CHAPTER FIVE
CLOVER
Kill me or keep me. Those words reverberated in my head. What. The. Fuck?
“Are you serious?” I finally spat out. I really should have stayed in tonight. My luck was absolute shit lately.
“As a heart attack,” Blaze confirmed with a nod. He ran a hand along my shoulder to my neck. Slowly his fingers circled my throat in a gentle grasp that threatened so much worse.
“What do you mean by keep me?” I dared to ask. Surely he could feel the way my body trembled. That was confirmed when I felt the hard bulge in his jeans as he pressed close.
He enjoyed this. It got him off. Of course it did. I’d known they were a messed up group of guys.
“It means that you’ll be ours, sweetness.” Blaze stroked his other hand over my disheveled hair. “You’ll belong to us. You’ll do what we want, and in return, we’ll take care of you. We’ll keep you safe. I’m sure it goes without saying that you’ll keep our secrets but I’ll say it anyway. If this is too much for you, we can end it all right here and now. Just say the word.”
What a stone-cold bastard. All of them. Cash and Daire looked on with curious intrigue, awaiting my decision.
“You’re not really giving me much of a choice.” My gaze traveled around all three of them. They seemed so eager. Excited at having me trapped. I swallowed hard around the lump in my throat. “I guess I’m yours.”
The weight of defeat crushed me. How could this have happened? I’d only wanted some damn snacks.
Blaze removed his hand from around my throat and lightly patted my cheek. “That’s a good girl. Now let’s get you home safe.”
Sliding his fingers between mine, he led me away from the dumpster containing the body of my attacker. His silver Camaro was parked at the end of the alley. Daire and Cash followed along. My keepers. I couldn’t believe this.
“Can I at least grab the bag I dropped?” I asked, glancing longingly toward the convenience store.
“Cash will grab it.” Blaze jerked his head, indicating for Cash to go find my things. “Do you need anything else?”
Having nothing to say to him, I merely shook my head, staying silent. When Cash returned with my dropped bag, he and Daire climbed into the backseat. I let Blaze push me into the passenger side.
I stared out the window as he drove the short distance back to the dorm. My hope that they would drop me off and leave was dashed when he parked in a visitor space. They all followed me to the door.
“We’re going to come inside,” Blaze informed me. “I know that Zane has been hanging around here. I want to make sure he leaves you alone. What do you see in him anyway? He’s a fucking waste of human flesh.”
My hand shook as I opened the door. “I’m not seeing Zane anymore. He’s not handling that well.”
The three of them followed me inside and up the stairs to my room. I didn’t want to let them inside but didn’t have a choice. Thankfully, there was no sign of Zane. I’d witnessed enough violence for one lifetime.
I hesitated at the door to my room. “I really need to get to bed. I have to wake up early.”
“Open the door, Angel. You’re not getting rid of us that easily.” Daire’s commanding tone left no room for argument.
I wasn’t loving these pet names. I barely knew these guys. Aside from flirting with Blaze a few times at parties, I’d had little to no real interaction with them.
Unlocking my door, I shoved it open and entered. They filed in behind me. Cash closed the door, tossing my snack bag onto the bed. I had no appetite for it now.
The room consisted of a single bed against one wall, a tiny two seater couch on the opposite wall, and a desk in front of the window. I waved a hand at the small space. “Make yourselves comfortable, I guess.”
Cash plopped onto the bed, grabbing the snack bag he’d dropped. He peered into the bag, his brows arching in interest. With his black and red mohawk, arms littered with tattoos, he looked the most deadly of the group. The t-shirt stretched tight over his muscled body added to the effect. His blue eyes were a beautiful shade, like the sky on a cloudless day.
My gaze strayed to a hissing cobra inked on his forearm before traveling to a sexy fairy girl perched on a crescent moon. Skulls and daggers were among the rest of his ink. Having full sleeves on both arms made it impossible to make out each tattoo with a mere glimpse.
From what Raina had told me, Daire was perhaps the scariest of them all. Time would tell if that proved true. He’d had a personal beef with her. There was no telling how he would treat me. I didn’t expect him to be a walk in the park.
“Nice snack choice,” Cash remarked, reaching into the bag. “Mind if I have some cheese puffs?”
I stood awkwardly in the middle of the room as Daire and Blaze perused my space. “Go ahead. Help yourself.”
Daire sat at the desk, glancing out the window at the parking lot below. A sword with wings on his forearm was one of only a few tattoos he possessed. A skull wearing a crown peeked out from under the cuff of his t-shirt on his upper arm. The lightning bolt beneath one eye was hotter than it should have been.
