intensifies, and I can feel myself racing toward the finish
line. He hasn’t even touched my cock, either. “Are you going to come for
me, Sweet cheeks?”
“Yes. Fuck yes.”
“I want you to look at Tyler when I make you come.”
 Tyler leans back against the door and starts stroking his cock faster. His
hips are chasing his hand, and I can’t drag my eyes away. “Fuck,” he
breathes.
“Ari,” I moan.
“There you go,” Ari encourages. “You want my cum deep inside you?”
“Yes, please.”
“Tell Ty how bad you want my cum.”
“I want it so bad.”
“Such a needy boy,” Ari says gruffly, caressing my hips, “wanting my
cum dripping from you for the rest of the night. Don’t take your eyes off of
him. You’re doing so good.”
Ari shifts his hips and starts pounding into my prostate. I can’t help the
sounds leaving my mouth, and Tyler groans loudly. “May I come, please,
Sir?” Tyler asks, and I’m not entirely sure if he’s joking or not.
“Not until he does,” Ari answers.
I watch the veins in Tyler’s arms bulge as he starts stroking himself in a
tight fist. Something about him chasing his pleasure by watching us has me
clamping down on Ari. “Ari,” I whimper, and then I’m coming. The force
of his thrusts has it spraying everywhere.
“Oh, thank fuck,” Tyler groans. His head hits the door with a thump,
and then he comes all over his hand.
“Beg me for my cum,” Ari grits out, and I look at him over my shoulder.
His eyes are flipping back and forth between where we’re connected and
Tyler’s cum on his hand.
“Please give me your cum.” I’ve never been one to beg, but I would do
it a thousand times over to see that primal look on Ari’s face. Ari slams
inside me as deep as he can go, and I feel him swell inside me. “Yes. Ari.”
“Sweet cheeks,” he groans, kissing down my spine. “Are you okay?”
“I’m perfect,” I admit.
Ari helps me stand and turns me around to face Tyler, who’s wiping his
hand and tucking himself back in his jeans. Ari wraps his arms around my
waist and pulls me against his chest. “What was so damn important that you
had to run back here?” Ari asks.
“You think I remember now?” Tyler asks with a laugh. “The whole
place could have been on fire, and I would have forgotten the second I saw
you balls deep in his ass.”
“What did you mean you could use some pointers?” Ari continues.
 “Oh. Uh. Well,” Tyler rubs the back of his neck nervously, and it’s the
first time I’ve seen him uncomfortable. “You’ll find out anyway, but Gavin
and I messed around the other night.”
“No shit?” Ari asks. “I saw it coming, but it’s still surprising. Are you
okay with this?” Ari gestures between the three of us.
“As long as you don’t plan on killing me later for seeing him naked,
then yeah.”
“Alright then,” Ari says, kissing my neck. “Now, get out and give me
time with my boy.”
Tyler rolls his eyes and slips from the stockroom. Ari turns me in his
arms and kisses me slowly.
I wanted to be mad at him, and I’m still worried about who he is.
But I can’t let him go now.

OceanofPDF.com
 15

KEON

I
look at Ari’s message and chuckle, making Kira look at me. She’s
sprawled on the living room floor with books and papers surrounding
her.
“What’s so funny?”
“Ari,” I answer. “He got his boy back. He just messaged to say he won’t
be here tonight.”
“Ari has a boyfriend?”
“Yeah. Sort of. I don’t know. It’s new.”
“That’s cool.” She looks back at her papers with a sigh. “This is so
much.”
“What are you doing?”
“I’m just going through each syllabus and making a plan. I like to be
prepared.”
“We can help with what we can. Gavin is good at pretty much
everything given his fancy-ass education. I’m good at math, and Tyler has a
photographic memory.”
“And Ari?”
“He can speak like six different languages.” Probably more knowing
him. “Either way, we’re here to help.”
“This must suck for you guys. You’re used to being in the middle of the
mayhem, and now you’re stuck with me in a dorm.”
 “This is good for us. We’ve been through some tough shit lately. We
needed something else.”
“Do you have a lady Keon waiting for you at home? Or a mister Keon?”
I laugh. “No to both.”
“So, we’re the last ones standing?”
“What do you mean?”
“Oh.” Kira’s cheeks darken, and she looks up at me. “I figured you’d
know about Tyler and Gavin.”
“I can’t say I’m surprised, but I didn’t know they were together.”
“I don’t know if they’re together officially, but they were making out on
campus the other day.”
“Well, holy shit.” I shrug and lay back on the couch, stretching my legs
out in front of me. “It’ll be good for them. You don’t have a Mrs. or Mr.
waiting for you?”
Her brows furrow, and she looks back at the mess in front of her. “Not
many people want to be seen with the circus freak.”
“What did you just say?” Her head snaps up at my harsh tone. “Don’t
ever let me hear you say some shit like that again. You’re gorgeous. People
are just assholes.”
“You don’t have to lie to me just because my brother hired you.”
“Do I give off the vibe that I’m a people pleaser? I say what I mean.”
She gives me a surprised look and goes back to her planner. I’m not
lying to her. The scars are obvious, but it doesn’t take away an ounce of her
beauty. She has the most gorgeous dark brown eyes I’ve ever seen, and her
smile could disarm a man. I noticed it immediately but kept my eyes
averted because, just like I suspected, she would think I was looking at the
scars. “I’m sorry,” she says softly.
“For what?”
“For assuming the worst and thinking you were lying to me.”
“Don’t sweat it, but don’t talk about yourself like that. If you can’t see
yourself in a good light, how is anyone else supposed to?”
“I guess I never thought about it that way. I just want to scream when I
catch people staring.”
“Just look them right in the face. Don’t drop your head, and never let
them see you react. Let them get to know the real Kira.”
“You don’t even know the real me.”
 “I think I do. You’re strong, even though you don’t believe that you are.
You’re selfless because you let your brother put a security detail on you
because it makes him feel better, even though you hate it. You’re fun
because only someone with a winning personality can make Gavin laugh.
And you’re beautiful and don’t realize that’s probably what people are
looking at.”
“You got all that from a couple of days?”
“I’m a good people-reader.”
She gives me that breathtaking smile and goes back to her books. “For
the record, I don’t hate you guys being here anymore.”
I let her get back to work and catch myself staring at her profile. The
report we got from Axel was detailed. We know everything that Kira has
been through since the fire. Kane did everything he could to keep her
sheltered growing up because their father failed to do so. But that didn’t
stop her from getting caught in the middle. I can’t imagine what she had to
go through during her recovery. The pain alone would be enough to bring
the strongest man down, but Kira’s not letting it stop her, which makes me
admire her even more. There’s something about her, and I want to find out
more, but I don’t want her to think I’m an opportunistic asshole.
Kira collapses back on the floor with a sigh, making me laugh. “What’s
wrong?”
“I’m bored.”
“Let’s go do something. You don’t have to stay cooped up in here.”
She looks at me with a raised brow. “Like what?”
“I know this really awesome low-key bar. It’s where we all hang out.
The rest of the guys are there.” Kira starts chewing her bottom lip, already
coming up with an excuse. Fuck that. “Come on.” I stand from the couch
and slide my boots back on. “It’ll be fun.”
At least, I hope it is, and Ari doesn’t kill me for this.

T he drive to High Flyer was quiet, and I almost turned back around until
she finally looked away from her window. I could see her steeling herself.
I pull into the lot and shove my car into park. Kira adjusts her beanie
and pulls her sleeves down, which I’ve noticed is a nervous habit. I climb
out of the car and go to her side, opening the door for her. “Come on,
Mama, you’ve got this.” I stick my hand in for her, and to my surprise, she
slides her tiny hand into mine. I help her out and tuck her hand onto my
arm. As soon as I pull open the door, I hear Tyler’s big mouth.
“Kira!” He jumps from the stool and jogs over to us. He scoops her up
in a bear hug, making her laugh. “I’m so happy to see you.”
“I couldn’t tell,” she answers when he sets her back on her feet.
I look around the bar and breathe a sigh of relief when Ari doesn’t look
mad, and that’s when I catch sight of Chelsea. “Come on. I want you to
meet someone.” I lead her over to the group, and Chelsea smiles. “Kira, this
is Chelsea, Kai, and Sean. Guys, this is Kira.”
“It’s nice to meet you,” Chelsea replies and gestures to the stool beside
her. Kira shyly smiles and slides onto it. “You want a drink?”
“A beer is fine.” I see Kira sneak glances at Kai and the scarred side of
his face. Kai no longer tries to hide that part of himself, and I hope Kira can
find strength from that, so I’m glad he’s here.
“Oh, Jason,” Tyler sings. “Quit flirting with Ari, and get my girl a beer.”
“A please would be nice,” Ari says dryly. “Hey, Kira.”
“Is that his boyfriend?” Kira whispers, and I nod. “Oh, he’s cute.”
“Right?” Chelsea whispers. “Much too cute for Ari.”
“I heard that,” Ari answers.
“So, your old age doesn’t affect your hearing?” Kira quips, making
everyone die laughing.
“I like her,” Jason declares, sitting a beer in front of her. “I’m Jason.”
Kira relaxes a little more so I walk over to Ari. “Does he know who she
is?”
Ari nods. “Yeah. I told him everything. What made you bring her here?”
“I don’t know. I just feel like she needs someone to push her out of her
comfort zone. This was a good start.”
“We still have a CIA agent breathing down our necks. It might not be
good if she’s spotted with us here.”
“They don’t have a connection to the Saviors and us.”
“Yet,” Ari points out. “We’ll cross that bridge when we get there.” Ari
stands from his stool and motions for me to follow him. We walk outside,
and I brace myself for a lecture. “She needs normalcy, so this is good since
Chelsea is here. But I also wanted to say something else.” Ari leans against
the side of the building and shoves his hands in his pockets. “Look, I want
to apologize for how I acted when you told me the truth. This whole jealous
thing is new for me.”
“I’d never step on your toes, Ari. What changed, though?”
Ari laughs. “Tyler walked in on me and Jason in the stockroom.”
“And?”
“And I let him stay. I don’t know, man. Just knowing he was there made
me fucking insane.”
“Did he touch him?”
“Nah. He just watched.”
“How did Jason feel about that?”
“Turned the fuck on. I’ve never seen him come so goddamn hard.”
I rake a hand down my face and blow out a breath. “Fuck.” Just the
image alone has my mind going to so many different places. I would pay
damn good money to see Ari in action, and the fact that it was Jason? Ten
times better. “Why are you telling me this?”
“I figured I’d tell you before Tyler did and stretched the story.”
“I get that.” I lean beside him. “Is this going to be a regular thing?”
“I guess that’s up to Jason. Did you know about Tyler and Gavin?”
I want to call him out for changing the subject, but I don’t want him to
get the wrong idea, even if I’ll be first in line if Ari wants someone to join
him and Jason. “I’ve known forever that Gavin wanted Tyler. Kira told me
they finally started messing around.”
“How the hell did you know?”
“Because I’ve seen Gavin try to hide more than one hard-on after
wrestling with him,” I laugh.
We get quiet, and I know Ari has something else on his mind, so I just
wait him out. He finally sighs and turns to face me. “This team has been
fucked up since the last mission. I don’t know what’s going to happen, but I
do know that I’ll fight like hell to get us back to where we were.”
“I think where we’re at is what’s going to help. I know you don’t
believe in fate and all that shit, but I do.”
“What are you saying?”
“I don’t think it’s a coincidence that you finally went after Jason or that
Gavin finally gave in to his feelings for Tyler. Or that we have Kira.”
Ari’s eyes narrow. “We don’t have Kira. You heard what Kane said. Ke,
you can’t try anything with her.”
 “Is that an order? Kira’s a grown woman who doesn’t need her brother
making her decisions for her. Does she need protection? Probably. But other
than that, it’s none of his business.”
“Just know it’s your head and dick on the line. I won’t stand in the
way.”
With a nod, I pull the door back open and stop in my damn tracks.
Birthday Sex by Jeremih is blaring around the bar, but that’s not the best
part. “What the fuck?” Ari breathes.
Tyler is on the bar, dancing, and Kira is waving dollar bills around.
Luckily, there are only a few other people here besides us. It gets to the
chorus, and Tyler drops to his knees right in front of Jason, leans back on
his hands, and starts rolling his hips. Kira and Chelsea throw their heads
back with a laugh, and it takes my breath away to see Kira so carefree.
Tyler turns over to his hands and knees, crawling over to where Gavin is
sitting. Tyler leans back on his hands again, putting his dick right in Gavin’s
face. I expect to see Gavin get embarrassed, but he slowly slides money into
the waistband of Tyler’s pants.
“What is happening?” I laugh.
“Fuck if I know,” Ari answers. “But if it has the team almost back to
normal, I’m not complaining.”
Ari and I walk up to the bar, and I step up behind Kira. “Having fun,
Mama?” I whisper in her ear. Her breath catches, and she turns slowly to
look at me over her shoulder.
“Yeah,” she answers. “Where did you go?”
“Did you miss me?” I tease, making her blush. “Ari needed to talk to
me about something.”
Our attention gets pulled back to Tyler when he goes into a handstand,
lets his bottom half drop to the bar, and starts grinding. I have to give it to
him, he can dance. I slowly slide my hand up Kira’s arm and raise her hand
back up so Tyler can see the money. He slides down the bar on his knees
and stops in front of her. Taking her hand in mine, I tuck the money beside
Gavin’s by curling my fingers around hers. I don’t miss the slight shiver in
her body, and I’m not sure if it’s because of me or him.
But I want to find out.

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 16

GAVIN

ce, move on my command,” Ari says through comms.

“A “Got it.” I move my AK into position and wait for his word.
Tyler nods beside me, letting me know he’s ready.
This is just a simple extraction of three missing women, but we don’t
know who’s waiting inside for us. They went through a lot of trouble hiding
them, so we’re prepared for anything.
“Move!”
I lift my foot and kick the door to the small apartment open. Tyler and I
rush in and are met with three men. Tyler gets the first one, and I take out
the next two. I see Ari and Keon move in through the fire escape window.
Shots are coming from everywhere, and it’s hard to keep up with how many
shooters there are. We’re finally met with silence, and then the screaming
starts.
“Holy shit,” Keon breathes through comms.
Tyler and I move toward the back of the apartment and find the three
women huddled on the floor.
Ari moves his AK behind his back and raises his hands. “We’re here to
help!” he yells over the screams. He gestures to all of us. “Good guys.”
Tyler wanders over to the window, peeking out. “We need to move. We
don’t know how many people they have.”
Ari crouches down so he’s not towering over them. “Let us help you.”
 One woman starts shaking her head and starts speaking rapidly in
another language. Ari answers in the same language, and she seems
surprised. She starts speaking faster and gestures wildly to another room.
“Shit,” Ari spits and stands up. “There’s more.” He jerks his head for
me to follow him, and I pull my AK back up. We slowly approach the door,
and Ari reaches for the handle. I nod, letting him know I’m ready for
anything. When he pushes the door open, all the air whooshes from my
lungs.
There are more women and some very sick-looking kids. They’re
bruised, bloody, and look like they haven’t eaten in months. The oldest child
couldn’t be more than seven years old.
“Ace!” Ari’s yell snaps me out of my trance, and I turn wild eyes to him.
“Pull it together. We need to get them out of here. Now.”
“We have two unknowns moving toward the apartment,” Keon reports
through comms. “Tyler and I will cover. Get them out.”
The one speaking to Ari earlier rushes into the room, and they have a
hushed conversation. She runs out and returns with the other two women
behind her. “Ace. Grab the kid on the bed.”
I walk over and almost lose my shit. This kid is maybe two, and his
breathing is shallow. I sling my AK behind my back and gently slide my
arms under him. His body is lifeless when I pick him up, and all I can do is
beg him to hold on until we can get him help.
Shots ring out from outside the apartment, and Tyler yells that we need
to move. As carefully as possible, I move to the fire escape. Our plan went
all to shit now that we have more to rescue than we initially thought.
“Come on, buddy,” I whisper. “We’re almost safe.”
I move him so his head is on my shoulder and wrap my arm around his
waist. With one hand, I start climbing down the fire escape ladder. “Pass
him to me,” Keon whispers when I’m almost to the bottom. “Ari’s going to
need you back up there.”
More shots echo through the night, and I gently pass him to Keon. I go
back to the apartment, and one by one, we put them securely in the back of
the van. We’re on the road when all hell breaks loose.
“He’s not breathing!” Keon yells, starting CPR on the first one I
carried out. “Ari, fucking step on it!”
We skid to a stop in front of Betty’s house thirty minutes later, and
everyone is already waiting to help. I stumble out of the van and hear the
screaming but can’t make anything out.
“Gavin!”
There are too many of them sick, and we don’t have the resources to
help them. We didn’t get to them soon enough.
“Gavin. You have to wake up.” I jerk up in bed, and a sob erupts before
I can stop it. “Shhh,” Tyler soothes, jerking me into a hug. “It’s okay.”
“We didn’t get there quick enough,” I say, trying to get my shit under
control. “They could have died.”
“They didn’t, though. They have a lot of healing ahead, but they lived.”
I know he’s just placating me because it’s still touch and go with a few of
them, including the one Keon tried to save in the back of that van. None of
us can even open those doors because all we see is them. After Keon got
him breathing again, they rushed the sickest to the hospital. I couldn’t
move, and I felt fucking useless. “What can I do?”
“I don’t know,” I say raggedly, trying to push him away. He holds on
tighter, and I feel my temper flare. “Let me go.”
“No. Let me fucking help you.” I let the fight leave my body, and he
loosens his hold to help me lay back down. He crawls on the bed beside me
so we’re face to face. I feel my eyes drifting closed, and he rubs his hand
across my sweaty forehead. I lift my hand and flatten my palm against his
heart. “Sleep. I’ll keep the nightmares away.”

I wake up the following morning feeling groggy as hell. The nightmares

always take so much out of me. I drag my ass out of bed and stumble to the
bathroom. Turning the water on cold, I step inside so it shocks me awake.
The same thing I have to do every damn morning. When my mind clears, I
adjust the temperature and finish my shower so we can go to the college
campus for Kira.
I loved seeing her having fun last night, and I knew she and Chelsea
would get along. After Tyler’s impromptu half-ass strip tease on the bar, we
all just hung out—no talk of missions or anything to do with the Saviors.
We were just human for a couple of hours. We talked and laughed, making
me feel normal. I hoped it was enough to keep the nightmares at bay, but I
was dead wrong. That’s the worst they’ve been. I can usually wake myself
up before it gets to when we were in the van, but last night, it wasn’t giving
up. We don’t even know the little boy’s name because the women didn’t
know, either. The intel didn’t match what we found, and we know
something darker is at work. The women and kids were snatched at random,
with nothing linking any of them together. But the lead that led us to that
apartment went radio silent, and we couldn’t find anything else.
I climb out of the shower, dry off, and wrap a towel around my waist.
Going to my bedroom, I get dressed and head downstairs to find Tyler. I
step into the kitchen, and Ari is leaning against the counter with his arms
crossed over his chest. “Morning.”
“Morning,” I reply, taking the coffee cup he slides across the counter.
“Where’s Ty?”
“He already left for the campus. You’re with me today.”
“Okay,” I say slowly. “Why?”
“Because I have you working with Sean on your sneaky shit.”
“I’m sorry that agent got the drop on us.”
Ari waves that away. “That wasn’t on you. We underestimated him. I
also wanted to talk to you.” I nod for him to continue. “You have to get
your head back on straight, and that means dealing with this shit head-on.” I
open my mouth, and he holds a hand up. “I know I give you a lot of shit,
but you’re a damn good addition to this team. I know I don’t say it enough,
and I should. But I need you all in. You don’t eat or sleep for shit. That
makes you a liability.” Ari turns around and grabs a plate from the counter
behind him. He slaps it down in front of me with a glare. “Eat. I’ll be in the
garage.”
“Do you want me to show you I ate it all like a good boy?”
“Don’t push me, Gavin. Just because I said you’re an asset doesn’t
mean I won’t shoot you on the spot.”
He leaves the kitchen before I can reply, so I do the mature thing and
flip him off behind his back. With a shake of my head, I dig into the eggs
and bacon on my plate but can feel it drop like lead into my stomach. Every
time I eat, I see how malnourished those people were. I close my eyes, take
a deep breath, and finish my food. It takes everything in me not to throw it
back up as I set my plate in the sink.
I go to the garage, slide my boots on, and open the door. Ari is loading
shit into the back of his truck. “I made a happy plate, Sir.”
“Get in the fucking truck, Ace.”
 I can’t help but laugh as I climb inside. Ari gets in and slams the door
behind him. “Where are we going?”
“Sean said he has the perfect place to train, so we’re meeting him
there.”
Ari backs out of the garage and is on the main road before I turn to face
him. “What did you mean I need to face this shit head-on?”
“You need to deal with what happened that day. Go to the hospital and
see with your own damn eyes that you saved lives.”
“Are you crazy?”
“Probably, for dealing with you assholes, but I’m right about this.” Ari
sighs and glances at me. “I’ve seen a lot of bad shit in my time. Starting
from a very young age because of where I come from. Sometimes you just
have to remind yourself of the good shit. I know you’re hell-bent on
stopping these trafficking rings because of Grant, and believe me, I get it.
You want to right the wrongs of your father. But that doesn’t happen in a
day. We’re doing the best we can with what we have. Nolan and Holden are
still looking for the ones who started the last one. We will find them.”
I nod and swallow the lump in my throat. He’s right. Grant fucking
Augustus is what lit the fire under my ass to stop human trafficking rings.
Before, all I could do was fund their recovery and give them safe refuge
until they could get back on their feet. But since joining the Saviors, I’ve
felt I need to do more. I have to do more. As much as I want to hate my
sister, Gemma, I know she was just another victim to Grant. I went to see
her once and haven’t been back because she told me everything he did to
her and then told me it was all my fault for leaving her. She doesn’t know
everything I did to try to keep her safe from him.
Ari pulls into a parking lot, and I look around. “What the hell is this
place?”
“It used to be a training camp for the Army. Now, it’s a paintball arena.”
“We’re playing paintball?”
Ari laughs and shoves his door open. “Sort of. Get out.”
I slide from the truck and help Ari carry the stuff from the back of his
truck through the gates. To my surprise, Sean walks toward us with Ghost
following behind him. “What are you doing here?” I ask, giving him a hug.
“Sean called and said he needed help getting your ass into shape.”
Sean claps and bounces on the balls of his feet. “I’m so excited.”
“I’m afraid to ask why,” Ari replies.
 Sean starts passing out vests and paintball guns. “I set it up like a
regular mission. Your goal is to get through without being seen and shoot
them first. You have the course, and there’s a big ass house back there you
need to get to. Bridget is your damsel in distress. You get shot? You have to
start again.”
“Who all is hiding in there?” I ask, strapping my vest on.
“Alexey, Dmitri, Nik, Caden, Kai, Cole, and Axel. Les said she would
have loved to shoot your ass, but Willow is sick. So she sent Gage and
Zane.”
“I’ll also be in there,” Ari says with a grin.
“So, will we,” Ghost adds. “You’ve got this, brother.”
“If you can out-sneak the sneaky,” Sean laughs. “They don’t call us
Ghost and Shadow for nothing.”
“When I do this, I want a cool nickname.” I pull my mask on, and they
slip into the course. They will be the hardest to get by because they know
the path I’ll most likely take.
I steady my breathing like they taught me and slide to the side of the
course to go in the side instead of the front entrance. Holding my gun in
front of me, I walk silently through the first part of the course. I catch
someone out of the corner of my eye and pop a shot off before they can get
me. I move back on the outside so it doesn’t give my position away and
keep moving. One down. I get through the first part of the course, taking
down two more before I feel a paintball hit me dead center of the chest.
“Go again!” Ari calls out, lowering his gun.
“Of course it would be you,” I grumble, walking to the start from the
beginning. I give them time to switch up their positions before I start again.
We go through this four more fucking times before I make it to the house.
By the time I step inside the house, my hands are sweaty and I have to
steady myself again. I slide against the wall in the shadows and wait. I
know this is where Ghost and Sean most likely are, and I’ll be damned if
one of them takes me down. I let all of their advice roll through my head
and crouch at the bottom of the stairs. I grin behind my mask and purposely
lean my weight on the creak on the landing. Just like I thought, one of them
materializes at the top of the stairs, and I take them out before moving back
into the shadows. The staircase is spiral so I move to the other side.
Taking each step slowly, I peek around the top and see the door marked
to where Bridget is. Most likely, the other one is waiting beside it or right
inside. I check my surroundings and realize there isn’t enough space to hide
beside the door, so they’re waiting inside that room.
Quickly but quietly, I move to the door and shove it open. I walk
through and feel the air move behind me, and spin, popping off a shot.
“My hero!” Bridget calls out with a laugh, and I know it’s over.
Ghost pulls his mask off, a huge smile on his face. “Damn good job,
brother.”
“It only took me four tries,” I grumble, turning around and letting
Bridget hop on my back. “Just for that, I’m stealing your wife.”
I take off at a dead sprint, body checking Ghost out of my way, and take
off down the steps, Bridget laughing like crazy. “Cover me!” I yell when I
see Axel walking in front of the course.
Bridget grabs the paintball gun and lights him up. “What the fuck?!” he
explodes, ducking for cover. “It’s over!”
“Not for me!” she sings, looking for someone else. I spot Nik at the
same time as her, and he gives her a warning look that she doesn’t listen to.
She pulls the trigger again, hitting him square in the chest.
We make it to the end of the course, and I collapse on the ground, both
of us laughing like crazy.
Sean walks over and extends a hand down, pulling me to my feet.
“Welcome to the team, Phantom.”
I know that this was just training, and the nicknames are stupid to
everyone else. But it feels like I’ve finally been accepted fully by the
Saviors.
That means I need to figure out how to deal with my issues, so I can
give them my all.

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 17

TYLER

I
relax on the bench outside of Kira’s class and wait. It’s weird not being
here with Gavin, and I almost argued with Ari when he said he was
taking him today. But my argument that he had too hard of a night died
on my tongue when Ari told me his plan. Gavin needs this more than I think
he even realizes.
Kira’s class lets out, and I watch her walk out, smiling shyly at a girl
walking with her. She heads in my direction, and I stand to greet her. “Did
you make a friend?” I ask, slinging my arm over her shoulders.
She shrugs, and we start walking toward her dorm. “Sort of. She was
really nice.”
“What’s her name?”
Kira gives me a dry look. “So you can run a background check on her?”
“Yes,” I answer truthfully. “I can find out either way.”
“It’s Jessica. I don’t know a last name. She invited me to a party
Friday.”
“For real? I’m sure she’ll come back fine, but you know we need to
check.” She mocks me under her breath, and I squeeze her to my side,
making her laugh. “I have a question.”
“I’m afraid to ask, but what?”
“You looked awfully cozy with Ke last night.”
Her cheek blooms with color, and she ducks her head. “That’s not a
question.”
 “Are you into him?”
Kira snorts. “It wouldn’t matter if I was.”
“Why not?”
“Because he’s not interested.”
It’s my turn to look at her sideways. “No? So, him giving you a cute
nickname and staying glued to you last night meant nothing?”
“He’s my protection detail. He had to.”
“No, he didn’t. Trust me, he’s interested.”
“He is not.”
“He is.”
“Not.”
“Is.” I stick my tongue out at her, and she laughs. “I wouldn’t just blow
smoke up your ass.”
“I really liked meeting Chelsea.”
“Smooth subject change. I told you she was awesome.”
“She told me to call her when I got sick of you guys, and she would
rescue me.”
“You’ll never be sick of us.” I pop a sloppy kiss on top of her head, and
she scrunches her nose. “Let’s get back to Keon.”
“Let’s not and say we did.” She unlocks her dorm room and pushes the
door open. “There’s nothing to talk about.”
“Come on. Be real with me.” I flop down on the couch and pull her to
sit beside me. “What would be the harm if he was interested?”
“Because I’m sure my brother or Blaze threatened bodily harm if you
touched me.” She turns on the couch to face me and tucks her legs under
her. “It’s more than that, though.” I sense the seriousness in her voice and
slide to the other side so I can give her my full attention. She fiddles with
her gloves for a minute and then pulls them from her hands. Then she
pushes the sleeves of her long-sleeved shirt up. “I’m scarred almost
everywhere. It took a long time for me to look at myself in the mirror. I
couldn’t imagine showing them all to someone else.”
“You’re showing me.”
She gives me a small smile. “I’m showing you some of them. I trust
you, for whatever reason. I guess it’s because I can tell you really don’t give
a shit what people think.”
“I don’t. And Keon doesn’t either. You can trust him, too.”
“I do trust him. I just don’t know if I can ever trust someone enough.”
 “I get it, and I might be overstepping here, but if you ever do trust
someone enough, it should be him.”
She kicks my leg. “When do you ever care about overstepping?”
“I don’t,” I laugh. “But I don’t want you to feel like I’m pushing you.”
Kira sighs and lays back on the couch, throwing her legs over mine.
“Keon is obviously smoking fucking hot. Like drool-worthy hot. I guess I
just can’t see someone like me with him.”
I take a second to get my thoughts together before I respond. I finally
turn on the couch to see her face and squeeze her thigh. “I’m not trying to
make light of what you feel, so please don’t think that. But you’re letting
what society thinks is beautiful fuel how you see yourself. You know what
the first thing I noticed about you was?” She shakes her head, but I can tell
she’s listening. “Your eyes. No matter what you’ve been through, there’s
still a light to them. You didn’t let what happened to you ruin who you are
on the inside. Am I going to pretend I didn’t see the scars? No, because that
would do a disservice to you, ignoring something that makes you so
goddamn strong. I can’t imagine what you went through during the fire or
the recovery. But you did it, Kira. You’re living your life how you want to
now. Not how your brother wants or how society wants you to. So, what’s
wrong with taking something that you obviously want?”
Tears fill her eyes, and I start to panic. “Thank you,” she says softly.
“No thanks needed.”
No matter what shit my life has thrown at me, I’ve always tried to see
the positive, which usually drives everyone insane. I refuse to let someone
like Kira think badly about herself.
I also know Keon won’t either.

K eon and A ri showed up right after dinner at Kira’s so I could come

home. I push into the house and spot Gavin on the couch, scrolling through
his phone. All I could fucking think about was him today since we’re
usually glued at the fucking hip.
“What’s up?” I ask, flopping on the couch beside him. “Why did Ari
kidnap you today?”
 Gavin laughs and leans back on the couch. “He took me on a training
exercise with Sean and Ghost to work on my stealth.”
“How did it go?”
“I’m officially team Sneaky. Cool nickname and all.”
“What is it?”
“Phantom.”
“That’s hot as fuck.”
“Shut up,” he laughs. It’s the most relaxed I’ve seen him in a while, and
I can’t get over how much it changes his face when he laughs.
He goes back to scrolling on his phone, and I’m drawn to staring at his
profile. Nothing has really happened since we messed around in his room
besides a few stolen kisses. I’d be lying if I said I haven’t constantly been
thinking about doing more. With a shrug, I knock his phone out of his hand
and straddle his lap before he can say anything. My lips land on his, and he
responds instantly, sinking his tongue into my mouth and grabbing my hips.
I start rocking my hips, making our cocks rub together, and the most
delicious groan leaves his mouth. “We have too many clothes on,” I whisper
against his lips, and he huffs a laugh. I can’t stop the shiver when his hands
slide under my shirt, pulling it over my head.
“Fuck, you’re sexy.”
I sit back and jerk his shirt off. I run my finger over a bruise with a
raised brow. “What did they do to you?”
“Paintballs,” he says gruffly when I run my finger around his nipple.
“You poor baby.” I lean forward and kiss the one on his pec. I slide off
his lap so I’m on my knees between his legs, and kiss a couple more that I
see. Hooking my hands in the top of his sweatpants, I pull until he lifts his
hips so I can slide them and his boxers the rest of the way off. Jumping to
my feet, I make quick work of mine and straddle his waist again.
Gavin jerks my lips back to his, and I should be ashamed of the moan
that leaves my mouth when he squeezes my ass. Holy fucking shit. I let my
weight down on his thighs, and when my bare cock touches his, I know I
would do absolutely anything he wants right now. Gavin pulls away from
the kiss and lays his forehead against mine. “I want you so fucking bad.”
He rocks his hips, making us rub together.
“I want you too. I’ll bend over right now. Just say the word.”
“We aren’t ready for that yet.”
“Why not?”
 “I want to go slow.”
I sigh dramatically. “Fine. If you don’t want my sexy tight ass…”
Before I can finish that sentence, Gavin’s hand tightens on my ass. “All
I’ve thought about is watching you stretch around my cock. I want to find
out how rough you like it and the noises you make as I fuck you.” Gavin
jerks me closer and starts kissing my neck. “But I want to explore first.”
“Exploring never hurt anyone,” I say hoarsely. “Let’s go upstairs.”
I stand up and reach down, pulling Gavin to his feet. He follows me up
the steps, and I feel his eyes on my ass the entire time. I shove the door to
his room open and climb on my hands and knees onto the bed, shoving my
ass out. “Goddamn.”
Gavin climbs up behind me, and his lips land on my spine, kissing
toward my ass. He licks and sucks on my asscheek, and I almost come out
of my fucking skin. “Is your goal to make me beg? Because I will. I’ll beg
like a desperate slut.”
“Will you be patient?” Gavin laughs. He knocks my legs out from under
me, so I sprawl on my stomach, and then slides his body up mine, making
sure I feel his cock between my asscheeks. “Although I’m not against
hearing you beg.”
“Okay. Please let me suck your dick with my butthole.”
Gavin freezes on top of me and then busts out laughing. He collapses
beside me, and I roll over to face him. “I can’t deal with you. We need to
work up to that. But I’m not opposed to you sucking my cock with that
smartass mouth of yours.”
“Quid pro quo, Clarice.” Gavin rolls his eyes at my movie reference but
turns on the bed so his mouth is at my cock and his at my mouth. I watch as
Gavin leans forward and licks the pre-cum dripping from the tip. “Holy
shit.” I do the same to his and wait to see if I can even do this. When I don’t
find the taste repulsive, I suck the head into my mouth.
I feel Gavin’s hand wrap around my cock, then his hot mouth is sliding
down. He tests what I like a few times, and when he finds a rhythm that
makes my hips jerk, he tightens the suction. I can’t help but watch him for a
few seconds before sucking his cock into my mouth. I have no idea what
I’m doing, but I’m damn sure going to figure it out.
I test my limits a few times until he bumps the back of my throat. I gag
against him, and he groans long and loud, making my cock jerk in his
mouth. I’ve had a lot of sex. Dirty, nasty sex. And this is the hottest fucking
thing I’ve ever done. I love hearing the noises he makes when I gag around
him, and I want more. I pull my cock from his mouth and get on my knees
beside his hips. “Where are you going?” he groans, reaching for me.
“Do you have lube?”
“I told you⁠—”
“Not that yet. But I need something from you.”
I continue stroking his cock, waiting for his mind to catch up. “What,
then?”
“I’m going to drain your snake, and you’re going to play with my ass.
It’s begging for you, Gav.”
He finally points to his bedside table, and I jerk open the drawer. I grab
the bottle of lube and hand it to him. “Are you sure about this?”
“It’s just your fingers.”
Gavin blows a breath out and flips the lid open. “Turn your ass toward
me.” I move so he can reach me and slide my mouth back down his cock.
At the first slick slide of his fingers, I jump, then relax when he just circles
my hole. I’ve never been so desperate for something in my life. He pushes
against the resistance, and I bear down so his finger can slide inside me.
“You’re so fucking tight.” He works his finger in and out a few times before
slowly adding a second. I can feel the burn, but it’s turning me on even
more.
I suck him into my mouth as far as I can and gag around his length. I
know how much he liked it before, so I push myself even further. Gavin’s
fingers get more insistent inside me, and I feel like I’m going to self-
combust.
“Look at you, Sexy,” Gavin growls and starts fucking me harder. “You
like gagging on my cock?” I moan against the head, and his answering
groan is all I need. I will gladly die choking on his dick. I start getting
faster, stroking around the base and sucking hard. “Holy shit. Tyler.”
I want to taste him so fucking bad that I can’t see straight. I don’t know
what it is about him, but I need it. I can tell he’s holding back on fucking
my mouth and with his fingers in my ass. I spread my legs and start fucking
myself on them, and his fingers sink into my hair. His fist tightens, and he
shoves into my throat, making me gag hard. “That’s it. Gag on my cock,
Sexy. Make a mess.” Sloppy toppy it is. I breathe through my nose and
swallow around the head. “I’m going to come,” he gasps. “Tyler. Move if
you don’t want me to come down your throat.”
 I roll his balls between my fingers, sucking him hard and fast, making
sure I gag every time the head hits my throat. His fingers shift in my ass,
hitting my prostate, and I moan against him. “Sexy,” he groans, coming
hard. I swallow every last drop, loving every fucking second. His fingers
disappear, and I whimper against him. “Come here.”
I turn around on the bed, and to my surprise, his lips slam against mine,
tasting himself on my tongue. My dick is throbbing between my thighs, and
my asshole is flexing against nothing, begging him to fill me up again.
Gavin rolls so he’s on top of me, and he kisses down my chest. He works
his fingers back inside me and starts sucking my cock. “Holy fuck, Gavin.”
His fingers go right back to my prostate, and I know I’m a fucking goner.
“Suck me deep.”
Gavin works his way down my cock until I hit his gag reflex. I hook
both hands on the back of his head and shove him down, realizing quickly
why he liked hearing that so much. He lets me fuck his mouth with his
fingers still buried inside me. Gavin looks up at me with watery blue eyes,
and I come so hard that my fucking toes curl. After he sucks every last drop
from me, I let his mouth slip from my cock, then pull him up so I can taste
us mixed together.
We kiss like that until our breathing is out of control again, and our hips
are rolling together. It’s going to be a long night.
And I’ll gladly spend it exploring with Gavin.

