Serena
After four days at home, I am starting to go crazy.
I should be used to being a homebody, but I’m not anymore. I used to spend all my time at home or with Evan, but since moving here, I have enjoyed having the freedom to do what I want when I want. It hasn’t been like that since the attack.
Panic consumes me when I leave the house, afraid that whoever it is will pop up and shoot me again. But then again, being stuck at home also gives me the same feeling. So, it’s kind of a lose/lose situation, but I refuse to let it stay that way. Fear isn’t going to run my life.
I showered, hoping to feel slightly normal after, before quickly going through my closet and grabbing a pair of jeans, an oversized sweater, and some underwear. Unconsciously, I gaze through the drawer, making sure nothing else has been stolen lately. It doesn’t look like anything has been. Thankfully.
Mom is in the kitchen, sipping a cup of coffee and reading over a legal brief. She is so focused on the papers in front of her that she doesn’t hear me coming in. I grab a cup of coffee and sit down next to her.
Mom looks up at me. “Are you sure you’re ready to go to school today?” Her voice is so filled with worry, it almost makes me want to stay home to comfort her. But I need this. I hate being locked in this house right now. Having nightmares every night, reliving that horrible experience.
“Yes, Mom.” It’s the only thing I can say. We had this argument more than once last night. She thinks it’s too soon. I think I am going to bat-shit crazy if I stay home another day longer.
I haven’t told her about the nightmares or how I feel locked in myself. She witnessed the nightmares one night, but I told her that it was the only one I have had. I hate lying to her, but I don’t need her to worry more about me than she already does.
It doesn’t matter what I have been doing to distract myself, I can’t stop thinking about it. The pure, unbridled fear I felt. Not knowing what was going to happen, or if he is going to come back and finish what he started. The unknowns are scarier than what happened. My mind is constantly playing scenarios repeatedly of what might happen.
Mom looks at me as if she can see exactly what I don’t want her to see. She has always been able to see through the false facade I put on when something has been wrong. I know wisdom comes with age, but I swear my mom is wise beyond her years.
Mom gives me a cautious smile before nodding her head. She understands my need to get out of this house, but she is terrified to have me out of her sight. If I am being honest, so am I, but I know the Kings will be there. Breakfast is quiet after that. Mom continues working while I sip my coffee.
I finish my coffee and kiss Mom on her head before walking out to my car. My jaw drops when I step outside. Midas, Odin, and Zeus are waiting by my car, deep in conversation. I stay on the porch and watch them for a few moments, taking them all in.
Midas is wearing a pair of black jeans, a black T-shirt, and his signature leather jacket. Gold rings that shine in the fall sunlight adorn his fingers on his right hand. His usual scowl is plastered on his face as the three of them are talking. He swipes his hands through his black hair, pushing it off his face.
Odin is the exact opposite of Midas in his light-washed jeans, white T-shirt, and a red flannel over top. His long blonde hair is tied up in his signature man-bun with a few pieces falling free. I wish he would wear it down more often. An infectious smile plays on his lips as he laughs at something Midas said.
Zeus is a mixture of both. Dark navy-blue jeans, an old band T-shirt, and a grey sweater over top. His rich brown hair looks like he just rolled out of bed, but not in a bad way. Almost like he styled it that way.
Each outfit fits their personalities perfectly. Midas, the ever-dark and brooding one. Odin, the light, fun-loving one. And Zeus is the perfect mixture of the two.
My mind replays the last few days with them. They have been coming over every day after school to hang out. The only night they didn’t show up was the night Evie came over. I don’t know if she told them she was coming over and to leave us alone, or if there is another reason, but I was grateful they didn’t come over that night. I needed time with my friend.
It’s been a weird and unexpected few days. They have all been so sweet and attentive, even Midas, even if he has still kept some distance between us. I’m starting to think he blames himself for what happened to me, but it has nothing to do with him. He couldn’t have known that night what was going to happen. Plus, they got there in time and were there for me. That’s what matters to me.
I smile at them, remembering a conversation I had with them the other night.
“We want to talk to you about something.” Midas’s voice is barely more than a whisper. He appears nervous, fidgeting with the rings on his fingers. His eyes catch me looking, causing him to scowl and stop. He runs his hands through his pitch-black hair before he stares at me with those mesmerizing golden eyes.
I glance over to Odin and Zeus. Both looked equally nervous about the conversation. Odin’s hair is up in a bun, and his ocean blue eyes are staring into my soul. Zeus has a blank expression on his face, but his dark eyes are telling me everything I need to know. They have something big to say to me, but I don’t know if it’s a good thing.
Suddenly, my skin feels like it is crawling. The indescribable urge to run to the washroom and purge spreads through my body, but I refuse to listen to that temptation. I take a deep breath in, willing my body to relax and wait for them to continue.
