35. Max
CHAPTER 35
MAX
I feel like I’ve died and the scalding water pounding against my skin is reviving me. My entire body is sore, every muscle aching, including ones I didn’t even know I had. Don’t even get me started on the parts of me that were used by three different men tonight.
Oh fuck.
Three. Different. Men.
I groan, dropping my head against the side of the shower, fighting back the internal slut shaming comments about myself. The problem is that I liked it. I enjoyed every single painful second as they each used me in their own way. They gave me everything I’ve ever fantasized about in the privacy of my own mind and yet I still can’t help but feel shitty about it.
The hateful words from my family and Carson start to play in my head, making it pound as I imagine everything they would say to me. My heart rate kicks up and the steam around me makes it difficult to breathe. I’m worried I’m about to pass out. I think about calling out for Caine, but then I hear voices, and it pulls me back to reality.
I stick my head out of the shower to hear a little better.
“You don’t get to have her all to yourself.”
“You should’ve taken her then.”
“What about what she wants?”
What I want.
I duck my head back into the shower, letting the water run over me. I pull out the leaves and sticks that are stuck in my hair while I think about that. What is it that I want?
What I want is for the three of them to do that again if I’m honest. But I know that’s an insane thought and try to shake it away knowing that it could never happen.
I scrub my body, the exhaustion taking over, and I just want to lay down. Hoping I’m alone once I leave the confines of my bathroom, I dry myself off and slowly open the door to my bedroom. To my surprise, no one is standing there, and I breathe out a sigh of relief. All I want to do is crawl into my bed, curl up under the blankets, sleep for at least twelve hours and hope the ache between my legs is better by tomorrow.
My eyes catch on the clothes laid out on my bed and I do a double take. It’s just a long sleeve oversized T-shirt, but the fact that Caine would even consider doing this has my heart swooping in my chest. Of course, there aren’t any panties, but he knows I don’t sleep in them anyway, so in a way it’s sweet because he knows that.
No, I don’t like him. This isn’t sweet and he’s still a psycho.
But he’s a psycho who did a nice thing, so I pull on the shirt and start to climb into bed. When I hear the voices again I narrow my eyes at my closed door, waiting to see if the voices are coming from inside my house, or if they’re somehow carrying in from outside.
I really should know better, this street is extremely quiet but still, I wait. It doesn’t take long to confirm that the voices are in fact coming from inside my house and they definitely belong to men I am intimately familiar with.
But unfortunately for all four of us, I’m tired and don’t want to deal with any of this until the morning. So, I go out into the living room, where all three of the large men are arguing. The way they’re all taking up space makes my living room look tiny.
“You should be sleeping,” Drew comments, drawing Caine and Adam’s attention to me. I suddenly feel even more exposed than I ever have, despite the fact that all three of them have now seen more of me than I’m currently showing. All three of them have been inside of me in various ways. Yet, standing here in just a T-shirt that hits mid-thigh and having all of their eyes trained on me has me feeling like I should drop to my knees or something.
“I would be, if you guys would leave my fucking house,” I snap, folding my arms across my chest with some false bravado.
“Just go to bed, we’ll be quiet,” Adam says calmly. I narrow my gaze at him. I have so many questions. Like how he became involved in this and what that means. I don’t want to stop training, but I don’t know if I’m going to be able to continue now.
“Perfect, be quiet out of my house.” I extend my arm and point toward the front door.
Caine scoffs, “Go to bed, killer, or I’m putting you in it myself.”
I roll my eyes at him, turning on my heel and walk back to my room. Even though I doubt it’ll do anything to deter any of them, I lock the door. It’ll at least give me a warning if any of them try coming in here.
Once I climb into the cool sheets, resting my head on my pillow, the exhaustion hits me and I’m asleep within seconds.
I don’t know what time it is when I wake up, but my room isn’t bright, and I slept so hard that for a moment I forget where I am. I didn't have any nightmares and as I open my eyes, I'm expecting to see the room I shared with Carson. My ballet slippers resting neatly by the leotard I laid out the night before.
But instead, I see my new house. There are no ballet slippers, and the sun isn’t shining through the window, just the glow of it behind clouds that’s when I remember where I am. That I escaped and that I now have three men vying for my attention.