OceanofPDF.com
 18

KIRA

A
ll I’ve thought about since my talk with Tyler is Keon. Now that I’m
in the same room as him and Ari is mysteriously missing again, I feel
like my skin is on fire.
“You’re staring,” Keon says without looking up from his phone.
“I am not,” I argue, even though I most definitely was. I go back to my
homework, trying my hardest to concentrate on English instead of the tattoo
that crawls up behind his ear.
“You were, Mama, and that’s okay.” I peek at him, and he’s grinning
from ear to ear. When he called me that last night, I thought it was a fluke,
but then he whispered it in my ear, and I was a goner.
Ari walks into the living room, shoving his phone in his pocket. “Why
is your face so red?”
“Oh my God,” I groan, sliding down in the chair and hiding behind my
book. “It’s not.”
“She got caught staring and wants to deny it.” I glare at Keon over my
book, and he smiles even bigger.
Ari rolls his eyes and sits on the couch beside Keon. “Don’t make his
head even bigger. He already has a hard time fitting through doors.”
“You want to talk about my ego? Yours is the biggest of us all.”
It’s Ari’s turn to grin, and it transforms his entire face. “I know mine is
the biggest.”
 It takes me longer than I care to admit to realize we’re no longer talking
about egos, and I laugh. “Holy shit. That was slick.”
“You’re a dirty ass old man,” Keon replies. “No one was talking about
your dick.”
“No. But now you’re thinking about it.” Keon shoves Ari in the
shoulder, making Ari laugh.
“I’m glad you and your boyfriend made up,” I comment. “You were
going to get wrinkles scowling all the time.”
Ari playfully glares at me. “I deal with Tyler’s bullshit enough. I don’t
need yours.”
“If I have to listen to you talk about your dick, then you have to deal
with my bullshit.”
“I wasn’t talking about my dick. Keon was.”
“I was talking about your ego, dumbass.”
“My ego comes from my ginormous co⁠—”
“Okay!” I plug my ears and can still hear them laughing. “You two are
disgusting.”
“Oh, come on, Mama.” Keon gets up from the couch and walks over to
where I’m sitting. He gently pulls my fingers from my ears and braces his
hands on the arms of the chair. “Don’t get shy on us now.”
I can’t concentrate with him this close. My eyes latch on to his, and I
map out his features quickly. The dark green around his pupil, the scar
running through his eyebrow, and the way his full lips curl up on the side
when he smiles. Pull it together, Kira. “I’m not shy.”
Keon gives me that panty-melting grin again and stands up. “Lie.”
Everything Tyler said earlier flashes through my head, and I can feel my
face flame. I truly appreciate everything that he said. It meant the world to
me, and for once, I actually believed someone when they said my scars
didn’t disgust them. But now it has me thinking of Keon in a way I
shouldn’t be.
Ari’s phone ringing breaks the intense way Keon is staring at me, and I
don’t know whether I’m disappointed or grateful. “What?” he answers. He
sits up on the couch, fully alert. “When? Where?” He listens for a minute,
and the more he does, the more pissed off he gets. “Goddamnit, Axel. I
could have told you Baxter’s team can’t handle that case. It took me over a
year to bring them down, and that’s just when we thought it was drugs.” Ari
jumps up from the couch and storms outside.
 I’ve been in this life long enough to know when not to ask questions,
and this is one of them. It’s none of my business, but Keon looks worried.
“What’s wrong?”
“I’m not sure yet, but it’s not good.”
“You know I would never say anything, right?”
Keon looks at me, surprised. “Of course you wouldn’t. It’s not that. I
have an idea what it’s about but not the full story.”
Keon goes back to sit on the couch, and I try to get my heart rate under
control. They’re here for a protection detail, not to be my friends or for me
to drool over. But I already have a friendship with Gavin and Tyler, and
Keon in an I want to jump his bones type of way. That thought makes me
choke out a laugh, and Keon looks at me with a raised brow. I ignore him
and go back to my English homework. Ari comes back fifteen minutes later,
looking a little more than agitated.
“What’s going on, boss?” Keon asks.
“The Dimarcus case?” Keon nods. “Axel put Baxter’s team on it. That’s
what happened the other night. Fucking Michaela got mixed back up in it
and called Axel.”
“Why didn’t he call you?” Ari’s eyes shift to me quickly and back to
Keon. “Right. What was the phone call about?”
Ari surprises me by turning to look at me. “Whatever is said, stays here.
Understood?”
I snort. “You know who my brother is. I know how to keep my mouth
shut.”
Ari nods and sits beside Keon. “She got a tip and went to check it out.
She got pinned down, and Axel had to go bail her out. She’s now in hiding
with Baxter’s team.”
“What about her husband?” Keon asks.
“Apparently, she spilled the whole story after I left that night. He’s with
them. Axel just wanted me to know what was going on.” Ari rakes his hand
through his hair and sits back on the couch. “It goes much deeper than we
ever thought.”
“What are you going to do?”
“Nothing. I won’t risk Kira just because Axel made the wrong call.”
“I have a question,” I throw in. “Isn’t Axel your boss? Why do you
think he made the wrong call?”
“Because that team can’t handle these people,” Ari answers.
 “Why? Because they got caught? You’ve never put your team in a bad
position? It happens, even to the best. Maybe you should offer your insight
to this other team instead of automatically assuming they aren’t good
enough.” Ari tilts his head to the side, studying me, and I want to sink into a
hole in the floor. “Sorry. I should have kept my mouth shut.”
“No,” Ari disagrees. “You’re right.”
“I am?”
Ari laughs. “Yeah. I’ve been stuck on the fact that Axel put someone
else on this instead of asking why he did.”
“And?” I prompt.
“We asked for a break,” Keon answers. “We’ve been moving nonstop
for almost a year, and he knows that case would put us right back in the
middle.”
“So, that’s how you got stuck with me,” I joke.
“We didn’t get stuck with you,” Keon argues. “We could have said no.”
“Why didn’t you? I would have. This has to be a boring job.”
“Your file,” Ari answers. “If you would have been just another spoiled
mafia princess, I would have told Axel and your brother to fuck off. But
you’re just a woman trying to live her life after some bad shit. We could use
some of that positive in our lives.”
“It’s really just because I didn’t want to listen to my brother fucking his
husbands anymore,” I say, trying to downplay what he’s saying.
I’m not used to compliments, and they just throw them out like it’s
nothing. I know if anyone knows what I went through, it’s them. I made
Kane give me a generic rundown of who they are. The rest I want to find
out on my own.
But now I’m not sure if it’s because I’m curious.
Or interested.

I walk into my advisor’s office the next morning and take a seat to wait.
When my English professor, Professor North, walks in, I’m confused
because this isn’t the man I met when I enrolled.
“Where’s Mr. Porter?”
 He smiles and sits behind the desk. “He had some health issues, and
I’ve picked up his students for the time being. I’ve been trying all morning
to get caught up, Ms. Croft. Can you fill me in on what this meeting was
about?”
“Just a check-in.”
Professor North nods and flips through a file. “Do you like the campus
so far?”
“I do.”
“Dorm and everything is working out?”
“Yes.”
“I see here that you’re in my English class. Sorry, I’m just getting to
know all the students.”
“It’s okay. I’m sure you have a lot of faces to keep up with.”
Professor North smiles and shuts the folder. “This is my first year
having my own class.” I picked up on the whispers in class that he was new.
He’s young and attractive so all the girls were falling all over themselves to
get his attention. “You haven’t picked a major yet?”
“I’m not sure what I want to do.” I haven’t picked one because this isn’t
for a career. It was to be normal for once.
“That’s okay. You have a good start on the prerequisites to go in a few
different fields. You’re originally from New York?”
“Yes.”
“What brought you all the way to California?”
I wanted to get out from under my brother’s thumb. “Just a change in
scenery.”
“That’s a big change,” he laughs, and I relax a little. “I’m glad to hear
Cali is treating you well. Do you have any questions?”
“I don’t think so.”
“I’m going to set meetings once a week for a little bit to see how you’re
doing. Next week at the same time, okay?”
I frown. “Why once a week? Is that normal?”
“Mr. Porter had a note for frequent meetings. I assumed you guys
already set that up.”
I want to roll my eyes but refrain. This has Kane written all over it. “Did
it happen to say why?”
“No. I’m sorry, it didn’t.”
 “Look, I’m sure you mean well, but I’m fine. Classes are good, my
dorm is amazing, and everyone has been really nice.”
“Ms. Croft, I didn’t mean to offend⁠—”
“You didn’t. My brother did.”
“Your brother?” he asks, confused.
“He likes to stick his nose where it doesn’t belong.” I sling my bag over
my shoulder and stand up. “I have to get to class.”
“Of course.” Professor North stands up and walks around the desk. “If
you need anything, let me know.”
I smile tightly. “I will.”
I turn on my heel and try my best not to storm from the building. I’m
going to kill Kane. He promised to let me do my own thing, but here he is
already trying to run my life. He must not have been able to pay off Mr.
Porter to spy on me, so he brought in the new guy. I push through the door,
and Tyler and Gavin are waiting for me.
Gavin’s brows furrow when he sees me. “What’s wrong?”
“My meddling fucking brother is what’s wrong,” I grit out, pulling my
phone from my pocket. I dial his number, and he picks up on the second
ring.
“Hello, Kira.”
“You promised you would mind your own business and couldn’t even
make it through the first week.”
“I’m not sure what you mean.”
“Don’t lie to me,” I hiss, making several heads turn my way. Tyler puts
his hand on the base of my spine and leads me to the side of the building.
“My advisor got switched and wants to meet once a week to see how I’m
doing. You’re telling me that had nothing to do with you?”
“Kira,” Kane says slowly. “I said I would let you live your life, and
that’s what I’m doing. I had nothing to do with this.”
“So, you didn’t pay this advisor so you could spy on me?”
Kane scoffs. “No. I don’t break promises to you, Kira.”
I blow out a breath and feel like such an asshole for assuming the worst.
“I’m sorry. It just seems like something you would do.”
“You aren’t wrong,” Kane chuckles. “But I’m not the bad guy here. I’m
in a meeting, so I’ll call you later, okay?”
“Okay. Love you.”
“Love you too.”
 The call disconnects, and Tyler raises a brow. “What the hell was that
about?” I give him the rundown of the conversation with the advisor, and he
nods. “I would have blamed Kane too.”
“Of course you would,” Gavin laughs.
Now that Kane is off the table, why the hell would they want to see me
so much? Did Mr. Porter think I was so damn weak that I couldn’t handle
myself? I feel bad for being rude to Professor North because he was trying
to follow instructions. I’ll have to apologize because it will keep me up at
night.
Along with dreams about Keon.

OceanofPDF.com
 19

ARI

I
pull into the designated meeting spot that Baxter set so I can give them
all the information that I can. Kira was right last night. I was too busy
being pissed off that I was sidelined that I didn’t see how much I could
still help. I worked this case for a fucking year with Michaela to bring these
assholes down, and it pisses me off that someone brought this back.
Baxter pulls in beside me and nods his head for me to follow him. I
climb from my truck and meet him at the back of his. “I won’t offend you
by asking if you were followed.”
“I drove around in circles for an hour to make sure,” I assure him.
“What’s going on?”
He looks around and shakes his head. “Not here.”
I follow him down a path that disappears between trees. We walk for
almost a mile before a little cabin comes into view. He keys in a code and
pushes the door open. The rest of his team is waiting in the living room with
Michaela. I look around. “Your husband going to pull a gun on me again?”
“No. He knows everything now.” I know how much she wanted to hide
this part of herself, but she knew going in that was impossible. I knew it
with Jason and really didn’t want to get him pulled in so early, but it was
like a fucking weight lifted off when he found out. “I gave them all the
information I have, but you were in their inner circle.”
“How in the hell did you get pulled into this again?” I ask, sitting beside
her. “You said you heard rumors.”
 “I did. Then I had confirmation. Do you remember his little brother,
Andres?”
“Yeah. He wasn’t in the game, though.”
“He is now,” Roland throws in. “And it’s not just drugs anymore.” He
throws a file on the coffee table. “They’re in the skin trade.”
“Are you fucking kidding me?” I ask, picking the folder up. “If I would
have known he wasn’t innocent, I would have killed his ass when I popped
his brother.”
“He’s built a crew from the ground up,” Koa fills in. “Michaela heard
chatter that he was around again, so Axel had us check it out. The
warehouse you guys took out was his.”
“Which is why he blew up their house,” I guess. “How did you get
caught up last night?”
“I had a lead for one of his outposts. They were waiting for me when I
got there,” Michaela answers.
“Why did you go alone?” I demand. “You know better than that.”
“Because it was just a drive-by to see if the lead was real.”
“You know you were set up, right?” I ask.
“I know that now,” she grits out.
“That makes twice you guys have been sent out with your ass in the
wind. Have you handled the informants?”
“I did,” Asher says. “One met an unfortunate demise down a flight of
stairs. The other we interrogated last night. Andres has been gathering
information for years. He already paid them off.”
“So any of the informants for this case can’t be used,” I muse. “You
guys are starting from scratch.”
“We need to flip someone on his crew,” Zeke says. “That’s the only way
to get real-time information.”
“They aren’t going to let any more outsiders in since Bruno made that
mistake with me. You’re going to have to work this from a different angle.
How do they process buyers?”
“Through a website. Nolan hasn’t been able to get us in yet,” Baxter
answers.
“The one thing you have working to your advantage is Andres
obviously doesn’t think his plans through. You hit him, and he hits you back
immediately. Bruno would have let everything die down and then come
after you when you weren’t expecting it. He must be more hot-headed than
his brother.”
“How does that work to our advantage?” Roland asks.
“We can predict his next move before he does it,” Michaela answers.
“We need the buyers,” Koa says. “It’s not just about stopping him
anymore. Some sick fucks are buying people from a goddamn website.”
“Nolan will get your buyers,” I assure him. “It’s just going to take time
with the amount of security I’m sure surrounds that site. My advice? Lay
low until he does get you a list. Go after the buyers and then put a bullet in
Andres’ head. If they sense you sniffing around anymore, he’ll close up
shop and move it somewhere else.”
“Isn’t it stupid to set up in the same place your brother got busted?”
Zeke asks.
“Andres probably believed the lie that the Saviors weren’t around
anymore. He got cocky. Axel has four teams now, and we grow every day.
They’ll learn that we aren’t playing around anymore.”
“Are we just supposed to hide until all this comes out?” Asher asks.
“I’m already sick of looking at their faces.”
“The feeling is mutual,” Michaela says sweetly, flipping him the middle
finger. “I think Ari’s idea of laying low is the best.”
“Can we not start this pissing contest again?” Baxter says. “We already
know Michaela’s dick is bigger.”
Koa and Zeke start laughing, earning a glare from Asher. “Whatever,”
he grumbles.
“I’m going to get going,” I say, standing up. “Until this protection detail
is over, I can only offer advice.”
I say my goodbyes, and when I step out on the front porch, Michaela’s
husband is sitting there. His eyes widen when he sees me, and I hold my
hands up. “You don’t have a gun, do you?”
“Oh. I, uh,” he stutters, jumping from his chair. “I’m really sorry about
that.”
“Don’t be. You were fighting for your wife. I’m Ari, by the way.” I stick
my hand out, and he hesitantly shakes it.
“Ben.”
“Would you rather have found out I was messing with Michaela or
this?” I joke, and he relaxes a little.
“I’m not sure yet. This has been a lot to take in.”
 “I get it. But these guys? They’re good. They’ll make sure you all stay
safe.”
I walk back to my truck, feeling better since I came to talk to them.
I just hope they listen.

A fter my meeting with Baxter and his team, I head straight to Jason’s. Not
seeing him last night sucked, and I missed him in the worst way. I never
thought I’d be here with anyone, but there’s no turning back now.
I knock on the door, and he yells for me to come in. “You should never
do that, Sweet cheeks,” I say, shutting the door behind me.
“I knew it was you,” he laughs, coming to greet me. He wraps his arms
around my neck, and I feel the world settle again. “I missed you.”
“Hm,” I hum, burying my nose in his neck. “I missed you too. You
should come with me tonight since you’re off.”
“You sure Kira won’t mind?”
“She’ll be too busy staring at Keon,” I laugh. “And I think you guys
will get along.”
“They looked super cute at the bar the other night.”
“Get your stuff together, and we’ll ride over there.”
“Yes, Mr. Bossy.” Jason pulls back to walk away, and when he turns
around, I smack him hard on his ass. He whirls around on me, eyes wide.
“You want to walk in there with a sore, red ass, Sweet cheeks? Because
I can give a new meaning to that nickname.” I advance on him, and he
backs up with a laugh.
“Stay there, caveman.”
When he goes to his room to pack, I check my phone to see a message
from Tyler.
Tyler: Might be nothing, but I’m having Nolan check into one of
her professors.
I frown at the message because if Tyler thinks something is up, there
probably is.
Ari: Why?
Tyler: I’ll explain when you get here.
Ari: I’m bringing Jason.
 Tyler: Oh! Slumber party! Fuck yeah.
Ari: You weren’t invited.
Tyler: Fuck that. I’m staying. Maybe I can catch you doing
something freaky again *insert eyeball emoji*
Ari: You been thinking about my cock, Ty?
Tyler: No. I have my own cock to think about. And by my own, I
mean Gavin’s, because I own that ass.
I shake my head at the message and watch Jason walk into the living
room. “Question. In your opinion, is Tyler a top or bottom?”
Jason laughs and hands me his bag when I hold my hand out for it.
“Definitely a bottom. Why do you ask?”
“Because of this.” I flip my phone so he can see the message, and he
laughs again.
“No. Between the two personalities, Gavin is the top, and he’s the one
owning Tyler’s ass.” Jason wraps his arms around my waist and pulls me
against him. “Have you thought about that night again?”
“With Tyler?” He nods, and I watch that delicious blush creep into his
cheeks. “I have. Have you?”
“Yeah. A lot, actually.” He hides his face against my chest, and I kiss the
top of his head. “I’ve never done anything like that before.”
“Getting fucked in a stockroom or having someone watch you?”
“Both.”
“Is it something you would want again?” He peeks up at me, but I can
already tell the answer. “Not the stockroom. I plan on bending you over in
there every chance I get. I mean, someone watching.” He licks his lips and
nods. I think back to how I felt knowing Tyler was there. At first, I was
pissed he saw Jason naked, and then I saw how turned on they both were.
That lit a fire in my blood, making me want to push it further. “What about
one of them joining us?”
Jason’s eyes widen, and his breathing speeds up. “What do you mean?”
“I mean, having you between two of us.” I study his face to see his
reaction to my next comment. “Or all of us.”
“Oh,” Jason breathes, his blush spreading down his neck.
“You don’t have to answer now. Just know I’m okay with it. I trust these
guys, but they will be the only ones ever touching you.” I lean down close
to his ear. “I already have your answer because I can feel how hard you are,
but I need the words from your mouth.”
 I peck his lips and spin on my heel to leave his apartment. I open his
door and that springs him into action. “Ari! You can’t just say stuff like that
and walk away.”
I grin at him over my shoulder and keep walking. “I figured you’d
appreciate watching my ass walk away.”
Jason jogs to catch up and grabs my ass in both hands, squeezing. “I do.
It’s so juicy.”
I swat his hands away playfully. “Hands off the merchandise.”
Jason pouts, making me laugh. I sling my arm over his shoulders and
pull him against my side. I feel so carefree when he’s around, but it also
makes me nervous.
Because I’m always waiting for the other shoe to drop.

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 20

JASON

T
he closer we get to Kira’s dorm, the more nervous I get, but not
because of her. I really enjoyed talking to her at the bar. It’s what Ari
put in my head before we left my apartment.
How the hell am I supposed to sit in a room with all of them and not
think about them touching me?
“What’s on your mind, Sweet cheeks?” Ari asks, squeezing my thigh.
His hand has been resting there the entire ride, and it’s amazing how much
affection he shows.
“You know exactly what I’m thinking about.”
“What?” Ari tries and fails to give me an innocent look. He laughs, and
I can’t get over how much I love that sound. “I just wanted you to know
where my head is at.”
“It’s about me getting naked with you and three of your friends. How do
you even know they’ll be down for that?”
Ari chuckles and turns into a parking lot. “I already know Tyler is down
for whatever because he’s a fucking freak, and wherever Tyler goes, Gavin
will follow.” Ari pulls into a parking spot and shoves the truck into park. He
turns to face me. “Keon already told me he’s attracted to you.”
“What?” I ask, shocked.
“Long story. I almost killed him over it.” Ari pushes his door open
before I can answer, and I scramble out of the truck. He narrows his eyes
when he realizes I didn’t wait for him to open my door. “That’s my job.”
 “I’m more than capable of opening my own door. What do you mean
you almost killed him?”
“He told me he was going to ask you out until he realized we were
interested in each other. It pissed me off, but now I’m fine.”
“Why?”
“Because of your reaction to Tyler.” Ari sighs and runs his fingers
through his hair. “Listen, I know you’ve heard about what we’ve gotten up
to in the past. We’ve never shared, but we’ve watched each other before. All
I’ve thought about is watching one of them make you come.”
“You’ve got to stop saying shit like that.”
Ari grabs my hand and pulls me toward a door. “Why? It’s so much fun
watching you squirm. If you’re a good boy, I’ll help you out later.”
Ari pushes the door open, dragging me behind him. “Jay!” Tyler calls
out. He runs over and gives me a smacking kiss right on the mouth. “We’re
having a slumber party!”
“Are you drunk?” I ask.
“Shhhhh. Ari will get mad.” Tyler grabs me away from Ari and pulls me
further into the living room. “You have some catching up to do.”
“Hey, Kira,” I say, giving her a little wave, watching Ari grab a cup
from Keon.
“Hey. Don’t mind him. He’s drinking his sorrows away.”
“Your sorrows?” I ask while he’s pulling me to sit between him and
Gavin. Ari rolls his eyes and sits in the chair.
“Yes. Gavin won’t fuck me.”
Ari chokes on his drink and looks around the room. “Come again?”
Gavin starts laughing, and I can tell by the color in his cheeks he’s just
as drunk as Tyler. “I want to fuck you, but I want to take it slow.”
“Just stick it in me already,” Tyler groans, making everyone laugh.
“Why did you give them alcohol?” Ari asks Keon.
“The last time I checked, they’re both old enough to buy it themselves,
and technically they’re off duty.”
“I agree with Gavin,” Kira says, making Tyler pout. “Come on. You
guys are new to this whole guy-on-guy action. Nothing wrong with seeing
what the other likes first.”
“Ha!” Gavin says, flipping Tyler off.
Tyler looks at me, and I shrug. “I agree with them. This isn’t something
you should rush into.”
 “Ari fucked you right after he realized he was into you,” Tyler argues.
“I’m gay, Tyler,” I laugh. “I know that I like dick in my ass.” I slap a
hand over my mouth and look at Kira. “Sorry.”
She laughs and waves that away. “My brother is gay and has three
husbands. I’ve heard worse.”
“I’m sure. Your brother is into some freaky shit,” Tyler comments.
“How the hell do you know?” Gavin demands.
“Are you jealous, princess?” Tyler rolls his eyes when Gavin glares at
him. “I worked a case with him, remember? It’s not hard to figure out he’s
one dominant motherfucker. One sexy as fuck dominant motherfucker.”
Tyler laughs so hard at Gavin’s pissed-off face that he snorts.
“Okay. Ew,” Kira says with a shiver. “I don’t need to be reminded what
my brother gets up to in his spare time.”
“Whips and chains, handcuffs. Smack a little booty up with my belt,”
Tyler starts singing What’s your fantasy? by Ludacris.
“I fully regret coming here now,” I say. He stops mid-sentence and turns
to me.
“You didn’t miss me?” Tyler asks. I shake my head and know that I
fucked up. “You didn’t miss me stroking my cock to the sight of you?”
Gavin sits up on the couch, and all eyes turn to us. “What now?” he
asks.
“Oh!” Tyler exclaims. “I forgot to tell you. I watched Ari fuck Jason the
other night. It was fucking fantastic.”
Kira sits forward in her chair and tucks her legs under her. “I need all
the details.”
I bury my face in my hands and slump on the couch. “Kill me now.”
“Don’t get shy now, Sweet cheeks.”
“Don’t worry,” Kira says. “They enjoy embarrassing me too.”
“Someone start talking,” Gavin demands, and I peek at him to make
sure he isn’t mad. The last thing I want to do is get between him and Tyler.
Tyler gets on his knees on the couch, facing him. “Remember the other
night when I went to go look for Ari? Well, I found him and Jason knocking
boots in the stockroom. I mean, Ari was balls deep in Jason’s ass.”
“Tyler,” Ari sighs. “I think we get the picture.”
“Shut up. I’m setting the scene. Anyway. I walk in, and Ari’s all like, get
out, but of course I don’t. Then he’s all, get your cock out.”
“You are leaving out so much information,” I laugh.
 “They get the point.” Tyler waves his hand around and almost
faceplants off the couch. He catches his balance before he falls, and we start
dying laughing.
“And?” Gavin prompts.
“You bet your sexy ass I got my cock out, stroking that motherfucker
while watching them fuck.” Tyler groans and collapses back on the couch.
“So fucking hot.”
“So,” Kira says. “Does Ari have what it takes to back up his massive
ego?”
“Yes,” Tyler agrees, nodding like crazy.
“Are you drunk too?” Ari asks Kira.
She holds up a cup with a grin. “Nope. I’m just nosey.”
“How the hell did you get to be the lucky one to see that?” Keon
demands.
“Because I’m special. Duh.” Tyler sighs and leans against my arm. “I’d
give good money for Gavin to fuck me like that.”
“Told you he was the bottom,” I say to Ari. Ari grins and shakes his
head.
“Why was your face so flushed when you walked in here?” Keon asks,
tilting his head to the side. My eyes flash to Ari, and he shrugs, letting me
know he won’t save me.
“Ari said something before we came in here.”
“Like what?” Kira asks, propping her chin in her hand. “Sharing is
caring, Jason.”
Ari chokes on a laugh and throws his arm over his eyes. “Yeah, Sweet
cheeks. Sharing is caring.”
I grab the liquor bottle off the coffee table and take several pulls from
the bottle. It burns on the way down, but I need all the courage I can get to
say this out loud. Ari is putting me on the spot, but I’m not backing down,
since that’s what he expects. I slap the bottle back down and stare Ari down.
“Ari wants to share me with one of you.”
“Oh! Me!” Tyler says, raising his hand. “You can choke on my dick
while he fucks your ass raw.”
“Oh my God,” Kira giggles. “That’s not what I was expecting you to
say.” She raises her cup in the air. “I’m here for it, though.”
Ari moves his arm and looks me dead in the eyes. “Jason gets to decide
if or when and who joins us.”
 “What if I want all of them?” I challenge. He did this to himself, so he
has no one else to blame.
“Take it all then, Sweet cheeks.”
“Well.” Keon clears his throat, and it pulls my attention to him,
remembering what Ari said. “I have no idea what to say to this, besides I’m
down.”
“Same!” Tyler calls out and looks around me at Gavin. “What about
you, precious? You want to get down with us and do some freaky six-some
shit?”
“Uh, six?” Kira asks.
“You will be there too.”
Her eyes widen, and she looks around the room. “How did I get dragged
into this?”
“You said you were here for it,” Tyler explains.
“I meant him getting down with you guys,” Kira laughs.
“Come on, Mama. Live a little.”
Kira’s face turns blood red at Keon’s endearment. “That’s a little more
than living.”
I stand up from the couch and walk over to Kira. I hold my hand out and
pull her to her feet when she slides her hand into mine. “I’m saving her
from this conversation.” She points me to her room, and when we walk in,
she shuts the door and leans against it.
“Thank you,” she breathes. “I had no idea what to say just now.”
“I know how they can get, so I figured I’d rescue you.” She motions for
me to sit on her bed, and she sits beside me.
“I can usually hang better than that.”
“But it’s hard when they look like they do?”
“Yes,” she laughs. “I know they were joking, but it still puts thoughts in
your head.”
“I’m not entirely sure they were joking.”
“Oh. Well.” Kira blows a breath out and flops back on her bed. I lay
beside her, and we both stare at the ceiling. “Can this be girl talk?”
I laugh and hold my pinkie up. She links hers with mine in a pinkie
swear. “Whatever you say in here, stays in here.”
“I find Keon irresistible,” Kira giggles. “But I’m scared to put myself
out there.”
“Because of what he said out there about me?”
 “No! Not at all. I find that very hot. I know he’s bisexual, and that’s not
a problem. The problem is all me. What if we get to a certain point, and he
can’t stand seeing the scars?”
“Keon isn’t like that at all,” I assure her. “I know you’re aware of who
they are. They’re all scarred in their own ways. No way would he ever
judge you for that or lie to you and say they didn’t bother him when they
did.” I turn my head to look at her. “You shouldn’t judge your scars either.
They give you badass warrior vibes. They’re beautiful in their own way.”
“Thank you,” she says softly. “I’ve talked myself up about taking Keon
up on his advances and then chicken out. I know he isn’t going to make the
first move until he knows that I’m sure.”
“Maybe you need to make the first move. It’ll take all the second-
guessing out of it.”
Kira hooks her arm through mine and lays her head on my shoulder.
“I’m really glad you came tonight.”
“Me too.”
I get the feeling Kira doesn’t have many people she can be open with,
and I’ll gladly be that person for her. I think back to what Tyler said about
us getting together in what he called a freaky six-some, and I can’t help but
think about Ari. He didn’t agree or disagree when Tyler mentioned Kira
joining in. I search my feelings and am not entirely opposed to him hooking
up with her. If he’s willing to give me something I want, I can do the same
thing if he wants her.
Who am I kidding? I’d give Ari anything he wanted anyway.

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 21

KEON

A
s soon as the door shuts behind Jason and Kira, I reach up and take
the liquor bottle off the table.
“What the hell was that?” I ask Tyler.
“What?”
“You throwing her into a conversation about a fucking orgy.”
“First of all,” Tyler slurs. “That’s such a dirty word. Second, I didn’t
hear any of you assholes disagreeing.”
“When did we have a chance?” Ari asks. “We were talking about Jason.
You brought Kira into it.”
“Are you saying you don’t find her attractive?” Tyler throws back.
“I didn’t say that. Don’t put words in my mouth. All Keon is saying is
that you made her uncomfortable throwing that in her face.”
“Whatever,” Tyler says, laying his head in Gavin’s lap. “I didn’t say
anything that you guys weren’t thinking.”
“Why didn’t you tell me about seeing Ari and Jason?” Gavin comments.
I can tell by the pinched look on his face that he’s jealous, and I laugh.
“You getting pissed off, Gav?” I joke.
Gavin’s brows furrow, and I watch his drunk brain trying to catch up.
“No. I was just wondering.”
“That’s what you’re stuck on?” Ari asks. “Tyler just invited you to an
all-out fuck fest, and you’re stuck on the fact that he saw me fucking my
boyfriend?”
 “Princess is jealous,” Tyler teases, and Gavin shoves him off the couch.
Tyler hits the floor with a groan. “That was fucked up.”
“I’m not fucking jealous. I just asked a question.”
“I didn’t tell you because I forgot,” Tyler argues, pulling himself back
onto the couch. Tyler snaps his fingers and turns to Ari. “Oh! The professor
I’m having Nolan look into? He’s new, suddenly became her advisor, and
wanted weekly meetings. Kira said he asked a lot of questions. She thought
it was Kane that set it up, but it wasn’t. I figured it wouldn’t hurt.”
“Good call,” Ari says. “Did Nolan ever get back to you about that
Jessica girl?”
“Jessica Woods. Normal nineteen-year-old from Forest Grove. Nothing
remarkable about her, so she’s clean,” I answer. “Kira wants to go to that
party on Friday.”
“Then take her,” Ari says. “We promised to give her as normal of an
experience as possible.”
“Like a date,” Tyler sighs.
“I figured you’d want Tyler and Gavin to take her since I stick out like a
sore fucking thumb,” I argue.
Ari laughs. “Yeah, but you look scary, so it might make people back off.
Plus, you want to take her.”
“I’m scary,” Tyler pouts.
Gavin rolls his eyes. “Maybe, but you don’t look it.”
Tyler’s phone rings before he can answer. He answers and flips to
speakerphone. “Well, hello, my nerdy friend.”
“Are you drunk?” Nolan laughs.
“Yeah, but don’t tell Ari. What’s up?” Ari shakes his head and sits
forward in his chair.
“I looked into Professor North. Adam North, thirty-two, single, born in
Forest Grove, went to Forest Grove Community for an English degree and
graduated at the top of his class. He’s had no trouble with the law or
anything on his record. He looks legit, but I’m digging deeper. He was
mostly a substitute for the last couple of years, and they offered him a full-
time position when the old professor got sick.”
“What about his story about the old advisor?” Gavin asks.
“Henry Porter, sixty-four, was recently diagnosed with cancer.”
“Can you send me a picture of his driver’s license? I’ll have Kira look
and make sure it’s the same guy,” Ari instructs.
 “Why the sudden interest in this guy?” Nolan asks.
“Just a feeling,” Tyler answers. “We have to cover all bases.”
“I get that. Axel’s getting ready to kidnap me, so I have to go. I’ll
message you his picture.”
The line goes dead, and Tyler starts giggling like a fucking girl. “I bet
Axel’s about to tear his ass up. Something I wish Gavin would do to me.”
Gavin jumps from the couch, his hands going to his pants. “Fine. Get
naked and bend the fuck over.”
“Whoa!” I jump from the floor and step between them when Tyler goes
to stand up to do what he said. “I don’t think your drunk asses need to make
this decision tonight.”
“No. He’s so desperate for dick. I’m going to give it to him,” Gavin
argues, unzipping his pants. Tyler whips his shirt off and tries to push me
out of the way.
“Ari. A little fucking help here,” I say.
“Oh, hell no. This is more fun.”
“You motherfucker,” I grumble. “Tyler, quit taking your clothes off.”
“You aren’t standing in the way of me getting fucked. Move, bitch.”
“Okay,” Ari says, standing from the chair. “This isn’t happening,
especially at Kira’s while you guys are drunk. This isn’t a decision that
needs to be made lightly.”
“That’s what I said. But he keeps pushing me,” Gavin grits out.
“Because that’s what Tyler does,” I reason. “I would blame it on the
alcohol, but it’s really because he’s an ass.”
“Hey. I’m sitting right here.” Tyler points to his chest like we can’t see
him. “You played with my ass, so what’s the difference between that and
your dick?”
Ari sighs and grabs Gavin’s arm. He shoves him to sit back down and
throws Tyler’s shirt at him. “We aren’t having this conversation half-
naked.”
“It’s just my nipples.” Tyler runs his fingers around them and waggles
his brows. “Do they make you uncomfortable?”
I bust out laughing before I can stop myself. “You’re a fucking idiot.” I
sit down on the chair on Tyler’s side so I can intervene if needed. “Gavin,
answer his question.”
“There’s a big difference between my fingers and my cock. Like my
cock is a lot bigger.”
 “Prove it,” Tyler challenges.
“You already know since you were gagging all over it when it was
shoved down your throat.”
“Fuck.” I scrub a hand down my face, trying not to let his words affect
me. It’s useless because the vision is ingrained in my head.
“I want to make sure this is what you really want before we take that
step, okay?” Gavin finally says. “I’m afraid we’ll fuck, and you’ll regret it.”
“I’m afraid if we don’t fuck, you’ll back out,” Tyler counters. “You
don’t think I worry about you regretting it?”
“Now we’re finally getting somewhere,” Ari says.
“Shut up,” I laugh. “You’ll distract them.”
“I won’t regret it. I’ve wanted this for months,” Gavin adds.
“Then take it,” Tyler replies. “If I weren’t interested, I never would have
let you kiss me that night.”
“But not tonight,” I throw in. “This is something you need to be sober
for.”
“Fine.” Tyler stands from the couch and holds his hand out for Gavin.
“We can still make out though.”
With a laugh, Gavin slides his hand into Tyler’s. Tyler jerks him to his
feet, and they disappear into one of the other rooms. I feel like I need to yell
at them to keep their door open so they don’t do anything tonight.
“I’m going to go steal Jason back.”
“You guys can have the other room. I’ll sleep in here,” I say.
“Are you sure?”
“Yeah. Go get your boy.”
Ari starts to walk away and then turns to face me. “I was serious about
sharing him. He wants it, and I trust you guys to treat him right.”
“I want to get Kira’s thoughts first. I’m serious about her, Ari.”
“That’s on you. I won’t stop you, but I can’t control what happens if
Kane finds out.”
“We’ll cross that bridge when we need to.”
Ari shrugs. “Night.”
This was not what I was expecting to come from tonight. I should have
known better than to let Tyler drink, but there was no stopping once Kira
told him she had alcohol. It’s good for us to let loose every once in a while.
Everyone has been so wound up that it’s nice to see we’re finally getting
back to normal.
 I think about what Tyler said about Kira joining us and won’t deny that I
really like the idea. I know that’s going to be taking her way out of her
comfort zone, but there’s not a better group of guys than us.
I go into the kitchen and grab a bottle of water from the fridge. When I
turn around, Kira is walking in behind me. “I figured you went to bed,
Mama.”
Kira chews on her bottom lip, and then I see a look of determination. “I
am, but I wanted to ask you something first.”
“Okay?”
“Will you go with me to the party tomorrow? I know it’s stupid and
something you really don’t want to do, but I’d like you to go. If not, it’s
totally fine. I’ll ask Tyler and Gavin.”
“I’d love to go.” I won’t tell her that it was already decided because her
rambling was too fucking adorable. She smiles but shuffles from foot to
foot, showing her nervousness. “Was there something else?”
“Yeah,” she breathes, and her next move shocks the shit out of me. She
wraps her arms around my waist and tilts her head up. She licks her lips,
and I don’t even have to ask what she wants.
I set the bottle of water on the counter, cup her face, and lay my lips
against hers. I peck her lips a few times, giving her a chance to back out.
When she doesn’t, I lick the seam of her lips, and she opens for me with a
sigh. I kiss her slowly, taking my time feeling my lips on hers. Kira goes up
on her tiptoes and wraps her arms around my neck. I could pump my fist for
fucking joy that her looks weren’t all in my head. I’ve been pushing her
little by little, and it finally paid off. I refused to make her uncomfortable,
and I’m damn glad she made the first move.
She pulls back and gives me a small smile. “Wow.”
“Wow is right.”
Kira pecks my lips and takes a step back. “Goodnight, Keon.”
“Night, Mama.”
I watch her walk into the hallway and have to refrain from dancing in
victory when her door shuts. I feel like a boy who just got his first kiss.
Now that Kira has given me the go ahead, I’m going to make sure she
knows she made the right decision.
Every day if she’ll let me.

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 22

KIRA

S
omething wakes me from a dead sleep, and I sit up fast in the bed. I
have no idea what it was so I strain to listen. When I don’t hear it
again, I go to lie back down. As soon as my head hits the pillow, I hear
it again. It’s a whimper like someone is in pain.
I grab my beanie from the nightstand, slide it on, and pull my robe on
before tiptoeing out of my room. I go into the living room to find Keon
sleeping peacefully on the couch. Hearing it coming from one of the
bedrooms, I head that way and stop outside one of the rooms. What if it
isn’t pain? What if I bust in here, and they’re fucking? That thought gives
me pause until I hear it again, and it’s definitely not sexual. I twist the knob
quietly and peek inside.
Tyler is passed out cold on the bed beside a thrashing Gavin. He’s
pouring sweat and repeating something over and over, letting me know he’s
having a nightmare. I know the signs since I lived through them and still
occasionally do.
I walk over to the bed and gently shake his shoulder. “Gavin,” I say
softly. “Wake up.”
“Breathe. He has to breathe,” he says, tears pouring down his face.
“Gavin,” I say louder. “You’re having a nightmare. Wake up.” He starts
thrashing again, making that whimpering noise that’s tearing my heart out.
“Gavin.”
 Gavin gasps and sits up in the bed, looking wildly around. His eyes land
on me, and I see his brain trying to catch up. “Kira?”
“You were having a nightmare.”
He roughly wipes the tears from his face. “Sorry.”
“You don’t have to apologize. Are you okay?”
“Yeah. I’m fine.” I know a dismissal when I hear one, so I nod and head
for the door. “Kira?” I turn around to face him, and he gives me a small
smile. “Thank you.”
“I know what those nightmares can do to you. I’m glad I was here to
help.”
Gavin chuckles and looks over at Tyler. “His drunk ass is normally
there.”
“I think he may have had one too many.”
“That’s an understatement. I’ll let you get back to bed.” Gavin slides to
sit against the headboard, and I know he won’t be getting any more sleep.
I chew on my bottom lip, trying to decide if I want to be vulnerable with
him. But if it helps, I have to do something. “Come with me.”
Gavin’s brows furrow in confusion. “What?”
“Meet me in my room. You aren’t going back to sleep, and I’ll lay
awake all night worried about you. We’ll watch Netflix and eat ice cream.”
Gavin gives me that lopsided smile again. “Okay.”
I slip back out of his room and quietly go to the kitchen. I grab a tub of
chocolate ice cream, two spoons, and head back to my room. I stop just
inside the living room, looking at Keon. That kiss before I went to bed kept
me up for a while. He was so sweet and gentle with me, sensing that’s what
I needed. Kissing him exceeded all of my expectations, and I’m not
ashamed to admit that I want it to happen again.
Pulling my eyes away from Keon, I go to my room to find Gavin
standing there. I motion toward the bed, and he climbs on, leaning against
the headboard. He’s as close to the wall as possible, so I have room. I get
comfortable beside him and hand him the remote. “You pick.”
Gavin flips the TV on to scroll through Netflix while I open the ice
cream. He picks some random rom-com, and I hand him the other spoon.
He chuckles and gets a spoonful. “Do you usually eat ice cream and watch
TV at two in the morning?”
I shrug and take a bite. “Sometimes. When I first came home from
rehab, I started having nightmares again. My only guess is that rehab was
my safe place, and being around Kane brought back memories. Anyway.
Whenever Blaze heard me, he would bring me chocolate ice cream and sit
up watching TV with me until I fell asleep.”
Gavin eats a couple more bites before looking at me. “How did you
make them stop?”
“The nightmares? I had to face what was making me have them. Which,
for me, meant acknowledging there was nothing I could have done to
prevent that fire. I still have them sometimes, but it’s usually after a huge
change or something that would trigger them.”
Gavin sighs, and I give him a minute to see if he’ll talk to me. It’s silent
for ten minutes with us enjoying the ice cream. “We had a mission go to
shit. We had the wrong intel, and when we went in, it was nothing like we
were expecting. There were these sick women, but what was worse were the
sick kids.” Gavin swallows and takes another bite. “We got them out, then
Keon had to start CPR on one in the back of the van.”
“What happened?” I can feel tears clogging my throat, but refuse to let
them fall. Something tells me he’ll stop talking if they do.
“Keon got him back several times. We got the rest to a safe house and
then took him to the hospital. He was maybe two years old, and we have no
idea if he has a family, so he’s all alone.”
“Is that what the nightmares are about?”
“Usually. Ari said I need to face this shit head-on, but I have no idea
how.”
“Maybe you just need to see for yourself that he’s alive. What else do
you see?” I watch his entire face shut down and wish I could take that
question back. “Are you done?” I ask, wiggling the ice cream. He nods, so I
sit it on the floor by the bed.
We get comfortable on the pillows, tuning into the movie, and I feel
myself drifting off. I’m almost asleep when I hear Gavin’s whispered
words. “I see my father. He was a horrible fucking person, so seeing that
little boy sucked me back to my childhood. Instead of saving them, he kills
them all right in front of me.” I can’t stop the tears this time and look up at
Gavin. He gently wipes them from my cheeks. “He’s dead, so I don’t know
how to get them to stop.”
“You have to see you aren’t that little boy anymore,” I whisper. “That
you turned out great without him. You turned into a hero.”
“We aren’t hero⁠—”
 “You are. I know what you guys do, and that’s heroic in my book. You
aren’t the sins of your father, Gavin.”
Gavin rubs a tear away that’s leaking down my cheek and stares into my
eyes. It’s like he’s searching for something. He rolls over on his side to face
me, and I suck in a breath when his lips almost touch mine. “You’re perfect,
Kira.” He gently lays his lips against mine in a soft kiss and pulls back.
“Thank you for staying up with me.” I nod because words are locked in my
throat. “Do you want me to go back to my room?”
The thought of him leaving makes my heart start to race. “No.”
Gavin gets comfortable beside me and is out within minutes. I think it
will be impossible to fall asleep until my eyes start getting heavy.
Only to fall asleep and dream about being kissed twice in the same
night.
By two different men.

