Chapter 10
10
JO
Present Day
I startle as I’m jostled awake. I blink, trying to figure out where I am.
I take it in slowly. The car. Fuck. Jayden and Cole took me back.
A rush of adrenaline fills me. I sit up slightly, seeing Jayden driving still.
It looks like the middle of the day, and we’re out in the middle of nowhere. Jayden doesn’t see me, and his eyes are heavy. His head droops, and the tires rumble over the strips on the side of the road.
“Shit,” Jayden cusses, and I jump.
I’m still exhausted, and now my arm hurts like a bitch. My head hurts, too. The more I wake up, the more reality sets in, and my heart starts to pound.
I’m back with the men. They’re mean and unforgiving and exactly like they were in the cabin. With a little bit of sleep, I see the red flags. I’d rehearsed meeting them again in the mirror, and in my mind, there were nothing but green flags. In my mind, I stood up for myself, and they opened up to me. Even groveled a little. Treated me like an equal.
Which is certainly not what they’re doing now.
I swallow. What the hell am I doing? I feel more alive than ever, but I’m shacking up with someone who kills their exes.
Am I an ex to Jayden after I ran? Does that mean he’ll kill me too?
I don’t even know where we’re going.
My heart starts racing again. Cole moans and tightens his warm grip on me. I lay back down, pretending to be asleep.
“Fuck it,” Jayden mutters from the front seat. I feel the car veer off the side of the road, and immediately, we bump along like we’re on dirt.
Cole’s breathing changes, and then his voice rumbles over me, “Where are we?”
I keep my eyes shut.
“Cattle field. I’m gonna nap. Go back to sleep.”
Cole moans. “I can drive.”
“No, you’re exhausted. It’s better to drive at night anyway.”
Cole grumbles, and I feel his hand tracing up and down my arm.
We slow to a stop, and Jayden lets out a big sigh.
The car is quiet, then Cole mumbles, “Where are you going?”
“Your mom’s house.”
Cole huffs. “Good one.”
“Seriously. I tried calling her, but she didn’t pick up.”
Cole huffs again. He’s silent for a minute, then asks, “You okay?”
“Of course I fucking am.”
“Okay, well, you just seem…like, I don’t know. Before.”
“Jesus, Cole. Just get some sleep.”
“Just don’t let it be a problem. You’ll scare Jo off.”
Jayden just grunts.
“I’m being serious, dude. We just got her back, and you’re kind of being a giant asshole.”
“Go to sleep,” Jayden growls.
“You know what? Don’t say I didn’t try,” Cole grumbles, running his fingers through my hair and causing a shiver of delight to run through me. “Just don’t go back to the old you. I thought we moved past that.”
The silence is loud.
Finally, Jayden mutters, “She disobeyed. This is what you get when you disobey.”
Adrenaline fills me, and I flash back to my dream. That’s exactly what my dad used to say. After he’d kick my ass.
Fuck. None of this is going to get better. I’m just repeating history. Only this time, with a killer.
After some time, Cole’s breath evens out under me. As his evens out, mine gets more ragged. Jayden thinks he can just abuse me into compliance. And that’s not going to fucking work for me.
Cole isn’t safe, either. He’ll fuck with me just as fast as Jayden will. He stood by as Jayden killed Sage.
I refuse to believe he’d allow that with me. But still…
I refuse to be the next Sage.
Jayden can kiss my ass. As soon as Jayden falls asleep, I’m out of here. My legs jerk with the need to get away.
The silence in the car feels like it’s gone on forever. Jayden leaves the car running, which I don’t expect. But it’s hot as balls out, and we’d probably cook if he didn’t. Finally, I dare a peek up at Jayden. His seat is leaned back, and his breathing is even, slow, and deep. Cole’s snoring slightly.
I sit up slowly.
Neither man moves.
I glance around. There’s nothing as far as I can see. We are truly out in the middle of nowhere with the sun blazing down on our car. I can see the heat rolling off the ground.
Fuck. I won’t last long out there without water. I glance in the trunk. The boys have some bags. Mine is back there, just out of reach, but I know there's water in it.
Do I risk grabbing it, or do I just run?
My heart hammers. If I can just get to a main road, I can flag someone down and get away. Forget the water; I’ll do that.
I look at the boys again. Still asleep.
