Chapter 25 Wren
CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE
WREN
“Nope.” Dex wraps an arm around my waist and drags me in front of him, my back to his chest.
I tilt my head back and try to pout up at him. “I just want to look at the books.” I point at the aisle, and he shakes his head.
“Baby, you aren’t leaving my side for a second.”
“Is this because of what happened at the hotel?” I ask, turning to face him fully as his hand clings to the cart around me.
“You mean when you were kidnapped from right under our noses? Yes, it is.” He bops a finger on the tip of my nose, then turns me around so I’m facing the cart, his hands resuming their prison around me. “If you stay here, I don't have to worry.”
I have to keep my feet close together as he walks with a wide gait, so he doesn’t step on them.
“Dex,” I roll my eyes as we shuffle forward. “This is awkward, I’m sure there’s gotta be a better way to do this.”
“Hmm… Maybe…” he trails off, as if giving it a good thought. He’d already tried to put me in the kids' seat in the cart, but I was too large and almost got stuck halfway in. And I’d refused to sit inside the cart like he wanted.
Suddenly, he stops, turns me around, then squats and gives me his back.
“Climb on.” I know there’s no use fighting him on this, so I do as he asks, wrapping my arms loosely around his neck and my legs around his waist. When he stands and resumes pushing the cart, I decide I actually like this mode of travel.
“I can see so much more from up here,” I say with wonder as I look around the department store.
“Then you’ll always travel this way,” Dex says as if I will never need to use my own feet again.
I don’t argue as we continue strolling down the aisle. A guy who looks around my age with long brown hair that touches his shoulders turns to us, and when his eyes catch on me perched on Dex’s back, he smiles.
“You look comfy," he says as we pass.
“Fuck off!” Dex growls, quickly moving past him.
“Dex, he was just being friendly,” I say, patting his head.
“Don’t care. He looked at you.”
“Nobody can look at me?”
“Males can’t.”
I bite my lips to stop myself from laughing.
We hadn’t actually been around many other people, so it wasn’t often that I had the opportunity to interact with other males or anyone, really.
But considering what happened at the bar during our date, I probably shouldn’t be surprised by his possessiveness, not that I minded it.
I actually really like it. It made me all warm and gooey inside.
We round the corner and find the other three guys in the electronics section. Pete glances up, and when his eyes meet mine, they come alive with happiness. “There you are! Come see all the fun stuff we’re getting!”
Dex moves us right up to them, and they start throwing things in the cart.
“Cell phones for each of us, a couple of tablets, and a smartwatch for Wren,” Pete says excitedly. I’m not sure what a smartwatch is, but I figure now isn’t the time to ask.
Deciding we’d spent too much time there already, Sly leads us to the men’s department, where they start tossing all sorts of clothes into the cart. Almost everything is black or dark. I just watch with amusement as they all gravitate toward their own styles.
Sly sticks to dress shirts and pants, Pete likes the hoodies, Dex loves the tight sports T-shirts, and Jagger basically just buys multiple items similar to what he’s wearing, sleeveless shirts, and a matching cargo vest and pants.
When they finish, we pass by the men’s pajamas, and I point to some pants with a Batman logo on them. “Hey, you guys forgot pajamas.”
They don’t stop walking, but Pete spins around, walking backward as he grins at me. “Oh, angel, didn’t you realize yet? We don’t wear pajamas.”
“Oh,” I say, unsure what to think of that. I had to admit, seeing them in their boxers was definitely the highlight of my days lately. Although Pete was the only one I hadn’t seen like that yet. My eyes travel down his body, wondering what he looks like without any clothes on.
“My eyes are up here, Wren,” he says with a smirk, pointing at his face.
“I know, I wasn’t looking at your eyes,” I tell him, unsure why he felt the need to point that out. Dex lets out a loud laugh as we enter the women’s section.
“Do you want pajamas, Wren?” Sly asks, gesturing to the section we’re in. There were so many styles here, long nightdresses, some with thin straps and some with short sleeves. There were long pants and matching flannel button-up tops. There were silky short sets and cotton tees.
