Chapter 15 #2
Feeling flustered, I try to look anywhere but there . It’s my first time seeing a penis like this, up close and personal. Anxiety prickles along my neck. I’m not sure now’s the time to have a first anything .
Rowan turns around, as if unfazed by being naked, and immediately steps under the hard water pressure coming out from the waterfall shower head. I hadn’t even noticed the shower until now.
“Wait, you’re the Rowan Underhill? As in, the model who went crazy and ? —”
The memory rolls in like a slow-moving, dark cloud, causing me to shiver in trepidation. With it comes more memories. Being strapped down. The feeling of some type of thick jelly-like substance being applied to my temples...
Maverick .
His name is what brings everything back with a shining clarity. From breaking into Serenity Falls, kissing him in his bedroom, trekking across campus, the White Stag Chapel, the iron coffin, being locked up in a padded room, then being strapped down and... electrocuted .
A hard tremor rushes through me, shaking my body so hard Braum's grip tightens on my wrists to hold me upright.
“Shh, you'll be right as rain soon enough,” he promises, pressing harder into my back. The movement pushes me forward, forcing me to take a step toward Rowan, who turns under the water and holds out his hand for me.
My head whips back and forth in denial.
“No, wait, I remember. Y-you hurt me.” Each word comes out as a gasp. Again, I try to fight Braum's hold. My tired, aching body screams in protest, and I'm very aware of how ineffective it is as Braum gently forces me forward.
“Actually, I'm pretty sure you were the one to give the go-ahead,” Braum objects. He has the nerve to chuckle. I can feel it rumbling around in his chest, the vibrations making their way through me. “Surprised the hell out of all of us.”
Rowan's gaze drags over my body, drinking it in as his expression darkens with something I've never seen before.
It's something akin to anticipation perhaps, or maybe it leans more toward victorious.
Either way, it causes my breath to hitch.
He reaches out as I'm pushed toward him, a hand snaking out to grab my hip.
He pulls me forward to join him under the water and his naked body.
I can't breathe. I'm trapped between panic as I recall what these guys put me through and fear of what's about to happen.
No, that's not right. It’s not fear, not really, but anxiousness maybe?
Or perhaps it is closer to a perverse excitement.
I'm helpless, at their complete mercy. I've never been in such a vulnerable situation.
Excitement is the farthest thing from what I should be experiencing.
Yet I can almost feel the way his eyes are mapping out my body, and, while I know I should be cowering away or attempting to cover myself, all I can do is stare back.
The heat in my face turns into an inferno as I stumble into him.
“Hold on to her; I'm going to let go so I can undress,” Braum orders, letting go of one wrist.
“I got her,” Rowan says, then to me. “I got y?—”
Braum's grip suddenly tightens on the wrist he still holds. “What. The. Fuck?”
My body goes rigid at the same time Rowan's eyes lift to look behind me.
“What? What is it?” he asks, his dark blond brows pinching together with confusion.
Braum doesn't reply right away, but he doesn’t have to.
I already know what he’s seeing. So swept up in a storm of conflicting emotions, I didn't realize Braum had stepped away.
Without being pressed against his body, the flesh on my back is exposed.
Just like with Rowan, I can feel Braum's eyes as they trail over my body.
Over the marred skin. My chin drops to my chest as Braum abruptly lets go of my wrist.
“Turn her around,” Braum orders. “See for yourself.”
Rowan yanks me around by my hand. Just as he lets out a hiss of disgust, a finger trails beneath my chin. With a little pressure, I'm forced to lift my head and meet Braum's eyes. I expect revulsion or a mocking sneer. Instead, I find concern written into his expression.
“Who?” he asks.
Humiliation causes tears to well up and blur my vision.
“It doesn't matter,” I whisper.
I’ve never once discussed with others what Father did to me. I’ve always hidden evidence, disgusted by the marks that’ll never go away and humiliated I have to wear my childhood abuse for everyone to see.
Braum tsks quietly. “It matters to me.”
Pressing my lips together, I stare back. Tears well up my eyes. I've been hurt in so many ways in the past few hours I can't, I won't , drudge up the past to endure more. I press my lips together and give him a weak glare.
His eyes flash with something dark when he realizes I’m not going to give him what he wants.
“The Universe said I’ll learn what happened to you soon enough,” he says, not making any sense.