Slowly, painfully slow, I inch away from Cole and reach for the door handle. As slow as I can, I pull the handle toward me.
Nothing.
I try again.
Fuck. Is the…child lock on?
I cuss internally. Fuck, fuck, fuck. This is not good. I’m going to have to crawl over the center console. I’m going to get caught.
I recheck Jayden’s breathing. It’s slow and steady, his mouth hanging slightly open. Even in sleep, he looks hot as fuck, and that makes me hate him more.
My hands shake, and I bunch them into fists. I should punch him right in that pretty face. But I don’t. Only because that means I wouldn’t be able to run.
Slowly, I get both my feet under me. If I stand up and step over the console, I can slip out the passenger side.
Slowly, I step my leg over, trying to keep my back from brushing on the roof of the car. I have to turn my back to Jayden, which causes exhilaration to shoot down my spine.
I’m alive. I’m alive and angry again.
It’s the high I’ll never stop chasing.
The seat’s fabric rubs under my shoe as I stand on it. I freeze halfway over.
Nothing.
I step the rest of the way, crouching on the front seat, waiting for one of them to wake up.
Nothing.
I grab the handle and slowly pop it open. It works, and the door cracks open.
Then the car starts dinging.
I jump out of my skin. The car continues to ding with the keys still in the ignition.
Someone shifts behind me, and I launch myself out of the car.
The blistering heat hits me in a wave. I take off in a blind sprint, running as fast as I can. The hot wind rushes past my ears, and I feel like I’m flying.
“Jo!” A deep voice shouts after me.
Fuck! They woke up. I push harder, running in a straight line with nothing in front of me but a pasture full of dry grass. I know that a gravel road or line of asphalt can pop out of nowhere. And maybe a car will come by. Fuck, I need a car to come by.
There’s a whoop behind me. “We have a runner, Jay!”
Fucking hell, Jo. I push my legs to go faster.
I hear the rev of an engine. For a second, hope runs through me. Is there a car coming?
I glance over my shoulder. There’s a car, but it’s our car. Jesus, Jo, how could you be this stupid? You can’t outrun a car.
I catch a glimpse of movement off to my right. Cole sprints toward me.
I veer left. The car rushes up beside me.
Cole is herding me in.
Exhilaration runs through me.
I switch directions, darting back the way the car came. Jayden slams on the brakes.
“Nowhere to hide, is there?” Cole changes direction with me.
“Fuck off!”
“Come here, pretty girl.” Cole is close enough to take a swipe at me.
I dart away, changing directions again.
“Scream for me again, Jo.” Cole heads me off again. When I whirl, I see Jayden is out of the car now.
I dart away from both of them, but Cole sticks to me like a shadow, reaching out occasionally to grab me, constantly pushing me closer to Jayden.
“Give up.” Cole has a lazy grin on his face. “You can’t run from us.”
My heart is racing, and the heat is overwhelming. I gasp for breath. I heave, slowing drastically. Cole slows with me, not even breathing heavily. He walks toward me, and I back up.
A hand grips my arm from behind, and I scream, adrenaline racing through me.
“Got you,” Jayden says. “There’s that pretty scream of yours.”
Jayden shoves me toward Cole, and he catches me, both hands gripping my arms. “Fuck, you sound gorgeous when you’re afraid.”
“Let me go.” I push back against Cole’s firm chest.
Cole gives me a mean smile. “Never, Mary Jo Hall. You’re mine forever.” His blue eyes are alive with fire, and he yanks me close to his face. “The more you run from me, the more I want you.” He squeezes me hard enough that pain shoots through my arms.
Jayden’s voice barks from behind us, “Put her on her knees.”
Cole yanks me around and shoves me down roughly. My knees crack against the ground, and pain shoots up through me as Cole’s heavy hands land on my shoulders.
Jayden has something in his hand. It’s a…prong collar.
“Clearly, you can’t be trusted on your own.”
I try to scramble back, but Cole pushes down on me. “No, no. Accept your punishment like a good little pet.”
Jayden crouches down so he’s at eye level with me. There’s nothing in his blank expression. No anger, no hatred, nothing.
It makes chills run through me despite the burning heat.
“Clearly, you need some more training.” Jayden lifts the collar to my eye level. He pauses while watching me.
I glare at him.