“Uhh…” I look around, unsure where to even start. If I were being honest, I would prefer wearing their T-shirts. They were really comfortable and smelled like them.
Deciding that I need to keep voicing my opinions out loud, I ask, “Can I just keep wearing what I have been?”
“You want to wear our shirts?” Sly clarifies with a tilt of his head.
“Is that okay? Or is it weird? I’m being weird again, aren’t I?”
Dex gives me a little boost on his back as if to shake me out of my rambling. “It’s not weird. It’s perfect.” Then he tells the others, “No pjs for Wren. What else do you need, baby?”
“I’m not sure.”
“Let’s get her some more outfits,” Pete says, grabbing some cute black crop tops and tossing them in the cart.
Jagger signs something, the only word I understand is “Comfort.” Then he grabs a pair of black yoga pants and sweatpants and tosses them in the cart.
Pretty quickly, our cart is piled high with all our goods, and as Dex carries me to the cash register to check out, Jagger and Pete take off on a secret side quest they refused to share with me, promising to meet us in the car.
As the cashier starts scanning our items, I take a second to look at her. I haven’t been around many women in my life, so I find it interesting to see real women in real life, instead of just on TV.
Her name tag says Jessa, and she smiles and greets us politely, her eyes bouncing between both Sly and Dex as she licks her lips. She has brown curly hair that sits beautifully around her shoulders. She has pretty hazel eyes and is dressed in a floral white-and-pink top under her work smock.
“You have pretty hair,” I blurt out, wishing mine were like hers, instead of straight and boring.
Her eyebrows raise in surprise as she looks up at me, as if just noticing I’m on Dex’s back.
“Oh! Thank you.” She smiles warmly at us as she continues scanning our items. “He must be a really good big brother to carry you around like that.”
My nose scrunches as Dex leans his head against mine. I can feel the amusement coming from him as I correct her. “He’s not my brother.”
“No? Uncle?” I shake my head, feeling annoyed for some reason that she doesn’t see our connection. “Who is he then?”
“He’s my—” I stop, my mouth wide open as I realize I have no label for what he is to me.
“Boyfriend,” Dex finishes for me as Sly passes over the cash. My grip around Dex tightens when he says that word. Does he mean that? Is that what he is, my boyfriend?
“Oh,” she says in surprise as her eyes bounce between us. Sly pockets the change then places his hand on my back, rubbing it softly as Dex tosses everything back in the cart. I see her frown, and a smile pulls at my lips.
That’s right. They’re both mine.
“Have a nice day,” Dex says to her as we all move away from her and toward the door.
Suddenly, I remember what they had told me.
That sleeping with women before marriage is normal for them.
Does that mean they’d want to sleep with other women?
It’s not like we are having sex. And even if we were, would they want to do it with multiple women since I’m sort of with all of them? At least, I think I am.
A frustrated groan leaves me when I realize I have no idea what the hell is going on between the guys and me.
As much as I was trying to ask questions, it was hard when I didn't understand much about sex, dating, or relationships.
There was also the fear that if I tried to label it, they would not be on the same page as me.
Pete and Jagger join us, keeping a bag hidden from my view as Pete asks, “What’s wrong?” Telling me he heard my groan as he approached.
Dex finally sets me down, looking at me with a tilt to his head, like he doesn’t understand why I’m looking at him like that.
I think about him telling Jessa to have a nice day, and it grates on me for some reason.
I don’t want him talking to another woman.
I know it makes me a hypocrite, but I don’t care.
I just want to know if that meant something?
Was he flirting? Was it a signal for sex?
I’m flying blind here, and it makes my anger get the best of me as I blurt out, “Are you going to have sex with Jessa?”
His eyes widen as he stares at me in horror.
“Who the fuck is Jessa?” Pete asks, rounding on him, fists clenched as if ready to hit him in my defense.