T he next morning , Gavin was able to sneak out of my room without

anyone seeing him. Not that he wanted to hide that he slept in my bed. He
was totally okay with anyone knowing. It was me. I finally grew the nerve
to make a move on Keon and ended up kissing his best friend the same
night.
The day flew by with my classes, and before I knew it, it was time for
the party. I was two seconds away from saying I didn’t want to go, until I
saw Keon dressed in a black button-up, jeans, and boots.
He smiles when he sees me walk into the living room. “You ready,
Mama?”
“As ready as I’ll ever be.”
Keon grabs my hand and pulls me against him. “We can find something
else to do if you want.”
“No. I need to stop being a chicken shit.”
He chuckles and kisses the tip of my nose. “Okay. But whenever you
want to leave, let me know.”
Keon slings his arm around my shoulders and leads me to the door. The
party is within walking distance, so we head that way. The more we walk,
the more the guilt eats away at me. “I kissed Gavin,” I blurt out.
 Keon comes to a dead stop, and I have to turn around to face him.
“What?”
“I’m so sorry. He had a nightmare, and I was trying to help him. We had
a moment, and he kissed me. But I didn’t stop it, so don’t be mad at him.”
Keon raises a brow. “I’m not mad at anyone.”
“Well. Me and you⁠—”
“Kissed? Yeah. That didn’t tie you to me, Mama. You can kiss whoever
you want.” He walks to me, throws his arm back around my shoulders, and
turns me around to walk again. “Let me rephrase that. You can kiss anyone
that was in your dorm last night.” He chuckles, and I peek up at his face. “I
figured if anyone would make a move, it would be Tyler, not Gavin.”
“He didn’t necessarily make a move. I’m sure it was just the heat of the
moment, and he didn’t even think about it today.”
Keon laughs, drawing several eyes to us. “I can guarantee that’s all he’s
thought about, and Tyler already knows.”
“Oh God,” I groan. “Tyler’s going to be so upset that I kissed his
boyfriend.”
“Come on. Tyler? He suggested all of us hooking up. I don’t think he’s
going to be mad.”
“He was drunk.”
“Drunk or not, Tyler knew exactly what he was saying.” The party
comes into view, and Keon pulls me tighter to his side when he sees all the
people. “Remember, one word, and we’re gone.”
Keon walks into the house like he owns the place, so I follow his lead.
He goes straight to the keg and gets us two cups. He hands one to me, and I
see his eyes scanning the room. “Do you ever not work?”
“I’m not working. I’m observing.”
“Kira!” I look over at Jessica’s voice and smile. “You came!”
“Thanks for inviting me.”
“Who’s your friend?”
“This is Keon.”
“Can I steal her for a minute?” Jessica asks, and Keon stiffens beside
me.
“Just for a minute,” I whisper.
“Stay where I can see you,” he whispers back.
Jessica hooks her arm through mine and pulls me further into the living
room. “I wasn’t sure if you’d come. I’m glad you did, though.”
 “Me too.”
“So, is he your boyfriend?” she asks, wiggling her brows. “He’s hot.”
“Um. Not really.”
“Are the other two you’re usually with?”
I’m not sure how to answer this question because it’s actually made for
a good cover for them being with me on campus. “Sort of.”
“Well, aren’t you lucky,” a girl drawls to my side.
“Don’t start, Viv,” Jessica replies.
“I mean, how did you get three hot as fuck guys following you around?”
Viv asks, and I feel my heart sink.
“Shut up,” Jessica hisses. “You don’t have to be so rude.”
“Hey! Did you guys see that the circus freak showed—” A guy I’ve
never seen before stops mid-sentence when he sees me standing there.
I jerk my arm away from Jessica and ignore her calling out for me as I
head to the bathroom. When I go to shut the door, someone pushes it open. I
whirl around, ready to defend myself, when I see Keon. “What’s wrong,
Mama?”
“Nothing. Please give me a minute.”
“I’m sorry, but no. What happened?”
“I should have known that I was just the sideshow.”
“What?” Keon practically growls. “They’re fucking dead.” He turns
around to leave, and I grab his arm.
“You can’t kill a bunch of college kids.”
“Why the fuck not? They hurt you.”
I wave away his concerns. “They hurt my feelings. There’s a
difference.”
“Not to me.” Keon grabs my face and tilts it up to see his eyes. “You
aren’t a sideshow. They’re a bunch of immature people that wouldn’t know
struggle if it punched them in the fucking face.”
“I knew better.” I shrug. “I learned my lesson.”
“Not everyone sucks, Mama.”
“I know. You guys don’t.”
“Tyler does. The rest of us are pretty awesome.” I laugh at that, and he
seems relieved. “You want to go?”
“Not yet. I wanted to do something.”
“What’s that?”
“Make out with the hot guy in the bathroom.”
 Keon grins, and it takes my breath away. “That, I can do.”
His lips come down on mine, and he kisses me slowly like he did last
night, but that’s not what I want. I slide my arms around his neck and pull
him closer to me. Keon deepens the kiss with a groan, and I’m putty in his
arms. His hands slide down my back and pause right above my ass. When I
don’t stop him, he cups it and lifts me off my feet. He sits me on the
bathroom counter and steps between my thighs. I can feel what I’m doing to
him when he rubs his hard cock against me. There’s something he needs to
know before we go any further. I pull back, and Keon starts kissing my
neck. I have to struggle to concentrate, but I need to say this so he can
change his mind.
“I’m a virgin.” Keon’s lips freeze on my neck, and he slowly pulls
away.
“What?” he says hoarsely, and I can’t get a read on his face.
“I’ve never had sex before. I’ve messed around but never went all the
way.”
Keon blows a breath out and steps back. “Okay.”
I feel my face flame with embarrassment, knowing he’s going to back
out. No one wants the fragile virgin girl. “You can stop this; there won’t be
any hard feelings.”
“Stop? Oh, hell no, Mama.”
“Then why did you pull away?”
“Because it’s taking all my willpower not to take your virginity right
here. The thought that I’ll be the first to touch you has me so goddamn
hard.”
“Oh,” I breathe. “Why don’t you?”
Keon steps back between my thighs and grabs my face. “Because I want
to take my time. I refuse to hurt you any more than I’ll have to. And I’ll be
damned if your first time is in a bathroom with a party outside.” He pecks
my lips and helps me from the counter. “I won’t rush this. I want to do it
right.”
“Can we finish our date even if it won’t end with that?” I’m
disappointed and relieved at the same time that he wants to slow things
down. I was more than willing for him to fuck me right here just to get rid
of the virginity tag. But I should have known Keon wasn’t like that, and it
makes me like him even more.
“Of course. Where do you want to go?”
 “Can we go get pizza?”
Keon laughs and grabs my hand. “Pizza for my girl, it is.” His girl? I
like the sound of that.
More than I probably should, knowing this will only last while they’re
protecting me.

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 23

GAVIN

ou did what?” Tyler gasps, grabbing his chest.

“Y “Shut up. It just happened.”
That fucking kiss has been on my mind all day, no matter how
small it was. It took Tyler until tonight to make me finally fess up on what I
was thinking. I should have known how he would react. “Are her lips as
soft as they look?”
“Yes. You aren’t mad?”
“Dude, I suggested a six-some. No, I’m not mad.” Tyler sighs and leans
back on the couch. “It’s all coming together.”
“Nothing is coming together, you freak.”
Tyler laughs. “Okay. Stay in denial. I’m just glad she was there for
you.”
“I haven’t told you the full truth about the nightmares,” I admit. Kira
was the first person that I’ve ever told the full extent. She opened up to me,
so I felt that I needed to also, which is what led to that kiss. “I dream about
my father sometimes. We have them all almost to safety, and he kills them.
Sometimes, he slits their throats, and others, he shoots everyone.”
“I know how it is growing up with a shit father, and since yours was
into trafficking, it would make sense they would merge together.”
“I just want it to stop.” I remember what Kira said about seeing with my
own eyes that they’re all still alive from that mission. “I want to go to the
hospital.”
 “We can go right now.”
I nod and get up from the couch before I can change my mind. Tyler and
I slip our shoes on and slide into his Camaro. He pulls out of the driveway
and gives me time to get my shit together. I know they’ve all been at the
hospital to check in on everyone, but I could never bring myself to do it.
We pull into the hospital parking lot twenty minutes later, and Tyler
shuts the car off. “Whenever you’re ready.”
I take a few steadying breaths and push my door open. I follow Tyler to
the elevator, and he grabs my hand when the door closes. When they open it
again, he tries to drop it, and I hold it tighter. “What are you doing?”
“I wasn’t sure if you were ready for that yet.”
“I’m not ashamed of this.”
He shrugs and pulls me into the hallway. “Neither am I.” He leads me
down a long corridor and stops before we get to the rooms. “They’re all
back there. We kept them together because some of the ladies wanted to
look in on the kids. Betty is usually here, too.”
“So, they aren’t alone?”
“Nope. They’ve had someone here with them for protection since we
brought them in, and Betty wasn’t going anywhere.” Tyler tugs my hand to
get me walking again. He stops outside of a room and turns to me. “This is
the one you’ve been dreaming about. It was touch and go for the first week
or so, but he’s doing really good now.”
“How do you know?”
“I call Betty for updates on him, just in case you ask.”
“Do we know his name?”
Tyler shakes his head sadly. “No. He doesn’t talk.”
“And still nothing on his family?”
“Nolan thinks his mom might have been on that shipment and probably
didn’t make it.”
I nod and finally push the door open. The little boy is sitting up in the
bed while Betty reads to him. Now that he’s clean, he looks like a mini
Tyler, making it hurt even more. Betty looks up from her book with a smile.
“Hey, Gavin.”
“Hey,” I say hoarsely.
“Have a seat,” she says, gesturing to the chair beside her. The little boy
keeps his eyes on me the whole time. “It’s okay,” she soothes him. “He’s
my friend.”
 Tyler sits on the other side of the bed. “Does he speak English?”
“He seems to understand. I’ve gotten very little out of the women that
were with them. They’re still terrified.”
“The boss is still out there,” I say quietly. “Who does Axel have here?”
Betty pats my hand. “Quit worrying your handsome little head. He has
two of his teams rotating every twelve hours. They’re safe here.”
“What about the ones that have been released?”
“They’re also safe,” she replies. “The hard part is over. It’s time for
them to heal.”
I look at the little boy, and he’s still staring at me wide-eyed with fear. I
can only imagine the damage this did to him, and he has every right to be
scared of men. “Do they ever heal?”
“Maybe not entirely, but you gave them a chance at a new life that
night,” she says. Tyler’s phone rings, and he leaves the room to answer it.
Betty leans closer when the door shuts behind him. “Did I see what I think I
saw when you walked in here?”
“What?”
“Don’t play coy,” she laughs. “Did you tell him how you feel?”
“How did everyone know what I felt before I did?”
“Because it was all over your face, darling. So, did you?”
“You’re nosey, Betty,” I joke.
“I’m an old lady living vicariously through all you heathens. Give me
something.”
I look at the door, where I can see Tyler, and look back at her. “Yeah. I
told him.”
“You didn’t tell him everything.”
“How do you do that?”
“I’ve been around the Saviors long enough to pick up a few tricks. One
of these is reading between the lines.”
“He doesn’t need to know that right now. I don’t think that’s what he
wants.”
“You would be surprised, Gavin. Tyler might be silly, but he’s aware of
much more than what people give him credit for.”
I know there’s a lot of depth to Tyler that not everyone is allowed to see.
But he doesn’t need to know that this isn’t just a simple attraction for me.
He doesn’t need to know that I fell in love with him a long time ago.
A fter we left the hospital , we decided to go back to the house to hang
out instead of going to High Flyer. I feel better since we went to the
hospital, but there’s still so much running through my head. We kick back
on the couch and are halfway through the movie before Tyler makes a
move. He yawns, stretches, and throws his arm behind my shoulders.
“Really?” I laugh. “That’s the oldest trick in the book.”
“Shhh. I’m wooing you. Is it working?”
“If you have to ask, you have your answer.”
Tyler shifts on the couch, and his other hand lands on my thigh. “What
about now?”
“Are you that desperate for me?”
“Yes.” Tyler slides his hand higher up my thigh until his fingers brush
my cock. I’m ashamed to admit it was instantly hard the moment he
touched me. “You aren’t desperate for me?”
“Of course I am.” I grab his chin between my thumb and forefinger.
“But once we take that step, there is no going back.”
“Back to where?”
I pull on his arm until he straddles my waist. He immediately starts
shifting, rubbing his ass against me. “To just friends. Once my cock is
inside you, you’re mine, Tyler.”
“Are you laying claim, Pop Tart?”
“Pop Tart? Jesus fuck. Can you be serious for one second?”
Tyler smiles and lays his forehead against mine. “I am being serious.
Serious about waking up in the middle of the night needing you so bad that
I can’t see straight. Serious about you claiming me. I’m being serious about
you, Gavin. If we’re being honest, we were never just friends. If that were
the case, I wouldn’t have been sleeping in your room to get to you faster.”
I pull back to see his face. “What?”
“I started sleeping in the chair in your room when you started having
nightmares.”
“You did that…for me?”
“You need to start seeing your worth, Princess.” My hands tighten on
his hips, and he laughs. “I knew you wouldn’t let me just stay in there with
you, so I figured out a way around that.”
 Hooking my hand on the back of his head, I pull his lips against mine.
Tyler responds and lets me control the kiss, which surprises me every time.
I decide tonight will be the night I give us what we both want. There’s no
turning back now. I slide my hands under Tyler’s shirt, and his phone starts
ringing.
“That’s Ari’s ringtone,” he murmurs against my lips before deepening
the kiss again. I rub my hands over his pecs when it stops, and he shivers
from head to toe.
“Fuck,” I groan when my phone starts ringing, and I know it’s
important. I dig my phone from my pocket and slide to answer. “Hello?” I
pant when Tyler sucks on my neck.
“Put your dicks away and meet me at Jason’s.” He rambles off an
address. “High alert.” The call disconnects, and Tyler catches the change in
my demeanor.
“What’s going on?” He slides to his feet and jerks me to mine.
“We have to go to Jason’s. Ari put us on high alert.”
We run to slide our boots on and are in the car within seconds. Ari
doesn’t put us on high alert unless something is very wrong. Tyler roars into
Jason’s parking lot fifteen minutes later, and we make our way to his
apartment. Ari and Jason are standing there waiting when we get there.
“What’s going on, Boss?” Tyler asks.
“Someone tossed Jason’s apartment. I did a sweep and didn’t find
anyone, but found this.” Ari hands Tyler a piece of paper, and I look over
his shoulder to see it.
“I found you,” I read out loud.
“It was lying on his goddamn pillow.” Ari pulls a worried-looking Jason
closer to his side. “He’s with us until we figure this out.”
“Wait a minute,” Jason says. “I didn’t agree to that.”
Ari snatches the note from Tyler’s hand and holds it up. “This decided it
for you.”
“You can stay with me until we figure this out,” Jason argues.
“No,” Ari barks, making Jason’s eyes widen. “We can protect you better
as a group. Plus, you said you have no idea who this can even be. Until we
find out, this is non-negotiable.” Jason storms into his apartment without a
word and slams the door behind him.
“Well done,” Tyler says sarcastically. “You sure showed him who’s
boss.”
 Ari takes a menacing step forward, so I slide between them. “Okay. I
know you’re pissed, but we don’t need to do this,” I say. “I agree that he
needs protection and to be with us, but you could have been gentler about
it.”
“Are you telling me how to handle him?” Ari growls.
“Will you put your dick away?” I sigh. “The fact that you just said
handle him should tell you all you need to know. I’ll talk to him. Can you
not kill Tyler, please?”
I step out from between them and knock on the door before letting
myself in. Jason’s sitting on the couch, staring at the wall, when I walk in.
The entire apartment is trashed, with his stuff thrown everywhere and
several broken things lying on the floor. I sit on the loveseat in front of him.
“Let me guess? Ari ordered you to make me go.”
“No. The decision is all yours. But can I say something?” Jason nods for
me to continue. “Ari’s scared, and he doesn’t know how to handle it, so it
comes out in anger. He’s never had to protect someone he has feelings for.”
Jason finally turns to look at me. “You think I should go, don’t you?”
“Yes. They invaded your personal space, and that note might be simple,
but it’s concerning. Stay with us for a bit, and let us do what we do best.”
“Why couldn’t he say it like that?”
I laugh. “Because Ari’s an ass. We’ll look into it, and you’ll be back
before you know it.”
Jason stands from the couch and goes to his room. “Gavin!” he calls
out, and I hear the panic in his voice. I’m off the loveseat and running,
skidding to a stop in his room. “I think someone was on the fire escape.”
I jerk my Glock from its holster and creep to the window. Not seeing
anything, I slide it open and step one foot out. “Go tell Ari.”
I slide the rest of the way out and sweep as I move. I get to the next
floor, and a shadow in the alleyway catches my eye. I move in a fast clip
that way, all of my training kicking in. I drop down into the alley, and the
first shot rings out. I duck behind the dumpster and focus on the sounds. My
mind clears, and I hear a scuffle to the right. I jump from my hiding spot
and fire off two shots before ducking back down. Breathe and listen.
Ghost’s words float through my head, and I know what to do. I need to
become Phantom. It will be much harder since I’m not dressed in black, but
they trained me for every scenario. I scoot back against the building, blend
into the shadows, and stand up. I let my eyes adjust to the dark and scan the
area. A figure stands up from their hiding spot, and I aim, then fire. They
take off running, and I give chase. I skid to a stop at the end of the alley
right as a car speeds past me. I pop off two more shots, shattering the back
glass.
Footsteps pound behind me, and I spin around, gun raised, but drop it
when I see Ari and Tyler. “I lost them.”
“What the fuck is going on?” Tyler asks.
“I don’t know. But we’re going to figure it out.” Ari slaps me on the
shoulder. “Good work.”
“I lost them, though,” I argue.
“It happens. You did your job.”
I can tell by the look in Ari’s eyes that Jason is about to go into
lockdown. The note on the pillow is bad enough, but someone creeping
outside his bedroom window will send Ari over the edge.
If I’m being honest, it will send me over too.

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 24

TYLER

I
look over at Gavin on the couch, reading his face like a book. He’s
blaming himself for that asshole getting away.
“It wasn’t your fault,” I say.
“I should have been able to take him down.”
“We have no idea who this guy even is. You protected Jason. That was
your job.” I stand from the couch, grab his hand, and jerk him to his feet.
“What are you doing?”
“Distracting you.” I drag him toward the stairs, going straight to his
room. I shut the door behind us and jerk my shirt over my head. “We can
finish what we started on the couch before the phone call.”
“You’re a horny little fucker.”
“You made me this way,” I laugh. I pull his shirt off and toss it behind
me. “All the teasing is driving me fucking crazy.”
Gavin hooks his hand in the front of my jeans and jerks me against his
chest. “What do you want, Tyler?”
“I want to get dicked the fuck down.”
Gavin rolls his eyes and shoves me back a step. “What do you want out
of this? Sex? To experiment? Experience? A good story? What. Do. You.
Want?”
“I want you. I didn’t forget what you said about me being yours. But
that makes you equally mine.” I step forward again and start unbuttoning
his jeans. “Now. Get naked, and we can do some aggressive cuddling.”
 Gavin’s hand lashes out and locks around my throat, surprising the shit
out of me. He squeezes hard, and when my mouth pops open, he licks
across my top lip. “Take my pants off.” Yes! I finally unleashed the beast
that I’d seen lurking just below the surface when he held back. I shove his
jeans from his hips, and he kicks them the rest of the way off. “Now yours.”
I make quick work of mine, and he pulls my lips against his. This kiss is
different, rougher, more demanding, and I don’t hate it. I’m more than
willing to give up control for Gavin if that’s what he needs.
Gavin’s hand drifts from my neck, down my stomach, and into my
boxers to squeeze my cock, making me groan. He pushes my boxers off my
hips, and I get rid of his. His hand goes back to my throat, and he pushes
me to my knees in front of him. He leans back against the door, looking
sexier than hell, just waiting.
Grabbing the base, I lick around the head a few times before sucking it
in my mouth. Gavin’s hand goes to my head, and he tightens his fist in my
hair. I look up at him, begging him with my eyes to fuck my throat. He
thrusts shallowly a few times before pushing all the way in, making me gag
against him. “Fuck, I love that noise.” He thrusts a couple more times. “You
want my cock in your throat?” I nod, and he shoves in without warning. I
try to relax, but he’s long. “Don’t fight it, Sexy. I want to hear you struggle
to take me.” I drop my hand from the base of his cock and rest it on his hip,
giving him full control. “That’s it. Such a good boy for me.” Yes. Yes, I’m a
very good boy.
Gavin grabs the side of my face and starts fucking my mouth slowly. I
take my throbbing cock in my hand and start stroking it in time with his
thrusts. Gavin starts to move faster, and before I know it, he’s fucking my
mouth hard. The look on his face is enough to make me come on the spot.
Gavin’s breathing speeds up, and his abs start to bunch. He abruptly pulls
from my mouth, reaches down, and jerks me to my feet.
Gavin’s lips land on mine, and he backs me up until my knees hit the
bed. I land on my ass and scoot up toward the headboard, Gavin following
me the whole way. He stretches out over me, and his bare cock rubs against
mine.
“Fuck,” I moan when he grinds against me.
Gavin braces his hands beside my head and starts moving his hips. “Is
this what you want, Sexy?”
“You know it is.”
 “Do you have condoms?”
“No condoms. I want to feel you inside me.” Gavin groans and starts
kissing down my chest. When he bites my pec, my moan echoes around the
room. He keeps sucking, kissing, and biting until my cock bumps his chin.
“I want to taste you again.”
Gavin turns around on the bed so we’re laying in sixty-nine, and I flip
over, sucking him back into my mouth. He strokes me in a rough grip and
then licks the pre-cum dripping from the tip. I greedily suck him hard and
fast. The faster I get, the rougher he gets. The moans that are leaving me
should be shameful, but I don’t give a fuck. Gavin’s hand drifts to my ass,
and I smile against him.
“What is this?” Gavin asks hoarsely, rubbing between my ass.
I pop off his cock but keep stroking. “A butt plug.”
“Why do you have a plug in?”
“Keon said it would make it easier. I stretched myself for you.”
“Turn over on your hands and knees.” I comply, and Gavin spreads me
open. “You did this for me?”
“For us.” I look at him over my shoulder. “No matter how much shit I
talk, this isn’t a joke to me. I know you’re afraid to hurt me or whatever, so
I made it easier for you.”
Gavin starts kissing and biting my ass cheeks, making me push back
against him. “Are you getting desperate?”
“Desperate for you to fill me up, Princess.” Gavin slaps my ass, making
me jump and laugh. “Do you prefer Pop Tart?” Gavin grabs the end of the
butt plug and starts manipulating it.
“I prefer that much better,” he rasps when I groan. He fucks me with the
plug a few times before sliding it free. “Lay on your back. I want to see
your face when I slide inside you.”
I roll over, and the look on his face takes my fucking breath away. He
looks almost feral, but I can still see the underlying nervousness. “No
matter what happens, you’re still my best friend.” I reach over into the
bedside table and grab the lube. Tipping it over, I squirt some into my palm,
sit up on my elbow, and start massaging it onto his cock. Gavin’s whole
body goes rigid, his hands locking into fists. “Take what you want. Take
what I’m willingly giving you.”
“What’s that?” he pants.
 “My ass on a silver platter.” He breathes a laugh and starts to relax.
“I’ve all but gift-wrapped it for you.”
Gavin slowly leans down, bracing one hand beside my head. He blows
out a breath and reaches between us, grabbing his cock from my hand. I lie
back and spread my legs wider in invitation. When the head of his cock
touches my asshole, I have to remind myself to relax. I know it’s going to
hurt like a bitch, but I also know Gavin will stop if he thinks I’m in pain.
Still guiding his cock, he pushes forward until the head is barely inside me.
“Holy fucking shit.” I bear down against him, and he slides ever further
inside. “You’re so tight.”
“You’re fucking huge,” I groan. “Don’t stop.”
“I’m hurting you.” I can feel him starting to pull back, and I grab his
hips to stop him.
“You’re fucking my ass. Of course, it’s going to hurt. Just…” I blow a
breath out, “give me a minute.” Gavin watches my face closely as I struggle
through the burn. When I feel it start to subside, I adjust my hips and push
down on his cock. I don’t breathe again until I feel his thighs touch the back
of mine.
Gavin leans down and gently pecks my lips. “I’ll make it feel good.”
“You better,” I croak. He gives me a crooked grin and slowly pulls back
out. It takes a few slow thrusts before the pain morphs into pleasure. Gavin
braces one hand on the back of my thigh and pushes it toward the bed. The
move makes him rub against my prostate. “Goddamn.”
“Do you know how long I’ve wanted this?” He adjusts his hips, and my
back bows off the bed. “How long I’ve wanted to see that look on your face
because I made you feel so fucking good?”
“You’re really fucking cocky,” I pant. He pulls back and slams inside
me, making me whimper.
“I am,” he taunts, leaning down and sucking on my neck. “But I can
back it up. You know how I know? That look on your face, those noises
leaving your mouth, and your cock leaking everywhere just from my dick
deep inside you.” Gavin reaches between us and wraps a hand around me,
stroking. “Tell me how good I make you feel.”
“Do you need an ego stroke, Princess?”
Gavin sits back on his knees, locks his hand around my throat, and
squeezes. The breath whooshes from my lungs, and my cock jumps on my
stomach. He starts hammering his hips to the point that it’s almost painful,
but my body reacts in the best way. Goosebumps pop on my skin, my eyes
roll back in my head, and my cock starts twitching. “Tell me.”
“You feel so goddamn good.”
“Do you want to come?”
“Fuck,” I moan when he hits that spot over and over again. “Yes.”
“Stroke your cock for me.” I wrap my hand around it in a tight fist,
stroking hard. “Look at me when you come.”
Keeping my eyes locked on him, I move faster and feel my release
barreling toward the finish line. Gavin’s thrusts don’t let up, and I start
coming all over my chest. “Gavin,” I moan.
Never missing a beat, Gavin pushes my knees further apart, and I feel
him swell inside me. He lets my legs go, and his hands slap beside my head.
“Good boy,” he groans as he comes.
“You asshole,” I rasp, and he collapses against my chest with a chuckle.
“You don’t like being my good boy? Because I can point out so many
things to determine that’s a lie.” Gavin gently lets his cock slip from inside
me and rolls to his side, pulling me with him. He kisses me slowly and then
pulls me closer against his chest. “That was amazing.”
“It was,” I admit, even though he’s being an ass.
Gavin gets that worried look on his face again and rubs his hand across
my ass. “Did I hurt you? I didn’t mean to fuck you that hard.”
“Did I stab you?” He pulls back to look at my face. “If you hurt me, I
would have stabbed you. Will you quit worrying? I liked it.” Gavin rolls
from the bed and pulls me to my feet. “What are you doing?”
“I need to clean you up.” He grabs my hand and starts pulling me
toward his bathroom.
“I can shower myself,” I laugh.
“I want to do it.” Gavin pulls me the rest of the way into the bathroom
and shuts the door behind us. He turns the shower on and guides me inside
with him.
Without a word, he picks up the body wash, squirts it into his palm, and
washes my body slowly. When he gets to my sore ass, he gently washes it. I
can feel things changing between us, and for once, it doesn’t scare me.
I’m ready for whatever he wants, whenever he’s ready.

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 25

ARI

T
hings I didn’t plan on seeing today are Gavin and Tyler dry-humping
in the kitchen. Tyler’s sitting on the counter with Gavin between his
legs. Their lips are locked together, and their hips are rolling. I look at
Jason standing wide-eyed beside me and clear my throat. All three of them
turn to look at me.
“I’m sure there are other places you guys can do this,” I say, walking
into the kitchen.
“I say right here is just fine,” Jason comments and smiles at me when I
whip to look at him. “I don’t mind watching.”
Tyler pumps his fist in the air. “Jason’s a freak. I love it. You want to
join us?”
Gavin rubs against Tyler again, making Tyler groan. “Come on. There’s
plenty of room.”
Jason’s face goes beet red, and I laugh. “What’s the matter, Sweet
cheeks?” I step behind and wrap my arms around his waist. I march him
forward until we’re standing beside Gavin and Tyler. “It does look
inviting.”
“You guys are just messing with me,” Jason says.
“I don’t think they are,” I whisper, making him shiver.
Tyler reaches over and pulls Jason between him and Gavin. I see Gavin
checking my reaction to make sure that I’m not getting pissed off. I don’t
blame him. Saying I want to see him with one of them is different than
actually allowing it. When I don’t react, Gavin braces his hands on the
countertop, plastering himself to Jason and pushing Jason further onto
Tyler. Jason’s face is red all the way down to his neck, but I know it’s not
from embarrassment.
Tyler takes his thumb and rubs it down Jason’s bottom lip. “I bet these
feel good wrapped around your cock. They’re so pouty.”
“They are,” Gavin agrees. “You should see how nice his ass feels.”
Gavin rotates his hips, and Jason bites his lip to keep from making a sound
because he still thinks they’re messing with him. I check my reaction and
still feel that twinge of jealousy, but it’s overwhelmed with lust. If he reacts
this well to them just touching him, how will he react when they have him
naked?
Gavin rests his chin on Jason’s shoulder, and I hold my breath as Tyler
leans forward to kiss him. Jason’s eyes are glued to their lips moving
together, his chest rising and falling rapidly. Tyler pecks Gavin’s lips a
couple of times and moves to kiss Jason on the cheek. Jason’s breath
catches, and Tyler lays his lips against Jason’s. When Jason doesn’t pull
away, Tyler deepens the kiss. Jason’s arms wrap around Tyler’s neck, and I
look at Gavin. I expect to see him mad, but he’s kissing Jason’s neck.
“I miss all the good shit.” I turn around to the sound of Kira’s voice, and
she’s leaning in the doorway to the kitchen. Keon is standing behind her, his
hands resting on her hips.
“Come join us,” Tyler says against Jason’s lips, making Gavin laugh.
“Fuck, your lips feel good.”
“I thought we were talking about what happened last night, not having
an orgy in the kitchen,” Keon says with a chuckle.
Kira walks further into the kitchen and slides past me. She pulls herself
to sit on the counter beside Tyler. “I’m down to watch. Hey, Jason.” She
looks at Gavin, and her cheeks darken. “Hey.” What the hell is that about?
“Hey, Baby girl.” He leans on the other side of Jason and gently pecks
her lips. “How was your party?”
“It kind of sucked, but I got to make out with a hot guy in the
bathroom.”
“What?” I demand and look at Keon. “You let her make out with some
random guy at a party?”
Kira laughs and pats my chest. “Calm down before you have a heart
attack. Keon was the hot guy in the bathroom.”
 Tyler throws his arm around Kira’s shoulders. “You go, girl. Was it hot?
I bet it was hot.”
“It was,” she sighs.
“When did this happen?” I ask, gesturing between Gavin and Kira.
“If you would pull your head out of Jason’s ass, you would notice what
was going on around you,” Gavin answers.
“I’ll still shoot you,” I threaten.
“You can’t shoot my man,” Tyler replies. “He finally gave me what I
wanted, and it’s too fucking good to take away now.”
“Oh!” Kira exclaims, clapping her hands. “I need details.”
“Our boy is demanding. He gets all growly, chokey, and rough.” Tyler
sighs dramatically and leans his head on Kira’s shoulder. “It was the best
night ever.”
“I feel like I’m interrupting something,” Jason laughs and tries to step
out from between them. Tyler grabs his hip, and Gavin pushes in closer. “If
you guys are messing with me, this is really mean.”
“They aren’t messing with you, Sweet cheeks.” I reach over and pull
him against me. “We really do need to talk about what happened last night.
Meet us in the living room.” I grab Jason’s hand and lead him that way. I
pull him down on the couch beside me, and he snuggles into my side when
I put my arm around his shoulder.
Kira, Tyler, Gavin, and Keon come in minutes later. Kira sits between
Tyler and Keon on the loveseat, and Gavin sits in the chair on the other
side. Keon grabs Kira’s hand and links their fingers together. I raise a brow,
and he gives me a small smile.
“Fill me in on what happened,” Keon says.
“Jason and I went to his apartment after he closed down the bar. When
we walked in, the place was trashed. Shit was thrown everywhere, but
nothing was missing. I swept the apartment and found this.” I dig in my
pocket and hand him the note.
“I found you. What does that mean?” Kira asks, sitting forward on the
loveseat.
“We don’t know,” I answer. “Jason went to pack a little later and saw
someone on the fire escape. Gavin gave chase, but he got away.”
“Did you get the make and model of the car?” Keon asks.
“Ninety-five model Ford Taurus. Black. Had a dent in the back quarter
panel, and the mirror was missing on the passenger side. I gave all the
information I could to Nolan, but that’s not enough,” Gavin replies.
“Do you think this has anything to do with that CIA agent?” Jason
wonders.
“They wouldn’t play games like that,” Tyler responds.
“Are you sure you don’t have any secrets or crazy exes?” I ask Jason.
He shakes his head. “I don’t have anything to hide, and I have two exes.
Both ended on good terms, and they’ve moved on. Maybe it was meant for
you.”
“I considered that.” I sigh and lean back on the couch. “Which isn’t
good, especially with Kira’s protection detail. You need to call your
brother.”
“Oh, hell no,” Kira answers. “Kane will lose his shit and drag me home.
That’s the last thing that I want. Will it make it easier if I stay here?”
“You’re willing to do that?” Keon asks.
She shrugs and squeezes his hand. “Yeah. I wasn’t at first, but things are
different now.”
“It wouldn’t have anything to do with your massive crush on Keon?”
Tyler jokes, and she flips him off.
“At least I wasn’t begging him for sex.”
“Yet,” Keon throws in and grins when she glares at him. “I’ll have you
begging for me in no time, Mama.”
She huffs and sits back on the couch, making us laugh. “I changed my
mind. I’ll take my chances with the boogeyman stalking you guys.”
“Not happening,” Gavin throws in. “You’re stuck with us now.”
“Such a hardship being stuck with four insanely hot guys,” Jason
responds, and Kira high-fives him. “Whatever will we do?” Jason stands
from the couch and reaches his hand out for Kira. “Let’s go find something
to eat while they do their manly talk.” She slides her hand into his with a
laugh, and I watch them walk from the living room.
I’m not going to lie and say I haven’t thought about what Tyler said
about all of us being with Kira. It never even crossed my mind until he
opened his big mouth. Is that even what I want? A relationship like our
friends? We know it works. We’ve seen it firsthand. Do I even want a
relationship beyond Jason? I know things are changing because of what
happened in the kitchen, but does that involve Kira? Once Kane realizes
she’s not under any threat, he’ll pull us from her detail. Where will that
leave us?
 “Earth to Grandpa,” Tyler says, pulling me from my thoughts. I turn to
look at him, and he has a shit-eating grin on his face. “Were you thinking
about Kira naked?”
“No. I was thinking about other shit. What did you say?”
“I asked what we were telling Axel?”
“Nothing. He has an obligation to call Kane. We don’t. Kira’s right.
He’ll pull her from school and make her go back to New York. That’s not
what she wants, so we’re going to prevent it. We can protect them.”
“I’m not arguing, but we don’t even know what we’re protecting them
from. I don’t think that note was for Jason,” Gavin says. “I think it was for
you.”
Keon shrugs. “I agree. You need to keep your head down.”
“You want me to hide? Fuck that. This asshole can come at me head-on
instead of leaving stupid goddamn notes.”
“It’s not just about you,” Gavin argues. “You’ll be putting Jason at risk.”
“Are you saying I don’t know how to take care of him?”
Gavin rolls his eyes. “That’s not what I said. I’m just saying that it’s not
just you anymore. You have someone that depends on you. Kira can
probably take care of herself, but Jason needs us.”
“Us?”
Gavin stands from the chair, pissed off. “Yes. Us. Do you have a
problem with that now? You were all about it earlier when your dick was
getting hard.”
“Who the fuck do you think you’re talking to?” I ask, standing up, too.
“Fucking Tyler gave you bigger balls?”
“He can back them up,” Tyler throws in. “But we don’t need a pissing
match.”
“I’m with Tyler,” Keon admits. “We’re all in this together. Gavin, I
don’t think Ari was arguing, just asking for clarification. And Ari, we
should be able to say what we think without you turning into an asshole.
You can’t be half in and half out with Jason because I refuse to use him for
just sex.”
“No one said anything about using him for sex. What is this? Jump on
Ari day? I was just asking fucking questions. Jason’s important to me, and I
want all the protection for him. As for the other shit, I already said I was
fine with it. Stop questioning me about it.”
 “So, you’re totally okay with what happened in the kitchen?” Tyler
asks.
“Did I punch you in the kidney? No. I’m obviously fine.”
“I don’t know. You sound a little defensive,” Tyler pushes.
I throw my hands up. “I’m defensive because you guys keep fucking
pushing me. I’m fine with whatever happens with Jason. With me or alone
as long as that’s what he wants. I’m fine with whatever you guys do with
Kira as long as you know that when Kane finds out, I’m throwing you
under the bus.”
“Are you saying you aren’t going to do anything with Kira?” Keon asks.
“Because the way you were looking at her says otherwise.”
I shrug. “I’m not saying no, but it will be on her terms. I won’t make the
first move and push her.” I point at Gavin. “If you ever talk to me like that
again, I’ll shove my dick so far down your throat that you’ll never be able
to say another word.”
“Oh, you made Papi angry,” Tyler responds. “I want to watch that,
though.”
“Fuck off, Tyler.” I flip him the bird and leave the room. His laughter
follows me all the way to my office until I shut the door. I can’t help the
smile on my damn face. Everything feels like it’s slotting into place. Like
this is where we’re all supposed to be.
I just hope that something doesn’t fuck it up.