Jayden’s dark eyes flash in a tiny hint of triumph. “This is going to be yours from now on. Don’t take it off, don’t loosen it, don’t touch it.”
I sneer at him. “You can’t make me do shit.”
A slow smile creeps over Jayden’s face. He doesn’t say anything; he just unhooks one of the links.
As he leans in to put the collar around my neck, I spit on him.
Jayden freezes. The cool metal slides against my skin, and I watch the glob of spit creep down his neck.
Cole breaks the silence by laughing. “Me next, spitfire. Goddamn.”
Jayden catches my gaze. There’s fire and emotion in it this time. “You’re gonna pay for that, kitten.”
He fastens the links together, and Cole pulls my hair out from under it. It’s snug but not tight, and it doesn’t pinch, either.
Jayden clips a leash to the collar, wraps the leash around his fist, and yanks me toward him. Instantly, the collar tightens all the way around my neck like a vise. Jayden holds the pressure, looking down at me with a blank expression.
After a few seconds, I get lightheaded. I blink to keep the spinning down.
Jayden smiles again and releases some of the tension. “Good girl.” He stands. “Now, since we can’t trust you on your feet—crawl.”
What? Hell no. The ground burns me through my leggings.
“It’s hot,” I hiss.
“Good. It’ll teach you not to run.”
Cole pats my head. “It makes me hard when you run and even harder when I punish you for it.”
“Don’t encourage her.” Jayden snaps. “Let’s go, Jo.” He starts walking, pulling the leash with him.
The collar tightens around my neck again, yanking me towards Jayden. I growl as my hands hit the hot dirt. Jayden doesn’t let up, forcing me to crawl behind him.
The humiliation roars through me. Rocks dig into my hands and knees, and the summer sun has soaked into the ground, burning me every time I put my hands down. The pressure on the cuts on my arm hurts, too.
Cole walks beside me. I hiss as my knee slips on a rock, and hot pain explodes through me.
“Good girl. Look at you being our obedient slut,” Cole says.
I refuse to beg them to stop, so I clench my jaw and keep going. The heat blisters against my skin and the crawl seems to take forever, but finally, the shade of the car falls over me.
I sit back on my knees, panting. I’m hot from the sun, the humiliation, everything. My knee throbs. My arm throbs. My hands throb.
“See, that wasn’t so hard.” Jayden pops the trunk and reaches inside. “You thirsty?”
I nod. I am. My mouth is dry, and I’m covered in sweat.
Jayden yanks his shirt off, exposing his ripped abs and tattooed chest. He grabs a water bottle and cracks it open. If I had any spit in my mouth, it would have watered.
Jayden comes up beside me. “You ready for your punishment?”
Didn’t I just have it? I lick my lips.
Jayden watches my face and chuckles. “That was just some messing around for running. You haven’t been punished yet for locking the door on us.”
Dread sinks in my stomach.
“Up you go.” Jayden grabs me and sits me in the trunk of the car. “Lay down.”
I don’t like the looks in either of their eyes. They look dark, excited, and mean. At the same time, I can’t help but like it.
I scramble to get away, but Cole slides in with me, pulling my pants down and sitting on my hips.
My primitive brain kicks in, and I scramble. I claw and scratch and fight to get away.
“Easy, lemon drop.” Cole pins my shoulders down, his face over mine. “Easy, shhhh.”
But I won’t relax. I won’t let them win. “Fuck off! Fucking let me go!”
Jayden grabs my flailing arms.
“Careful of her arm,” Cole says.
“I am.”
Cole gets my arms from Jayden and pins them to my stomach.
“Eyes on me,” Jayden demands. “Cole’s gonna fuck you. And you are going to drown for me.”
What? I feel the tip of Cole’s dick on my pussy.
“No. Fuck you!” A spark of real fear fills me. I fight, but it does no good. Cole pushes in slowly, seating himself inside. I kick and try to thrash away, but he keeps on with his relentless pressure. “That a girl. Let me in.”
“Fuck you,” I cry. My head is spinning with adrenaline. Despite the slight soreness, I’m horrified to feel how wet I am as he pushes all the way in.
“Now.” Jayden grabs a water bottle. “Let’s play—you and me.”
My gaze snaps to Jayden’s. That dark look is still there.
“You want to stop fighting me?”
“Never,” I grit my teeth.
Jayden glares at me and throws his shirt over my face. Immediately, I start wrestling to get away.