“I… I have no idea. I swear!” he says, holding up his hands and taking a step back from him.
“She was the cashier,” Sly says, making me round on him.
“So you noticed her enough to remember her name?” I ask angrily.
“What is happening right now?” Dex asks, his hands still up beside his head as his eyes bounce between Sly and me.
Jagger types something on the phone and passes it to Pete. His eyebrows raise in surprise, then his gaze turns knowingly as he looks to me, a smirk returning to his lips. “Looks like our little Wren is jealous.”
I cross my arms over my chest as my eyes narrow on Jagger. He just stares back at me with one raised eyebrow, as if daring me to argue with him. But he knows me better than anyone.
“Baby,” Dex says as if in sympathy, dropping his arms as he steps toward me.
“Don’t baby me!” I tell him, jabbing my finger into his chest. The smile that covers his face is so big it takes me a second to recover from its effect. “Why are you grinning like that?” I ask angrily.
“Why are you so mad at me?” he asks, as his grin turns into a pout. “What did I do?”
“You spoke to her!”
“I did?”
“Yes, you told her to have a nice day.” I can feel the others staring at me, and I don’t have the guts to look at them, knowing they’ll think I’m crazy. Even I know I sound insane right now.
“You don’t want me talking to other women?” Dex asks. But he doesn’t look like he thinks I’m out of my mind; he’s asking because he really wants to know.
“No,” I say, shaking my head once.
“Okay then, I won’t. If I do, Pete has my permission to punch me.”
“What? No! I don’t want you to get hurt!” I say, wondering why I’m being so crazy right now.
“Hey, Wren. Do you have an IUD?” Sly asks randomly, making me frown.
“What’s that?”
“It’s a type of birth control. Do you get a shot or have an implant or anything?” I shake my head as my brows press together further. Birth control? Isn’t that for sex? They knew I was a virgin, so why would I need that?
“When was your last period?”
My jaw drops in surprise at the question. “Why do you need to know that?”
“It might explain some things. Do you know when you’re due?” My cheeks heat in embarrassment, talking about my menstrual cycle as casually as we would discuss what type of pizza to order.
Trying to recall my last cycle, I feel like I’ve lost a bit of time since I ran, but it also hasn’t been that long. “Maybe a few weeks?”
“Get her in the SUV, I’m going back in for supplies,” Sly says, nodding to the others. “Do you prefer pads or tampons?”
My cheeks heat again as I quietly tell him, “Tampons, the regular ones, please.” He nods and takes off with Pete at his side.
Dex grabs my waist, surprising me as I jump at his touch. “Sorry, didn’t mean to startle you. Let’s get you and our stuff in the car.”
He nods to Jagger, who’s holding the cart, waiting for us. I take Dex’s offered hand as we walk together behind Jagger.
After a minute, I whisper, “Sorry, I went a little crazy there.” Was it really because of my period?
I’ve never really experienced emotional whiplash like that before.
But that seemed to be what life with these guys was, a series of emotional experiences I’ve never felt before, as if I’d always been living with a lack of anything real or at least a lack of anything good.
The loneliness and struggle to keep Robert happy were definitely real.
“I’ll tell you a secret,” Dex says, leaning down toward me to whisper, “I love your crazy. Especially when you go crazy for me.”
“Is that why you were smiling?”
He grins again and nods. “Uh huh. Seeing your jealousy is hot.”
“Hot?” I ask in surprise.
He nods frantically and licks his lips as if picturing it in his head. “Fucking sexy as hell. Seeing you all fired up like that made me want to bend you over and shove my co—”
I never knew what he was going to say as Jagger slaps his hand over Dex’s mouth, cutting him off as he glares at him.
After a few moments, he slowly drops his hand and gestures to the SUV, indicating we should help him load the stuff inside.
We start to help, and when Dex’s heated hazel eyes meet mine, he winks, setting my body on fire.
I’m not sure what Dex was going to say, but I can take a guess. And it was something I was secretly hoping he would do someday in the not-so-distant future.