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 26

JASON

A
fter I brought Kira to the kitchen, she sat beside me at the island and
propped her chin in her hand, waiting for me to talk. All she’s done is
stare, but I can feel my cheeks heat because of what she saw.
I hold my pinkie out. “Girl talk?”
“Thank fuck.” She hooks hers with mine and then crosses her arms on
the countertop. “I need to know what was happening when I walked in.”
“I don’t know,” I admit. “I know what was happening, but I don’t know
why. I thought they were messing with me before. Now, I’m not so sure.”
“You said that’s what you wanted. Are you having second thoughts?”
“No. I really want it. But I didn’t think they did.”
“From what I saw, they want you. Baaaaaaaad.”
“Stop,” I laugh. “Tell me about you and Keon.”
“After our talk the other night, I took matters into my own hands and
kissed him.”
“Was it good?”
“Better than good. Then, last night, we got a little hot and heavy in the
bathroom.”
“Just kissing?”
She wrinkles her nose and lays her chin on her crossed arms. “Yeah. I’m
a virgin, and he refused to do anything in the bathroom, but he hasn’t
touched me since besides kissing.”
“Oh. Wow. You’ve never done…anything?”
 She lets out a shuddering sigh. “Before the fire, I messed around. Like
kissing and touching, but guys were always too afraid of Kane to go any
further, like he has some kind of psychic ability to know someone touched
his precious little sister.” She stops and laughs. “He might, actually. After
the fire, I never even considered it.”
“Until Keon.”
Kira gets a dreamy look on her face, making me laugh. “Yeah. He’s
just…perfect. Even though I’m scared shitless to get naked with him, I
know he doesn’t care about the scars.”
“Maybe he just needs to know you’re really ready.”
“I kissed him first. He can take the next step.”
“I think he’s just afraid to push you.”
“I need him to push me. I won’t get out of my head long enough if he
doesn’t. I know that’s a lot to put on him, and I feel like shit about it. Maybe
I should just let it go.”
I snort and slide off the barstool, going to the fridge to see what kind of
food the guys have. It’s completely stocked with whatever you could want.
I start pulling out supplies for sandwiches, and Kira walks over to help me
start making them for everyone. “I don’t think you should let it go. I feel
like you and Keon could have something great.” I slide my eyes to her and
then back to my task. “Or Gavin.”
Her cheeks turn a dark red. “Yeah.” She tells me about his nightmare
and what happened afterward. “I haven’t really seen him since it happened,
so I wasn’t sure if it was an accident or not. Apparently, it wasn’t.”
“And he calls you Baby girl. Fucking swoon.”
She clears her throat and adjusts her fingerless gloves. “I’m just not sure
what to do with all this attention.”
“Soak it in,” I say softly, taking my own advice. “I know these guys,
and you already know who they are, so there aren’t any secrets between
you. They are the most loyal group you’ll ever meet.”
“And fucking hot.”
“That’s definitely a bonus.”
I smile at her, and when she smiles back, my chest catches. Not in an
I’m falling for her kind of way, but in an I finally have an awesome friend
way. Someone I can gossip and laugh with and never worry about being
judged. She’s in the same position as me with these guys and is so easy to
talk to. I can see us having a long-lasting friendship no matter what
happens. Tyler said he wanted all of us to do things together, but I wasn’t
sure if that was in his drunken stupor or not. But knowing Tyler, it wasn’t.
He doesn’t need to be drunk to say what he’s thinking.
I think back to that kiss earlier, and my body heats. His lips moved
effortlessly over mine, soft but demanding. Then add in Gavin kissing my
neck and Ari watching, I was almost a pile of fucking goo on the floor. I
yell into the living room to let them know that lunch is ready, and Tyler is
the first to bound into the kitchen.
Tyler gasps and grabs his chest. “You made me lunch.” He lays a hard,
smacking kiss on my lips, and his eyes shift to Kira. Her chest starts rising
and falling rapidly when he gently lays his lips against hers. “I felt left out,”
he whispers against her lips. “And your lips feel amazing.”
Gavin smacks him on the ass to get him to move. “Told you.” Gavin
gives me that lopsided boxer-melting grin. He leans forward and gives me a
chance to back away. No way in hell that was happening. He pecks my lips
a few times, and I have to clench my hands into fists to keep from grabbing
the front of his shirt to keep him there. He does the same for Kira and walks
to sit at the kitchen island beside Tyler.
Keon walks up to her side, and they seem to be locked in a silent
conversation. He raises a brow, and she nods. He bends down and kisses her
deeply, making her quietly moan in the back of her throat. When he pulls
back from her and looks at me, my heart starts pounding, remembering
what Ari told me. Kira gently pushes him my way, and he braces his hands
on the counter beside my hips. His eyes drift to my lips, and I lean forward
in invitation. That’s all he needs, and he presses his full lips against mine.
He doesn’t waste any time sinking his tongue into my mouth, stroking it
with mine. My hands fly out, landing on his hips. I’m going to self-combust
now that all of them have kissed me. And I got a ridiculous thrill when they
kissed Kira, too.
Even though I’m not attracted to her in a sexual way, I still know it’s
going to be hot as fuck seeing her with the guys if this heads that way. I
need to let Ari know that I’m cool with whatever happens.
“What the fuck,” I hear Ari mutter, and Keon pulls back with a smile.
“Hey, Boss,” he laughs and steps back. I hand him a sandwich with
shaky hands, making his smile widen.
Once everyone is seated at the bar, Ari leans in close to my ear. “Having
fun, Sweet cheeks?”
 “Yeah,” I croak, still all the way fucked up from having all of them
touching me. He presses against me, and I have to bite my lip to stop my
groan.
“I can tell.”
“You have to stop,” I whisper.
Ari gives that cocky grin. “Do I?”
I reluctantly nod, and he takes a step back. I needed a second to get my
thoughts and breathing under control. Kira hands him a plate, her cheeks
bright red. Ari lingers for a minute, no doubt wondering if he should follow
suit like the other guys. He finally leans down and places a kiss on her
scarred cheek, lingering longer than necessary. Ari’s been around her the
least, and I know he’s giving her space to decide if that’s what she wants.
When he pulls back, she impulsively leans up to kiss his cheek. Ari smiles
at her and sits at the island. Kira and I turn back around almost at the same
time, and our eyes lock, both of us biting our lips to stop the excitement.
I’m ready to see where this goes.

“A ri ,” I sigh. “I have to go to work.” We’ve been arguing for the last

twenty minutes since I told him I needed to open the bar. We are standing in
the kitchen, and all eyes are on us. “I can’t just leave it closed.”
“Call one of the other bartenders to open it,” he grits out. “It’s not safe.”
I throw my hands in the air and storm upstairs to his room. I can hear
him stomping behind me but refuse to turn around from changing clothes
when he shuts the door. “I’m going.”
“The fuck you are. Someone broke into your fucking apartment, Jason.
What’s to say they won’t show up at High Flyer?”
“And what? Leave another note?” I shove my shoes on and turn to face
him. “It’s a packed bar, Ari. You can protect me there.”
“Why won’t you just listen to me?”
“Because you’re overreacting! This is my livelihood, Ari. This would be
a different conversation if we knew this was a direct threat to me. You even
said it might be a direct threat to you. I don’t see you getting locked up like
some precious princess, and I refuse to do it. I agreed to stay here with you,
but I didn’t agree to be held prisoner.” I brush past him and yank the door
open. “Go or stay. Either way, I’m going.”
Ari grabs my arm in the hallway and spins me around. He backs me up
until my back hits the wall. “You aren’t going alone.”
“Then get your fucking boots on, and let’s go.” I cross my arms over my
chest, pissed off even though my body reacts to him being so close.
“I should spank your ass,” Ari growls, and my eyes narrow, trying to
hide how his words really affect me. He pushes off the wall and goes into
his room. I blow out a breath once he’s out of earshot and head downstairs.
Tyler grins when he sees me walk into the living room. “He’s so going
to tear your ass up later.”
“Whatever,” I grumble.
Ari walks past me without a word, leaving me to follow behind him. He
goes to his truck and jerks open the passenger side door. I have to fight a
smile because I know he’s mad at me, but he still opens the door for me. I
climb inside, and he slams it behind me. When he gets in and slams his
door, I laugh. “What’s so funny?” he barks, starting the truck and pulling
from the driveway.
“Your temper tantrum.”
“I’m not having a temper tantrum.” I see headlights flash behind us and
don’t want to say how relieved I am to see Tyler’s Camaro. I just hope
they’re going to High Flyer to run interference. “I just don’t want anything
to happen to you.”
“I understand,” I say, softening my tone. “But I have to work, Ari.”
Ari finally sighs, some of the tension leaving his body. “I know you do.
And I’m not trying to hold you prisoner. But if I even hint any danger, I’m
pulling you out.”
“Deal,” I say easily because I know there won’t be. I know High Flyer
will be packed since there’s a football game on tonight. No one in their right
mind would try anything.
We drive the rest of the way in silence, and Ari pulls in behind the
building, throwing his truck into park. He climbs out and opens my door.
When my feet hit the ground, he shuts the door and backs me against it. His
lips land on mine, kissing me roughly. Ari’s arm wraps around my waist
like an anchor, and I wrap mine around his neck. When he grinds against
me, I can’t stop the greedy ass moan that leaves my mouth. His other hand
slides down and grabs my ass in a tight grip. Fuck. I know I need to open up
the bar, but I really want to climb back in the truck and ride him until we
both come. Someone wolf whistles, and we jerk apart. Tyler walks toward
us with Gavin behind him, with that damn grin on his face.
“Show him who’s boss, Gramps.”
Ari grabs my hand and drags me to the alley door, waiting for me to key
in the code. The lock clicks, and I open the door for us to walk through.
“I’ll show you who’s boss, you little fucker.” The door shuts behind us, and
Ari spins around, grabs Tyler by the throat, and slams his back against the
door. Gavin shakes his head and steps to the side like this is an everyday
thing. Which, with Tyler, it is. Ari pushes into Tyler’s face, and I notice
Tyler is still grinning from ear to ear. Ari tightens his hand, and Tyler’s
breath leaves him in a whoosh. “Is that what you want? You want me to
bend you over somewhere and remind you who’s boss?”
Gavin snorts and throws his arm over my shoulders. “He’d like it.”
“Promises, promises, Papi” Tyler wheezes.
Ari rolls his eyes, but they drift to Tyler’s lips, which are puckered. I
wait with my breath held, but Ari takes a step back. I can see the
disappointment on Tyler’s face, but he masks it with that grin. “Keep
pushing me, Tyler.”
Ari leaves the backroom, no doubt to sweep the rest of the bar. Tyler’s
smile drops from his face as soon as the door shuts behind Ari. He doesn’t
say a word; just slowly walks into the bar.
“Shit,” Gavin mutters, pulling me closer to his side. What the hell just
happened? It’s like Ari talked himself out of acting on what he wanted. And
he really wanted to kiss Tyler.
I need to get to the bottom of it.

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 27

KEON

A
fter Tyler, Gavin, Ari, and Jason left for the bar, I told Kira I would
take her to the dorm to pack some stuff. I wasn’t sure if we were
overreacting, but we were too exposed there. I wasn’t taking any
chances with her after the threat on Jason. If it even was a threat to him. I’m
more convinced that it’s aimed toward Ari, and that makes it a thousand
times worse since I know his full background.
I reach over, grab Kira’s hand in the passenger side seat, and kiss her
knuckles. She gives me that breathtaking smile and blushes. “Why are you
so quiet, Mama?”
“Just thinking.”
“About?”
She turns in the seat a little so she can look at me. “Are you worried
something might happen?”
I shrug and flip on my signal to pull into the campus parking lot. “Yes
and no. We’re taking it seriously, but we also know we can handle it if
something is thrown our way.”
“Do you think someone is trying to hurt Ari?” Her voice is so small that
I kiss her knuckles again.
“I don’t know. We have enemies, and now that people know that the
Saviors never truly went away, they’re coming out of the woodwork.” I pull
into the spot in front of her dorm. “Trust me, Ari can take care of himself.”
 I push my door open and walk over to open hers. She slides her hand
into mine, and I help her out. When we turn toward the door, Kira freezes.
Jessica, the girl that invited her to the party, is waiting. She shuffles from
foot to foot nervously.
“What are you doing here?” Kira asks.
“I wanted to know if we could talk.”
Kira crosses her arms over her chest and leans into my side when I wrap
my arm around her shoulders. Jessica casts a quick look at me and looks
away just as quickly. “He stays,” Kira says. “What did you want to talk
about?”
“I would have called, but I didn’t have your number. I’m really sorry
about what Greg and Viv said last night.” Greg. I file that name away for
later. “I really was excited that you came.”
“Well,” Kira says and then clears her throat. I know she’s
uncomfortable, but she’s not going to back down. “You can let them know
that the circus freak won’t be coming to any more parties.” I tighten my arm
around her at those words, but don’t say anything. “Thanks for coming.”
“Kira. I’m so sorry.”
I feel a slight tremble in Kira’s body and decide to shut this shit down.
“You said what you needed to say. You need to go.”
Jessica looks at me wide-eyed but nods quickly. “Yes. Of course. I’ll see
you in class.” She walks away quickly, and I can’t help but glare at her
back.
Kira huffs, and I look down to see that she’s trying not to laugh.
“What’s funny?”
She gets on her tiptoes and pecks my lips. “You looked like you were
trying to melt her with your eyes.”
“That would be a fun party trick.” She laughs loudly and grabs my
hand, tugging me toward the door. She unlocks it and pulls me inside.
I turn around and press her against it once it closes, my lips coming
down on hers. I almost lost my fucking mind when she told me she was a
virgin. I wanted to sink into her right then and claim her as mine, but I
know she deserves more. Kira’s arms wind around my neck, and I reach
down to grab her thighs. I lift until she wraps her legs around my waist and
deepen the kiss. She moans softly, and my cock jerks in my jeans. I want
her so fucking bad, but I don’t think Kira is completely ready for that.
Especially when I slide my hand under the back of her shirt, and she freezes
when my hand rubs across her scars. I feel her forcibly relax and tighten her
legs around my waist. I’ll give her whatever she wants, but I want to know
she’s ready. We’ll start slow and go from there. But there’s no way that I’m
taking her virginity when she doesn’t even like me touching anything that
she keeps covered. I want her to trust that they won’t turn me off.
“Keon,” she breathes against my lips and grinds against me.
“I know, Mama,” I soothe. I’m painfully hard, my cock throbbing with
need.
“Please.”
“Please, what?”
Kira swallows and looks at me through her lashes. “I want you to take it
away.” I raise a brow, and she huffs. “My virginity.”
I smooth a thumb across the frown line between her brows. “You aren’t
ready for that, Mama.” She frowns harder, and I peck her lips. “I can take
the ache away, though.”
Her breath catches, and her eyelids droop. “How?”
I set her on her feet. “Go to your room, get naked from the waist down,
and get under the covers.”
“Oh,” she breathes.
She walks slowly to her room, glancing at me over her shoulder. Once
she’s in there, I take a deep breath and rearrange my dick. I give her two
minutes and kick my boots off. When I get into her room, she has the
covers pulled up to her chin even though she still has a shirt on. I lay beside
her and rub my knuckles down her cheek. “Is this okay?”
She nods. “Yeah. What are you going to do?”
“I’m going to make you come.” She makes that little sound in the back
of her throat that drives me fucking nuts. “If you get uncomfortable, let me
know.” She nods jerkily, and I lean over to kiss her softly. I gently pry her
fingers off the top of the sheet and scoot closer. I kiss her until she relaxes
on the bed and run my fingers down her neck. She shudders from head to
toe, showing me she’s going to be responsive as hell. I let my fingers trail
down her chest until I get to her breast. I stop, giving her time to change her
mind. She kisses me harder, so I let it drift further down and flatten my
palm. I massage it gently, and she moans into the kiss. I wish she didn’t
have her shirt and bra on, but I’m not going to push her. I switch between
both breasts until her hips are rotating on the bed. Her thigh rubs against my
cock with each movement, and I know I’m going to have to take care of
that after I take care of her. I let my hand drift slowly down her stomach,
taking the sheet with me. When it gets to the bottom of her shirt, I go to
slide it underneath. Kira grabs my wrist to stop me, and I pull back from the
kiss immediately to search her face. She doesn’t look upset, just
embarrassed. “Talk to me, Mama.”
She chews on her bottom lip. “I’m not…I don’t…” she groans and
covers her face with her hands. “I’m not…um…bare.”
It takes a minute for my brain to catch up since all the blood is in my
cock. When it dawns on me what she means, I groan. “You mean you don’t
shave?”
“Or wax. I…trim.”
“Fuck, Mama.” She peeks above her fingers at my gruff voice. “There’s
nothing wrong with your pussy being natural. It’s sexy as fuck.”
“I thought guys didn’t like…” she gestures wildly, “hair.”
I snort and relax my hand on her stomach. “Men don’t care. All I care
about is making you feel good. I don’t give a fuck if you have hair or not.”
Kira bites her lip, and I feel her adjust her hips, moving closer. “Okay.”
“Are you sure?” She nods, so I lean in to kiss her again so I can get her
back to where we were.
It doesn’t take long until she’s desperately kissing me back. When I
slide my hand under the sheet this time, she doesn’t stop me, and my hand
runs across her neatly trimmed pussy. I wasn’t lying when I said I didn’t
care. It actually turns me the fuck on. I let my hand drift lower, and she’s
soaking fucking wet just from kissing.
“Spread your legs wider,” I rasp against her lips, and pull her leg over
my hip. Her other leg falls to the side, giving me access. My fingers go
straight to her clit, and her hips buck.
“Keon.”
“You’re so fucking wet, Mama. Did I do that to you?”
“Yes,” she gasps when I put more pressure on her clit, rubbing in slow
circles. I go through different movements until she moans deep in her chest.
“There it is.” I don’t change the rhythm and pull back to look at her
face. Her face is red, and her eyes are closed. “Look at me.” Her eyes pop
open, and I give her a small smile. “You’re gorgeous.”
I see her mouth open, and I know she’s going to argue. No one says I
ever play fair, so I start working her clit faster. “Holy shit.”
“Has anyone ever made you come before?”
 “M…m…me.”
I drop my hand lower and tease her entrance with a finger. “Do you just
play with your clit?” She nods, and that blush spreads down her chest.
“I want to see you.” I sit up and jerk my shirt off. Her eyes latch onto all
the tattoos covering my body. When she reaches out and runs her fingers
across the flowers on my pec, I almost fucking lose my mind. “Those are
gorgeous. What are they?”
“Hibiscus syriacus. The Korean Rose. My mom was from South
Korea.”
She runs her fingers over the Savior’s symbol, more flowers, and the
script from one of my mom’s favorite bedtime stories, and she stops when
she gets to my heart. “Do they all have meaning?”
“They do,” I say gruffly because of the way she’s looking at me. She
swallows and lets her hand slide down my abs.
“Take off your pants,” she whispers.
I lift a brow. “I go commando.”
“Of course you do,” she giggles and then sobers. “That’s okay.” I stand
from the bed, and her eyes don’t leave me when I undo my pants. I push
them off without shame and stand there, letting her look her fill. “You’re
beautiful.” She gulps, and her eyes flash back to my face. “And really big.”
I slide back on the bed beside her and go back to her pussy. “I’ll make it
feel good, Mama.”
“Now?”
“No. Right now, I’m going to make you come on my fingers.”
Before she can protest, I start playing with her clit again. My cock is
sitting eagerly on her thigh, and I feel her little hand tentatively wrap
around it. My shock is replaced with a groan when she squeezes gently.
“You’re so hard.”
I wrap my hand around hers and show her how I like it. When she gets
it, I go back to her clit. I rub it a few times and then tease her entrance with
my finger. I do this several times until her hips are lifting, begging me to
slide my finger inside her. Slowly, I start to push one in, and she gasps, her
hand tightening on my cock. She’s so fucking tight and hot. I’m never going
to survive when I can sink inside her. “Is this okay?”
“Yes. Yes. God, yes.”
I bury my face in her neck and work my finger back and forth, letting
the heel of my palm drop to her clit. I get a good rhythm going, never
letting my finger sink too far. Kira’s breath starts coming in harsh little
pants, and she hooks her feet in the sheet, ripping it off. I let my eyes slide
down her body and groan at her spread out for me. “Fuck, Mama.”
“More, Keon. I need more.” She looks at me, and all her inhibitions are
gone for now. I shake my head, but she strokes my cock harder. “Not that.
I’m not…not yet. Put your fingers inside me.”
I fucking love that she’s being open with me, letting me know what she
wants. I push my middle finger in until it’s enveloped by her sweet heat.
Her back bows off the bed, and she starts working my cock faster. I finger
fuck her a few times before slowly working a second finger in. Even though
she’s soaked, it’s still a tight fit, and I know that it’s going to take a lot of
prep for her to be able to take my cock. I press my thumb against her clit
and rub it in time with my fingers.
Both of our breathing is harsh, and I’m seconds away from coming. I
want to see her come first, so I pick up the pace. “Goddamn, Mama,” I
breathe. “You going to come for me?”
“Y…y…yes. I can…” She stops and moans so loud that my cock jerks
in her hand. “I can feel it.”
“That’s it,” I prompt when she starts shoving down on my fingers. I
angle them to rub her g-spot harder, and she starts shaking. “Give it to me.
Come all over my fingers.”
“Keon.” She drops my cock, and her fingers sink into my forearm. “I’m
going to…” She doesn’t even get the last word out before she starts
whimpering and comes so hard that her eyes roll back in her head. I work
her through it, then gently bring her down before removing my fingers from
her spasming pussy. She looks at me, and I suck her taste from my fingers.
“Oh my God.” Her eyes drift down to my cock. “You didn’t come.”
“That was about you.” I peck her lips and try to slide from the bed. She
grabs my hip to stop me.
“Can you…take care of it here?”
“You want to watch me stroke my dick, Mama?”
“Yes. Very much so.” She smiles and kisses me hard. Her legs are still
spread wide open, and she doesn’t seem the least bit insecure.
I move so I’m on my knees between her spread thighs. Her eyes latch
and don’t move once I start stroking my cock. “This won’t take long.” I was
damn close earlier and know it won’t take but a few strokes to get me back
there. I spread my knees apart and play with my balls with my other hand. I
lock my hand and start fucking my fist.
“You’re so sexy,” she breathes, leaning up on her elbows.
“That’s…you.” I’m already so close to the edge embarrassingly fast just
from her watching me. I move my hand to focus more on the head and gasp
when I twist my hand around. “I’m going to come.” Kira chews on her
bottom lip and then lies back on the bed. She shyly lifts her shirt so just her
stomach is showing. “You want me to come on you?”
“Yes.”
I brace my hand beside her hip and start stroking faster. My release
races down my spine, and I start coming all over her sexy stomach. Kira
gasps when it hits her. “Mama,” I groan.
She runs her hands down my sweaty face while I get my breathing
under control. “That was incredible.”
“Yes, it was.”
I kiss her soft lips, thanking whoever listens that she trusted me enough
to experience this with me. I’m already addicted to her lips, her laugh, her
eyes, and everything else about her. I am fucked when it comes to her.
Because in my mind, she’s already mine.

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 28

KIRA

I
t’s been two weeks since that encounter in my bedroom with Keon.
That’s all he’s done so far. He won’t take it any further than playing with
my pussy, but I know it has to do with the fact that I still can’t get naked
in front of him. Which is stupid since he’s seen the most private part of me.
He always starts with the sheet over my bottom half until I kick them off
myself. My proudest moment was stroking him until he came all over my
hip. I usually get there way faster than him and he finishes himself off. It’s
hot, but it’s even hotter when I make him do it.
I’ve been at the house with the Saviors since everything went down at
Jason’s apartment, which meant stolen kisses from Gavin and Tyler. It was
like they were making it a game, hiding it from Keon even though he knew
what they were doing. It was even better that I got to sit around and gossip
with Jason. Ari still fought with him every day that he had to go to the bar,
but Jason held his ground. It usually dissolved into an argument, but you
could hear them fucking minutes later, and then they left for the bar.
Ari was the one I wasn’t sure about when it came to me. He flirted a lot,
which usually made me stutter and blush, much to his pleasure. But that’s
all besides the kisses on the cheek. It was like he was holding himself back.
I knew it wasn’t because of Jason. He told me that he’d already told Ari that
he was fine with it and would find it sexy watching Ari with me even
though I didn’t turn Jason on.
 Over the past two weeks, I also got to know Professor North better once
I apologized for how I acted in his office. He was really easy to talk to, and
he shared my love for literature. There wasn’t much to do in the rehab
besides reading, and they had some amazing books. I stayed after his class
and even found myself seeking him out throughout the week.
“Kira.” Professor North’s voice makes my head snap up from where I
was doodling in my notebook. “Stay after class, please.”
“She must be sucking his dick after class.” That voice makes me stiffen.
Viv, the bitch from the party, is in this class. Something I didn’t even realize
until after the party.
“Shut up,” Jessica hisses beside her and gives me an apologetic smile. I
still didn’t officially accept her apology, but decided I wouldn’t dwell on it.
I had more important stuff to worry about, like school, this threat on Ari,
and the devastatingly handsome men that are currently ruling my life. They
don’t make me feel like a freak. They actually make me feel beautiful, with
simple words and gestures.
“Viv. Do you have something to say?” Professor North asks in his deep
voice. There’s an underlying threat in his tone, making my eyes widen. He’s
usually very mild-mannered and friendly.
“No,” she huffs and cuts her eyes to me.
“Good.” He finishes up class, telling us what to do for the coming
week’s class. I linger in my seat until everyone’s gone and then stand from
my chair, throwing my backpack over my shoulder. He smiles when I walk
toward his desk. “I have something for you.” He gestures for me to follow
him, and he goes into his office. He waves toward the chair. “Have a seat.”
He sits in his chair and pushes a book toward me once I’m seated. I pick it
up and can’t help but smile.
“This is amazing.” It was Rose Madder by Stephen King, which was my
favorite of his.
Professor North clears his throat and leans back in his chair. “It’s
signed.”
“What?” I gasp, flipping it open. “That’s so cool.” I try to hand it back
to him, and he waves his hand.
“It’s yours.”
“Oh. I can’t possibly take this.”
“I remember you saying it was one of your favorites. He was at a
signing event when I went to visit friends this weekend. Please take it,
Kira.”
“I just…wow. Thank you.” I have no idea what else to say. It was such a
generous gift. I didn’t even think he remembered when I said that I loved
this book.
“No thanks needed. I’ve enjoyed our talks over the last several weeks.”
“So have I.”
He clears his throat and crosses his arms on his desk, leaning forward.
“Do you want to talk about what happened in class today?”
Embarrassment floods through me. I can feel my cheeks getting hot and
have to fight the urge to cover them up with my hands. “I went to a party a
couple of weeks ago. Viv was less than kind.”
He nods. “Viv is a spoiled brat.”
I choke on a laugh, some of the tension leaving me. “Yeah. I could tell.”
“Her family funnels a lot of money into the university, giving her a
sense of entitlement. I just wanted to let you know that I won’t tolerate her
treating you like that in my class.”
Something settles in my gut. It’s not really uneasy; it’s more of a
warning, one I know I should listen to. “Thank you, but it’s fine.”
“It’s not.” His voice is hard, and then his face eases into that easy smile.
“Do you have any plans for this coming weekend?”
“I’m not sure.” If it consisted of hanging out with the guys, I wouldn’t
complain. They have such a tight bond and are easy to be around.
“You don’t have any plans with your boyfriends?” My eyes widen, and
he chuckles. “I’ve seen you around campus with them. You won’t get any
judgment from me.” I do from other people. They see me with Tyler and
Gavin all the time, both of them usually touching me in some way at the
same time, either with their arms around my shoulders or waist or holding
my hand. We’ve fallen into such an easy relationship. Is that what this is? A
relationship? I have no idea. I just know it works for my cover with them.
“I’m sure they’ll come up with something.” I check the time on my
phone and stand up. “I need to get going. Thank you for the book.”
“I’ll walk you out.”
We chat all the way to the front doors of the building, and he pushes
them open for me when we get there. I expect to see Tyler and Gavin
waiting for me so I’m surprised when I see Ari leaning against the side of
his shiny black truck. He stands up when he sees me, and his eyes focus on
Professor North. I turn to say goodbye to him, and he’s staring at Ari,
something in his gaze that I can’t decipher. It clears, and he looks at me
with a smile. “See you later, then?” He doesn’t wait for me to answer and
slips back into the building.
Ari meets me halfway down the sidewalk, taking my backpack from me
and slinging it over his shoulder. “Who was that?”
“Professor North.”
Ari settles his hand on the small of my back and leads me to his truck.
He opens the door, helps me in, and hands me my backpack. I watch him
walk to his side of the truck, casting glances toward the building the whole
time. When he slides in, I can tell he’s deep in thought. “What’s wrong?”
He grunts and starts the truck. “Nothing. He just looked familiar at
first.”
“He’s the one you guys ran the check on.” Which keeps coming back
clean no matter how often Ari tells his computer guy to run it.
“That’s probably it.” I can tell he still doesn’t look convinced as he
backs out of the spot and heads toward the main road.
“Where’s Tyler and Gavin?”
“I figured they could use a break.” He chuckles and pulls out of the
parking lot. “And some time alone.”
“What about Jason?”
Ari clears his throat and casts a glance at me. “With Keon.”
“Oh. Okay.” I don’t get why he looked at me like that until it finally hit
me. “Oh! Are they…?”
“No. They’re just hanging out.” I feel like there’s more that he wants to
say, so I just stare at the side of his head. He finally sighs and relaxes in his
seat. “Fine. I thought maybe we could get to know each other better.”
“Why didn’t you just say that?” I laugh.
“I wasn’t sure if you even wanted to.” I stare at him with my mouth
hanging open. Did he not see what he did to me by just flirting? Ari is the
one I’ve spent the least amount of time with, but that’s because he’s usually
guarding Jason at High Flyer.
“Of course I do,” I say softly.
Ari gives me that drool-worthy grin, and his shoulders finally fully
relax. I take advantage of it by staring at his profile while he drives. Ari
truly is gorgeous. His face is almost too perfect, except for a few small scars
and the little bump on his nose that tells me it’s been broken before. He’s
broad in the chest, lean in the waist, with long legs. But what captured me
the most was his eyes. They are light blue with a dark blue ring around the
iris. Keon says he’s used his looks more than once to disarm someone in the
field, and I could totally understand why.
My phone chimes with a message, and I smile when I flip it over to see
the screen.
Keon: Have fun with Ari, Mama.
Kira: Have fun with Jason. *insert winking emoji*
Keon: It’s not like that, lol.
Ari takes a left off the road and heads down another street. He keeps
sneaking glances at me, so I smile.
Kira: I think Ari is kidnapping me.
Keon: As long as he brings you back. I won’t hesitate to kill a
motherfucker.
Kira: My big, strong hero.
Keon: I know I’m big, Mama.
Kira: Now I’m blushing and thinking about how big you are.
I can practically see Keon grinning in my head because I know that’s
exactly what he wanted. I slide my phone into the front pocket of my
backpack when Ari starts going to a narrow driveway with trees lining the
side. “Where are we going?”
“I wanted to show you something.”
I stare out of the windshield, curious. A gorgeous brick house comes
into view when he breaks through the trees. It’s bigger than the one they
live in now, with a huge wraparound porch and a little lake running behind
it. “What is this place?”
Ari parks in front of the porch and puts the truck in park. “My house.
Well, the team’s.” He slides out of the truck before I can comment and
opens my door when he gets to my side. He reaches in for my hand and
helps me down when I slide mine into his.
“They don’t know about it?”
“Not yet.” Ari keeps hold of my hand and leads me up the steps. He
unlocks the door, and I gasp when he pushes the door open. The large foyer
is wide and open. When I walk further into the house, I realize it’s all like
that. “I wanted to finish it first.”
“This place is gorgeous, Ari.” I walk through the rest of the downstairs,
taking in the big kitchen with its shiny marble countertops and stainless
steel appliances. There are several rooms downstairs and two bathrooms.
 “This isn’t even the best part.” He grabs my hand again and leads me to
the back of the house. He opens the french doors, and we step out onto a
back patio. There’s a large pool in the middle and a hot tub to the side.
Little showers are set off to the side so you can wash off from the lake or
pool. Seeing the lake from back here, I realize it’s not small at all.
“This is…amazing.”
He leads me over to a sitting area, and we relax back on a large lounger
side by side. “I was hoping to have it done already, but we weren’t home
enough to put the work into it.”
“They’re going to love it.”
He grunts and looks at me. “They better.”
“How long until it’s done?” I’m touched that he showed me before
anyone else. I think this is Ari’s way for me to see a different side of him.
The one who not only keeps his team safe, but he also provides for them.
“Not much longer. The pool just got finished yesterday. There’s still
some work upstairs, then we should be able to move in.”
I close my eyes and listen. It’s so quiet out here except for the
occasional bird chirping or ripples in the water. Living in New York, you’re
used to everything being so loud, except at Kane’s. Since being in the more
rural part of California, I realized I’ve grown to love the quiet tranquility of
it all. I open my eyes to say something to Ari, and he’s staring at me. His
gaze is intense, and when I lick my suddenly dry lips, his eyes track the
movement. His eyes flash back to my face, and I don’t know who moves
first. All of a sudden, his lips are on mine, and we’re kissing almost
desperately. Ari rolls without breaking the kiss so his top half is on me and
tucks his leg between my spread thighs. One hand is cupping the side of my
face, and the other is braced on my hip. My fingers thread through his hair
until my arms are wrapped around his neck. He groans loudly and deepens
the kiss even more. I feel hot all over and have to refrain from moving my
hips so my pussy can rub against his knee. Keon awakened something in
me, and I can’t seem to bottle it back up.
“Fuck,” Ari breathes against my lips. “I’ve been wanting to do that for
weeks.”
“Why didn’t you?” I pant.
“I don’t know.” He starts kissing the scarred side of my face, working
toward my neck. “But it was even better than I imagined.”
“You’ve imagined what it would be like to kiss me?”
 Ari flashes me that grin and goes back to my neck. He tucks his knee
tighter to my pussy when he feels me shift. “Of course.”
“Is…is…is Jason okay with this?” I gasp when his knee brushes against
me again. All I have on is a thin pair of leggings, so I can feel everything.
“Yes. He even encouraged it.”
My mind is reeling. I’ve gotten used to Keon’s touches or the kisses
from Gavin and Tyler. But kissing Ari felt different, like it was sealing all of
our fates. I’m pretty sure we’ve all fallen into an unspoken agreement about
Tyler suggesting his sexy six-some.
“Ari,” I breathe when his hand slides under my shirt at my hip. He grips
and encourages me to move. Is he wanting me to ride his leg? Holy shit.
“You’re fucking gorgeous, Mal’akh.” I don’t have a chance to ask what
he just said. It’s a language I don’t recognize, but it rolled easily off his
tongue. Ari moves and braces one hand beside my head. He adjusts his leg
so his thick thigh is against my pussy. My clit is throbbing, and I’m
embarrassed when I grind against his leg. “There you go.”
I grab his hips and let all the worry fly from my mind when I see the
heated look in his gorgeous blue eyes. I move my hands under his shirt so I
can feel his skin on my fingers, and a shudder racks his body. His lips land
on mine again, and before I know it, I’m grinding against his leg, trying to
get myself off. I’ve never done anything like this in my life, and I’m not
passing up the opportunity to do it with Ari.
Ari’s lips slip from mine, and he goes to my neck. I twist my head to the
side to give him better access, and panic almost freezes me when I feel my
beanie starting to slip off. Ari reaches up, adjusts it back on my head, and
starts kissing my neck again. Something about that gesture makes me melt
onto the lounger. I no longer feel weird about what we’re doing. I scoot
closer and spread my legs wider for better friction, making Ari groan
against my neck. I’m so close, but it keeps eluding me.
“It’s not enough,” I groan, moving faster. “I need…I need…”
“I know, Mal’akh.” He peeks up at me, and I feel his hand moving
under my shirt. My lips part when he jerks my bra down and starts rolling
my nipple between his fingers. Keon found out quickly that my nipples are
super sensitive. Did he tell Ari? That thought turns me on more than
anything, thinking they share information about what I like. He lightly
pinches it, and when I moan, his eyes flare with heat. I’m grinding without
thought against his thigh now and feel my orgasm tightening my limbs. Ari
tugs my nipple, making me whimper, but not in pain. He tugs harder, and
my release rushes through me.
“Ari,” I moan when I come, still working myself against his leg. He
smiles when my breathing slows, and my vision focuses on him. “What
about you?” I could feel his hard cock rubbing against my leg, so I know it
affected him too.
“Don’t worry about me. I just wanted to see your face when you came.”
He gently kisses me before laying his forehead against mine. “It was totally
worth the blue balls.”
I laugh and run my fingers up his sides. He shivers at my touch, making
me smile. “I feel bad.”
“Don’t.” He slides off the end of the lounger and pulls me to stand.
“Let’s get something to eat.” He unabashedly fixes his cock in his jeans
with a grin. “Keep your eyes off my dick, Dirty girl.”
My mouth pops open, and I shove his shoulder. “You were the one
playing with yourself.”
“Because someone just came so hard on my leg that they left a wet
spot.” My eyes travel down to the thigh of his jeans, and my face heats
when I see the spot he’s talking about.
I jokingly try to walk off with a huff, and Ari grabs my arm to stop me.
He spins me around, and I land against his chest. He cups my face and
kisses me roughly. I moan into the kiss, more than willing to continue what
we started.
There is no way I’m going to survive these men.