I thrash. “Let me –”
Water washes over my face, filling my mouth. I cough, trying to suck a breath in, but the wet cloth gets in the way.
I throw my head to the side.
Water. My lungs are full of water.
Pure panic fills me. It hurts to try to breathe. I can’t fucking breathe.
There are fuzzy sounds of voices.
I cough, finally getting the water out of my mouth, my chest heaving.
Air. I need fucking air.
I heave for breath, feeling Cole pump in and out of me again. Pressure lands on my clit in slow circles.
“Fuck,” I cough.
“Shhh,” Jayden croons, “just a little more.”
More water floods my face, my mouth, my nose, and again, I can’t breathe. My lungs seize up, unable to open. They’re flooded.
I thrash my head from side to side, fuzziness filling my mind. I cough the water out again, gasping in a shaky breath.
The fear runs straight to my clit, where soft circles are being rubbed. All the energy pools in that one spot, shooting sensation through me.
“Cole,” I gasp.
Jayden moans, “I know, I know…just one more.”
Water splashes across my face once more, and again, I can’t breathe. I buck and thrash, and all sounds mute. I’m going to drown. I’m going to fucking drown.
Vaguely, I feel the shirt leave my face, and I cough, hacking water out of my lungs. Pressure continues to assault my clit, and my whole body buzzes.
“This is what happens to people who fight me, Jo. I break them.”
I suck in my first real breath, and I feel pressure on my ass. I struggle to get away. Fuck I want to breathe!
Strong arms band around my back. “Shhhh. I got you. I’ll take care of you.”
“We’re the only ones who will give you what you need.”
Fingers stroke my clit, and pleasure fills me in a wash of sensation. My skin erupts in goosebumps, and I groan.
“That’s it, relax into me.”
I’m flipped so I’m lying face down on Cole’s chest. Something presses into my ass. The wash of sensations hits me all at once. I blink, focusing on the floor of the trunk.
I feel more pressure on my ass. I groan, shifting.
“You’re okay,” Jayden’s voice croons. “Just prepping this pretty little ass to take me.”
I blink again. Cole watches me, and when I make eye contact with him, he starts thrusting under me, bringing a hand down to play with my clit.
“I’ll make it feel good, Jo.”
Despite everything, I clench down, causing pleasure to zip through me.
Cole moans.
Jayden’s fingers pull out, and there’s pressure against my ass once again.
“Give her a yank, Cole.”
Suddenly, there’s a tightening around my neck, distracting me from the slight twinge in my ass. “Eyes, little one.”
I snap my gaze to Cole’s blue eyes. He immediately releases the tension on the collar, causing a whoosh to go through me. “Good girl. Keep those pretty eyes on me.”
There’s a biting pain in my ass, and I gasp.
“Hey.” Cole sharply yanks once. “Focus on me.”
I suck in a breath. Jayden groans behind me, and burning pain fills me. “Fuck, kitten. You feel so good. Keep fighting me. It feels good around my dick.”
The collar tightens around my neck again, and my head gets light. My mind starts to empty of anything but pain and pleasure. The sensations war back and forth, getting stronger as Jayden pushes into my ass. I clench down again, my orgasm just around the corner. Spots dance in my vision, and buzzing fills my ears.
Suddenly, Cole lets off the pressure, and rushing blood roars back into my head. I let out a single gasp and come, clenching down on both of them. Wave after wave of euphoria fills me, crashing over me and pulling me down with it. I feel light, buzzing with pleasure and sensation, my head a swimming mix of lights and sounds.
I come for longer than I ever have in my life. I feel Cole tense beneath me, and then Jayden grunts behind me. I feel their hands stroking up and down my body. Their soft voices. Suddenly, I’m sitting up in Cole’s lap.
“You did so good, Jo. So fucking good. Did I not say we’d take care of you?”
Suddenly, I’m tired. So, so tired. I could sleep right now. I relax into Cole’s arms. I shouldn’t relax around them, but I don’t care right now. I can’t care right now.
Jayden’s voice fills the air right by my head. “I’ll be your everything, Jo. I’ll be the air you fucking breathe. And every time you forget it, I’ll remind you of it.” His voice lowers, “You can’t live without us. We won’t let you.”
My eyelids flutter shut as I’m wrapped in strong arms.