Chapter 7 Starling #4
“Hey Little Sis. If she tries to convince you to help her run away, I’ll chain you both to the couch,” he says without looking up from his screen.
“Ignore him. I’m thinking trains, planes, or automobiles. A boat is too predictable this close to the ocean,” Sammy says.
“Wife, I will get the chains,” Evan growls as he slips out of bed and pads over to her.
Wrapping an arm around her from behind, he spreads his palm over her belly.
“I know you’re stressed, and you don’t want this, but just take a deep breath and relax.
Let the moms do their thing and just ignore them. ”
“There’s a string quartet downstairs,” Sammy hisses. “A string-fucking-quartet, and I swear I heard Cassidy say something about swans.” Turning to me, she shakes her head. “Starling, I love you, but if your mom lets swans loose in our pool, I’m going to kill her.”
“Feel free. I’ll give you an alibi,” I tell her with a shrug.
We all turn to look when the bedroom door swings open and Sebastian slips inside, holding a wiggling Lysander in his arms. The sight of my husband holding a baby makes my knees go weak, and I grab for the wall, flattening my palm against the cool plaster to keep myself upright.
“Baby Bro,” Evan gushes, pressing a hot kiss to the chain around Sammy’s neck, before he steps away, striding over to Sebastian and lifting the baby from his arms.
“Sammy, your mom is demanding you be found,” Sebastian says, leaning casually against the doorframe.
“My mom can go fuck herself,” Sammy says, rubbing absently at a spot on the side of her belly.
“Is he kicking?” Sebastian asks, his gaze fixed on my bestie’s stomach.
“Yep. I think he has a future as an MMA fighter or a soccer star.”
“Can I?” he asks, taking a step forward, his arm outstretched.
At her nod, Sebastian moves toward her, tentatively placing his hand on her stomach through her robe. Grabbing his wrist, Sammy moves his hand until a soft smile spreads across his lips.
“This is your Uncle Sebastian,” Sammy coos to her belly. “He’s insane, but he loves your Auntie Starling, so we put up with him. Never take romantic advice from him, because I will not bail you out if you end up in jail.”
Snickering, I move forward, laying my hand alongside Sebastian’s, and feeling the weird alien-like sensation rolling beneath her skin. “That’s so weird,” I tell her.
“I know,” she agrees. “I keep expecting him to burst through my stomach and start attacking people.”
“Our son is not a fucking alien,” Evan snarls, scowling at Sammy.
“Half his DNA is yours, he’s probably closer to alien than human.”
“Wife,” he growls.
“Husband,” she growls back.
A tentative knock on the door that’s still partially open behind us has us all turning to see who it is.
Dawn, Sammy, and Evan’s house manager is standing in the hall, her lips twisted into a flat line.
“I’m sorry to interrupt, Sammy, but Mrs. Hartley and Mrs. Morris are insisting that you be fetched. ”
Sighing, Sammy tips her head back and stares up at the ceiling. “Dawn, could you arrange a car to take me to the airport, there’s a plane I need to catch to the remotest island ever.”
Smiling, Dawn’s shoulders slump a little. “I can arrange that for you.”
“No, you can’t,” Evan says, handing Lysander to me as he steps past us and into the hall. “I’ll come and tone down the moms. Sammy, you get dressed, and I’ll send the makeup woman up when she gets here. Little Sis, you stay up here and watch the baby and my wife. Bastian, you come with me.”
Nodding, Dawn walks away, and Sebastian reluctantly follows Evan, leaving Sammy and me with the baby.
“Can you believe I’m going to have one of these in a few weeks?” Sammy says, reaching out and booping Lysander on the nose.
“I really can’t. But then how is any of this our lives? We live in mansions, are married to psychos, and are now basically sisters,” I say, bouncing the fidgeting infant in my arms, while Sammy coos at him.
Closing the bedroom door, Sammy lowers herself slowly to sit on the edge of the bed. “You’re good with him,” she says, nodding at me and my half brother.
“It’s hard to hate a baby,” I admit. “Plus, he’s as much Harry’s as he is my mom’s, it’s not his fault she gave birth to him.”
“She asked me if I thought you’d ever forgive her last week,” Sammy says.
“What did you say?”
“I asked her if she thought she deserved to be forgiven.”
“And,” I prompt.
“She gave me some bullshit about only wanted what was best for you, and that she could see how much you loved Sebastian, and that she didn’t think it was fair that even though she was right, you still blamed her for everything.”
Scoffing, I nod sadly.
“Yeah. I told her if that’s how she really felt, then no, I didn’t think you’d ever forgive her.”
“Let me guess, she started crying.”
“Yep. Harry took her home after that.”
“She doesn’t get why what she did was so unforgivable, and I don’t think she ever will.”