Rowan uses my hand to tug me backward. I stumble, my back hitting his chest as I scramble to find my footing, my legs still weak.
To stay upright, I have to use Rowan’s body to steady myself.
He lets go of my hand to grab the braid laying along my spine.
The motion jerks my head back. I gasp as I’m forced to look up into his hardened expression as he glares down at me.
“I don't put anything with The Collection that isn't in pristine condition,” he says, his eyes narrowing.
I blink the water splashing into my face out of my eyes as best I can, but the stream is falling hard between the two of us.
“This is unacceptable. Your condition is…” his face twists in disgust. “However, the thought of relinquishing you makes my skin itch. This is a conundrum.”
He lets go of my braid to place his hands on my shoulders and turn me around. I stumble, not quite steady on my feet yet.
“I don't know what that means,” I mutter.
He scowls. “You probably never will. I’m going to have to reconsider my plans for you now.”
“I absolutely delight in the idea of savoring Everly’s presence all to myself,” Braum drawls from the other side of the bathroom.
It feels like I’m missing an integral part of some conversation.
I don’t press him because I don’t care. There’s a bone-deep exhaustion creeping in now that my mind has cleared and caught up to everything.
My body sways. Rowan notices and heaves a sigh as if burdened.
The hardness in his expression has lessened, but the stiffness of his dick has not.
He moves, dragging me under the falling water and allowing the heat of it to run down me.
“Stand there and just let the water help you relax,” he orders.
As if I have any choice in the matter , I think grimly.
Behind me, I feel the presence of Braum.
He joins us, immediately grabbing my hair and beginning the process of unbraiding it.
Rowan lets go of me cautiously, and I lean back into Braum for support.
The blond god reaches up for the soap and loofa.
I frown as Braum’s hands come up and rub my shoulders.
The way his thumbs press into the muscles causes an involuntary groan to slip past my lips.
“W-what are you guys doing?” I ask.
Rowan gives me an annoyed glare before he answers, “Cleaning you up, obviously. The warm water should help your muscles relax.”
That’s not what I’m asking. It takes a long time for me to try again. I’m so tired even thinking feels like a chore. By the time I manage to come up with a different question that will get me the answer I want, my body is covered in soap and Braum’s hands are working the tension from my back.
Taking a deep breath, I ask on a sigh, “ Why are you doing this? You purposely set me up to suffer and now?—”
“No,” Braum corrects, his hands suddenly coming to rest on my hips.
When he pulls me close, I can feel his erection pressing into the base of my spine.
I stiffen, but when all he does is hold me against his naked body, the tension drops away.
I’m too tired to linger on it if there’s no immediate danger. “No one was supposed to get hurt.”
Rowan snickers as he rinses out the loofa. “I wish toying with Maverick’s sanity would hurt him. That fucking asshole.”
I don’t understand. Why would they want to mess with Maverick?
I remember Mavie mentioned how he hated Braum and Rowan in that padded room; is that hatred reciprocated?
If so, why? My mind is slowing down, the questions fading away as my body melts under the hot water.
As hard as I fight it, my eyelids begin to flutter shut.
They pop open as Rowan’s free hand begins to slide over my body, touching me everywhere the loofa isn’t. The back of his hand skims along my jawline, down my throat and chest, until he’s suddenly cupping my right breast.
My yelp echoes in the bathroom. “No, stop!”
Rowan kneads me, stepping closer as he stares at my breasts. I cringe back into Braum, but he holds my hips to keep me steady for his friend.
“If you think I’m not going to at least sample the goods, as spoiled as they are, you’re wrong,” Rowan growls, his eyes sliding over me.
I struggle against Braum’s hold. Rowan tweaks my nipple, causing me to yelp. It chokes off into a moan as he rolls it between deft fingers. The sound is embarrassing and unexpected. As is the heat his touch is stirring up. Both guys chuckle.
“Fuck it,” Rowan says suddenly, tossing the loofa to the floor as he steps closer to me. Suddenly both his hands latch onto my breasts. He squeezes me hard, and I flinch. “Christ, look how well you fit into my hands.”
I shake my head slowly as I protest. “Stop! I don’t want this!”
“But I do,” Rowan replies with a dark chuckle. “And when it boils down to it, that’s what really matters.”