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 29

GAVIN

I
was surprised when Ari called earlier and said he was picking up Kira.
When we pressed for information on why, he barked that it was none of
our fucking business. Since then, Tyler has come up with every dirty
thing imaginable that they could be doing.
“Ah. Maybe he’s taking her for a ride on his magic pony.”
I roll my eyes from my place across from him at the dining room table.
“Kira’s a virgin, and she hasn’t even slept with Keon yet.”
“Maybe Ari will beat him to it.”
“It’s not a competition.”
“I know that,” Tyler huffs.
“I think he just wanted to spend time with her. But since Ari is a closed-
off bastard, he didn’t just say that.”
Tyler shrugs and shoves a chip into his mouth. “I like having her here.
And Jason.”
Ever since that near kiss in the stockroom with Ari, Tyler has avoided
Ari as best as he could. I know it hurt his feelings, but he won’t talk about
it. Any time I ask, he laughs it off. What I don’t understand is why Ari
didn’t just do it. I could see it written all over his face that he wanted to, but
he backed off at the last second. I know it wasn’t because of Jason. I just
can’t figure out why.
I cross my arms on the table and try one more time. “You want to talk
about what happened at High Flyer that night?”
 Tyler’s shoulders tense, and I watch as he forces himself to relax. “Why
do you keep bringing that up? We were just fucking around.”
“Then why do you act like Ari has the plague? You haven’t said two
words to him unless we’re talking about work. It’s been two weeks.”
“I’m not avoiding him, if that’s what you’re saying. I just don’t have
anything to say.”
I snort because he always has something to say. He hasn’t even been
joking with Ari. I don’t feel like I’m close enough to Ari to ask, so I have to
settle with prying it from Tyler. “Tyler,” I sigh.
“Drop it,” Tyler barks, surprising the shit out of me. He pushes from the
table and storms toward the living room. He brushes past Keon on his way
by, and Keon looks at me with a raised brow.
“What was that about?”
“I brought up High Flyer.” Keon nods and takes the chair Tyler vacated.
“Where’s Jason?”
“One of his bartenders called. Something about the shipment being
messed up.”
“We’ll take him to sort it out if he needs to.”
“So, what’s your theory on what happened between Ari and Tyler?”
“Fuck if I know,” I laugh. “They were both feeling it. We all were. Then
Ari just backed off. Have you asked him about it?”
“Yeah. He told me to fuck off.”
“It kind of pisses me off because he hurt Ty. Not that he’ll admit it.”
“Will you stop talking about me like I’m not fucking here?” Tyler
grumbles, walking back into the dining room. “He didn’t hurt me.”
“Yeah, he did,” Keon argues, turning to face him. “I wasn’t even there
and can tell something’s up.”
“Nothing’s up.” When we give him a doubtful look, he pulls his phone
from his pocket. He dials a number and flips it to speakerphone.
“What?” Ari answers gruffly.
“Why didn’t you kiss me in the stockroom?” Tyler asks, making me and
Keon exchange a what the fuck look.
“Uh…”
“It’s cool if that wasn’t your intention. But these assholes seem to think
there’s some kind of hidden meaning.” I hear Kira’s soft voice in the
background, making me even more curious about what Ari took her to do.
 “This might be a conversation we have face to face.” I watch Tyler try
to mask the emotions rolling across his face. Disappointment is the main
one, probably thinking Ari didn’t want to kiss him. I’ll call bullshit so fast if
that’s what he says.
“No. Don’t worry about it.”
“Tyler,” Ari sighs. “It’s nothing bad. I wanted to. I just…”
“What?” Tyler growls. “Just spit it out.”
“Fine. I don’t think I can be gentle with you. Your smart mouth makes
me want to fuck you so hard that you’re screaming my goddamn name. Is
that what you wanted that day? Because that’s what would have happened.
If I would have put my lips on yours, you would have been naked and
taking every inch of my cock.”
For the first time since I met Tyler, he’s completely speechless. He’s
staring at the phone with a dazed look on his face. He finally recovers when
I laugh. “Well, maybe I don’t want you to be gentle.”
“Be careful what you wish for, Pretty boy.” The line goes dead, and
Tyler slowly lowers himself into a chair.
“That answers that, then,” he says huskily, making Keon and me laugh.
“When Ari gets his hands on you…” Keon leaves that thought hanging
in the air because we all know what’s going to happen. Tyler and Ari are
like fire and gasoline. Ari already burns hot, and Tyler knows just how to
stoke that fire. Which I think Ari secretly likes, even though he’ll never
admit it. Tyler knows just how to keep him on his toes.
“Do you feel better?” I ask.
Tyler nods like crazy. “Yes. That’s just what I needed to hear. That Ari is
going to fuck my asshole raw.”
Jason walks into the dining room at the same time Tyler says that and
snorts. “That’s Ari’s thing anyway. So, he’ll just turn it up for you times
ten.”
“How big are we talking?” Tyler holds up his hands, squinting and
pulling them apart like he’s measuring Ari’s dick. Jason walks over and
pulls them until Tyler’s eyes widen. “You’re fucking joking.”
“Nope. He’s thick, too.”
“Motherfucker,” Tyler groans, laying his forehead on the table. “I’m not
going to be able to walk. Gavin’s already as long as my forearm.”
“No, I’m not,” I laugh. “But close.” I grin at Jason when he’s cheeks
redden. I love that he blushes, and I want to explore to see how far it goes.
Same thing with Kira.
“Maybe Gavin will kiss it all better once Ari’s done with you,” Jason
jokes and goes to walk away. Tyler snatches his arm and jerks him down in
his lap sideways.
“Why don’t you kiss it?” Jason shivers when Tyler runs his lips across
Jason’s neck. I feel like the past two weeks have been building up between
everyone. Giving us time to get to know each other. But something tells me
it’s about to tip over the edge.
“I will,” Jason answers.
“You want to taste Ari’s cum leaking from me?”
“Holy shit,” I groan, leaning back in the chair.
“Yes,” Jason replies, trying to sound bold, but I hear the little crack in
his voice. “He tastes really good.”
“We need to stop talking about this,” Keon rasps, adjusting his hips.
Keon’s phone ringing breaks the tension in the air, and he frowns when he
looks at the display. “What’s up, Boss?” He nods at whatever Ari is saying
and flips his phone to speakerphone.
“We’re being followed.” Ari’s voice is tense, and we’re all alert at the
sound of it.
“Where are you?” Keon asks. Tyler whispers something to Jason, and
he slips from the room.
“Almost four miles down two-ten toward Abbs Valley. I spotted them
about five minutes ago. I can’t shake them.”
“What do you want us to do?” Tyler asks.
“Come in behind me. I’m going to try to keep them on my tail. Maybe
we can cage them in and get some fucking answers.”
“What kind of car is it?” I ask, already on my feet and headed toward
the garage. We all shove our feet into our shoes, and Jason walks out behind
us. We can’t leave him here, and Ari’s going to lose his shit when he figures
out he’s with us.
“Nondescript black sedan.”
I freeze with my hand on the passenger side of Tyler’s car. He’s already
throwing what we need into the car from the trunk. “Like an old Taurus?”
“Goddamn it,” Ari grits out. “Yeah.”
“That’s the same car from Jason’s apartment,” I relay when Tyler gives
me a confused look.
 “We’re on our way,” Keon says, disconnecting the call. “I’ll take my
car, too, so we have more of a chance of blocking them in.” He turns to a
wide-eyed Jason. “Do you know how to use a gun?”
“Yeah.”
Keon pulls the Glock from his holster and hands it to him. “I have one
in the glove box. Get in the back and keep your head down when we get
there. If someone walks up on you that you don’t know, pull the trigger.”
Keon gently pushes Jason into the backseat when I lift the seat for him
to climb in. Tyler’s backing out of the garage as soon as my door shuts. We
take off at breakneck speed with Keon right on our asses. “Are Ari and Kira
going to be okay?” Jason asks, voice shaky.
“For sure,” Tyler says softly, but I can see the tension in his body.
We’re silent on the way there. The only thing you can hear is the roar of
the engine and Jason’s quick breaths. I turn around in the seat when Keon
messages and says that we’re getting close. “I need you to put this on and
get down, okay?” I hand him a bulletproof vest and help him tighten the
straps.
“Okay.” His voice is so shaky that I want to reach back there and wrap
him in my arms. He slides down in the seat, and Tyler’s phone starts
ringing. He stabs the button on the steering wheel.
“Yeah?”
“I just passed a sign for a bed and breakfast. Old Lakes.”
We pass it two minutes later, and Tyler stomps on the gas. I hear Jason
squeak when it slams us back in the seat. “We see you.”
I grab my AK and throw the strap over my shoulder. I call Keon, put it
on speakerphone, and set the phone in the cupholder so we can all be on the
call. “What’s the plan?” Keon asks.
“Shoot his fucking tires out. He’s tried twice to run us off the road.”
“How’s Kira?” I find myself asking.
“She’s fine. Strapped in a vest and packing.” Pride fills in my chest, and
I know she’s prepared, given what family she comes from. Kane might have
protected her from most things, but Ari told me he made sure Kira could
take care of herself. “Jason?”
“We had to bring him,” Tyler says, and I watch him wince, waiting for
Ari to explode. “He has a vest and a Glock. He’s hanging in fine.”
Ari growls under his breath. “Good call not leaving him alone. This
could be a diversion.”
 I stab the button for the sunroof. “Get me closer.” Tyler steps harder on
the gas until he’s right on the guy’s back bumper. Keon might be our
resident car thief, but Tyler can drive anything with ease, even in intense
situations. “Can you hold it right there?”
“Yep. Get ‘em, Pop Tart.”
I put my knee on the console and push my head through the sunroof,
balancing the AK on top of the car. I know as soon as I see the black bag
covering the back glass that this is the same asshole at Jason’s apartment. I
watch him look in his rearview mirror and frantically look around for a
place to go. “Not today, asshole,” I mutter, looking through the scope, lining
up my shot. Keon flies up on the other side in his Mustang and rides right
behind the sedan’s driver’s door, blocking him in. My finger tightens on the
trigger, and the asshole slams on the brakes, causing Tyler to do the same.
The momentum sends me forward, and I feel someone hook their hand in
my belt, holding me still.
“What happened?” Ari barks, hearing the squeal of the tires and seeing
us back off.
“Motherfucker tried to make us hit him. We’re good.” The car speeds up
again and taps Ari’s back bumper, making him swerve a little.
“Shit. Take him out!” I pull the trigger, and the guy swerves into Keon.
He corrects easily and drifts back, ready to knock this asshole off the road.
“I can’t get a clear shot.” He’s obviously a professional, being able to
handle the car like that with bullets whizzing past his head. All I can do is
keep shooting and hope that I finally hit something.
“Ari’s going to take the next exit,” Tyler calls up to me. “We’re going to
stay on him.”
We watch Ari take the exit, and Tyler inches up so the guy can’t follow
without risking spinning out. He stomps on the gas, trying to pull away
from us. That car has to be modified if it’s outrunning Tyler’s Camaro and
Keon’s Mustang. Keon whips in front of him, gradually slowing him down,
swerving when he tries to pass him. I slide back in the car and have my
hand on the handle, ready to jump out when this is finally over.
“Talk to me,” Ari barks. “Do I need to circle back?”
“No,” I answer. “We’re slowing him down.”
The guy slams on his brakes, bringing the car to a complete stop. We’re
out, guns ready before we blink. Keon comes in slowly from the front while
Tyler and I walk up on different sides. Tyler is just getting to the driver’s
side window when the guy opens fire. Tyler jumps back and hisses in pain. I
shake off the urge to run to him and make sure he’s okay. “Get out!” Tyler
yells. “Or I’ll blow your fucking head off.”
We stay at a standstill until the guy jerks the car into gear and stomps on
the gas, going straight for Keon. He jumps out of the way, rolling to the side
of the road. Tyler and I open fire, listening to bullets bouncing off the metal
of the car. When it’s too far away, we drop our weapons and jump back into
the car. We’re close to a residential area, so someone is bound to call the
cops. We relay everything to Ari, telling him to meet us back at the house,
and disconnect the call.
My hands flutter around Tyler once we’re back on the road. “I’m fine,”
he soothes. “It was just a graze.”
I see the hole in his shirt right on his stomach, blood soaking the fabric.
“That’s not a graze.”
“It is. I promise. It will hurt like a bitch, but I’m fine.” I give him a stern
look, and he glances at me, giving me a small smile. I blow out a breath
when I realize he’s telling the truth.
I turn around in the seat, and Jason’s huddled in the corner, hands
shaking around the gun. I squeeze between the seats and rub my hand
through his hair. “We’re okay. You can sit up now.”
He lifts glassy eyes at me and launches himself into my chest, making
me grunt. “I was so fucking scared.”
I wrap my arms around him, holding his shaking body. “I know. I’m
sorry you had to see that.” I reach between us and tip his chin up with my
fingers. “We’re okay,” I repeat.
“I don’t like this,” he whispers, and I don’t have to ask what he means.
He finally realizes what we get into all the time. This shootout and chase
was just another day for us. Not for him. His bottom lip trembles, and it
tears my fucking heart out. “I don’t want anything to happen to you guys.”
I want to promise that nothing will happen, but I refuse to lie to him. We
know going out in the field every day, we can die. We know that when we
sign up. Ari and Axel never tried to hide that fact. They were brutally honest
with me when I started training. But Jason didn’t need to know that. “We’ll
try our hardest, Baby. I’m just sorry you got caught in the middle. Are you
okay?”
He goes to nod and then slowly shakes his head. Jason leans up and
places his lips against mine. I lick the seam of his lips, letting him know
that it’s okay. When I stroke my tongue against his, it’s softly. It’s not a
sexual kiss. More like a I’m damn glad you’re okay kiss. It feels good and
warms my heart. He pulls back and settles his head against my chest,
wrapping his arms around my waist tightly. I catch Tyler’s eyes in the
rearview mirror, and he’s thinking the same thing as I am.
Jason’s always been on the list of people we would protect with our
lives. We’ve gotten close to him from going to High Flyer. These past two
weeks have shown me what we can all be.
A family.

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 30

TYLER

I
was still riding that high of what just happened when we walked into the
house. I let Gavin fuss over the small wound on my stomach. As soon as
he applied antiseptic and covered it with a small bandage, I saw the
tension leave his shoulders.
“I’m fine,” I assure him for the hundredth time as I settle on the couch
to get comfortable. I pull Jason to sit beside me, and his body is still
shaking. “Are you okay?”
“Yeah. I am now.” He snuggles into my side, and I wrap my arm around
his shoulders to pull him closer. Jason suddenly stiffens and looks at Gavin.
“Is this okay?”
Gavin snorts a laugh and kisses his forehead. “Yes, it’s fine. You don’t
have to ask.”
Jason nods. “Is Ari on his way back?”
“Yeah,” Keon answers, walking into the living room. He sits on the
other side of Jason and squeezes his thigh. “He’s taking the long way so he
doesn’t lead them back here.”
“Who the fuck was that?” I ask. “CIA isn’t going to play games like
that. Do you think it was the same person from Jason’s apartment?”
Gavin gets comfortable on my other side, propping his feet on the
coffee table. “I don’t know. It was the same car, but this person was trying
to hurt them. If the person wanted to hurt Ari at Jason’s apartment, wouldn’t
they have hung out to catch him by surprise?”
 “I agree,” Keon says. “He would have attacked them instead of leaving
the note.”
“So there’s more than one person after you?” Jason asks. When we nod,
he groans. “That’s great. Crazy stalkers and the CIA.”
“What if there were two people at the apartment that night? One who
left the note, and the one Gavin chased in the alley?” I ask, finally voicing it
out loud. Something didn’t feel right, and I think that’s it.
“Oh. That’s even fucking better,” Jason mutters.
I squeeze him tighter, trying to comfort him. “We need to be more
careful when we go out. We also need to sweep for trackers. Any of our cars
could have been tagged while we were out. There’s no other way that they
could have found Ari.”
I hear the front door open and then Kira’s sweet voice filtering through
the house. As soon as Ari steps foot into the living room, Jason scrambles
from the couch, flinging himself into Ari’s arms. Ari pulls him close and
buries his nose in Jason’s neck. “Are you okay, Sweet cheeks?”
“A little shaken but fine. I was worried about you and Kira.”
“I’m okay,” Kira says with a sweet smile and squeezes Jason’s arm. I
can’t resist reaching up for her hand and tugging her into the spot Jason
vacated.
Keon grabs her chin and places a sweet kiss on her lips. “Are you really
okay, Mama?”
Kira shrugs. “Yeah. It was scary as hell, but I felt safe with Ari. He gave
me a gun and everything.”
That makes me laugh because of the excitement in her voice. “You
should have shot out the asshole’s tires.”
“I tried,” Kira pouts, making Ari roll his eyes. He sits down in the chair
to the side and pulls Jason into his lap. “But Ari said it was too dangerous to
hang out the window.”
“He’s right,” Gavin laughs.
“I’m sure she could have taken care of herself,” Ari replies with a new
fondness in his voice. I look between them, and Ari gives me a warning
look to keep my mouth shut. Something definitely happened between them,
but now is not the time to ask. That doesn’t mean I won’t push for
information later. “They were tracking us somehow.”
“I’ll check the cars,” Keon answers. He gets up from the couch, and
Kira follows behind him.
 My eyes flash to Ari, and he rolls his eyes, already knowing what I’m
going to ask. “Did you have fun?”
“Yes.” Asshole. I should have known he wouldn’t elaborate.
“What did you do?”
“I took her to see something.”
“See what?”
“None of your fucking business.” Jason laughs and then clamps his lips
shut when I glare at him.
I groan and slide down on the couch. “I got shot, Papi. Doesn’t that
deserve some information?”
“What?” Ari barks, already sitting forward in the chair. “Why the hell
didn’t you say anything?”
“I don’t know how much time I have left,” I whisper like my voice is
fading. I see the moment it dawns on Ari that I’m full of shit.
“It’s a scratch,” Jason chuckles.
“Traitor,” I grumble, sitting back up on the couch. “Seriously, what
happened?”
“We got…better acquainted.” I raise a brow, and he huffs in annoyance.
“I’m not telling you everything. If Kira wants to, that’s fine with me.”
“She will,” I say confidently. Kira and I have grown close, and I know
she’s comfortable around me. “Since you’re being a prude.”
“I’m not being a goddamn prude. Don’t pressure her into talking to you,
Tyler.”
“Or what?” I challenge. “You going to spank me, Papi?”
“Don’t tempt me.” Ari’s voice has dropped to that growly level he gets
when I’ve been pushing him. Before, it would make me laugh, but after
what he said on the phone, it has an entirely different effect on me. It makes
me imagine what it’ll be like when Ari finally does lose control around me.
He stares at me for a long time, and I’m pretty sure he’s imagining the same
thing.
Keon walks back into the living room, hand in hand with Kira, breaking
the moment. He holds up a little square, and my stomach sinks. “It was
under the back bumper. All the other cars were clean.”
“When the fuck…” Ari starts and then shakes his head. His truck is
always sitting at High Flyer, and anyone who knows his routine knows that.
“We need some burner cars. Keep switching it up so they don’t know which
one to tag.”
 Keon nods, his mind already working it out. “I can do that. We have
some in storage.”
“We can just run them over with tanks,” I reply.
“Tanks?” Kira asks, smiling up at Keon. “You have tanks?”
“Two, to be exact,” he answers proudly. “I liberated them a little over a
year ago.”
“I wonder what the military thinks about that,” Kira laughs.
“Fuck them,” Ari growls, some of his old anger for the military bleeding
out. They fucked him over so badly just for helping. Even if he wanted to,
Ari could never go back having been stripped of his numerous medals and
dishonorably discharged. Ari clears his throat when he notices everyone
staring at him. “No one leaves the house alone from now on. We start
switching out vehicles when we leave and stay extra vigilant. We now know
that we have more than one problem.”
We all agree and start talking about nonsense to ease the tension in the
room. When it gets closer to time for Jason to go to High Flyer, we all
decide to go, which Ari is grateful for. High Flyer is packed when we get
there, and we slide onto stools at the bar with Kira tucked between Ari and
Keon.
“Hey, Jay,” his bartender calls out. She hands him a piece of paper and
tucks her blonde hair behind her ear, eyeing Gavin. I narrow my eyes but
don’t say anything. I will cut a bitch. “This was left for you about an hour
ago.”
“Okay. Thanks, Kylie.” He takes the paper and stuffs it in the pocket of
his jeans.
Kylie turns and crosses her arms on the bar in front of Gavin, letting her
tits spill out of her shirt. I glance at Gavin and almost snort with laughter at
the flat look on his face. “Hey, Ace.”
Gavin grunts as a reply and takes a sip of the beer Jason hands him.
“Hey.”
“You should come by when I’m working next.”
I watch Jason cover his mouth to keep from laughing, and just to stir
shit, I turn to face him. “Yeah, Ace, maybe you should.”
“I’ll pass. Thanks for the offer, though.”
Kylie pouts her fake-looking lips. “Oh. Why not?”
“I’m not interested.” She stands up, offended, and Gavin rolls his eyes.
He hooks his hand on the back of my head and jerks my lips to his in one of
the hottest fucking kisses I’ve ever had. He invades my mouth, making me
make embarrassing noises in the back of my throat. He pulls back to look at
Kylie with that flat look on his face. “I’m taken.”
I hear Kira start laughing, and Kylie turns toward her with a hateful
look in her eyes. “I wouldn’t,” Jason says, already knowing Kylie was
going to say something fucked up. She gives off mean girl vibes, and none
of us fuck with that. “I’ll fire you on the fucking spot.”
Kylie’s mouth drops open, and she rushes off with a huff, disappearing
into the stockroom. “I wasn’t laughing at her, Jason,” Kira says quietly.
Jason smiles and squeezes her hand. “I know you weren’t.”
“She deserved it if you were, Mama,” Keon soothes. “I know she’s seen
Tyler and Gavin together. It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to figure out
they’re more than friends.”
“What’s on the note?” Ari asks.
Jason pulls it from his pocket, and all color drains from his face. He
hands it to Ari, and Ari growls under his breath. “It says, tell him he can’t
hide from me.”
“So, this is definitely directed at you.” I don’t like that thought at all.
Not with whatever fucker chased him today and the CIA agent breathing
down our necks. As much as I don’t want to think about it, I know we might
have to tell Kane what’s going on. We’re putting Kira right in the middle of
whatever the fuck is going on.
“But who?” Ari asks, holding the paper up between his fingers. “Who
the fuck would give a shit where I am specifically?”
“Old lover?” I supply, and Ari gives me a dry look. As far as I know,
Jason’s the only one he’s been with in a long fucking time. I wave my hand.
“I mean before the Saviors.”
“I don’t see any of them getting attached enough to track me down after
all these years.”
“I mean, according to Jason, your dick is like magic, so maybe they
would,” I joke, trying to ease the situation. Jason snorts a laugh and goes to
fill an order.
“Tyler,” Ari says in exasperation, making Kira giggle. “Shut up.”
I start singing the chorus to Magic Stick by Lil Kim and 50 Cent, and
within seconds, Kira is joining me. She makes little smoochy noises to Ari,
and to my surprise, he completely softens, wrapping his arm around her
waist and bracing his hand on the seat of her stool. Jason looks over with a
smile and shakes his head. He’s used to this by now, and he’s always just let
it happen. I feel a calm settle over us, even with the impending doom we
can feel beating down on us.
We’ve faced greater threats. Ones that we didn’t think we would make it
out of, but we always did because we had each other’s backs. This time is
no different, but now we have two new, very important people in our lives.
We will fight like hell to keep Jason and Kira safe.
And maybe keep them forever.

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 31

ARI

S
everal days have passed since the incident after my date with Kira.
Keon found several cars that I could switch out every couple of days,
leaving my truck tucked into the garage.
My mind kept wandering to the day I picked up Kira and the professor
who was walking her out. He looked familiar, and he acted like he knew
me, too. It was like he couldn’t get away from her fast enough. He was
either afraid I would recognize him, or he thought I was going to kick his
ass for being with Kira.
She talks about him sometimes, telling us that she talks to him after
class or in between her other classes. They usually talk about books, but she
said he mentioned her boyfriends at their last meeting, where he gave her a
signed copy of a book. It seemed like weird timing, so Keon searched it for
bugs or trackers, much to Kira’s dismay. In the end, the book was clean, and
I decided I was being a paranoid asshole. But that is my job. I know my
team can take care of themselves, but I’m still the one who protects them as
their team lead. I should probably tell Axel what’s going on, but I know
he’ll just send Kira back to Kane. He won’t stop to think about what she
wants, he’ll just act. I refuse to let her be ripped from us now. We’ve all
settled in comfortably in the house, and I’m counting down the days until I
can show them the new house.
I don’t know what possessed me to show Kira first, but I felt like I
needed her approval. The house came up for auction after it was foreclosed
and was too perfect to pass up. It gives us more space and better amenities
with the pool and easy access to the lake. Just thinking about that pool
brings back the look on Kira’s face when I made her come. That wasn’t
why I took her out there, but something about it just snapped into place
when I was staring at her relaxed, gorgeous face. I know Kira still doesn’t
believe any of us when we tell her that we find her irresistible, but I know
between us all, she’ll start to believe it. She’s relaxing more and more
around us by doing little things like taking off her gloves or pushing up her
long sleeves. We don’t take any of those for granted, knowing it might be
small to some, but it’s huge to us that she trusts us enough to see more of
her scarring. It still pisses me off because of how she got the scars, but
Kira’s dealt with it better than any of us probably would. She still sees the
good in almost everything, including a team of mercenaries that have a fuck
ton of blood on our hands.
I find myself not wanting to be away from her when she’s at school, just
like I am with Jason. I scrub a hand over my face, trying to push my
thoughts from my head and concentrate on my laptop. I’ve been sitting in
my office for hours, running a program Nolan set up for me to hopefully
find the car that chased us that day. It has every camera in the surrounding
area on here, and it’s constantly searching.
The guy was obviously a professional if he was able to tag my truck and
then tail us. I asked Jason about the cameras outside of High Flyer and
almost lost my fucking mind when he said they didn’t work, that they were
just for show. I had Nolan down there the next morning installing a state-of-
the-art surveillance system. The feed went to Jason’s phone and mine with
alerts.
My phone ringing breaks me from my thoughts, and I smile when I see
Chelsea’s name on the screen. I slide to answer. “Hello?”
“Hey, Ari.”
“What’s up?”
“Me and the girls are getting together this weekend at my house, and I
was wondering if maybe Kira would want to join us.” My first instinct was
to say no, that it wasn’t safe. But Chelsea’s house is locked up tighter than
Fort Knox. “Just for a girl’s day.”
“I’ll ask her when she gets back home.”
There’s a pause, and I can practically hear Chelsea’s thoughts. “Home?”
 “Yes,” I answer, knowing it will piss her off. She huffs, and I can’t help
but laugh.
“Is she…living there now?”
“Sort of. It just seemed better than staying at the dorm. This way, we’re
all together.”
“Uh-huh. So, are you all together?”
“Someone’s being nosey.”
“Come on, Ari,” Chelsea whines, making me laugh again. “Give me
something.”
“It’s not my story to tell. If Kira wants to, she can.”
“Fine. How are you and Jason?”
“Amazing.”
“Good. Oh! He can come too, if he wants.”
“Uh, Chels, he’s not a girl.”
“No shit, asshole,” Chelsea hisses. “But he likes girl talk. I talk to him
all the time about what happens in this house.”
“I’ve heard some of the nasty shit that happens there,” I say dryly. “I’ll
have to check Jason for brain bleeds the next time you talk to him.”
“You’re just jealous.” I hear the smile in her voice, and I know she
doesn’t mean I’m jealous of any of her guys. I’m just jealous because of
what they have. I’ve known Axel for a long time, and I’ve never seen the
uptight bastard as relaxed as he is with his little family. “I’ll message Jason
and ask if he wants to come.”
“How are you getting rid of the guys?”
Chelsea laughs. “Cole and Axel are taking Nolan away for the weekend.
Kai and Sean are going on a mission. I just have to pry Les, Evie, and
Bridget away from their guys for a couple of days.”
I go quiet, trying to think of a way to word what’s been on my mind. I
know Chelsea is the best person to talk to, so I finally sigh. “How do you
guys make it work?”
“With all of us? It doesn’t come without its challenges. We’ve had a few
hiccups along the way, but I guess that’s to be expected. But there has to be
a lot of respect, understanding, and patience. We’ve found a system that
works for us, so we are all spending time together as a family and as just
couples. Is this something you want?”
“No. Yes. I don’t know.” Chelsea laughs softly at my indecision, making
me relax for some reason. “It wasn’t. But having Kira and Jason here has
made me start thinking about it.”
“If anyone can make it work, it’s you. You guys have such a tight
relationship, and I feel like Jason and Kira could make you even stronger.
Have you talked to the others about this?”
“We’ve discussed it in some ways.” I wasn’t going to tell her that it was
mostly sexual, but at the time, we thought that was all it was going to be.
But after spending so much time with Kira, I realized that was fucking
stupid. “We’ve kind of started something without ever really starting it.
Does that make sense?”
“Perfectly. You guys fell into a safe pattern. Which means it will be easy
for you guys to pull off. As long as everyone is on the same page, you’ll be
fine.”
“Thank you, Chels,” I say sincerely.
“You’re welcome. Make sure you ask Kira when she gets there. I’ll
message Jason in a bit.”
“Okay.”
We say our goodbyes, and I sit back in the chair. I can hear Jason
laughing at something Keon is saying, and it brings a smile to my face.
Having him in my space and waking up to him every morning feels nice. I
plan on asking him to move into the new house with me, no matter how this
whole thing goes. It’s fast, but I don’t give a fuck. Life’s too damn short to
let things as good as Jason and Kira pass you up.
I hear Jason laugh again and make my way into the living room. Jason’s
head is lying on Keon’s thigh, and they’re looking at something on Keon’s
phone. I slide under Jason’s legs and massage his calves. He smiles and
goes back to Keon’s phone, and it just feels… normal. I feel a tug in my
chest and know that I’m falling hopelessly fucking in love with him.
“Anything?” Keon asks.
“No. They’re still rolling, though. If he’s around, they’ll catch him at
some point.”
Keon settles back on the couch and absently starts running his fingers
through Jason’s hair. “Maybe we should go back to that CIA agent’s
hideout. See what we can dig up.”
“We can, but I think it was just a safehouse, so there’s probably nothing
there.”
“It won’t hurt anything to check,” Keon replies. “I feel like I always
have eyes on me.”
 “Gavin said the same thing,” Jason adds. “He said he feels like someone
is always watching him on campus. I told him it’s probably just because
he’s tall and gorgeous.”
I huff a laugh and squeeze his leg. “Possibly.” I didn’t know whether to
voice my worry about Professor North. It just seemed like I was adding
more shit to the pile. I decide I’ll talk to the team alone, that way I’m not
putting more on Kira and Jason. I did tell Nolan to keep digging further into
him, but still nothing. I stared at the pictures Nolan had found, trying to stir
something in my brain, but there’s been no indication that I know him. But
something in my gut is saying to look harder. Maybe I need to see him face-
to-face.
I check the time on my phone and realize I have about thirty minutes
before Kira leaves his class. Hoping that he’ll walk her out again, I tell
Keon and Jason that I’m going to take care of something real fast. Keon
gives me a look that says he knows I’m up to something, and I nod, letting
him know I’ll let him know later.
I ride to the campus, a million thoughts running through my head. I
know I said we shouldn’t go out alone, but I needed Keon to stay with
Jason. I pull in twenty minutes later and see Tyler and Gavin on the bench
outside the building. With a sigh, I climb from the car, knowing I’m going
to have to explain myself.
Tyler sees me first, and his brows furrow. “Is everything okay?” I
quickly let them know what I’ve been thinking and what I want to do. Tyler
nods in understanding. “Better safe than sorry. You want us to wait at the
car?”
“No. Wait for Kira and steer her that way when she comes out. He
seems to be taking an awful lot of interest in her.”
“I thought so, too,” Gavin agrees. “But it seemed harmless. They both
enjoy reading, so it made sense.”
I shrug. “It probably is, but something is telling me to look further.”
We wait another twenty minutes before Kira pushes through the door,
Professor North right behind her. I stay to the side as Tyler and Gavin
surround her to lead her away. I step out before Professor North can walk
away. His eyes widen for a brief second before it clears. I quickly assess
him, seeing if anything seems familiar. He has dark brown hair and eyes.
He’s a little shorter than me, not as broad. He’s wearing a simple polo and
khakis, and something about it doesn’t feel right, almost like he’s not
comfortable in simple clothes.
“I’m Ari,” I introduce, sticking my hand out for him to shake. His eyes
flash down to my hand and then back to mine. He shakes it briefly and then
shoves his hands in his pockets.
“Adam North.”
“Kira’s told me a lot about you.”
“I wish I could say the same.” There’s an edge to his tone that
immediately has me paying attention. His eyes are assessing me, just like
I’m doing him. Does he just have a crush on Kira, or did it go deeper than
that? I notice that he won’t look me directly in the eye. When he does meet
them, they slide away just as quickly. “Is there anything else?”
I cock my head to the side and smile. I know it sounds vain as fuck, but
I’ve been able to get information from people just because of my looks.
Professor North’s cheeks darken slightly, giving it away that it will work for
him, too. “No. I just saw you the other day and thought it would be nice to
meet you.” I step closer and watch as he struggles not to take a step back.
“She made me curious because of the way she talks about you. She admires
you a lot.” Nothing like pumping a man’s ego to get them to loosen up. It
works because his chest puffs out slightly.
“I admire her too. Kira’s obviously been through so much in her short
life. She’s a good student. Who are you to Kira?”
This is where I have to watch what I say. I can’t say I’m another one of
Kira’s boyfriends because he already knows about Tyler and Gavin. I don’t
want to put him on the defensive if he really is just interested in her. “I’m
friends with her brother. She decided to stay with me while she’s here.” Not
a total lie.
“She told me she moved out of the dorms.”
I glance over at the car, and Kira’s staring at me with a confused look on
her face. Maybe I need to tell her what my thoughts are, too. As much as I
don’t want to involve her or Jason, I don’t want to keep anything from
them. “Well. I need to get going. I hope to run into you again sometime.” I
smile at him again and watch him swallow. Gotcha.
“Yeah. Me too,” he replies, his voice cracking on the last word. “Nice to
meet you.”
“You too,” I respond, but he’s already high-tailing it into the building.
 This meeting didn’t do anything but make me want to watch him closer.
I felt a brief sense of recognition but nothing more concrete to say where I
even knew the guy.
Either way, I’m keeping my eye on him.