He’d been attractive from a distance at parties when I had zero interaction with him. Now that he was in my space claiming me as a possession, I just found him panic inducing.
“How often does Zane come around?” Daire asked, nailing me with piercing green eyes.
“I, I don’t know,” I stammered. “He was here earlier, waiting outside my room. I told him to leave.”
Daire and Blaze exchanged a look. Blaze sat down on the tiny couch, patting the spot beside him. Afraid to refuse, I quickly sat down.
“Has he hurt you in any way since the night of the party?” Blaze asked.
His thigh pressed against mine, making me suck in a breath. I shook my head, making my tousled blonde waves bounce around my face. “No. He never hurt me before that either.”
“I want to know if he lays a finger on you. Whether he hurts you or not. Understand?” Blaze caught a strand of my hair, twisting it around his finger like he had the night of the party.
I nodded vigorously, wary of saying or doing anything to tick him off. “Yes, I understand.”
“Jesus, Clover. Chill out a little. You’re so damn jittery. It’s kind of turning me on.” The smile that crossed Daire’s face did nothing to make me relax.
“Sorry,” I offered lamely. “I can’t help it. You guys aren’t exactly making it easy to relax.”
Cash munched my cheese puffs, tossing a handful in his mouth. “We haven’t done anything yet. You’re going to be a lot of fun.”
That was hardly reassuring. Clearing my throat, I said, “I thought you guys were vigilantes. Doesn’t that mean you right the wrongs of society? Help those without help?”
Blaze leaned back against the couch, slinging an arm around my shoulders as he pulled me in against him. “We like to hand out punishment to those who deserve it. That doesn’t make us saints. Trust me, Rainbow, we didn’t name ourselves the Angels. There isn’t a damn angelic thing about us.”
“So don’t do anything that deserves punishment and you won’t have anything to worry about,” Cash quipped. He tore open a chocolate bar from my bag, frowning as he reconsidered his statement. “Actually, that’s probably not entirely true. We can get a little carried away at times.”
“So I’ve heard,” I muttered, wincing as a glare crossed Daire’s face.
“Careful, Angel,” Daire admonished, tapping his fingers on the desk. “You might find out firsthand what we did to Raina.”
Blaze stroked a hand over my hair and along my shoulder. His touch was warm and inviting, making me hate myself for liking it. In another time and place, I’d have been all over him.
“What you did to Raina, you mean.” Blaze shot Daire a pointed look. “That was all you, dude.”
Daire laughed, a haughty sound that made me sink in closer against Blaze. “If I recall correctly, you were right there egging me on. Pretty sure you told me to fuck her.”
Alarm bells rang inside my head. My cheeks burned hot at the thought of being at their mercy. What would they do to me? Would I be able to survive it?
“Cut it out, guys.” Cash waved a hand in my direction. “You’re scaring Clover. It’s not time for that yet.”
Blaze’s caressing hand strayed up into my hair, fisting a handful. He gave a tug that almost hurt. A fresh shock of adrenaline raced through me. Tingles slithered down my spine. God, it was so hard to breathe.
“You’re right,” Blaze agreed. “Clover has had a rough week. We’ll give her a few days to decompress.”
Heat flooded me as Blaze used his grip on my hair to turn me to face him. He leaned in close, bathing me in his musky, smoky scent. He brought us unbearably close, his lips mere inches from mine.
“We’re going to leave now, Dollface. But we’ll be back, and we’ll be watching you. Not a word about tonight to anyone, remember?” He waited for my nod, his fingers tightening painfully in my hair. “Hand me your phone.”
Frozen like the scared prey that I was, I reached into the pocket of my sweatpants and pulled out my phone. I keyed in the password and handed it to Blaze. He opened up my contacts and entered his number before entering a number for both Cash and Daire. He also sent himself a message so he’d have my number. Then he placed the phone on my lap.
“That’s a good girl. I’ll be seeing you real soon.” Blaze’s hand slid from my hair as he rose. He patted my cheek and pressed a soft kiss to my forehead before strolling to the door.
Cash pushed off the bed, following Blaze out of the room. Daire took his time, lingering at the door. He cast a vicious glance back at me.
“Just a word of advice, Angel. Don’t run to Raina and the Gods. There’s nothing they can do to keep you from us. You’re ours now.”
With those parting words, he was gone. The door closed behind him, leaving me to pick my jaw up off the floor. I sucked in a shaky breath. I didn’t expect to sleep much tonight.