“Are you still seeing a therapist?” Sammy asks cautiously.
I nod. “I’m not sure if it’s helping, but I don’t feel as conflicted as I did.”
“What do you talk about? Have you told her everything?”
“No.” I laugh. “Even with patient-doctor confidentiality, I’m guessing she still has some kind of duty of care to report abuse.
If I told her Sebastian blackmailed me, locked me in a room, drugged me, then put a tracker in my skin and stalked me for years, she’d definitely report it to the police.
I’ve told her the gist, without getting into the more fucked-up details. ”
“I get it. If it were me seeing a shrink, I could hardly tell her all the things I’ve done or the messed-up way I ended up like this,” she says, motioning to her belly.
“But you’re happy about the baby, right? I know it was a shock, but still, now?”
“I’m happy. I wasn’t planning on having a baby before I even finished college, but it’s classic me and Evan. We’re both so fucked up, it shouldn’t really surprise me.”
“True,” I agree with a grin.
“I’m surprised Sebastian hasn’t tried to lock you down with one of these yet.”
“I’d kill him.”
“Like that would stop him. Have you talked about babies?”
Smirking, I scoff lightly. “To be honest, just lately we haven’t been doing a lot of talking.”
“Oh, then what have you been doing? We’ve all noticed the way you’ve been recently, but I need details. Pregnant sex is a pain in the ass, so I need to live vicariously through you until my pussy recovers from pushing a watermelon out of it.”
“That was an image I didn’t need.” I grimace.
“Starling. Details. Seriously, what has that crazy-ass husband of yours been doing to give you that glow?”
“Do you remember that book we read with the…free use in it?”
Sammy’s jaw drops open. “Seriously?”
“Yeah, kind of.”
“So, no warm-up or foreplay. He just spreads your legs and fucks you whenever he wants?”
“I mean, not just sex.”
“What else?” she asks quickly, her expression openly curious.
“He’ll shove his dick in my face and force me to suck him off. And…”
“And what?”
“We’ve been experimenting with the plugs I bought back when Bunny was talking about how much she enjoys anal.”
“It’s good, isn’t it?” Sammy says with a smirk.
“I wouldn’t call it…good, but I…” Swallowing thickly, I glance at the baby in my arms, glad that he has no idea what I’m saying before I blurt, “I kind of enjoy him forcing me to do it.”
“Forcing?” Sammy hisses, her brows arched so high they’re almost touching her hairline.
“Not forcing, forcing. I could say no. But the dirty talk is insane, and he…tells me to take it. That he’s not asking permission. It’s…”
“Hot,” she pants, wafting her hand exaggeratedly in front of her face.
“So hot,” I agree. “Sebastian basically said that he knows I’m just as much of a psycho as him, so if he can’t control me, he can control my body.”
“And you like that?” she asks, hanging off my every word.
“I really do. I don’t know why, but I really, really do. It’s like this new dynamic between us has given us balance again, and we’re not fighting for the upper hand.”
“Is that what you’ve been doing? I knew you guys were struggling a little bit, but I didn’t realize it was that bad.”
Sighing, I pull a face at Lysander and boop his nose before I respond.
“It’s not bad, exactly. But he’s been on edge, and that sets me on edge.
It’s gotten worse as the summer has come to an end.
But this last week, it’s been amazing. I’m still mad at him about the security team and changing me to online to finish my degree, but I don’t feel like we’re tiptoeing around each other anymore. ”
“Because you’ve agreed, he can use you like a sex toy,” Sammy snorts.
“Have you even been a sex toy?” I snark.
“Well, no, but…”
“You should try it. Maybe you can when your pussy doesn’t look like hamburger.”
She flicks her middle finger up at me, and I laugh. “You need to get ready; I’ll return this one to Cassidy while you take a shower, then I’ll help you get dressed.”
Closing the bedroom door behind me, I coo at Lysander as I carry him downstairs, finding Harry standing in the kitchen, drinking a cup of coffee.
“I think this belongs to you,” I say, pressing a kiss to the top of the baby’s head before I hold him out for Harry to take.
“Hey, little man, did you have fun with your sister?” Harry asks, taking the baby from me and pulling him into his chest. Lifting his gaze back to me, Harry smiles. “How are you doing, Starling?”
“I’m good, thanks,” I say politely. Despite him basically being my stepdad, I barely know him. He started dating my mom after they met for the first time, and since then, I’ve associated him with her. I’m pretty close to Sebastian, Hunter, and Clay’s parents, but I’ve kept my distance from Harry.
“Your mom would love it if you and Sebastian would come for dinner. Evan and Sammy could come too, if that’d make it easier,” Harry says, his voice low and gruff, his words polite, but with a hint of an order behind the cordiality.