“We wanted to ask you something. Well, there are a few things we wanted to ask you.” Odin says beside me. I glanced back at him. He may still look nervous, but he has such a warm, comforting smile on his face. “The main thing we wanted to ask is, would you be ours?”
Those words are so quiet, I don’t know if I heard them correctly. I look at Zeus. He nods his head to me, letting me know that’s what he wants. I peek at Midas. He looks even more nervous as he waits for me to speak.
“Yours? What does that mean? And what about Valerie? I thought Midas was dating her.”
I know he isn’t, but I just wanted to jab him in a sore spot. They don’t know that I saw the video, even though every person at school has. It has been the talk of the school ever since.
“Fuck Valerie.” Midas barks out. “I was never with her. I can’t stand that bitch.”
“There is a lot that we can’t explain right now. I wish we could, but we don’t have all the answers yet. Just know, we don’t want her. We only want you.” Zeus grabs my hand and holds it tight. I can feel him squeeze it three times.
I don’t know what to say or feel right now. I told myself when I thought I was going to die that I forgave them for everything they had done. I do forgive them. I want to put everything in the past and leave it there, but there is a nagging voice that tells me to keep my guard up. If they did it once, what’s to say they won’t do it again?
Plus, there are still the feelings I have for Dante. I still haven’t even glanced at my phone. Too terrified to find a text or anything again from the man who broke in.
I need to get over that fear and reach out to Dante.
“ I don’t think jumping into a relationship would be the brightest idea, but I’m not saying I don’t want something.” I quickly look at all of them, making sure they are paying attention to what I have to say. “I like you. All of you. But I like Dante too. I spent too much of my life doing what someone else wanted. Now, I plan on taking what I want.”
I can see the objection to Dante and the confusion over the second part in their eyes. I haven’t told them about Evan, and I don’t plan on it. It’s better to keep that all in the past where it belongs.
I can practically hear Midas grinding his teeth from where I am sitting. Odin and Zeus look at Midas, silently communicating with each other. I stand up and move around the coffee table so they can all see me.
“You don’t get to tell me what to do. I am perfectly capable of making my own decisions, and nothing you three,” I point at all of them, trying to accentuate my point, “have to say will change my mind right now.”
They all look back at each other before Midas nods his head.
“Fine. But I want you to know, even if you don’t want to say you are ours, you are. We will protect you, always. We own you, , whether you like it or not. And we will do anything to protect you. Even if it’s against him.” Midas looks deep into my eyes, showing me the determination he has to keep that vow to me.
After that conversation, a weird tension in the air dissipated between us. They accepted what I had to say, even if they didn’t like the idea.
In typical Midas fashion, he was the most vocal about his objection over the days about me pursuing Dante, but never telling me why. Much to my annoyance. But not telling me what they have against Dante is a good sign, or at least I take it as such. If they wanted me to leave him alone, they would have told me why they all hated each other.
Zeus is the first to notice me standing by the front door. With a small smile, his version of a megawatt cheesy smile, he waves to me, making the other two turn around and look at me. I can’t help but smile as I walk over to them.
“Ready for your first day back at school?” Odin asks as he takes my bag and slings it over his shoulder.
“Honestly, no. I don’t want to be at home anymore, but going to school freaks me out too. I can’t stop wondering if whoever attacked me is at school.” I feel small as I say them. Never wanting to be a damsel in distress, but it’s all I feel currently. A little girl who needs to be protected.
“Don’t worry, princess. Your big, strong men will be there to protect you all day. No one will touch a pretty hair on your head.” Odin exclaims as his finger boops my nose.
I get on my tiptoes and gently press my lips against his. A silent thank you for the reassurance he gave me. Odin’s arms wrap around my waist, pulling me in closer to him as he tries to deepen the kiss. A whistle from Midas is the only thing that stops that from happening.
“Dude. Why are you cock blocking me?” Odin groans, but there is no malice in his tone, only humor.
I let out a small giggle as I shook my head at him. I walked around the car, ready to get into the driver’s seat. Midas slams his hand on the door, preventing me from opening it. I turn around, ready to get mad at him once again. Who the hell does he think he is? Thinking he can steamroll over me whenever he feels like it. An angry rant, and maybe a slap, want to burst from me, but I stop the words before I can unleash them.
Midas wraps one of his strong hands around my neck. Not hard enough to cut off oxygen, but enough to tell me that he is in control.
“Angel, give me the keys.” His dark voice commands.
Nuh, uh. Nope. Not happening. He is not taking the keys to my car. Don’t know what he is thinking, but he sure as shit isn’t getting what he wants this time.
An idea pops into my head. Let’s have a little fun with this.
“What keys?” I ask, trying to be oblivious to what he wants.
I poke my head around Midas. Odin has a massive shit-eating grin, clearly knowing what I am trying to do. Even though his face is blank, Zeus looks extremely amused at the situation. They both know how used Midas is to getting his way, and that no one ever fights him on it. So to see me, a five-foot-seven-inch girl, stand up against him brings them an inexplicable amount of joy.