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 32

KIRA

I
watch Ari stare at the door Professor North disappears through, and then
he makes his way back to us. When he reaches me, he pulls me into a
hug and kisses the top of my head. I melt against him and wrap my arms
around his waist. I’ve gotten used to the constant touches from all the guys,
and I’m not ashamed to admit how much I love them.
“What was that about?” I ask.
“I don’t know. Something feels off with him.”
I pull back to look up at his face. “Off?”
“I feel like I know him, or he knows me. I’m sure it’s nothing.”
I give him a doubtful look. “I know I haven’t been around long, but
something tells me your gut is usually right. Should I be worried?”
Ari shakes his head and pecks my lips. “No. Just stay alert when you’re
around him.” He kisses down the scarred side of my face, just like he
always does. It used to make me want to jerk away, but I find myself
leaning into him now. “Chelsea called earlier and wants to know if you
want to come to their girls’ night.”
“Aw, man,” Tyler says, and I don’t even have to look at him to know
he’s pouting. “I want to go to girls’ night.”
“Shut up,” Ari sighs. “Les, Evie, and Bridget will be there.”
I jerk back. “Les? As in Alessa Poletti?”
Ari smiles and nods. “Yeah.”
“Oh. Okay. Wow. I’d love to.”
 “Someone has a girl crush,” Tyler sings, making me laugh.
“I’ll happily admit to that. I’ve looked up to Les for a long time.” Kane
speaks very highly of her, and I’ve heard the stories. I know she went
through some really bad shit when she was younger and with her guys, but
she came out stronger because of it. Some of that is what gave me the
strength to move forward. If she can go through that, run an empire, hold a
relationship, and be a mom, I can’t find it in myself to wallow in self-pity.
“When?”
“Tomorrow. I can drop you off after class.”
“Okay.” I wrap my arms around Ari’s neck, go up on my tiptoes, and lay
my lips against his. I don’t even care what people on campus think
anymore. I don’t owe these people anything. Ari kisses me sweet and slow.
I pull back when I feel eyes on me, but it’s not the usual stares I feel when I
kiss Tyler or Gavin. Shivers race down my spine as I slowly look around,
only to connect with Professor North’s gaze. He looks almost…angry.
“Three o’clock,” Gavin mutters before I can say anything.
Ari nuzzles into my neck, but I know he’s looking without Professor
North realizing. “We need to go.”
Ari helps me into Tyler’s car, pecking my lips one more time. “I’ll see
you at home.” He shuts the door before I can respond, slowly walking to his
borrowed car. Home? Is that what their house is to me now? Butterflies
attack my stomach, and I can’t help the smile spreading across my face.
“What are you smiling at, Baby girl?” Gavin asks, leaning his elbows
up on the console from the back. I hate making him sit back there with his
long legs, but he refuses to sit up front when I’m with them.
“Papi Ari,” Tyler answers, backing out of his spot. He shifts into first
and follows Ari from the parking lot. “She said she gets all tingly when he’s
close.”
“Shut up,” I laugh, punching his shoulder. He shoots me a wide grin and
looks back out the windshield. “I’m just…happy.”
Tyler slides his hand onto my thigh and tangles our fingers together.
“Me too.”
Gavin pecks my cheek. “Me three.”
I settle into my seat and let my mind wander back to Professor North.
Why did he look pissed? Was he mad because I was kissing yet another guy,
or was it something more? I’ve never gotten any weird vibes from him
when we’re alone, and growing up a Lyubava, you learned real quick how
to read people. Ari is convinced he knows him, but I wouldn’t know from
where. From what I know, Ari was in the Army before he joined the
Saviors. He said that his time in the Army kept him overseas most of the
time, and when he joined the Saviors, he was basically a ghost. They didn’t
“exist” technically, so I don’t know where he would have met a teacher. I
think about it until Tyler is pulling into the driveway. He loops around to
my side, helps me from the car, and then bends at the waist like a bow,
helping Gavin out. Gavin rolls his eyes but slides his hand into Tyler’s.
“We’ve made it to our destination, Princess.”
Gavin growls and lunges for Tyler, but he just jogs backward with a
laugh. “Stop calling me that.”
“Okay, Pop Tart.”
With a shake of my head, I leave them arguing in the front yard and
make my way into the house. I go upstairs to my room and throw my
backpack onto my computer chair. When the guys knew I was moving in,
they made sure I got everything that I would ever need. A desk with a sleek
laptop, a comfortable chair, a queen-sized bed, and a huge dresser with a
mirror. It made me tear up when they showed it to me because I was
perfectly fine with how the room was. I didn’t need all this stuff, but I was
grateful nonetheless.
“Hey, Mama.” I turn around at the sound of Keon’s voice, already
smiling.
“Hey, yourself.” He’s over to me in two steps, kissing me. This greeting
is something that I can get used to. All of them shower me with so much
affection that I don’t know what to do with it all.
The kiss turns hotter, and before I know it, Keon is walking me back
toward the bed. I willingly lay down, pulling him down on top of me. I
spread my legs wide to accommodate his hips, and he grinds against me.
We still fool around, and he still makes me come until I can’t see straight,
but I need more. I want more. I’m finally ready to go that last couple of
steps with him. I just need to convince him of that.
I pull back from the kiss, and he starts kissing my neck. “Keon?”
“Yes, Mama?”
“Please.”
“Please, what? Do you need to come?”
“I need you.”
He pulls back, his brows furrowed. “You have me.”
 I huff and lift my hips to rub against him. “I need you.”
I see the indecision all over his face, and I try not to take it as rejection.
We’ve been through this several times, and he swears I’m not ready.
“Kira⁠—”
“No.” I push at his chest until he stands up, and I slide to my feet in
front of him. “Quit saying that I’m not ready. You don’t get to make that
decision. I am ready, and I want it to be with you.”
“I just don’t want you to regret it.”
I growl in frustration and push him back a step. I know there’s only one
way that I’m going to convince him that I’m ready. With a deep breath, I
unbutton my jeans and shove them and my underwear off my hips. I jerk
my legs out of them in a very unladylike way, but I’m past caring. He’s seen
my pussy so many times, so that part doesn’t bother me. What I’m going to
do next does. I jerk my beanie off before I can change my mind, hook my
hands in the bottom of my shirt, and rip it over my head. My hands go to
my bra, and Keon’s hands shoot out to stop me. Dread settles in my
stomach, thinking he’s going to back out. That maybe he didn’t know what
he was getting himself into. I’m completely bald under the beanie. My hair
grows, but in patches, so I keep it shaved. Scars swirl down my right
shoulder, over my chest, and belly. It gets bad again on my thighs with deep
scars. My clothes on the top half of my body shielded me, but I had a skirt
on that day, so my legs got the worst of it.
My heart rate spikes when Keon gently pulls my hands down to my
sides. He reaches back and unhooks my bra before slowly sliding it from
my shoulders. I shift from foot to foot because I’m completely naked in
front of him, and I can’t get a read on his face. When I’m about to curl in a
ball and cry, Keon roughly jerks his shirt off; then he’s shoving his jeans off
his hips. His long, thick cock bobs between his legs when he’s naked, and
then he’s advancing on me.
Keon’s lips connect with mine, hot and hard. He reaches down, wraps
his hands around my thighs, and jerks me up to wrap my legs around his
waist. He climbs onto the bed with me hanging on him and lays me down
against the pillows. Keon pulls back, and his eyes travel from the top of my
head back down to my eyes. When he sits back on his heels and gently pulls
my legs from his waist to spread me open in front of him, I fight the urge to
cover up. “Fuck, Mama,” he says hoarsely. The more he looks up and down
my body, the more uncomfortable I get. My hands twitch, and Keon’s eyes
shoot to my face. “You’re beautiful.”
I try to see myself through his eyes, but I never can. I shake my head.
“No.” Keon is the beautiful one. He’s all lean muscle and tattoos. I’ve spent
hours trying to take all of them in, but there are so many.
Keon reaches up and rubs his hands down my breasts. His hands settle
on my hips, massaging them. “You are. I won’t pretend I don’t see the scars
or tell you they don’t matter. They do matter, but not in the way you think
they do. They matter to me because someone hurt you. Someone tried to
take you from me before I ever met you. That’s what matters, not the fact
that they’re there.” He runs a hand down my scarred side. “They’re
beautiful in their own way.”
My eyes start filling with tears, and I try to sniff them away before
Keon notices, afraid that he’ll stop. But just like always, he catches it
immediately and leans down to gently kiss me. “I’m trying to see it your
way,” I say softly. “I really am trying.”
“I know you are,” Keon whispers against my lips. “Are you sure you
want this?”
“Yes.” There’s no hesitation in my tone, nothing to tell him I’m second
guessing myself.
Keon kisses me again until I’m writhing on the bed, feeling his cock rub
against my thigh. He kisses down my neck, straight to my breasts. He licks
around my nipple and then gently sucks it into his mouth. My hips leave the
bed, a moan falling from my lips. He knows how sensitive they are, and
having his mouth there is even better than his fingers. He switches to the
other one, kissing and sucking until both nipples are hard. Keon moves
down my stomach, stopping every so often to kiss my stomach or hip.
When he reaches the curls above my pussy, my entire body tightens up. I
haven’t been brave enough for this yet.
“Can I kiss you here, Mama?” Keon asks, running his finger through
my wet slit.
“Y…y…yes.”
Keon smiles from between my thighs, and I feel his fingers spreading
me open. He circles my clit a few times before he leans forward. I have to
lock my hands into fists to keep from stopping him. The first flick of his
tongue on my clit has me panting. He works my clit until he feels me give
into the feeling. He gets completely between my spread thighs, puts his
hands on my knees, and pushes me wide open. “Fuck, I love this pretty
pussy.”
Keon dives between my legs, licking and sucking on my clit. “Keon,” I
moan, my hands flying to his head. He hums against me, and my hips leave
the bed, chasing his tongue. I feel him working a finger inside me and
spread my legs wider. He fucks me with it a few times before he adds a
second. Keon fucks me with his fingers, his mouth still torturing my clit.
All my nerves fly through the window, and I look down at him to watch
what he’s doing. His eyes are locked on my face, and the look on his face
has my stomach tightening. The fact that I can tell he’s enjoying this has me
on the edge embarrassingly fast. My hands grab the sides of his head to
hold him where I need him, and he groans against me. He twists his fingers
to rub my g-spot, and my thighs close around his shoulders. “Keon.”
Keon sucks on my clit hard, and I come with a hoarse cry. He kisses the
insides of my thighs, gently bringing me down before he looks up at me
with a grin. “You taste so damn good, Mama.”
Keon slides back up my body but pauses with his lips over mine just in
case I don’t want to taste myself. I jerk his lips to mine and raise my hips in
invitation when I feel his cock slide across my wet pussy. He pulls back and
starts kissing down my body again. “What are you doing?”
“Making sure you’re ready.”
“I am.”
Keon looks up at me with a raised brow. “You’re a virgin, and I’m not
small. I refuse to hurt you.”
I chew on my bottom lip, contemplating what I’m going to say next. “I
want to taste you too.”
Keon’s eyes flare with heat, and he slides back up my body. Faster than
my brain can process, he’s on his back beside me, and I’m being lifted and
flipped around. Keon doesn’t give me a chance to protest before he hooks
his arms around my thighs and jerks me against his mouth. He devours my
pussy, and I reach out to wrap my hand around his dick. He didn’t say he
wasn’t small to be vain, it was more a statement of fact. I’ve heard stories
about losing your virginity and how bad it can hurt. But I know Keon will
take care of me.
I’ve never done this before, so I lean down slowly and lick around the
head of his cock. Keon’s hips jerk, and he groans, eating my pussy faster. I
slowly slide my mouth over him, letting his flavor burst over my tongue.
Moaning around his cock, I start tentatively sucking while moving my hand
up and down the base. Pushing the self-conscious thought away that I’m
sitting on his face and I might suck at this, I put everything into it, reading
his body. I move my hand and let him slide further down. When he touches
the back of my throat, his hips lift subtly, pushing himself further, making
me gag.
Keon buries his tongue in my pussy, fucking me with it. I lose all train
of thought, mindlessly sucking his dick. This whole experience is a
thousand times better than I ever imagined. I can’t wait to feel him
stretching me; I don’t give a fuck about the pain. Keon pulls me closer,
making me worry about smothering him until his fingers slide back inside
me, and he starts sucking on my clit. I pop off his cock with a moan but
keep stroking him.
“That’s it, Mama,” he rasps against me. He flattens his tongue and starts
rubbing it against my clit.
“Fuck!” My whole body seizes, and then I’m shaking with my second
orgasm of the day. I have half a mind not to collapse on his face.
With gentle hands, Keon turns me back around and lays me back on the
bed. He climbs over top of me and stretches his body over mine. When he
kisses me this time, it’s slower and sweeter. I melt into the mattress, running
my hands down his back.
“I need to go get a condom,” he mumbles against my lips before kissing
me again. When he pulls back, I shake my head.
“I trust you.” I’ve heard about them getting checked regularly, and I
knew Keon wouldn’t do anything to risk me. “I’m on birth control.”
“Are you sure?”
“Yes. Please, Keon.”
Keon kisses me again, and I feel him reach between us to line his cock
up. My body is relaxed, and I’m embarrassingly wet, but that doesn’t give
me any illusions that this will be pain-free. My body tenses when I feel him
sliding inside me, and my legs start shaking when I feel him pushing
against the resistance. Keon pulls back to look at my face before pushing
gently forward. My hands fly to his forearms, my fingers digging in.
“I’ve got you, Mama,” Keon says softly. He works his hips back and
forth a few times, then pushes past the resistance, breaking the fragile seal
of my virginity.
 “Holy shit,” I gasp. Keon stops moving, and I grab his hips. “Please
don’t stop.”
“Never.” Keon slides his hand between us and starts gently rolling my
clit in small circles. He moves in shallow thrusts, letting me get used to
feeling him inside me, and I realize he’s not even halfway in yet. The more
he rubs my clit, the more the pain fades to pleasure. When he feels my body
relax, he pushes in further, but this time, he doesn’t stop until his thighs
touch the back of mine. He leans down, braces his forearms on the bed, and
rubs his hands over my head, kissing my forehead, my wet cheeks where a
few tears escaped before softly kissing my lips. “Are you okay?”
“I feel so full.” I’ll be sore from him stretching me for the first time, but
I would never take this moment back.
“Tell me when you’re ready.” He doesn’t seem in a hurry to move, just
continues placing gentle kisses on my face. Something about the gesture
makes me tear up again, but he doesn’t panic, just kisses away the tears
when they fall.
With a shuddering breath, I rub my hands down his cheeks. “I’m ready.”
Keon doesn’t move away from me, he just gently starts moving his hips.
I feel the wet slide of his cock inside me and try to think past the soreness.
He feels amazing blanketing my body with his, his lips moving gently
across my face. I wrap my arms around his neck, my legs around his waist
to let him know that I’m ready.
Leaving one arm braced on the bed, he gets on his knees between my
spread thighs. With his other hand, he starts working my clit while slowly
dragging it out of me. “Fuck, Mama,” he grits out. “You feel so fucking
good.”
“You do, too.”
Keon thrusts back inside me, and I can’t stop the shameless moan that
leaves my mouth. He made sure I was relaxed and ready for him, and I
think it helped with the pain. I still feel little aftershocks of it, but it’s not
bad, so I can enjoy myself. I run my hands greedily over his chest,
shoulders, and sweaty back. His thrusts pick up speed until he has a steady
rhythm, but I know he’s still taking it easy on me. His face is set into a hard
line, and his teeth are gritted, trying to hold back. It makes me wonder what
he’ll be like when he knows I can handle him. Would he be rough? That
thought makes me tighten around him, and he groans against my neck.
 Keon’s speed never changes, and his fingers never leave my clit. He lets
my orgasm build slowly, and before I know it, all the lingering pain is gone.
I let my legs fall to the bed, opening them wider. Keon braces both hands
beside my head and shuffles up to tuck his knees under my ass. “Rub your
clit, Mama.”
My hand slides between us without hesitation, picking up where he left
off. Keon looks down at our bodies, pulls out all the way, and sinks all the
way back in with one firm thrust. His breath stutters out of him, and it
makes me crazy because I did that to him. He looks back at my face and
thrusts harder, keeping a close eye on my reaction. “Please,” is all I can get
out, but he gets the hint.
His thrusts become more forceful but still not letting himself fully lose
control. I can admit I’m not ready for that, but I know Keon will
automatically know. He knows me better than I know myself. He moves
faster, making our skin slap together. I rub my clit in tight circles, and I feel
myself getting closer to falling over the edge.
“Are you going to come on my cock, Mama?” Keon’s voice has gone
deep and gravely.
“Yes. Oh my God.” I’m moving my hips with him now, chasing my
pleasure and trying to push him over the edge.
“Fuck, you’re perfect,” he pants, his hips picking up speed. “Come for
me.”
My movements get jerky, my fingers flying over my clit. Keon shifts
and hits that sweet spot inside me. My back bows off the bed, and my
breath is coming in harsh pants. “I’m co…” I don’t even get the words out
before I’m moaning his name and coming with such force that my eyes roll
back in my head.
“Yes. That’s it. You’re squeezing me so fucking tight.” Keon’s thrusts
stutter, and I feel him flex inside me. “Kira,” he groans, coming deep inside
me. He half sprawls on my body, leaving one arm to brace above my body.
“That was amazing.”
I wrap my arms around him, pulling him as close as I can. “It was.”
We lay there until our breathing is under control. Keon pulls out, and I
can’t contain the wince. I’ll definitely feel this tomorrow, but I don’t regret
it, not even for a second, especially when Keon smiles down at me. “I’m
going to run you a bath so you can soak.” He pecks my lips and slides off
the bed, going to the attached bathroom. When he comes back, I’m still
sprawled on the bed, making him chuckle. He helps me stand, and
embarrassment floods me when I see the blood smeared on his cock. “It’s
normal, Mama,” he says, gently leading me to the bathroom.
Keon helps me in and slides in behind me to pull me against his chest.
With gentle hands, he washes the top of my body. He turns me around so
I’m on my knees and softly washes between my thighs. I wince again, and
he leans forward to kiss my stomach. When he’s done, he quickly washes
himself and pulls me to sit between his thighs. I feel my eyelids drooping,
thoroughly worn out. Even then, I can’t stop the smile on my face.
This is truly where I’m meant to be.

OceanofPDF.com
 33

JASON

I
stare at the message from Chelsea for a good twenty seconds, thinking
she sent it to the wrong person. She asked me to come to girls’ night, but
put girls’ in parentheses. I’ve hung out with all the girls at High Flyer
when the others visit, and they’re an amazing group. But would they really
want me to be involved in something that sounds so sacred?
Jason: Are you sure?
Chelsea: Of course! I think it will be fun, and Bridget is dying to
pump you for information about Ari.
I laugh at that because that girl doesn’t have a filter.
Jason: If you’re sure I won’t be intruding, I’d love to.
Chelsea: Yay! Is Kira coming?
Jason: Yeah. Ari asked her when he picked her up from class.
Chelsea: Awesome! I’ll see you tomorrow.
I walk to the living room, still a little amazed they’re letting me hang
out on the elusive girls’ night. It’s almost as big of a deal as the group chat.
“Hey, Sweet cheeks,” Ari greets, pulling me to sit beside him on the
couch. “Did Chels message you?”
“Yeah. I just talked to her.”
“Are you going?” I nod, and he kisses the side of my head. “Good.”
I lean into Ari’s side, and his arm tightens around my shoulders. I still
can’t believe that the man I’ve had the biggest crush on is mine. Watching
him with Kira has actually made my feelings grow for him even more. If I
quit lying to myself, I could admit that I was half in love with him before
that first kiss. But I don’t think Ari is ready for that declaration, especially
since he has so much going on. I know Ari worries constantly about
everything because that’s his job, but I wish I could take some of it away.
Even though, most of the time, I feel way out of my depth. I grew up with a
mild-mannered mom, and the worst thing that ever happened to me was the
derogatory comments from kids at school when I finally came out as gay.
These guys have been stabbed, shot, and almost blown up. I couldn’t relate
to that. Even Kira grew up knowing how to defend herself, with her brother
being the leader of the Russian Mafia in New York. A fact that blew my
mind. Finding out who Les really is was another thing I couldn’t wrap my
head around.
Ari picks up my hand from his thigh, playing with my fingers, and then
freezes. My eyes widen when I hear a hoarse, ragged cry of pleasure from
upstairs. I laugh. “Someone is having fun.”
“Sounds that way.” Several little moans filter down the stairs, and Ari
abruptly stands and pulls me to my feet. “We should give them some
privacy.”
Ari drags me to the back patio and pulls me onto his lap in one of the
chairs. I curl against his chest, absently playing with one of the buttons on
his shirt. “I know I gave you shit for telling me I had to stay here, but I’m
glad I did.”
“Me too.”
“What’s going to happen after this threat is gone?”
Ari clears his throat and rubs his hand down my back. “I wanted to talk
to you about that, actually.” He’s stiff under me, and it makes my stomach
sink. “I bought another house with a lot more room. Something that can
comfortably hold the entire team.” When he pauses, I refuse to look up at
him, not wanting to see the regret on his face when he tells me I need to go
back home. I can’t even imagine going back to my tiny apartment now. “I
want to know if you’d like to come with us. You know…move in with me.”
My head snaps up at that, and I’ve never seen Ari’s face look so
vulnerable. I’ve figured out that he’s really good at masking his feelings,
but he’s letting me see everything. “Really?”
“Yeah,” he answers gruffly. “I can’t imagine you not being with us now.
I know it’s fast,” he shrugs, “but life isn’t always certain. I don’t see the
point in pretending you don’t want something.”
 I search his face and almost weep with relief that he isn’t kicking me out
when this is done. “I love you,” I blurt out and want to clamp a hand over
my mouth.
“What?” Ari croaks.
I almost start back peddling, but what he said about pretending sticks
out. Why should I have to hide that I love this big, beautiful man? “I love
you,” I say with more conviction. “I know it’s probably not what you want
to hear, or you might not be ready. But I’m ready for you to know. I love
you. I’m in love with you. The truth is, I have been for a while. Way before
I probably should have been when all you did was flirt with me. You’ve had
my heart for a long time, Ari.”
“Fuck,” Ari breathes and then crushes his lips against mine. The kiss is
hard and almost desperate. He pulls back and lays his forehead against
mine. “I love you too, Sweet cheeks. I’ve never loved someone like I love
you. You make my world a better place. You make me want to be better for
you.”
“I love you just the way you are,” I whisper, afraid that he'll take
everything back if I speak too loud. “You’re brave, strong, and fiercely
loyal. I don’t want to change you.”
“You deserve better than me,” Ari mumbles. “I’m not…good, Jason.
I’ve done bad shit for all the wrong reasons.” He finally looks at me.
“When I first joined the Saviors, I was angry. I killed just because I could. I
did whatever the leader at the time told me to do. I have a lot of blood on
my hands, Sweet cheeks.”
I shrug. “I don’t care. That’s in the past. What you do now is who you
really are. I know I wasn’t very receptive at first, but I was just surprised.
You save people, Ari, even when it risks your life. How can you tell me
that’s not good?”
“I’m too fucking selfish to let you go.” He rubs his thumb across my
bottom lip. “You’re stuck with me.”
“I’m fine with that.” I smile and kiss the tip of his thumb. “Even when
you snore.”
“I don’t snore,” Ari argues, completely offended.
“You do.” I lay my lips against his before he can argue anymore. This
kiss is slow and sweet, all our feelings pouring into it. I feel like my heart
has grown ten sizes because, not only do I love this man…
He loves me, too.
A fter K ira got out of class on Friday, Ari drove us straight to Chelsea’s.
Ari and I spent all night and most of the day wrapped up in each other. It
was still surreal, but I wasn’t letting my doubts take this away from me.
Ari pulls up to a huge gate and puts in a code. The gate swings open,
and Ari drives up a long driveway. When the massive house comes into
view, I can’t help but stare out the window.
“This place is gorgeous,” Kira comments.
“It’s probably the safest place in Forest Grove,” Ari replies. He pulls in
behind a black Ferrari. Holy shit. “It looks like everyone is already here.”
Ari gets out of the car and walks to our side, helping us from the car. He
leads us to the garage and pushes open a door, leading us into the kitchen. I
can hear laughter spilling through the house, and I still wonder if they really
want me here.
Kira reaches over and squeezes my hand. “It will be fun.”
Chelsea comes around the corner and claps her hands. “Yay! You’re
here. Bridget already broke out the alcohol. Ari, you can go.” She makes a
shooing motion with her hands, and I laugh.
“Nice to see you too, Chels,” Ari says dryly. She gives him a big smile,
and he rolls his eyes. “I’ll see you guys later.” He gives me a long, lingering
kiss and then does the same to Kira. When we turn back to Chelsea, her
mouth is hanging wide open. He slips through the door with a shit-eating
grin, closing it softly behind him.
“Well, okay.” Chelsea grabs both our hands and starts pulling us to the
living room. Evie is laid back in the chair in front of the window, Bridget is
sitting cross-legged in front of the coffee table, and Les is lounging back on
the couch. “They’re here! Girls, this is Kira.”
Evie is the first one to jump up and rush over. She pulls me into a hug,
kissing my cheek. “It’s good to see you.” She gives Kira one of her soft
smiles. “I’m Evie.”
“Hi,” Kira says shyly.
Evie turns around and points to Bridget. “That’s Bridget, and that’s
Les.”
Les crosses her arms on the back of the couch and props her chin on
them. “You’re Kane’s sister, right?” Kira nods. “Cool. Welcome to the
shitshow.” That seems to relax Kira a little bit. I know she was worried
about how the girls would react to her, even though I repeatedly told her
that they wouldn’t care. “I’m sorry you got stuck with Ari’s crew.”
Kira laughs. “It’s hard some days, but I manage.”
“I’m sure you do,” Chelsea says, grinning from ear to ear. Bridget
jumps at that, holding on with both hands.
“Okay. Someone start spilling,” she replies.
Evie rolls her eyes and leads us into the living room. Kira and I sit side
by side on the loveseat. “Can you at least give them time to settle in?”
Bridget huffs and hands us two solo cups. “Evie made them. I have no
idea what they are, but they’re amazing.”
“It’s something Tay came up with,” Evie answers.
“They’re settled. Spill,” Bridget demands, making Evie groan.
“What is it you would like to know?” I ask, already knowing how she
is.
“Ask them about the hot as fuck kiss Ari just put on both of them before
he left, looking like he owned the world,” Chelsea adds.
“I have to admit,” Les laughs. “I’m curious as fuck about Ari.”
“Does it make me a creep to wonder about Gavin?” Bridget asks. “Since
he’s Ghost’s brother?”
“Dude, you’re literally fucking twins,” Les responds.
Bridget thinks for a second and bursts out laughing. “Valid point.”
“What about Keon?” Evie throws in. “I mean the strong, silent type
with those pretty eyes? Yes, please.”
“I’ve, uh, only been with Keon,” Kira says quietly. “It was…good.”
“Just good?” Les pushes.
“Okay. It was amazing,” Kira laughs, relaxing even more. “I’m just now
getting to know the other guys, so there’s only been kissing.”
All eyes turn to me, and I roll mine. “Ari’s a fucking monster in bed.
You’ll hear no complaints from me.”
“So, no information on Gavin?” Bridget pouts.
“You’ll have to ask Tyler about that,” Kira answers.
Les sits up on the couch, her feet hitting the floor with a thud. “Wait.
What? Tyler and Gavin?”
“Duh,” Bridget says. “You didn’t know that?”
“No, because your ass didn’t tell me.”
“My bad.” Bridget gives Les a sweet smile, and Les just glares. “I
couldn’t get any information from Gavin though. Oh! I bet Tyler will tell
us.”
Chelsea pulls out her phone, dials a number, and flips it to speaker.
“Hello, Chelsea. How can I help you?” Tyler answers, making me smile.
“How’s Gavin in bed?” Bridget asks without preamble, and Tyler starts
laughing.
“You should have invited me to girls’ night, and I would have given you
all the naughty details.”
“Come on,” Bridget whines. “You know we can’t do that. If we let you,
we would have had to invite all the guys, and that’s no fun.”
“He says I can’t tell you shit.”
“Gavin! I’ll tell Ghost you hit on me!”
“He’ll know better,” Gavin answers, and I know Tyler has his phone on
speakerphone. “Stop being nosey.”
“I just need to know. Like, I won’t be able to go on if I don’t know.”
“Dramatic much?” Gavin replies.
I hear shuffling on the line and then a grunt. “Gavin’s a demanding
fucker. Like a hand on your throat, suck my cock like a good boy
demanding.”
“You motherfucker,” Gavin growls, and I hear more grunts.
“Are they fucking on an open line?” Evie asks, looking around the
room.
“It wouldn’t surprise me,” Kira and I answer at the same time and crack
up laughing.
“We’re not,” Gavin says, sounding out of breath. “He’s an asshole.”
“I have a glorious asshole!” Tyler yells, sounding far away. “One that
you can’t wait to sink into! Tell me how bad you want me, Pop Tart!” The
line goes dead, and we start laughing.
“I feel like I need to shower after that,” Les adds, making us laugh
harder. “That’s what you guys deal with?”
“Usually,” Kira answers. “Tyler lives to get under everyone’s skin.” All
the girls nod in understanding because they each have one, just like Tyler.
“I swear Sean just likes to see how far he can push Axel before he
spanks him,” Chelsea giggles.
“Caden just pulls his pants down and bends over. One of the guys will
give him what he wants,” Bridget says. Her eyes shift to me, and I can
already feel myself blushing. “How big is Ari?”
“Bridget!” Chelsea and Evie both exclaim.
 “What? Don’t act like you don’t want to know.”
Les snorts. “I want to know.”
“I’ve only felt it through his jeans, but…big,” Kira throws in, looking
completely relaxed now. I knew it wouldn’t take her long with these girls.
“It is,” I agree.
“Like, rearrange your guts big?” Bridget pushes, and when I nod, she
claps her hands. “I’m so glad Chelsea invited you guys. The beta team has
just always been this elusive group that we saw but never knew anything
about. Chelsea won’t tell us shit.”
“Because you don’t deserve to know.” Chelsea sticks her tongue out at
Bridget. “Plus, it’s not mine to tell.”
“Did Daddy Axel tell you not to?” Les asks, her smile sickly sweet.
Chelsea snorts. “You know Axel doesn’t tell me what to do.”
“Ride my cock, Cupcake,” Bridget says in a deep voice, trying to
imitate Axel’s. “We’ve heard what you and Axel get up to, not giving a fuck
when people are around.”
Chelsea shrugs and takes a sip of her drink. “I’m not ashamed of that.”
“Hear, hear,” Les says, holding her drink up. “I’m pretty sure everyone
has heard me getting fucked to an inch of my life more than once.”
Evie laughs. “Same. I swear the guys make it a game when we’re all
together.”
Les shivers from head to toe. “I know. I’ve heard too fucking much
from you and my uncle.”
Kira’s eyes widen at that. “He’s not old,” Evie answers with a laugh.
“He’s only seven years older than Les.”
“Even when he is old, he’s still going to be hot as fuck,” Bridget throws
in, making everyone laugh again. “Silver fox and all that.”
“I mean, Ari’s older, and I have no problem with that,” Kira laughs,
holding her cup up in a mock salute.
“Are you sure they don’t have the house bugged?” I ask, just to mess
with them.
Evie sits up so fast that she almost spills her drink. “What? The guys
will kill me.”
“Chelsea is fucking one of the resident hackers,” Les says, playing
along.
“Oh my God,” Evie groans, sliding down in the chair.
 “You don’t think I checked?” Chelsea responds. “I know my guys, and
they definitely would have tried.”
“I kind of wish they were listening. I want to know how fast Nik could
get here when he heard me talking about other guys.” Bridget grins.
“Maybe I can accidentally butt-dial him.”
“You remember what happened when you and Ghost fucked with him,”
Les says.
“What happened?” Kira asks, all ears.
“Oh. I face-timed Nik and proceeded to ride Ghost’s face. Nik got there
before we could even get to the good part, and he was at least twenty
minutes away. Anyway, that’s when I realized that Nik was a sadistic
bastard. He edged us until I was crying.” Bridget sighs. “I need a repeat of
that.”
“I think that’s why Zane and Nik are such good friends. They both play
the same games.” Les drains the rest of her drink. “The last time Gage and I
fucked with Zane, neither of us walked right for a week.”
We launch into telling stories of us and our guys, stuff that I never
thought I’d openly talk about. They never treated me like I didn’t belong. It
felt good to tell them everything about Ari and me. I’ve always felt like an
outsider, but with the girls and Kira, I felt like I had a place with this huge
family.
I finally felt at peace that this is where I’m supposed to be.

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 34

KEON

A
ll I’ve thought about is Kira. It’s like she’s dug her way into my brain.
Not that I’m complaining.
It still blows my mind that she trusted me enough to let me be her
first. I would never admit it to her, but I was fucking nervous. I didn’t want
to hurt her, but I knew it was going to at first. After I wiped her insecurities
away, she was so open with me.
“What are you smiling about?” Tyler asks, plopping on the couch beside
me. Gavin comes in behind him, both of them with wet hair. I didn’t even
have to ask to know what they were doing. I could hear them.
“Kira.”
“My man is in lurve,” Tyler says.
I roll my eyes but don’t deny it. I can feel myself falling for her.
Whether she sees it or not, Kira is perfect. She can handle every single one
of us with ease, and that’s no easy feat. “Is Ari back yet?”
“No, but he should be soon,” Gavin answers, kicking his feet up on the
coffee table. “I’m surprised the girls didn’t kidnap him for interrogation.”
Tyler laughs. “They called me earlier to ask how Gavin was in bed.”
Gavin never looks up from his phone, but I can see him roll his eyes.
“Which is how you ended up bent over the side of the bed.”
I raise a brow at Tyler, and he shrugs. “I’m a dick whore. What can I
say.”
 “I could hear you guys down here,” I grumble. I was harder than a
fucking rock hearing Tyler beg Gavin to fuck him harder. It was louder than
normal, so I know they left the door open. I had to talk myself out of
walking up there and watching.
“Why didn’t you join us?” Tyler waggles his brows. “I would have
gladly accepted you as a guest star in a ménage à trois. But I have a
question. Are you a giver or receiver?”
“Are you asking me if I’m a top or bottom?”
“Yep. Maybe while Gavin is fucking the shit out of me, I can burp my
worm in your mole hole.”
“Stop fucking making up shit,” Gavin laughs. “That sounds disgusting.”
“Says the one who watched their cum drip out of me.”
“That’s different,” I say hoarsely. “That’s fucking hot.”
Gavin nods in agreement. “Fuck yeah, it is. I especially like doing it
when he’s still a shaking mess because I won’t let him come.”
“How did I end up being the one who begs to come? And you didn’t
answer my question.”
“I’m a switch,” I answer. “I prefer to top, though.”
Tyler rolls his eyes. “Of course you do.”
I lean in close to Tyler’s ear, keeping a close eye on Gavin’s face. “You
won’t let me top you? You don’t want to feel how good it feels when I sink
my big dick inside you?”
“I didn’t say that,” Tyler answers. I should have known he wouldn’t
back down. “All I’m saying is, at some point, someone is going to let me
know what their ass feels like.” He jerks his thumb at Gavin. “Pop Tart is
too uptight for something like that.”
“You haven’t even tried,” Gavin replies, finally looking up from his
phone.
“It’s kind of hard to when you get all growly,” Tyler chuckles. “It
literally gets hard.”
“I think I regret this entire thing,” Gavin says dryly.
“It’s not my fault you have me panting like a bitch in heat.”
“Shut up,” I laugh.
I was initially worried that this would change things between us, but it
brought us closer. All I ever wanted was for a woman to understand that I
have two sides. Not everyone is accepting of a bisexual man. There’s too
much stigma surrounding us. But we’ve managed to find one that not only
accepts us, but encourages us. I was jealous as hell when Axel and the guys
found that in Chelsea.
Now we have Kira, and nothing can stop what’s happening.

K ira ’ s girls ’ night turned into a weekend. I missed her so fucking much
while she was gone, and I showed her last night how much. It was just as
amazing being with her the second time as the first.
She went back to school this morning, so I was just fucking around the
house waiting on her to come home. I’m working on my Mustang when Ari
busts into the garage. I roll out from under the car, taking in the thunderous
expression on his face.
“Tyler found another fucking note.”
I stand up and wipe my hands on a rag. “Where?”
“Stuck under his windshield wiper. It said he’ll be mine.” Ari roughly
runs his fingers through his hair. “They know where to find us, and they
know Tyler’s car. I have a really bad fucking feeling.”
“What’s the call?”
“My first instinct is to pull Kira from school and not let Jason go back
to the bar.”
I wince. “That’s never going to happen.”
“What the hell am I supposed to do, Ke? If they get hurt because of
me…”
“They won’t. Someone is with them twenty-four-seven. Does the school
have cameras?”
Ari jerks a nod. “I already had Nolan look. It was someone in a black
hoodie. You never see their face.”
“Okay. Could you tell if they were male or female?”
“Definitely male. Pretty tall, broad shoulders.” Ari sighs and leans
against the side of the Mustang. “I don’t like that we haven’t heard anything
else from this CIA agent. It’s like he’s just gathering intel and waiting to
pounce.”
“Maybe we spooked him when we snuck in. I still say we should check
the place out.”
 Ari thinks for a minute and then nods. “Tonight. We can’t take the
whole crew because someone needs to be here with Kira and Jason. So you
and Gavin go. Tyler and I can stay here.”
“Maybe one of us needs to sit on Professor North.” Ari is adamant that
something is up, and I’ve worked with him long enough not to question one
of his feelings. It’s saved our asses more times than I can count. “Do you
think it could be him?”
Ari throws his hands up. “Fuck if I know.”
“Do we need to tail him?”
“Not yet, but I’ll have Tyler and Gavin watch him closer at the school.
And keep him the fuck away from Kira.”
“Kira might be able to get some information from him.” Ari gives me a
hard look, and I hold my hands up. “I don’t mean anything that will put her
in danger. I mean, give her one of those information clone things that Nolan
has. All she has to do is put it in her backpack, and the next time she’s in his
office, it will pull everything from his phone and computer.”
“She needs to agree to it. I won’t just put it in there without her
knowing.”
It’s my turn to give him a hard look. “I’d never do that, asshole.”
“I’ll talk to her tonight while you and Gavin are gone.” Ari scrubs a
hand down his face. “This is a clusterfuck. If something happens to Kira,
Kane is going to chop our fucking balls off.”
“We’ll handle it, just like we always do.”
I just hope I’m not lying to him.

“I’ m in ,” Gavin whispers later that night. It’s still a mindfuck watching him
just disappear. I’m proud as fuck of him, and he deserves his Phantom
nickname.
“Coming,” I whisper back, sliding around the side of the house.
“Wait.” I stop dead in my tracks. “I think someone is coming.”
I move around the back of the house so no one can see me and peek
around the corner. A car pulls into the driveway, idles there for a minute,
and pulls back out. When it drives away, I notice it was a black car but not
the same one that tried to run me the fuck over. “All clear.”
 I meet Gavin at the backdoor, and he nods. He picks the lock and slips
inside. I wait with my breath held while he searches, and he finally tells me
that no one is home. I slide inside, and Gavin is waiting in the living room.
“Are we doing this clean or ripping this place apart?”
“Fuck it. Let him know that we were here.”
I start in one of the downstairs bedrooms while Gavin searches the
living room. I pull all the drawers out and upend them, dumping everything
on the floor. I check every nook before moving to the next room. Gavin and
I end up in the last bedroom at the same time, and we search it together.
Gavin pulls out a drawer on the dresser, and I hear him mutter under his
breath.
“What?”
“This has a false bottom.” He puts the flashlight between his lips so he
can have both hands. He pulls the bottom out of the drawer, and several
folders are lying there. With our names on them. “Fuck.”
Gavin pulls them out and hands me half the stack. I flip through them,
and my stomach sinks when I realize how much information this guy
actually has. “This guy knows Ari’s real name and where he’s from.”
“Goddamnit,” Gavin grits out. “He knows about Ghost, my dad,
everything. How the fuck would he get that information?”
“I don’t know, but Ari needs to see these.”
“Let’s dust for prints and get the hell out of here.” We busy ourselves
with dusting commonly touched surfaces, and I don’t see a fucking one.
The only people who would wipe off prints in their own house is someone
who is hiding.
“Did this asshole wear gloves in here?” Gavin asks, coming to the same
conclusion as me. “There’s not even a print on the doorknob.”
“That or they wiped this place clean.”
We dust a few things just in case on our way downstairs. When we hit
the bottom of the stairs, headlights flash across the living room wall. Gavin
and I plaster ourselves against the wall, breaths held. The car sits there, and
I strain my ears, trying to hear anything. The lights go off, but I can still
hear the car idling. Gavin and I both get our Glocks, screwing silencers into
place. We don’t need to alert the neighbors if this turns into a shootout.
“What do we do?” Gavin whispers. “Wait until they leave or go balls to
the wall?”
 Our heads snap in the direction of the kitchen at the same time when we
hear the doorknob turning. “Balls to the wall it is,” I whisper back. He nods
in understanding and clutches the Glock in front of him, waiting. I blow out
a breath and level mine in the same direction.
“I know you’re here,” a deep voice calls out. “I just want to talk.” I
listen for footsteps but don’t hear any. “I’ll even put my gun away.” I hear
Gavin snort softly beside me, calling bullshit. I gesture with two fingers
toward the living room door. Gavin nods and slips past me. He melts into
the shadows to unlock it so we can slip out. I stay behind for cover. “I just
have questions.”
I don’t even hear Gavin slide back beside me, just a slight disturbance in
the air. Damn, he’s good. He jerks his head for me to follow him, and I stay
on the same path he’s taking. My hand lands on the doorknob. “Stay right
there,” the voice growls.
Yeah, no thanks. I jerk the door open, and we take off running. Shots
ring out behind us, causing us to dive off the porch. We scoot back against
the edge, out of sight. I look around and nod for Gavin to follow me. Still
crouched, we start moving toward the opposite side of the driveway. If we
can make it to the backyard, we can disappear into the night. I stop when
the asshole starts shooting through the wood on the porch. “Like I said, I
just want to talk.”
Before I can blink, Gavin slips through a hole in the lattice under the
porch, then I hear pfft pfft pfft from his silencer. The guy on the porch
grunts, and I can hear his boots stomping, trying to avoid the shots.
Gavin appears back beside me, and we take off running, hoping the guy
is distracted. We make it to the side of the house before a bullet tears right
through my shoulder. I hiss in pain but don’t stop running. We slip into the
woods behind the house but keep going. We finally slide into the car, and
Gavin peels out, jerking his mask off.
“Fuck, that was close.” He glances at me when I pull my mask off.
“What’s wrong?”
“I took one in the shoulder.”
Gavin hits the voice command on his steering wheel, telling it to dial
Ari. “You guys good?”
“Keon took a bullet to the shoulder,” Gavin answers.
“What?” Ari barks. “Is he okay?”
 “Yeah,” I croak. “It hurts like a bitch.” I can feel the blood soaking my
shirt and vest. I’ve been shot too many times to count, so I know I’ll
probably pass out soon from blood loss.
“Where do I go?” Gavin asks, his voice verging on panic.
“Come home. I’ll call Les and tell her to send Doc. Ke, can you hold
out that long?”
“Yeah.”
“Gavin,” Ari says, his voice soft because he knows he’s about to flip his
shit. “Keon’s going to be fine. Just get him home.”
“He’s way too pale,” Gavin answers, his voice cracking. “He’s losing a
lot of blood.”
“You can handle this,” Ari soothes. “Are you being followed?”
Gavin’s eyes flash up to the rearview mirror. “No.”
My eyelids start drooping, and I barely hear the conversation.
Then everything goes black.

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 35

GAVIN

eon!”
“K Fuck! Fuck! Fuck!
I stomp on the gas while still checking my mirrors. He’s
completely passed out. I gently move his head so I can feel a pulse and
blow out of breath when I feel it. It’s weak and thready, but there. The
house isn’t that far away, but it feels like it takes us hours.
I screech to halt in front of the house, coming inches from slamming
into Tyler’s Camaro. I get out and run to Keon’s side. By the time I open the
door, Ari’s running down the steps. I glance up and see Kira tucked between
Jason and Tyler, tears rolling down her face. “He still has a pulse, but he
passed out.”
Ari gently pushes me to the side and leans inside the car. He pops an
ammonia capsule under his nose. Keon wakes with a groan. “Hey, man. We
need to get you in the house.” Keon gives him a weak nod, and we
somehow get him to his feet between us.
Keon is almost like a dead weight between us, and I can’t help the
overwhelming panic that he’s going to die. We get him into the house, and
Ari takes him directly to the spare room downstairs that we use as a
makeshift hospital room. Together, we get Keon’s shirt cut off, and the
wound is gushing blood. Ari grabs a handful of gauze pads and puts
pressure on it. Keon groans in pain, and all I can do is grab his hand.
“We’ve got you, man. Doc is on his way.”
 “I need to see if there’s an exit wound,” Ari says apologetically. He
gently rolls Keon to the side, and Keon chokes off the pained sound. Ari
looks at me and shakes his head, lying Keon back down.
“How bad?” Keon whispers, sweat beading on his forehead. Before I
can move, Tyler hands me a cold washcloth. I place it on his head and hold
it there, having no idea what the fuck to do.
“Nothing you can’t handle,” Ari answers. “I just need you to hold on a
little bit longer, okay?”
“Where’s Kira?” Keon asks, trying to look around Ari.
“Right here,” she answers, walking into the room. She sits beside his
hip on the bed, rubbing her hand across his chest. Her face is clear of tears,
but I can tell she’s trying to be strong for him, so I grab her other hand. She
squeezes it so tight that it feels like she’s cutting off the blood flow. “Why
did you have to go and get shot?”
Keon laughs weakly. “It was Gavin’s fault.”
“What?” I demand. “I can’t help it that you’re slow.”
Keon’s eyelashes start fluttering again, and Ari gently shakes him. “I
need you to stay awake.” Keon nods, but his eyes close anyway. “Keon?
Shit. Sweet cheeks, can you grab that monitor over there?” He points to the
heart monitor, and Jason carries it over to the bed. Ari puts the pads on
Keon’s chest and hooks the leads to it. His heart rate is low, but it’s there.
“Is he going to be okay?” Kira asks, and her voice is so small. Ari kisses
her forehead.
“Yeah. Keon’s tough, Mal’akh.”
We wait in silence for Doc, trying our best not to lose our shit. Keon’s
normal dark skin is almost gray, and his heart rate keeps slipping. When
Doc does finally get there, he’s all business. “Exit wound?” he asks, already
snapping gloves on. His wife, Loretta, comes in behind him, already setting
everything up.
I stand and help Kira up. She stops to kiss Keon on the forehead and
moves to the back of the room with Jason and Tyler. Loretta is already
inserting an IV and hanging fluids.
“No,” Ari answers. Ari steps out of the way when Doc reaches for the
gauze.
Doc pulls it back and whistles. “That’s a nasty wound, but he should be
fine. We’ll need room to work.”
 Ari nods, and we all leave the room. Ari jerks his head for me to follow
him to the living room. Tyler pulls me to sit beside him on the loveseat and
grabs my hand. I kiss his knuckles, glad as fuck that I got to see him again.
“What the hell happened?” I give him a play-by-play of everything, and his
face gets harder the more I talk. “He had files?”
“Of everything,” I answer. I pull my bag off my back and unzip it. I slap
the folders down on the table. “I don’t know if he has more, but I grabbed
what was there.”
“Good job.” Ari picks them up, and I see the slight flinch when he sees
his real name on his. “Everything?”
I nod, confirming his worst fear. Someone knows who he really is.
“They have info on families, birth certificates, aliases, everything.”
“Jason and Kira?” Ari asks.
“No. Just the beta team that I know of. We didn’t have time to search all
the way through the files.”
“Goddamnit,” Ari grits out. “This is worse than bad.” We all know the
implications of anyone finding out who Ari is. It’s such a tight-lipped secret
that only the beta team and Axel know everything. Not even Axel’s team
knows specifics.
“How is this any worse than before?” Jason asks. “We knew they were
looking into you.”
Ari, Tyler, and I exchange a quick look before Ari looks at Jason. “You
remember when I told you I can’t tell you some things? This is one of
them.”
“Why?”
Kira slides her arm through Jason’s and lays her head on his shoulder. “I
know you want to know everything, but trust me when I say that when he
can’t tell you, it means he’s protecting you.” Ari gives Kira a grateful look,
and she smiles back. “It’s frustrating, I know, but you have to understand
that some things are better left unsaid.”
Jason stares at Ari, and I see the hurt already on his face. “Will I ever
really know you?”
“You know me,” Ari says. “This part doesn’t matter.”
“Obviously, it does,” Jason argues. “Or you wouldn’t be so freaked out
right now.”
“Did you get a look at the guy?” Tyler asks, trying to change the
subject.
 “No. It was dark, and then we were too busy dodging bullets.”
“Okay,” Tyler says, uncharacteristically serious. “You said he said he
just wanted to talk. Did you recognize his voice?”
I shake my head. “It was almost like he was trying to disguise it.” I run
back over everything, and something keeps sticking out. “I don’t think he
meant to hit Keon. He had every chance to blow our heads off but didn’t
take the shot until we were further away. He had the upper hand.”
“So, you think he was just trying to scare you off?” Kira asks, sitting up
on the couch.
“Yeah.” I rub my temples where I can feel a headache forming. “It
doesn’t make sense.”
“I’ll have Nolan search the area and see if any of the neighbors have
cameras. It’s a long shot, but maybe someone caught him on video,” Ari
says. “I’m damn proud of you, though. You guys got the job done, and you
got Keon the fuck out of there.”
I nod because words are locked in my throat. I’m sure there are a
million different ways we could have handled this. Did I handle it right? I
could have taken the guy out instead of leading Keon to the front door. He
never even saw me when I unlocked the door. But something was telling me
we needed this guy alive, that we just needed to get out.
“Stop,” Tyler whispers, where only I can hear. “I can see you
overanalyzing what happened. You did the right thing.”
We lapse into silence, none of us knowing what to say. We just want to
know if Keon’s okay. With Doc’s limited resources here, it will take a while
before they have any news.
I just know I’ll never forgive myself if something happens to him.