“Don’t be a brat, . Give me the keys.” Midas’s body pushes against me, boxing me against the car. So close that if I moved even an inch, we would be fully touching each other. His dark eyes stare down at me. A playful smirk lights up his face that instantly makes my panties wet.
The mental image of him on top of me with that same look floods my brain, making my knees weak and my breathing pick up. As if he can sense where my thoughts have gone, a small growl builds in his throat.
“I won’t ask again. Give me your keys.” He whispers into my ear.
I don’t know what it is about him being so dominant that makes me want to submit to him, but it does. I hated submitting to Evan, knowing I only did because of the thought of the violence that would follow. But with Midas, I don’t worry about that. We may have had a rocky start, but I always knew he would never physically hurt me.
I pull my keys out of my pocket and dangle them from my fingertips beside his head. He goes to grab them with his free hand, but I pull them to my chest. He releases my throat with a growl of annoyance. Reaching for them again, I quickly move them to my side before he snags them from my hand. He doesn’t notice me move, and his hand lands on my breast. A soft gasp leaves my lips when his warm, soft skin touches me.
Suddenly I wished I wasn’t wearing this baggy sweater.
Instead of dropping his hand from my breast, like a gentleman would do, he grabs harder. My nipples pebble under my shirt, loving the feeling of his hand on me. I close my eyes as he gently starts massaging it. He leans in impossibly close. Our breaths mixing. A moan greedily leaves my lips and brushes against his.
So lost in the moment, I don’t notice his other hand moving until the keys are ripped out of my hand. I open my eyes to see a cocky as fuck Midas standing in front of me with my keys dangling from his fingers.
“You are a fucking brat, but I love it.” The words are so low, almost as if he didn’t want me to hear him admit that.
A frustrated growl erupts from me as I push him away. He takes a step back, creating the space I need to think clearly. The fucker played me like a violin to get what he wanted. I can’t tell if I am pissed at him for distracting me or because now, I am worked up and can do nothing about it.
Pushing off the car, I stomp to the back door on the other side of the car, as far away from Midas as I can get. I slid into the back seat, slamming the door closed behind me. Midas looks at me through the window for a second, mouthing how much of a pain in the ass I am with a smile on his face.
Odin slides into the back seat beside me, looking smug that he got there before Zeus did. I can see Zeus huffing out an annoyed laugh outside the front window before relenting and climbing into the passenger seat.
I stare out the window as the town passes by, lost in my own world. Every time I have a moment of quiet, that night plays repeatedly in my mind. I can’t get that guy’s voice out of my head. My hand trails up to the wound on my arm by itself. Feeling around the tender skin. It doesn’t help that I will now have a permanent reminder of what he did.
As if they can sense where my thoughts are going, Zeus reaches back and squeezes my knee. Odin grabs my hand, squeezing it like he never wants to let go. Midas is staring at me in the rearview mirror. I don’t know if I will ever get used to having all their attention.
I give them each a pathetically small smile, hoping to hide how I feel. I highly doubt they bought it, but no one is saying anything.
Not much later, Midas is pulling into the school parking lot and parking my car where he normally parks his motorcycle. He turns around and examines me with his calculating amber eyes. When he finds what he is looking for, he nods to Odin and Zeus. Odin squeezes my hand before opening his door and getting out. He keeps it open, waiting for me to follow him.
I managed to ungracefully scoot myself, only having one working arm makes it extremely difficult, across the backseat and out his door. Odin wraps his arm around my shoulder and pulls me close to his side. His comforting scent of leather and smoke fills my senses. It’s become one of the things I like most about Odin. His scent alone can lull me into a sense of safety and security.
It’s not something I have ever had before, and having it with him is more than I could have ever asked for.
Zeus and Midas have a few quick words before getting out of the car. Zeus gives me such a warm smile that I feel like I could melt into a puddle right now.
I’ve only known him for a little over two months, but Zeus has changed so much in that small amount of time. He is still shy and uncertain of himself, but he is starting to open up more.
Odin and I start walking towards the school. Midas and Zeus are following close behind. I look over my shoulder, seeing them close together, having another whispered conversation. Neither of them looks happy. I wish I knew what they were talking about. I turn around and look up at Odin. His blonde hair is tied back in a bun like he usually wears it.
I grabbed his arm to stop him. Odin looks at me, concern is the first emotion he shows. As I start to lift on my tiptoes, confusion takes over his face. Pulling the hair elastic from his locks, and let it cascade to his shoulders. I ran my fingers through his luscious, soft hair.
There. That is better.
Odin gives me a soft smile before leaning down and gently placing his lips against mine. I melted into the kiss. It isn’t a grand show of his feelings for me, but I can feel it all the same. That small kiss told me exactly what he was feeling.
“Are you fucking kidding me?” A shrill, annoying voice squawks from across the parking lot.