O ne nasty wound , a lot of blood transfusions, and a fuck ton of stitches

later, Keon was going to be fine. He was still mostly out of it from the pain
medication, but he made sure Tyler and I took Kira to class so she wouldn’t
worry herself to death. She hasn’t left his side since Doc said we could see
him until we dragged her out of the house. She didn’t put up a fight, but we
could tell she wasn’t happy.
 “What do you think Ari’s going to do about Jason?” Tyler asks me.
We’re sitting on the bench outside of one of Kira’s classes. “It might just be
me, but I think Jason deserves to know the truth.”
I shrug. “Me too, but we’ll never convince Ari of that. It took him
almost a year to tell me.”
“It’s not like Jason is going to run and tell,” Tyler replies. “I mean, Kira
deserves to know too.” When I don’t answer, Tyler laces his fingers with
mine. “Are you okay?”
“Yeah. It’s just…I could have just taken the motherfucker out. Why
didn’t I?”
“You said your gut told you not to, and Ari always says trust your gut.”
“But my gut got Keon shot.”
“He doesn’t blame you. He told you that himself. You can’t take the
blame for everything.” Tyler squeezes my fingers. “The nightmares started
again.” It’s not a question because he was there last night when I woke up
in a cold sweat, fucking screaming. Only this time, I watched as Keon’s
head was blown off. The other nightmares were gone, thanks to Tyler, but
now they’re back, just with a different scene. Maybe my head isn’t cut out
for this shit. “Want to talk about it?”
I almost say no because that’s my default reaction, but talking about it
helps. Tyler gives me a new perspective. “I watched Keon get shot in the
head.”
Tyler nods. “Only normal with what you went through last night.”
“How is this normal, Ty?” I ask raggedly. “I don’t see any of you falling
apart when bad shit happens.”
“We all have our ways of coping. Are they good ways? Nope. You’re
the only one who has a normal reaction to this shit. It’s the rest of us that
are fucked up, not you.”
“Hello, fellas.” My head snaps up, and Professor North is standing in
front of us. “Don’t you have a class to get to?”
“We’re waiting on Kira,” I answer.
“I’m sure she knows how to make her way around.” He says it casually,
but I don’t miss the underlying condescending tone. Who does this asshole
think he is?
“Is it illegal to sit here or something?” Tyler asks innocently, squeezing
my hand when he feels me tense up.
 Professor North’s eyes narrow. “No, but it never seems like you guys
actually go to class.” He’s been watching us? I can add that to the list of shit
that Ari’s already suspicious about.
Tyler shrugs lazily. “Good thing we don’t have your class then.”
“What are your names again?”
Before we can answer, Kira walks through the double doors, and his
face changes completely when he looks at her. What the hell? “Hey,
Professor North. Everything okay?”
“Yeah. Just getting to know your boyfriends. See you later.”
We watch him walk away, and Kira turns to us. “What was that about?”
Tyler gets up and slings his arm around her shoulders. “He’s been
watching us. He knows we don’t go here.”
“Oh.” Kira’s shoulders sag, and I grab her hand. “Does this mean I can’t
go here anymore?”
“Not yet,” I answer, kissing the back of her hand. “It just means we
need to keep an eye on Professor North.”
We help Kira into the car, and Tyler drives us home, where I go straight
to Ari. He’s in his office, so I sit in front of his desk and tell him about the
conversation. “You’re sure he knows you don’t go there?”
“If he’s not sure, he suspects it.”
“Fuck.” Ari rubs his fingers across his forehead, looking more tired than
I’ve ever seen him. “Make yourselves a little less visible, but make sure you
can still watch her.”
“Got it.” I get up from the chair to give Ari some space but stop when I
see how defeated he looks. “I know this is none of my business, but I’m
going to say it anyway. Jason deserves to know the truth. You want to build
a life with him, and he should know who he’s getting involved with. You
know he’s not going to run and tell anyone. You have to trust that he can
handle the truth. And for what it’s worth, I think he can.”
I expect Ari to blow up, but he just nods, acknowledging my words. It
doesn’t mean he’ll listen to me, but I hope I gave him something to
consider.
I just hope I’m right, and their relationship doesn’t blow up in Ari’s
face.

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 36

TYLER

I
t’s been a little over a week since Keon got shot. He’s healing well, just
has to keep his arm in a sling. We’ve been hurt in the field more times
than I can count, but this time felt…different. We were always worried
before, sure, but when Ari relayed what was going on, I could feel my heart
seize in my chest. For Keon and Gavin.
I also didn’t know what to do about Gavin’s nightmares this time. They
seemed way more intense, and nothing I did helped. He was spiraling back
to that place in his mind where he refused to talk, and I felt useless.
I’m pacing my room when I hear voices coming from downstairs. I
recognize Kira’s soft voice immediately, but it has a hard edge to it. One
that I haven’t heard before. I make my way downstairs to see what’s going
on. Ari and Kira are in a stand-off in the living room. Ari’s arms are crossed
over his chest, and Kira’s hands are planted on her hips. Leaning against the
entryway, I wait to see what’s going on.
“I can do this, Ari. All I have to do is talk to the guy.”
“I said no, Mal’akh, and that’s final.”
Kira’s eyes narrow to little slits, and I have to fight back a laugh. “You
aren’t my boss. I already have the device. Now, all I have to do is spend ten
minutes with him.”
“No.” Ari’s tone is final. I know because I’ve heard it a million times
before. “You aren’t putting yourself at any unnecessary risk. We’ll find
another way.”
 Kira throws her hands in the air. “There is no other way. He might have
the information that you need.”
“And we’ll get it,” Ari says slowly, “another way. I already have Jason
refusing to stop going to the bar. I’m not going to put you in the middle of
it.”
Kira steps forward, and I actually see Ari’s eyes widen in surprise when
she jabs a little finger in his chest. “I’m putting myself there. I want to help.
I’m not a little kid anymore, and you aren’t my brother. I have his class
today, and we always meet after. You could have the answers you need.”
Ari drops his arms from his chest, and he doesn’t say anything for a
while. I don’t know if he’s waiting for her to back down, but she isn’t going
to. He finally sighs. “No.” He walks away before she can argue, and she
growls in frustration.
“Just for the record,” she calls out at his retreating back. “You’re a
bigger ass than Kane!”
Ari’s shoulders stiffen, but he doesn’t stop walking. I step from my
hiding spot and slide my arms around her waist. She melts against my chest,
crossing her arms over mine. “You don’t need his permission.”
“I thought I was doing the right thing by telling him. But it turned
into…whatever this was. I just want to help you guys.”
I turn her around and lay my hands on her hips. She wraps her arms
around my waist and lays her head on my chest. “I know you do. So, that’s
what we’ll do. Gavin and I will be close.”
Kira peeks up at me. “What about Ari?”
“He can spank me for it later.” I grin at her, and she laughs. “Seriously,
he’s just under a lot of pressure. I’m going to get Gavin, and we’ll take you
to campus.” I kiss her softly because I can’t help myself. I find myself
wanting to touch her all the time. Hold her hand, wrap my arms around her,
or kiss her.
I let her go to grab her stuff and go out on the back patio to find Gavin.
He said he was going out here earlier to clear his head, but I know all he’s
doing is stewing.
“Hey,” I say when I step outside. “We need to go.”
Gavin nods and slowly stands from the lounger. He looks like he’s aged
ten years in the past week. His eyes are shadowed, and his face is back in
that permanent scowl. With a sigh, I walk back inside to the garage to wait
for Kira. She comes down a minute later, and we all slide into one of the
many borrowed cars Keon got. I’m still pissed that I can’t drive my Camaro
because of Ari’s creepy fucking stalker.
I fill Gavin in on the plan with Professor North, and he grunts in answer.
“Tell me how you really feel,” I say dryly.
“What do you want me to say?” His voice sounds so defeated that I just
want to fucking shake him. “It’s smart.”
I glance at Kira, and she gives me a sad smile but doesn’t say anything.
She can’t seem to get through to him either, and it isn’t for lack of trying.
We pull into the campus parking lot, and I shove the car in park. We’ve
made ourselves less noticeable, but we always stay where we can see her.
She pushes her door open before I can get out of the car to do it for her. She
pecks my lips, gives Gavin a sad look, and climbs from the car. I watch her
disappear into the building before I turn sideways in my seat so I can see
him.
“What can I do?” I can’t keep the desperation out of my voice. I can’t
stand seeing him like this again. “Tell me so I can help.”
“There’s nothing you can do, Ty.”
“You can’t keep blaming yourself. What happened to Keon is not your
goddamn fault. And I hate to break it to you, but it won’t be the last time
one of us gets hurt.”
“That’s supposed to make it better?” Anger flares in his eyes as he sits
forward. Good. Anger is better than that dead look he’s had in his eyes.
“I’m just supposed to wait for the next time someone gets fucking shot?!”
“You knew all this going in, Gavin. We’re feared, and we’re hated.
People would rather shoot us in the back of the head than get taken down by
the Saviors.”
“And you’re okay with that?”
“What else is there? I don’t have a family to go home to. I don’t have a
mom, dad, siblings. Nothing. I don’t have shit, Gav. You guys are my
family. This is where I want to be.”
Gavin sinks back against the seat, staring out of his window and
completely shutting me out.
It’s going to be another long, quiet day.
B efore K ira went in to see Professor North, I had her call me so I could
listen in. The conversation went smoothly, and I checked the device when I
got in the car. The green light was lit, indicating it picked up something.
The drive to the house to tell Ari was tense. Things were weird between
Gavin and me, and Kira was a ball of nerves. But when we pulled up to the
house, she pulled her shoulders back and marched into the house like she
owned the place.
I follow her as she goes straight to Ari’s office and slaps the cloning
device down on the desk. “There.”
Ari looks down at it, a muscle ticking in his jaw. “I thought I told you
not to get involved.”
“And I said you aren’t my boss.”
“Do you realize how dangerous this was?”
Kira takes a deep breath. “As you can see, I’m fine. He never even
suspected anything. Tyler was on call with me the entire time just in case
things went sideways.” Her panicked eyes meet mine when she realizes she
gave away that I knew she was going to do this.
Shit. Ari’s angry blue eyes flash to me. I keep my slouched position
against the wall, feigning nonchalance even though my heart is pounding in
my chest. “You let her do this?” Ari growls, standing from his chair.
“It was my decision!” Kira says, jumping to stand in front of Ari. “Stop
trying to murder him with your eyes.” She smacks her palm against his
chest when he won’t look at her. Ari looks down at her, still pissed off, but
there isn’t an ounce of fear in her eyes. “Stop treating me like I’m a fragile
piece of glass. I’m not stupid, Ari, and I’d never put myself in danger. Tyler
knows that, which is the only reason he agreed to this. We had it covered.”
I can’t stop the grin that spreads across my face, and Ari’s eyes snap
back to me. “Get that look off your fucking face.”
“What look?” I ask innocently. Ari growls deep in his chest, and it does
weird things to my body. “Come on, Papi. Take a breath before you have a
heart attack.”
Ari moves faster than I anticipated. He steps around Kira, stalks up to
me, grabs my throat, squeezes, and pushes me back against the wall. “Your
smart mouth…” he trails off because I already know that it pisses him off. I
lick my lips, and his eyes track the movement. He pushes closer until his
nose brushes mine. “What else can it do besides talk shit?”
“I suck a mean dick,” I wheeze, and Kira cuts off a laugh.
 Ari’s face doesn’t change, and then he licks across my top lip.
Goddamn. I wait with my breath held to see what he’ll do next. Nothing has
happened since that day at High Flyer; we’ve had too much shit going on.
But I’ve been fucking dying for it. Then he steps back. I try to keep the
disappointment off my face, but I know I don’t succeed. I try to slide past
him, but he blocks me by putting his hand on the wall beside my head. “It’s
time we settle this.”
“Settle what?”
“Us.” That word drops between us, and I hear Kira suck in a breath. He
grabs my hand and starts dragging me toward the stairs. “Let’s go,” he says
to Kira. Ari spots Jason and Gavin on the couch. “Come on,” he barks, not
stopping. He keeps his death grip on my hand all the way up the steps until
he stops outside Keon’s door. He bangs on it, and Keon opens it seconds
later. He spots us all and raises a brow.
“What’s going on?”
“How’s your arm?” Ari asks, making both Keon’s brows shoot up.
“Uh…fine?”
“Good. Come on.” Ari marches to his room and pushes me inside.
Everyone files in slowly behind us, confused as fuck, except for Kira. Her
breath is coming in little pants, already knowing what the hell is about to
happen. Ari glances at everyone and then looks back at me. “We’ve been
dancing around this for weeks. I know everyone can feel the sexual tension
floating around the goddamn house. If anyone has any objections to what
we talked about, now’s your chance.” He’s giving us a chance to say we
didn’t want to share. I meet Gavin’s eyes, and he nods, letting me know he’s
fine with it. I see Ari do the same to Jason. Jason smiles, and my breath
stutters from my lungs because he just sealed my fate. “If anyone isn’t
comfortable to be in the room, you don’t have to stay. I just wanted to get it
all out in the open.”
Keon slides behind Kira and wraps his good arm around her waist. “Do
you want to stay, Mama?”
“Y…yeah. But I don’t⁠—”
“We can watch,” he says smoothly.
“Okay,” she whispers, leaning back against his chest.
“Clothes off,” Ari barks at me.
If he thinks I’m backing down from a challenge, he has another fucking
thing coming. I jerk my shirt off, but before I can reach for my pants, Ari’s
lips are on mine. I groan into the kiss when his tongue strokes mine. The
kiss is rough and demanding. It’s no less than what I expected from Ari. My
hands slide under his shirt, and he leans back long enough for me to pull it
off. Our hands go to each other’s jeans, trying to get them off with hurried
movements.
“Holy shit,” someone whispers, but I’m too far gone to figure out who it
is.
We finally get our pants undone and step back, kicking them off. Ari
hooks a hand on the back of my neck and jerks my lips back to his, both of
us groaning when our bare cocks rub against each other. Ari’s hand slides to
the back of my head, tightening his fist in my hair before jerking my head
back. He starts biting and sucking on my neck. “Get on the bed. Chest
down, ass up.”
“Yes, Papi.” I was aiming for a flippant response, but it came out
breathy. Ari grins, knowing he has me fucked up.
I wink at Kira, whose cheeks are flushed, and her chest rises with harsh
breaths. I climb onto the bed and get into position. I know everyone can see
everything, and I don’t give a fuck. I wiggle my ass at Ari and almost jump
out of my fucking skin when he slaps my ass hard. I feel the bed dip behind
me, and then Ari’s rough hands are sliding up my back. It makes it ten times
hotter because I can feel eyes on us. “Fuck,” Ari breathes, running his hands
back toward my ass.
His hands leave, and I peek over my shoulder to see Gavin handing him
a bottle of lube. There’s life back in Gavin’s eyes, and I almost roll mine
that this is what brought him out of his funk. If I would have known that, I
would have pushed Ari days ago. “Are you helping him get me ready, Pop
Tart?”
Gavin’s eyes flash to Ari, and the grin he gives me makes me fucking
melt. “Nah. I have other plans.” Ari grabs my hips and pulls, so I slide back
on the bed. He reaches over and grabs Jason, pulling him to stand in front of
him. Gavin’s intentions are clear on his face, and he kisses Jason’s neck.
Gavin’s hands slide under Jason’s shirt on the side, and he pauses. “Can I?”
“Yes. Fuck yes.” Gavin chuckles and pulls it over his head. His hands
slide from Jason’s pecs down to the top of his pants. “Please.” Ari’s hands
have paused, and we both watch Gavin undress Jason until he’s standing
naked in front of him. His cock is flexing between his thighs, but he
shuffles his feet, looking uncomfortable.
 Gavin smoothes his hands down Jason’s side, calming him down. “Help
me get undressed, Baby?”
Jason shivers and turns around. I can’t help but reach out and grab a
handful of his ass. I feel Ari press against my ass, his bare cock sliding
through my cheeks. “It’s nice, isn’t it?”
“Yes,” I agree, massaging it as he undresses Gavin.
Jason’s eyes track Gavin’s body when he’s naked, lingering on Gavin’s
long dick. “What now?” Jason says hoarsely.
Gavin grabs Jason’s hand and helps him climb onto the bed. Gavin gets
behind him, both of them on their knees. Gavin turns Jason’s head over his
shoulder, and I can’t stop the noise that leaves my mouth when Gavin’s
tongue slides into Jason’s mouth. Jason whimpers, and his cock jumps.
Ari shifts behind me, and he kisses right on the base of my spine. His
lips travel across both ass cheeks, and I feel him spreading me wide open.
Holy shit. When his tongue slides across my asshole, I stiffen my muscles
so I don’t jerk. Ari chuckles against me and does it again. “You taste good,”
he rasps, and that’s the only warning I get before he buries his face and
starts eating my ass.
“Ari,” I moan, pushing my hips back. He slaps my ass, warning me to
hold still, and I feel the tip of his tongue slide inside me. “Holy fucking
hell.” I look around for Kira and find her sitting on Keon’s lap in the chair
beside the bed. “Are you good?”
Kira nods fast, making Keon chuckle. “You’re more than good, aren’t
you, Mama?” His good hand slides between her legs, over top of her
leggings. “Are you wet from watching them?”
“Yes,” Kira pants. I see the indecision written all over her face, and then
she stands. I feel Ari go still behind me, and I know he senses something
happening. “Stand up.”
Keon gets to his feet, and Kira starts unbuttoning his pants. “Mama?”
“I just…” she takes a deep breath. “I need you.”
Keon watches her face closely. “Are you sure?”
“Yes, but...” She licks her lips nervously. “Just from the waist down.”
He nods in understanding. “We’ve got you.”
“I know,” she whispers, finally accepting what we’ve all been telling
her. She pushes Keon’s pants off his hips, and his cock slaps his stomach.
“I knew it was big,” I say, just for Ari to slap me on the ass again.
 Keon steps out of his pants and slides his hand down Kira’s hip. “Are
you ready?”
She takes several calming breaths before she shoves her pants off her
legs. Keon kneels and helps her step out of them. He runs his hand up the
inside of her thigh, running his fingers through her pussy.
“I want to taste her,” I rasp, making Ari groan behind me. Keon raises a
brow at Kira, and she nods. Keon stands, walks to the bed, and holds his
wet fingers in front of my mouth. I don’t hesitate, sucking them into my
mouth. Her flavor bursts across my tongue, and I can’t wait to bury my face
between her thighs. “Fuck, she tastes good.”
“Yeah, she does,” Keon says gruffly. He sits back in the chair and pulls
her to sit on his lap. He puts her feet on his knees and buries his face in her
neck. “Show them that pretty pussy, Mama.” Kira hesitates, chewing her
bottom lip, and then her legs slowly open. She’s not completely bare, and I
want to run my fingers through the hair there. I can see how wet she is from
here, even as nervous as she is.
“I’m proud of you, Mal’akh.” Kira looks at Ari and relaxes against
Keon’s chest.
“So fucking gorgeous,” Gavin says hoarsely.
She flushes from the attention, but her legs open wider when Keon’s
hand slides down her stomach. He starts rubbing her clit in slow circles.
“Don’t stop,” she gasps, her eyes flashing to us.
“You dirty girl,” I joke, and she giggles breathlessly.
Without warning, Ari’s mouth goes back to my ass, making me moan.
Fuck, he’s good with his mouth. He licks, sucks, and bites around my hole
until my cock is throbbing between my legs. Jason’s face comes into view
as Gavin gently pushes him to lie down. My lips find his, kissing
frantically. This tops anything I’ve ever done in my life. Jason is moaning
into the kiss, and I’m dying to know what Gavin is doing to him, but I don’t
want to pull away.
Ari’s slick fingers slide over my hole, and then he’s pushing one in. I
groan loudly, and Jason pulls back to look at my face. “He’ll take care of
you.”
“I know,” I gasp when he fucks me with it a few times, then adds
another one. “What’s Gavin doing?” I couldn’t look away from Jason’s lust-
filled eyes to see for myself. It turns me the fuck on knowing my man is
making him feel good.
 Jason’s eyes briefly close, and his back arches. “Fucking me with his
fingers. Stretching me.”
“He’s going to fuck that pretty ass,” I rasp. Ari slowly adds a third
finger, and I can’t contain the wince.
Ari’s hand slides over my ass, soothing me. “I need to make sure you’re
ready.”
“He’s so big,” I whisper to Jason, making him chuckle quietly.
“He is, but he knows what he’s doing.”
I finally look up and lock on Gavin’s face. His cheeks are flushed, his
eyes are glazed over, and his cock is hard, pointed at Jason’s ass. “Give it to
him good, Pop Tart.”
Gavin adjusts his hand, and the moan Jason lets go of rattles my bones.
“Fuck,” Gavin grits out. “He’s so tight.”
“Are you ready?” Ari asks, gently sliding his fingers free. I nod and feel
the slick of his cock pressing against my asshole. I take a deep breath and
bear down, letting him slide inside. He’s thicker than Gavin, and I feel the
burn but work through it. “Fuck,” Ari groans, his fingers flexing on my ass.
He stops when he feels me tense, and I bear down harder, pushing back on
him to take him the rest of the way in. When his thighs settle against the
back of mine, we’re both breathing hard. I feel so fucking full, but the pain
is fading. Ari feels me relax and slides a hand under my chest to pull me up
so I’m sitting on his thighs. He sinks deeper, and I moan so loud it should
be embarrassing. Ari kisses my neck. “You’re so tight.” He bites down on
my shoulder and then soothes it with his tongue. “And hot.”
“You feel so fucking good,” I groan, adjusting my hips. I watch Gavin
line up behind Jason and watch him sink every inch of that gorgeous dick in
Jason’s ass. Jason moans through the whole slide, his fingers tightening in
the blanket.
“Gavin,” he gasps when Gavin settles inside him.
“Come here, Baby,” Gavin says gruffly, putting Jason in the same
position as me.
All our eyes pull as one when we hear the soft moan to our left. Keon’s
fingers are buried in Kira’s pussy, finger fucking her hard. “Jesus fuck,” Ari
breathes behind me, and I feel his cock flex.
“Keon,” Kira gasps. “Harder.” He adjusts his arm, letting the heel of his
hand grind against her clit. Within seconds, she’s falling apart in his arms,
chest heaving. Keon slowly pulls his fingers free and, with a grin, licks
them clean.
“Are you ready for my cock, Mama?”
“Yes. God, yes.” All inhibitions gone, Kira lifts, waiting for Keon to
grasp his cock. He aims it at her opening, and she slowly sinks down on
him with a sigh.
“I need to fuck you,” Ari growls in my ear, shuffling me closer to Jason.
“Do it, Papi.” I lift so he has room to move, and he starts fucking me
from the bottom. Gavin moves behind Jason, and I watch his eyelids flutter
as Gavin slides out.
Leaning forward, I lay my lips against Jason’s and wrap my hand
around his straining cock. He whimpers against my lips and does the same
to mine. Ari’s thrusts are rough and deep like he’s trying to get closer. Jason
and I stroke each other, kissing the whole time. It feels like every nerve
ending is exposed. I don’t even give a fuck that I’m moaning with each
thrust of Ari’s cock. It feels too good to care. This is what I’ve been
missing. I think back to every time I pushed Ari past his breaking point,
every smart-ass comment, every flirty comment, and realize it was all to
lead to this point, even though I didn’t know it then. I needed Gavin to open
that part of myself. Now, I fully accept this part of myself, the part that
could just let go, and not let humor cover up how I really feel. I want Ari to
know he’s making me feel good. And he does.
Leaving one hand on Jason’s dick, I brace my other on his thigh and
lean forward, opening myself for Ari. He groans, and his fingers dig into
my hips, pulling me back against his brutal thrust. “Fuck, you’re amazing,”
he grunts.
Jason’s hand tightens on my dick, and I glance up to see Gavin’s hand
wrapped around his throat, his fingers flexing. I let myself get lost in the
pleasure of Ari’s cock inside me, my hand around Jason’s cock, and his lips
on mine. I can hear the wet noises from Keon fucking Kira. My mind is
always swirling fifty miles an hour, except this moment right here. Nothing
is on my mind except what’s going on in this room.
Sweat starts slicking my body, and I feel myself jerking in Jason’s hand,
indicating that I’m getting close. I hear Gavin rasping something in Jason’s
ear, and Jason’s cock swells in my hand. I pull back to watch his back arch,
and his cum lands on my hand. Gavin groans seconds later, coming right
behind him. I raise my hand and greedily suck Jason’s cum from my
fingers.
“Fuck,” Jason whimpers.
Ari jerks me back and shoves my head against the mattress with his
hand against my cheek. “Stroke your cock,” he grits out, and I
automatically wrap a hand around myself.
Ari starts fucking me so hard that all I can do is hang on. My eyes latch
onto Kira, and she’s staring at me, riding Keon’s cock. I can feel this is the
moment that cements our fate. We’re finally giving in to what we’ve been
wanting.
“Oh fuck,” I choke out when Ari slams into me so hard that it edges on
painful. But my hand starts flying faster over my cock, loving it.
“You know how long I’ve wanted to do this?” he rasps. “I’m going to
fill you full of cum and watch it drip out of you. Do you want that, Pretty
boy? You want my cum?”
“Yes,” I hiss, swirling my hand around the head of my cock.
“Are you going to come?” I don’t get a chance to answer because my
release is blazing through me. My cock jerks, and I come so hard my eyes
roll back in my head. “That’s it. Goddamn.” I clamp down so hard on Ari
that his thrusts stutter. He groans long and loud, swelling inside me,
coming.
My eyes flash open when Kira moans and starts coming. Keon comes
right behind her, and she collapses back on his chest, panting.
Ari gently slips from inside me and spreads my ass wide. I can feel his
cum dripping down my balls and shiver. My legs give out from under me,
and I slide to lay on my stomach. Ari and Gavin get us situated on the bed
so me and Jason are face to face. Ari lays behind me, throws one leg over
my ass, and pulls me against his chest. Gavin does the same to Jason. Kira
slides onto the bed behind Ari, Keon behind her.
I know I need to clean up, but my eyes are drifting closed. I smile when
Ari kisses the back of my head.
I fall asleep, my mind calm and so fucking happy.

OceanofPDF.com
 37

ARI

I
wake up covered in sweat. Everything that happened comes back slowly.
I look down at my chest and see Tyler’s reddish-brown hair. He’s
sprawled halfway across my chest, his hand is tucked under my side, and
his leg is thrown over mine.
Last night, after I got my breathing under control, I took him to my
bathroom to clean him up while Gavin took care of Jason and Keon did the
same with Kira. We stayed in the bathtub long after we were both clean, just
soaking in what happened. I waited for him to start joking around, but he
never did. He seemed content to lay between my thighs with my arms
wrapped around him. After the water got cold, we climbed back into bed,
immediately passing out. Everyone else ended up back in here at some
point, too.
I had every intention of teaching him a lesson when I got him upstairs,
but the moment he climbed onto the bed, presenting his ass to me without
hesitation, all that flew out the window. He showed me how much he trusts
me being in such a vulnerable position. Everything else that happened will
be burned into my mind. The noises he made, the way his ass felt around
my cock, the look of pure bliss on Jason’s face as Gavin fucked him,
Gavin’s almost serene look being buried deep in Jason, and the sounds Kira
made.
It shocked the shit out of me when she followed us up and shocked me
even more when she stayed, knowing what was going to happen. I laid it all
out there so there wasn’t any confusion. I was going to fuck Tyler with or
without them in the room. When she got naked and spread those pretty
thighs so we could see her wet pussy, I almost died on the spot.
Tyler groans in his sleep and snuggles closer. I pull him tighter against
me and look over his head at Jason. He’s on his side facing me, Gavin
wrapped around him from behind. I look to my other side, and Kira is
buried against Keon’s side with her back to me. It all felt…right. There
wasn’t any hesitation from any of us to give in to what we wanted. I thought
I’d wake up feeling weird, knowing the guy I’m head over ass in love with
fucked Gavin. Or that I fucked Tyler. But it never comes. I feel at peace
with the decision and have no doubt the rest of them will, too.
I glance at the clock on the bedside table and realize it’s still early. I kiss
the top of Tyler’s head and carefully slide out from under him. I look back
when my feet hit the floor and smile at the frown on his face, even in sleep,
that I’m not there. I go to the bathroom, take care of business, wash my
hands, and slide some sweatpants on. Grabbing my phone on the way out, I
check it for messages and see one from Axel. I press the voicemail and
grimace when his voice fills the line.
“I want to know why the fuck I knew nothing about this goddamn
professor. You should have told me you suspected something going on, not
bring in Nolan. What the hell is going on? Call me back.” I pull the phone
back and look at the time he left it. Shit. He left it last night while we were
all fucking. Something else he couldn’t know about.
With a shrug, not giving a fuck that it’s five-thirty in the morning, I dial
his number. “What the fuck?” he growls on the second ring.
“You told me to call.”
“I didn’t mean at the butt crack of dawn, asshole.” I hear a murmur in
the background and Axel soothing them. A door shuts through the line, and
I brace myself. “Where were you last night?”
“Busy. What has your panties in a wad?”
“You know good and goddamn well why I’m pissed. You should have
told me about this Professor North.”
“Why? I’m more than capable of taking care of it.”
“What else are you keeping from me?”
Oh, you know, I have a stalker, we have a CIA agent gathering
information on us, I’m pretty sure something is up with Professor North,
and we had some sort of crazy six-some last night. “Nothing.”
 “Do I need to call Kane?” And this is exactly why I didn’t tell him shit.
“If Kira is in danger⁠—”
“She’s not,” I bark, getting defensive. “I can take care of my fucking
team, Axel. I’ve been doing it for a long fucking time. Back off.”
The line goes quiet, and then Axel sighs. “Will you tell me when you
need help?”
“Yes.” Probably not.
“I know I haven’t been around much, but I’m still here.”
“Look, you have a family now, and I understand. But you have to
understand that I can take care of mine. If Kira were in any immediate
danger, I would let you know. But she’s not.” I really would, but I don’t feel
like any of this directly affects Kira. I can take care of her just as well as I
take care of my team. “There’s no reason to bring Kane into this just
because I got a weird vibe from one of her professors. You have to trust
me.”
“I do.”
“Then let me do my job.”
“Okay.” Axel clears his throat. “How’s Kira settling in over there?”
I can’t help the ridiculous smile from spreading across my face. “She’s
settling in fine.” I still can’t believe Chelsea hasn’t told him anything. I’m
going to have to send her an expensive gift as a thank you. Kira admitted
telling the girls what was happening, not realizing it could get back to Axel.
But she looked so happy at making friends that I couldn’t bring myself to be
the least bit angry. “I feel better that she’s here and not in the dorms.”
“Me too. Chels loved hanging out with her. She’s already planning the
next girls’ day.”
“She’ll be down,” I laugh.
Axel clears his throat again, and I know he’s gearing up to ask
something. “What’s going on over there, Ari? I know Chelsea is hiding
something, and I don’t like surprises. It’s none of my business, but I don’t
want to be blindsided.”
I consider how much to tell him and settle on something simple. “We’re
taking care of her. That’s all you need to know.”
“Goddamnit, Ari,” Axel says, but he’s not pissed, almost like he
expected it. “Kane will gut every single one of you for touching his baby
sister.”
 “She’s a grown-ass woman.” A good example of that statement is her
standing up to me. I have to admit, it was fucking hot. Until she called me a
bigger ass than Kane. That one kind of stung, but I understood. “I’m not
going to stop what’s happening just because he might throw a tantrum.”
“A tantrum,” Axel says dryly. “He carries a machete around as a
weapon, and Blaze? Is certifiable. They aren’t a joke, Ari. One of the most
important people in both of their lives is Kira. He won’t take this lightly.”
“Whatever. We’ll cross that bridge when we come to it.”
“It’s your funeral. I’m going back to bed since you’re a cocksucker and
woke me up.” The line goes dead, and I walk into my office.
I plug the cloning device into the laptop Nolan gave me, follow his
instructions, and let it run. He said it could take a while, so I set it to the
side. I check the cameras that run constantly like I do every day, and there’s
still no sighting of that black Taurus. We couldn’t even see anything on the
ring camera that we found in the neighborhood where Keon got shot.
The shakiness in Gavin’s voice when he called still sends shivers down
my spine. He was freaked out of his mind but still managed to get Keon
back to us safely. He still doesn’t believe me when I tell him he made the
right call. He’s stuck on the fact that he could have taken the guy out but
didn’t because he felt important. I’ve told them to always listen to their gut,
and Gavin has damn good instincts.
I work for a while longer until I hear movement in the kitchen. When I
walk in, Kira is quietly pulling stuff from the fridge. “Hey,” I say before I
walk over to her so I don’t scare her.
She smiles and turns around, waving her hand behind her. “I wanted to
make breakfast for everyone.”
I pull her into my arms, and she comes willingly, wrapping her arms
around my naked waist. “You don’t have to.”
“I want to.”
I nod and bury my face in her neck. “Are you okay with what happened
last night?”
Kira’s hands smooth down my back, and my head jerks back when she
grabs two handfuls of my ass. “I’m more than okay.”
“Alright then,” I laugh. “Do you need help?”
Kira shakes her head and turns toward the counter. She flicks her wrist
over her shoulder, shooing me away. “No. I’m good. I’ll come get you when
I’m done.”
 “Yes, ma’am,” I grumble but smile when her laughter follows me out of
the kitchen.
When I walk around the corner, Tyler is stepping into the living room,
stretching and yawning. I want to go to him, but I want to see how he reacts
to what happened last night. “Hey, Papi.”
I roll my eyes. I should have known he would be fine. “Hey, shithead.”
Tyler gives me an exaggerated pout. “What happened to Pretty boy?”
“You have to earn that.”
“I can think of a million ways that I would love to earn that title.”
“Shut up,” I grouch but jerk him into a hug. “How are you?”
“My ass is crying if that’s what you’re asking.” I tense up thinking I
hurt him, and he laughs. “I’m fine. Last night…” he shrugs, “was awesome.
No complaints.”
“Are you okay with what happened with Gavin and Jason?”
Tyler rolls his eyes and kisses my chin. “Yes. And they’re fine, too. I
talked to them before coming downstairs. Quit worrying.”
I nod, even though he knows I’m full of shit. “Kira’s fixing breakfast.
She kicked me out of the kitchen.”
“That’s my girl,” Tyler says with a smile, and I can’t help but kiss him.
He melts against me, fully accepting whatever we’re starting between us.
Tyler’s hands rub all over my back, kissing me harder. His hand slides
under the waistband of my sweatpants, going straight for my cock. “Tyler,”
I warn against his lips, grabbing his wrist.
“What?” he asks, wiggling out of my grip. His palm slides against my
dick, making me hiss a breath. “Already hard for me, Papi?” I growl, and
that just seems to make him more determined. His hand wraps around me,
and he gives me a tight stroke. “Take me back upstairs so I can earn that
Pretty boy title. I didn’t get to taste you last night.”
“Fuck,” I grunt when he strokes me again. I’m two seconds away from
doing just that when my phone pings, alerting me that the cloning device is
done. “Later.”
“Fine,” Tyler says dramatically, pulling his hand from my pants. He
gives my ass a pat as he walks by, and I just shake my head, going to my
office.
I load the program for the device, and my heart starts beating faster.
Professor North has three devices in his office. His phone, his school
laptop, and his personal one. I click on the file for the latter and frown. It’s
heavily encrypted. There’s only one reason you should need to do that. I
dial Axel and lay it all out. I know he’s going to get pissed that Kira’s the
one who got this information, but I don’t want to get Nolan in trouble,
either.
“You did what?” he hisses when I’m done talking. “You put Kira at risk
for information?”
“First of all, I told her no. She did it anyway. It’s fine, and there’s
something on this laptop. Are you going to scold me like a misbehaving
child or send Nolan over?”
“He’ll be there in a little bit.” The line goes dead, and I rub my temples.
I fucking knew something was up with that fucking professor. I click
through the other files and don’t really find anything. I go through his
phone calls, text messages, emails, and search history. It’s all pretty basic,
so I click open the picture app. I scroll through them and fucking freeze
when I get to a picture of him smiling with another guy. He’s younger in the
picture, and something is beating at my brain, screaming at me to figure it
out. I know him, but I can’t place from where. I scroll quickly through the
rest of the pictures, and when I don’t find anything, I go back to that and
stare at it.
One way or the other, I’m figuring out who this asshole is.

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 38

KIRA

N
olan is adorably sweet. He showed up right after we finished with
breakfast. Ari took him to his office to work on the encryption, so I
sat in there with them. To my surprise, Ari pulled me down on his lap
in his office chair. I was disappointed that he put a shirt on because I
enjoyed looking at his strong body.
Nolan was sitting on the couch against the wall, typing furiously on the
laptop. He clicked a few buttons and sat it on the coffee table. “It’s running
the encryption keys. It’s going to take a while.”
I remember Chelsea talking about Nolan, about how he is in bed. My
face flushes as I think about it, but I can’t put that together with the sweet
guy sitting there. That line of thinking just sends me back to what happened
in Ari’s room.
I wasn’t naive enough that I didn’t realize what was going to happen
when Ari started dragging Tyler to his room. I also know if I said I wasn’t
ready, none of them would have said anything. But I wanted to be there. I
was turned on the moment I stepped into that room. Watching them get lost
in pleasure while I was fucking Keon was something I thought I’d never
experience. It’s something that I want to happen again, and I have no doubt
that it will. I want to be fully involved next time, though. I want their lips
and hands all over me.
Ari squeezes my thigh, making me look down at him. Somehow, I know
he knows what I’m thinking about. Nolan clears his throat, and Ari looks
back over at him. “I’m surprised Axel let you leave alone.”
Nolan rolls his eyes. “I’m a big boy.”
“Yeah, but I also know how protective his ass is. What did you have to
promise him?”
“Nothing,” Nolan answers, his cheeks going red.
“Uh-huh. I bet he has your ass bent in a pretzel when you get back
home.”
I elbow Ari in the stomach, making him grunt. “Stop embarrassing
him.”
Nolan laughs. “I’m used to it.”
Ari frowns at me and rubs his hard stomach. “Your elbow fucking hurt.”
I give him a sweet smile, and he shakes his head.
“I never thought I’d see the day,” Nolan comments.
“What?” Ari asks.
“The day you met your match.”
“Jason started the hard task of putting him in his place. I picked up the
rest,” I comment, making Ari growl under his breath. I pat his chest. “It’s
okay. We don’t have to pretend here.”
“You’ll pay for that,” Ari says, a promise written in his eyes.
“I like her,” Nolan declares. “She doesn’t put up with your shit. Plus,
she got the girls’ stamp of approval.”
Ari rubs his hand over my back. “I had no doubt they’d love her.”
“Chels is already planning another weekend with her and Jason. You
know everyone is pissed Jason got to come,” Nolan chuckles. I wonder how
mad they would be when they realize he was added to the famous group
chat. We were added after we left on Sunday, and it’s hilarious. They are all
so open, and I can’t wait to tell them what happened last night. I’ve never
had girlfriends, even when I was younger. Everyone looked at me like the
spoiled princess when I really wasn’t. Kane spoiled me endlessly, so did
Blaze, but my father could have given a fuck less. His many wives were
more important. Even though he’s made peace with us since then, more
than making up for his lack of involvement when we were growing up, I
still have a bitter resentment toward him. He didn’t even stick around after
the fire. Kane and Blaze are the ones who spent all those nights in the
hospital with me. Sleeping on the floor or those uncomfortable chairs. But
they never complained. I can remember my dad visiting me twice in the
rehab center, and that was out of obligation, not because he wanted to. I try
to have a relationship with him, but I still struggle with it, just like I know
Kane does. My father wasn’t very accepting of him when Kane told him he
was gay. He was actually really nasty about that announcement. I was the
one Kane leaned on.
“I can’t wait,” I say, pulling myself from those thoughts.
“I’m going to go. I loaded the program on it that Holden and I came up
with so it will do everything. It will notify you when it’s done.”
Nolan says his goodbyes, and when he quietly shuts the door behind
him, I snuggle into Ari’s chest. He wraps both arms around my waist and
holds me tight. “He was nice,” I say.
Ari chuckles. “Nolan’s awesome. How he puts up with Axel, I’ll never
know.”
“He can’t be that bad.”
Ari snorts. “He is. To us, anyway. Axel’s a hardass, but it’s because he
cares. A little too much sometimes.”
I trace the veins in his arm with my finger. “Will you tell me how you
ended up with the Saviors?”
I feel Ari nod. “You know I was in the Army, but you don’t know the
whole story.” He explained to me about the human trafficking his team took
down and how they were punished. “I found Charlie, the old leader, right
after that. I was pissed and out for blood, so he brought me into the Saviors.
It wasn’t…the same then. We were ruthless and did shit we never should
have.” Ari chuckles and tightens his arms. “Then here comes Axel and
Cole, freshly eighteen, forced into the Saviors by Charlie, Axel’s dad. I
didn’t trust them at first, but there was a spark in Axel that I used to see in
myself—that need to help people, so I started listening. It didn’t take long
to oust Charlie, and Axel took over. He brought us back to what the Saviors
were supposed to be.”
“Saving people?”
“It took us some time, but yeah. We made the Saviors’ name mean
something. We knew Charlie would be looking for us, so Axel disbanded all
the teams except for his and mine. The Saviors went dark, and we started
hunting from the shadows.”
“Where’s Charlie now?”
“Dead,” Ari says bluntly. “He almost killed Axel and his team over a
year ago. Axel ended him. Once Charlie was dead, Axel started building the
teams again.”
 I turn around in his arms and rub my hand up his cheek. I press my lips
against his, and he sighs into the kiss, deepening it. I no longer feel self-
conscious about the scarring that tugs on my lip when they kiss me. I no
longer feel like they’ll be disgusted by my scars. I trust them
wholeheartedly, and I didn’t think that’s something that would ever happen.
The Saviors saved me from myself.

I t would take hours for the computer to work through the encryption. I
sadly had to go to class after the hot as hell make-out session with Ari in his
office. I felt a little guilty when I ran into Professor North, and he was as
nice as he always is. Was it all an act? Was he just using me to get
information on the guys? He barely asked questions about them, but they
came up in conversation sometimes, but it’s always about Tyler and Gavin.
They’ve stayed mostly out of sight since their run-in with him.
When I leave the building after my last class, Gavin is leaning against
the hood of the car with his arms crossed over his chest. He straightens
when he sees me, giving me that smile I’ve missed so much since Keon got
shot. I know he blamed himself, but I wasn’t sure I knew how to help him. I
think being invited to join last night showed him that he’s still accepted.
“Hey, Baby girl,” he greets me when I make it to him. He pulls me into his
arms, and I have to strain to look up at him. He kisses the tip of my nose.
“How was your day?”
I stretch up on my tiptoes to peck his lips. “Good. Where’s Tyler?”
“He had to go do something with Ari.”
“Oh. Is everything okay?”
“I think so. Ari didn’t say anything when he picked him up, and it didn’t
sound urgent. You ready to go home?”
“Yep.”
He helps me in the car and jogs to his side. After he backs out of the
spot, he reaches over and laces his fingers with mine, laying them on my
thigh. I can’t help the ridiculous feelings that flood through me at just the
simple gesture. They all find some way to touch me like this, and it makes
my heart melt. Gavin sings softly to the radio on the way home, and when
he pulls up at the house, he’s out, opening my door before I have a chance
to grab my backpack.
Gavin leads me inside with his hand on the small of my back. When we
step into the living room, Keon walks in to greet us with a grim look on his
face. “We got the files loaded.” We follow him into the office, where Ari
and Tyler are waiting. They load it onto the big screen, and I sit on the
couch between Gavin and Keon.
“He has files on the CIA agent,” Ari says, flipping through documents.
“What do you think that means?” I ask.
“I don’t know. But why the fuck would a teacher have classified
information on someone in the CIA?”
“Is it more than what Nolan found?” Tyler asks.
Ari nods. “He has all this guy’s aliases, safe houses, everything. Nolan
couldn’t even dig this shit up.” He looks around the room. “There’s a good
reason why he might have it. He’s CIA, too.”
“What?” Jason says. “You think this professor is CIA?”
“He could have been put in place if he realized who Kira is,” Ari
answers.
“We were careful,” I reply. “I’m under an assumed name, and Kane had
nothing to do with my enrollment. The tuition didn’t even come from my
regular account. It’s under Kira Croft with just enough money to cover it.”
“You had another advisor, right?” Tyler asks, and I nod. “They could
have faked the records on the old one so they could explain Professor
North. They either did that for you or us. Either way, it’s not good.”
“You’re thinking North is a plant,” Keon guesses.
Tyler shrugs. “Yeah. He befriends Kira, acts dodgy around Ari, and
doesn’t seem to like me or Gavin even though we’ve never done shit to
him. What teacher is aware enough to notice two guys hanging around
campus? We weren’t anywhere near his class when he approached us, so
that means he was looking for us.”
Ari scrolls through the rest of the documents, and his face hardens. “He
has the files that you found at that house.”
“Is it the same guy?” Tyler asks. “Maybe that CIA file is his file.”
Ari brings up the picture of Professor North and the one Nolan found on
Agent Lincoln Miller. We look closely, and at first, you can’t see the
resemblance. Lincoln Miller has blonde hair and blue eyes. Professor North
has dark hair and eyes. Ari zooms in on both pictures, and I feel my blood
run cold. They have the same eye shape, build, and smirk in their pictures.
“Motherfucker!” Ari explodes, pulling up another picture. He sets it in
the center of the two guys, and I know, without a doubt, they’re the same
guy. Professor North is younger in the picture, but his hair is lighter from
being out in the sun. “I fucking knew I recognized him. The guy at High
Flyer was meant to blend in, and he did. He fucking played me.”
“What happens now?” I ask.
Ari rolls his neck to relieve tension. “We bring in Professor North for
questioning.”

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 39

JASON

F
or once, when Ari asked me not to go to the bar, I listened. I might not
have been in this life long, but I could feel something brewing. Finding
out that Professor North is the same guy as the CIA agent asking about
the Saviors put Ari in full protective mode. I called one of my bartenders to
fill in and told her to cover for me until I said otherwise. When she asked
why, I told her Ari wanted to take me somewhere. She is one of my best and
readily agreed. I know I can trust her to take care of the place.
Kira and I watched from the sidelines as the guys devised a plan for
Professor North. Was he the one who shot Keon? That was at the house they
originally tracked him to, but they weren’t certain who was there. Tyler
wants to storm the school and grab him, but Ari told him that wouldn’t be
smart with that many witnesses.
“We need to follow him when he leaves,” Gavin says. “Grab him then.”
“I should have fucking known,” Ari sighs, raking a hand down his face.
“CIA agents are trained to blend. I should have seen the resemblance.”
“What about the stalker?” I ask quietly.
Ari shakes his head and squeezes my leg. “Different build. Which
means we’re still looking for them.”
I know Ari is still hiding stuff from me, and as much as I want to know,
I don’t want to push him. I just have to wait until he’s ready to tell me.
Whatever it was had to do with that file. I’ve never seen him shaken, but he
was when he read whatever was in there.
 While they’re planning, I decide to go to the kitchen to fix lunch for
everyone. I’m just setting everything on the counter when I feel arms wrap
around me from behind. I think it’s Ari at first, but then I smell Gavin’s
cologne. He pulls me back against his chest and lays his chin on my
shoulder. “I just wanted to make sure you were still okay about last night.”
I smile and rub his arm. “I am. Thank you for asking, though.”
“I just don’t want you to regret it.”
I turn in his arms and wrap my arms around his neck to look into his
gorgeous blue eyes. “I’d never regret it. Like I told you this morning, I
wouldn’t have let it happen if there was any doubt. I don’t have any. About
any of you.”
I feel some of the tension leave Gavin’s shoulders, and he leans down to
kiss me. It’s soft and sweet. He pulls back, smiles at me, and disappears
back toward the office.
I turn back to start lunch and let my mind wander. Last night exceeded
every expectation that I had. It surprised me that it was Gavin, to be honest.
All the guys show me every bit of affection that they show Kira. Although
Gavin does too, he’s more reserved. So when he whispered in my ear last
night that he wanted to bend me over in front of Ari and Tyler, I melted.
Everything that was happening in the room made everything that much
sexier. From Gavin’s whispered words in my ear to when he sunk inside
me, watching Tyler’s face as Ari fucked him, and I was even transfixed by
watching Keon slide in and out of Kira. She didn’t turn me on, but I was
turned on by the fact that she turns them on. I worried at first that it would
ruin the mood for me if I watched her with them, but that wasn’t the case at
all.
I get everything done for homemade pizza and pop it in the oven. While
I’m waiting, I check the group chat with all the girls. I’m still stoked that
they added me, and Bridget said she couldn’t wait for Gage and Caden to
find out.
Bridget: Anyone want another guy? I’m selling Caden dirt cheap.
Les: What did he do now?
Bridget: He backed into my car!
Evie: You wouldn’t get rid of him even if he ran YOU over.
Bridget: Lmao. You got me there.
Chelsea: At least you know your weaknesses.
Kira: I’ll trade you Caden for Tyler.
 Bridget: Hell to the fuck no. Tyler is like Caden times ten
sometimes, and that’s bad.
Kira: *laughing crying face* I can’t get rid of Tyler anyway. I’m
kind of attached.
Jason: Same.
Bridget: JASON!!! How’s Daddy Ari treating you?
Jason: Really good.
Kira: Ask him about Gavin. *smirking face*
I feel my face flush and cuss Kira in my head, even though I’ve been
dying to talk about it.
Bridget: Waitttttttt. Hold the fuck up. You and Gavin? SPILL,
BITCH!
Les: I’m not going to lie. I’m all eyeballs right now. I’m curious as
fuck.
Evie: *eyeball emoji*
Chelsea: Start talking.
Jason: I don’t even know where to begin explaining what happened
last night.
Kira: I’ll start. So, as always, Tyler was talking shit to Ari. Just
another day. Then Ari just…snaps. Like marches over, grabs Tyler by
the throat, and is all, ‘What that mouth do?’
I laugh out loud at that description and can imagine Kira in the other
room giggling.
Kira: Then he drags Tyler from the room, telling me to follow them.
He gets Gav, Jason, then Keon. We end up in Ari’s room.
Bridget: Girl, I’m already breathing hard.
Evie: Lmao. My eyes are glued to the screen right now.
Jason: Ari gives us this little speech about how we’ve all been
feeling the sexual tension. This was our time to do something about it.
Kira: Ari and Tyler start making out. Then rip each other’s clothes
off.
Les: I might have to find one of my guys after this.
Bridget: SAME!
Jason: While Ari and Tyler are doing their thing, Gavin whispers in
my ear that he wants to bend me over in front of them.
Chelsea: Shut. The. Fuck. Up. Gavin?! Sweet, innocent-looking
Gavin?
 Bridget: You can’t hear me but I just snorted so fucking loud.
Gavin is FAR from innocent. He is Ghost’s brother.
Kira: Keon pulls me down on his lap to watch. Fully clothed. He
kept rubbing me through my pants, whispering how sexy I was, and
asking me um…how…*water emoji* I was.
Bridget: Don’t be shy. He was asking how wet you were.
I hear Kira laughing from the other room, and one of the guys asking
her what’s so funny.
Jason: While Ari was fucking Tyler, Gavin fucked me.
Kira: And I fucked Keon.
Bridget: Holy shit. *fans self*
Chelsea: So, is Gavin like what Tyler said?
Jason: A hundred percent. He was squeezing my throat and
growling things in my ear.
Les: I got tingles.
Kira: Jay, don’t forget what you and Tyler were doing.
Evie: There’s more?!
Jason: We were giving each other a helping hand.
Bridget: I could write some damn good porn stories from this chat,
and we could be billionaires.
“Hey, Sweet cheeks.” My head jerks up at Ari’s voice, and for some
reason, I guiltily slide my phone into my pocket. He frowns. “Talking to
your other boyfriend?”
I sigh. “No. I was talking to the girls in the group chat.”
“Wait,” Ari laughs. “You got added? The other guys are going to flip
shit. They’ve been trying to get in there forever. Kira in it, too?”
“Uh, yeah.”
“What do you guys talk about in there?” Before I have to come up with
a lie, the timer on the oven goes off. I gladly turn around and pull the pizzas
out. When I turn back around from setting them on the counter, Ari’s
standing right behind me.
“Just…stuff.”
“Just stuff,” Ari repeats doubtfully.
“Yeah.” I shove at his chest playfully, and he doesn’t move an inch. “It’s
between us girls.”
Ari smiles and pecks my lips. “I’m glad you have them to talk to. I’m
also glad you and Kira have each other.” He kisses me again. “I love you.”
 “I love you too.”
I’ll never get tired of hearing that from him.

A fter lunch , Ari asked if I needed anything from my apartment before

they grabbed Professor North, or whatever his name was, because they
weren’t sure what was going to happen.
On the way there, Ari checks to make sure I’m okay after last night.
With a roll of my eyes, I tell him that I’m fine. That just made him say that
he was going to spank me for rolling my eyes at him. When he pulls up in
front of the apartment, he makes me wait in the truck for him to sweep it.
He said it shouldn’t take him more than ten minutes to make sure the whole
place was safe, so when it starts creeping up to fifteen minutes, I start
getting nervous.
Instead of getting out of the truck to check because I know he’ll yell at
me, I pull my phone out. But when I dial his number, it rings inside the
truck. I look in the console under the dash, where he usually lays it, and
sure enough, it’s right there.
“Damn it,” I mutter, unsure of what to do. What if something happened
to him? What the hell was I going to do?
I wait another five minutes before I shove my door open and slowly
walk into my apartment complex. I head up the stairs and stare at my door
before checking the knob. It’s still locked which confuses the hell out of
me. Where the hell is Ari? With shaking hands, I stick the key in the lock
and turn it. I gently push the door open and listen for any sounds. When I
don’t hear anything, I slowly step inside.
The first thing I notice is that the place is clean. Ari or one of the guys
must have come back to clean up the mess that asshole made. I’m just
moving through the living room, when a guy dressed in dark tactical gear
steps out from the bedroom. His face is covered with a black helmet, and
he’s huge. Stupid! Stupid! Stupid! I should have stayed in the truck. I try to
run, but he grabs me before I even make it through the door. He wraps an
arm around my waist and drags me back into the apartment.
“Package acquired,” he says in a gruff voice, and I assume he’s talking
to someone else.
 My fight or flight kicks in, making me start kicking and fighting like
hell. The guy just tightens his arm and starts carrying me to the fire escape.
“What are you doing?!” I yell, pushing at his arm.
“Shut up,” he hisses. “We can do this the easy way or hard way.”
“Where is Ari?!” I swing my head back and know that I made contact
when pain explodes in my skull. His hold loosens, and I jerk out of his
arms.
My hand lands on the knob, and his body slams into me, making my
face bounce off the door. I can feel the blood pouring down my lips and
chin. He grabs me again, and I swing blindly at him, trying to get the door
open. “Stop!” He spins me around, pins me to the door, and his hand wraps
around my throat, squeezing hard. Pain rips down my chest, and my
breathing is cut off. He punches me in the stomach, which makes me try to
double over, but I can’t with his hand on my throat. With one last shot of
adrenaline, I use his hold to my advantage. I push back against the door, lift
my feet, and kick him in the stomach.
He stumbles back, his hold slipping. I’m up on my feet, ripping the door
open. I make it into the hallway, opening my mouth to yell, when he grabs
my hair and yanks me back into the apartment. I feel something slide into
my neck, and a slight sting.
Then everything goes black.

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 40

KIRA

hat if I lure him out?” I say.

“W When Ari and Jason left for his apartment, the guys were still
trying to come up with a plan. They were going to follow him but
didn’t know what or who he would have waiting at his house. Keon was
afraid it could be a trap, that Professor North could be waiting for this
opportunity. I agreed that he was probably right.
“No,” Keon says without hesitation. “I’m not putting you at risk.”
“He’s not going to hurt me.” He’s had so many chances, and he never
has. “This might be our only chance.”
“Our chance,” Gavin says, pointing at him and the guys. “You aren’t
getting involved in this.”
“I’m already involved,” I argue. “I got the information.”
“You did,” Tyler says softly. “But he didn’t know what you were doing.
This would put you in the front lines, and that’s not happening.”
“I just want to help.”
“We know you do, Mama. This is too dangerous.” Keon looks at the
guys. “Should we call in Axel?”
Tyler snorts. “And go behind Ari’s back? Nah. We can figure this out.”
Keon glances at me and then back at the guys. “Do you think this has
anything to do with Ari’s dad?”
“Why would Ari’s dad be working with the CIA?” Tyler asks. “When he
has his own…” Tyler trails off, and I know this goes into the territory that I
can’t know anything about. Growing up with Kane, I already knew this was
a part of the life—some things you just didn’t need to know.
Keon scrubs a hand over his face. “I don’t know. I’m just trying to
figure this shit out.”
“I would assume Ari’s dad would come at him head-on,” Gavin replies.
“He has the power.” Now this is making me damn curious about Ari’s dad.
He sounds powerful.
“He probably would,” Keon sighs. “Fuck.”
“I still say let me lure him out. I can say I got into a fight with Tyler and
Gavin and need a ride home. You guys can be waiting for him somewhere.
That way you can grab him and not have to worry about if he has someone
waiting.”
“That’s a damn good plan, Baby girl. But what if he just shoots you
when he sees us. Then what? He might be nice to you at school, but that’s
his cover. We don’t know how dangerous he actually is.”
It actually kind of sucks to think that all of the conversations I had with
Professor North were fake. Hell, his name isn’t even Professor North. We
aren’t even sure if it’s Lincoln Miller. He had more than twenty aliases in
that file.
All their phones start making a loud beeping sound. I see the panic all
over their faces, and Keon pulls it from his pocket. “That’s Jason’s distress
signal.”
“His what?” I ask, standing up when they do.
“Jason has an app on his watch,” Tyler starts explaining, already
grabbing my hand and leading me to the front door. I slide my shoes on
without question. “Jason has a heart condition. When Ari started seeing
him, he cloned it and put it on everyone’s phone just in case he couldn’t get
to him.”
Keon calls Ari, and it goes straight to voicemail. The same thing
happens when he calls Jason’s phone. “What the fuck?” he mutters, trying it
again. “We need to move. Something’s wrong.”
“I can feel it,” Gavin agrees.
We all pile into one of the SUVs Keon stole, and he drives straight to
Jason’s apartment. They’re all on edge, and my heart is thumping in my
chest. Keon roughly jerks his sling off, and I have to bite my lip to keep
from saying anything. He just got shot, and he’s nowhere near healed.
 “What are we going to do with Kira?” Tyler asks, giving me an
apologetic look.
“She can’t stay in the car,” Keon answers. “This might be a set-up.”
Gavin reaches under the seat and pulls out a handgun. He checks the
clip and then hands it to me. “Stay with us. Shoot without question.”
Tyler helps me put a vest on, and I take a deep breath to calm my
nerves. They need to make sure Jason and Ari are safe, not worry if I’m
going to fall apart. “Breathe, Little warrior,” Tyler murmurs. “You’ve got
this.”
Their phones beep again, and when Keon glances at his, he stomps on
the gas. “What’s going on?” I ask, surprised my voice is steady.
“His heart rate just dropped,” Keon answers. Tyler hands him a vest,
and Keon drives with his knee, putting it on. I have to admit, it’s
impressive, and I can tell they’ve done this before. “Keep trying them.”
Tyler dials both numbers and shakes his head. “Still nothing.”
Keon roars into the parking lot and pulls in behind the car Ari was
driving. “They made it here.” I can tell by the sound of his voice that he
doesn’t know if that’s a good thing or not. Keon sits for a second and seems
to come to a decision. “I’m going to check the car. Call Axel.”
He jerks a mask on and is out of the car before anyone can reply. “Oh,
sure. Leave me to call him,” Tyler grouches, dialing and flipping it
speakerphone.
“Hello?” Axel answers.
“We need back-up.” He rambles off the address for Jason’s apartment
and a quick rundown of what’s going on, and I can already hear movement
over the line. “We’re going in.”
“Where’s Kira?” Axel asks and then barks something in the background.
“With us. We couldn’t leave her alone.”
“You should have fucking brought her here,” Axel growls, and I cringe.
He’s pissed.
“We didn’t have time!” Tyler argues. “Just…get here.”
“Do not go into that apartment,” Axel says.
“We can’t wait. She has a gun. Something’s wrong.”
“Goddamnit, Tyler.”
Tyler hits the end call button and turns in the seat. “Put your mask on.
There should be an extra one in Keon’s tool bag.”
 Gavin rummages around in it and hands me a black mask with a skull
on it. I know it won’t fit over my beanie, so I’ll have to take it off. Now
isn’t the time for me to worry about it, so I jerk it off without a second
thought. Before I can slide the mask on, Gavin gently kisses the top of my
bald head, bringing tears to my eyes. Tyler gives me a soft smile, and I
realize all the freaking out over it was stupid. They don’t care. I pull the
mask on and tuck the beanie into the back pocket of my jeans.
Keon jerks his head for us to follow him, so we slide out of the car.
Keon pulls me behind him with Tyler and Gavin behind me. When he pulls
his gun in front of him, I see the slight wince from moving his arm. I point
my gun at the floor, but my eyes are swinging everywhere. The apartment
complex sounds eerily quiet, and goosebumps pop up on my skin. We walk
slowly up the stairs, and when we get to an apartment door, Keon pulls me
to the side behind him. Gavin nods from the other side, reaching for the
knob. He twists it, and Keon pushes it the rest of the way open. They move
in, and on instinct, I follow closely behind them.
Keon pulls me to the side of the door. “Stay here,” he whispers and then
lifts my hands so my gun is in front of me. I adjust my grip and jerk a nod.
“Good girl.”
I check out the apartment from my position and suck in a breath when I
see the blood on the door. Oh God. Was one or both of them hurt? You can
see where someone struggled in the living room, and my gut clenches.
“Clear,” the guys call out, making me relax a little.
“There’s blood on the door,” I whisper.
Keon pushes his mask to the top of his head. “What the fuck is going
on?”
“We can check the perimeter,” Tyler offers. “Stay here with Kira.”
“I don’t want to split up,” Keon says.
Gavin gestures to the stuff that’s knocked over and the blood on the
door. “Someone got hurt here. We can’t just stand here with our thumb up
our asses.”
“We wait for Axel,” Keon barks, and it’s the first time I’ve heard him
use that tone of voice.
“What’s that smell?” I ask, my entire body seizing. “That’s smoke.” No
sooner than the words leave my mouth, all hell breaks loose.
I hear the guys yelling and turn back to see them swarmed by guys with
dark tactical gear and helmets. There are at least ten of them. “Get out of
here, Kira!” one of them yells, but my body is frozen in place.
“Get the fuck off me,” Keon growls, punching one guy in the face and
roundhouse kicking another. I can hear more fighting in the bedroom and
know that Gavin and Tyler are in there.
I raise my gun without a second thought and pull the trigger, hitting the
guy on Keon. He stumbles back but recovers quickly, running back at him
with a growl. More shots are fired, and Keon is running toward me.
“Get her out of here!” Tyler yells and then grunts.
Keon grabs my hand, jerks the door open, and I try to pull away. “We
can’t leave them!”
“We aren’t.” His voice is calm, but I can feel the slight tremor in his
arm. “I just need to get you to Axel.” Keon pulls me toward the steps and
stops dead in his tracks. The entire stairwell is on fire, indicating where the
smell was coming from. I back up quickly, my eyes going blurry with fear.
“I’ll get you out of here,” Keon says gently, pulling me back the other way.
I sigh with relief when I see the back stairwell. Keon kicks the door open,
and we jog down the steps only to get to the first-floor landing and see that
it’s already burning.
“What do we do?” I can’t keep the tremble out of my voice, and Keon
squeezes my hand.
“They’re trying to flush us out to the fire escape.”
Keon pulls the door back open to take us into the hallway, and he sees
the guy at the same time as me. He’s wearing the same gear as the other’s,
and he doesn’t hesitate to pull the trigger. The bullets slam into Keon, and
he falls back through the door. “Oh my God!” I hear him roll down the
stairs, and I can’t stop the tears from streaming down my face. I try to run to
him, but the guy grabs my arm. “Let me go.” I swing the gun up, but he
knocks it out of my hand.
He starts dragging me down the hallway, and his body jerks several
times, then slumps to the floor. There is so much noise that I didn’t even
hear what happened. My head swings up, and all the breath leaves me.
Professor North is standing there dressed head to toe in black, holding an
automatic, and has a hard look on his face.
“Let’s go.” His voice is deep and gruff, sounding nothing like his
normal voice. I shake my head, and he takes a slow step toward me. “I have
a way out, but we have to move now.”
“N…n…no. I can’t leave with you.”
 “This whole place is about to go up in flames. Let’s go.”
“I can’t leave them!” I start to back up, and he takes measured steps
toward me. I have no idea where I’m even supposed to go. Keon is just
beyond this door, probably bleeding to death, and the fire would have to be
close to him by now. A loud crash sounds from behind me, and I whirl
around, shoving the door open. Part of the roof collapsed, obscuring my
view from Keon. “NO! KEON!”
“We have to move.” Professor North grabs my arm and spins me
around. “I’m not who you think I am. Everyone is pinned down. They were
waiting to ambush whoever showed up. You can either let me get you to
safety or burn in this building.” He softens his voice on that last bit,
probably already knowing my life history. “You have to trust me.”
With a sigh, he wraps an arm around my waist, pulling me with him.
I’m so shocked by everything going on that I don’t react at first. But then he
pushes me into another apartment, and I snap out of my shock. “NO! LET
ME GO!” I swing back and up with my elbow, which he evades easily.
“I’m not going to hurt you.”
“How do I know that?!” I jerk out of his hold and whirl around.
“They’re going to die in there!”
“You’ll die if you stay. I’m trying to help.” He grabs me by my upper
arm and pulls me into the bedroom. I swallow the lump in my throat when I
see two other guys dressed like him, but their faces are covered. “I’m
sorry,” he whispers, and I feel the sting of the needle.
The last thing I remember is crying for Keon.

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 41

ARI

I
wake with a groan, my head fucking throbbing. All my training kicks in,
and I freeze, taking in my surroundings. I’m in a concrete cell with a
thick metal door. No windows, bed, or sink—just a urinal stuck in the
corner. My hands are in handcuffs and shackled with a thick chain to the
cuffs around my legs. I know exactly where I am.
A military holding cell.
I close my eyes, take a breath, and think back to what the hell happened.
Jason and I were going to his apartment, I told him to stay in the car while I
searched, and then I got fucking ambushed going into the stairwell. They
were on me before I could blink, so they knew I was trained. That doesn’t
mean I didn’t drop a couple of bodies before they grabbed me. One of the
guys barked that the package was on its way into comms while another slid
a needle into my goddamn neck. Where the hell is Jason? Dread settles in
my gut. I can hope all I want that he called one of the guys when I didn’t
come back, but I know better. He went into that fucking apartment building
looking for me. Did they grab him? Did he get away?
Before my thoughts can spiral, I hear the heavy deadbolt on the door
sliding free with a squeal. The door is jerked open, and this asshole is
wearing the same tactical gear as the ones who grabbed me. “Let’s go,” he
barks, wrapping a hand around my bicep and jerking me to my feet. He
shoves me toward the door, making me stumble because of the shackles. I
can’t do shit about it either. They have the chain shortened to where I can’t
even stand up all the way. Whoever grabbed me knows what I’m capable
of. He shoves me again, and I whirl around.
“I’m fucking walking, you jackass. Shove me one more time.”
“What are you going to do?” he sneers, hiding behind his helmet.
“Walk.”
He spins me around, shoving me again. I grit my teeth to hold my
temper and walk down the dimly lit hallway. I take in everything around me
so that I can get my bearings. There are several cells down here, and I can’t
tell if anyone else is in them. “Where’s Jason?” He ignores me just like I
figured he would. “I’ll gut everyone in here if you hurt him.”
“You won’t do shit. He’s waiting for you.”
“Who’s he?” Nothing.
We walk through three doors, each one he has to unlock. When we walk
through the last door, there are guards everywhere. I raise a brow and
glance over my shoulder. “Are you that scared of me? I’m one person.”
“We know what you can do and who you were trained by.” My
shoulders stiffen at that comment, my teeth gritting so hard, so I’m
surprised they aren’t dust. “Nothing to say now, asshole?”
He shoves me again, and this time, I sprawl on the floor. I roll to my
back, and he makes the mistake of leaning over me. I pull my legs back and
kick with all my strength, hitting him square in the jaw. He grunts and falls
to his ass. I roll to my feet, already waiting for the other guards to grab me.
Three of them rush me, and two grab my biceps to drag me the rest of the
way. The third is walking behind me with an automatic at my back.
We get to another door, but they key in a code for this one. When we
walk in, I have to blink at how fucking bright it is. A table sits in the middle
of the floor, and more guards line the walls. They shove me into a chair and
quickly hook my cuffs to the table. One positions themselves behind me
and the others step into line with the other guards. My head is still pounding
from whatever they drugged me with, but my mind is clear. This has my
father written all over it.
I sit there for a long time, just staring at the wall, when I hear the
beeping on the door. Two guards open it, and I frown when the man who
walks through isn’t my father. It’s my uncle. “Too afraid to face me
himself? You’re still his little bitch boy, I see.” I don’t expect the blow, but
it comes from behind me. The asshole punches me right in the kidney, but I
refuse to make a sound.
 “I see you still have a big mouth,” my uncle, Abraham, replies. “Did
you really think you could get away with your little stunt in the hallway?”
He walks further into the room but keeps his distance. Good. He’s still
scared of me.
“I knew I couldn’t get loose, but damn, it felt good kicking that
motherfucker in the face. You want to get to the point. Where is he?”
“I’m here to take you back.”
I can’t help it; I laugh. “I think the fuck not. You might as well just kill
me.”
“You disgraced this family,” he hisses. “We can do this peacefully,
Aryeh.”
“The shackles tell a different story.” I pull on them for emphasis,
making them clank against the table. The asshole behind me punches me
again. I grit my teeth but don’t say a word. “Just put a bullet in my skull. I’ll
never go back.”
“Your rightful spot is by his side. He won’t name a successor because
you aren’t there.”
“I bet that burns your ass up, doesn’t it? That he would rather pick the
disgraceful son and not you.” Another punch, but this one gets me right in
the ribs. Other than a gasp of breath, I stay quiet. “Where the fuck is
Jason?”
“Oh, you mean the faggot you were with? We took care of him.”
All the anger rises to the surface from him calling him that and that they
hurt him. “Where?” I growl.
“It’s not so funny now, is it? We got the rest of your team, too. It was
rather easy, if I do say so myself.”
I count to ten before I open my mouth. “It only took you how many
years and soldiers? Good job.”
“I was surprised they had the girl with them.”
My body seizes, but I don’t react. “What girl?”
He waves his hand. “The one with the ugly scars.”
I slam my fists down on the table and stand up. “Watch your goddamn
mouth.”
Abraham flicks a hand up, no doubt stopping the guy from hitting me
again. “Agree to come with me now.”
“Or what?” My mind is racing. What does he mean he took care of
Jason? How the hell did they get the rest of the team?
 Abraham waves at someone, and they sit a laptop in front of me.
There’s a live feed of Jason’s apartment building completely engulfed in
flames. He hits several keys, and I stop breathing when I see one of the
other cars we stole parked behind mine. No. There’s no way they would
have run into that building. They wouldn’t have risked Kira. They would
have checked the… I can’t even finish that thought because I can feel the
stinging on the back of my neck, meaning they cut my fucking tracker out.
“Is that enough for you? Or do you need to see bodies?”
I calmly sit back down, which only seems to piss him off more. “I want
proof.”
“Your father is the director of Mossad, and I demand you give him more
respect than this!”
“My father can eat my ass. He doesn’t deserve respect when he let
Avina die.” All that bullshit, saving them, getting kicked out of the Army,
was for nothing. Avina died months later because of an infection that my
father refused to have looked at because she was “impure.” He didn’t give a
fuck that she was raped for months. He let her die from infection and fever,
saying it was her punishment from God. I never even got to see her again
because my father wouldn’t let me step foot in Israel. With Mossad being a
top Israeli intelligence agency, there’s no way I would have even been able
to sneak in to see her. All I got was a terse voicemail telling me my sister
was dead.
“You know why that had to happen.”
I lean back in the chair, no longer willing to talk. My mind is on Jason,
Kira, and my team. My only hope is that he’s bluffing and they’re all safe.
That Jason got away, my team didn’t do something as stupid as bringing
Kira to look for me, and they called Axel for help. With me out of
commission, it would have put Keon in charge. He’s level-headed, and I
have to believe he made the right call.
Abraham nods. “I figured you’d make this difficult. Take him back.”
“Why don’t you just show me proof?” The guards roughly undo my
cuffs from the table and start marching me from the room. “SHOW ME
PROOF!” I yell, struggling in their hold. “SHOW ME, YOU PUSSY!”
I struggle all the way back to the hallway where my cell is, except they
push me into a room with a chair in the middle. Shit. They shove me in it,
quickly undo my cuffs, and snap them back on with my arms behind my
back. My legs are strapped seconds later, and one of the guards stands up.
He flips a phone around, and I almost throw up. Jason is curled up on a
dirty mattress, unconscious. “What did you do to him? Where is he?” He
has a heart condition, and he can’t handle it if they dosed him with
something to knock him out. Fuck! If his heart rate dropped, and the guys
were alerted, there’s no doubt that they took off to his rescue, thinking the
worst. “WHERE IS HE?!” My voice raises to deafening levels, but I can’t
pull my temper back in. The lid I normally put on it so I don’t show my
enemies my weaknesses is gone. “WHERE IS HE?!” I start jerking in the
chair, trying to get my arms free. I’ll rip my goddamn arm off to get to him.
The guard lashes out, punching me right in the face. “The rest of your
team was in the building.” He hits me again, and my head flies back. “So
was the girl.”
The five in the room start wailing on me. Punching anywhere they can
get a hit in. I have no way of getting away or blocking them. My heart is
already breaking. Is my team really gone? Kira? Does that mean Jason is
next? The chair tips over, and they start kicking. There’s no way they’ll let
Jason live. They showed me proof, and if they have him, that means
everything else is true. Everyone is dead. I let my mind be swallowed by
the grief because it’s all my fucking fault. I knew one day my father would
come for me, and I ignored it. Now they took my family from me. One of
the guards kicks me so hard in the face that it makes my vision waiver.
So, I let the darkness take me.

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 AFTERWORD

I feel like sometimes I need to peek out of my hiding spot to write these,
lol. Yes, that cliffhanger was brutal, but you know I’ll fix it. It might be hard
won but….

Also, preorder Beta Team-The Saviors Part two here!

Follow me for updates!

TikTok: author.ames.mills
Instagram: author.ames.mills
Facebook: Ames Mills’ Black Demons

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 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

Book number eleven. Holy shit.

When I first started this journey I had no idea anyone would even read my
books. Now I have a group of dedicated readers that I’m truly grateful for.
Last year was a huge test in my writing career. I suffered a lot of backlash
surrounding Kane, writer burnout, self doubts and so much more. But
through it all, my readers trusted me and gave me the strength to go on. I
think a lot of people forget we’re human. We get upset, frustrated, tired, and
sad. We can’t always have good days. So, thank you to the ones who
remember we have feelings just like everyone else.

Okay. Enough of that.

Alpha Team: Nicole, Alex, Suzi, Amy

You guys are literally my rock. You give me a safe space in alpha chat to
vent, come to you with my insane ideas, a kick in the ass when I think I
suck, or anything else that I can think of. You guys aren’t just my alpha
team. You’ve turned into some of my closest friends. I couldn’t do this with
out any of you. Thank you and I love you.
OG Beta Team: Gina, Montanna, Martha, Nikki

You guys have been with me through a lot of books now and you always
trust me to give you my best. And to fix whatever I broke, lol. Thank you
for being my last set of eyes before it gets sent out. You guys always give
your all for me and I truly appreciate it.
Newbie Betas: Michele, Jessy, Samantha, Tilly, Clary
Thank you so much for wanting to go on this wild ride with me! You guys
were amazing for your first book with me and I hope you stick around for
many more to come!

Jenni:
I don’t know where I’d be with you. You understand me on a level that I
didn’t think was possible. You know when I need someone to listen, or
when I need someone to kick me in the ass. I’m truly grateful that I chose
you to edit these books for me. You not only make sure they’re ready for the
world but you fall in love with them while you do it. Thank you!
Until next time!

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 ALSO BY AMES MILLS

Abbs Valley series

(Reverse Harem/polyamorous Mafia Romance)
Riches to Riches
Part One
Part Two

All I Have
Part One
Part Two

A Very Merry Mafia Christmas novella

The Heart of Psychos

Part one
Part two

Forest Grove series

(Reverse harem/polyamorous/mercenaries)

The Saviors
Part one
Part two

Standalone
(MMMM/Mafia/whychoose)
For the Love of Kane

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 ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Ames Mills writes reverse harem, mafia romance, paranormal, and anything else that feels
good that day. She resides in rural West Virginia with her two teenage daughters. She has a soft
spot for damaged heroes and heroines that she loves to piece back together, bi-awakenings, and
anything in between.

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