And taking full advantage of my body whenever they feel like it.
Remembering last night, I listen for their voices. Waiting for one, or all three of them, to burst in here. That's when I hear them. They're faint, clearly trying to be quiet and I turn my head and scream into a pillow.
I drag myself out of bed, silently cursing them all for their big dicks that have caused the current soreness between my legs. But, like the strong woman I am, I pull myself up and prepare to face whatever is waiting for me in my living room.
Except, I pull on a pair of shorts first because I’m sure as shit not going out there without pants on.
I’m greeted by Caine leaning over my kitchen counter, bright eyes staring daggers across the room at the other two men. Adam is sprawled out on my couch like he’s trying to take up as much space as possible. And Drew is sitting in a dining chair, man spreading while leaning back slightly.
“Good morning,” Drew greets with a small smile, reaching behind himself he grabs the to go cup of coffee, holding it toward me.
I look between him and the cup, skeptically. I'm not sure that I should trust a drink from any one of them.
“How’d you sleep?” Caine asks with a tone that suggests he knows something I don’t, and I immediately take inventory of myself. But honestly, with how sore I’m feeling I wouldn’t know if he did anything to me in my sleep or not.
Though, it turns out that’s more Drew’s forte anyway.
“Why are you all here?” I ask, looking at each of them.
“We didn’t want to leave you alone,” Adam answers easily.
“Okay, cut the shit,” I announce. “What the fuck was yesterday and why the fuck are you three here now?”
They glance at each other, like they are waiting to see who will speak up.
“Someone fucking tell me, or you can all get the fuck out of my house,” I demand.
Again, they don’t say anything. I throw my hands up with an annoyed grumble, bypassing the coffee offering from Drew, and avoiding Caine virtually standing in my way of making my own.
“We wanted to make it easy for you, to choose,” Drew finally says, and I spin around to glare at him.
“Choose? After yesterday you three want me to choose? What am I choosing? What brand of torture I prefer?”
“Don’t act like you hated it. You loved every second of what we did,” Caine scoffs.
I ignore him, turning to Adam. “Since when have you been involved in their shit anyway? What happened to helping me defend myself.”
“We can call yesterday part of your training. And you failed,” he responds.
“Please, sir, next time show me how to defend myself when I’m being rammed against a tree by a professional fighter,” I retort sarcastically.
“Retired professional fighter.” Adam shrugs.
I roll my eyes. “Don’t you three have places to be? Jobs to get to? Lives to ruin?”
Adam looks at the time. “The gym doesn’t open for another two hours.”
I look between Drew and Caine. “And you two don’t have other jobs to go to or anything?”
They both shake their head, and I’m realizing how little I know about these men that have done unspeakable things to my body. It registers that I don’t even know their last names.
“I’m a coach at the gym,” Drew says in defense, and I look at Caine for his response.
“I fight.” He shrugs, but I can tell there’s more that he’s not saying, but he doesn’t offer anything else.
“Okay, well, I want to be alone now, so you all can leave.”
“When’d you put this in? I like it,” Caine says, looking toward the pole in my living room instead of acknowledging my request.
“If you all won’t leave then I’m locking myself in my room until you do,” I threaten.
“Cute you think that we won’t join you,” Drew jokes and I glare at him.
“Alright.” Adam sighs, standing up. “Let’s leave her alone.”
I look over at him, surprised that he’s giving me what I want. Or what I think I want.
No, it’s definitely what I want.
I nod, looking between Caine and Drew. “Yeah, listen to your coach and leave me alone.”
Caine crowds me against the counter and I immediately put my hands up on his chest in a weak attempt to stop him. He speaks low, leaning down so our foreheads are almost touching, “He doesn’t tell me what the fuck to do.”
I stand my ground, looking up to meet his eyes, which only brings our faces closer. “But I do.”
He lets me push him back slightly, but I’m not delusional enough to think my strength did that. The smirk he gives me only proves that he allowed the move.
Drew steps between us, his hand threading into my hair as he starts to dip his head down like he’s going to kiss me. I easily dodge his mouth, and he chuckles against my ear. “You’re going to drive us all crazy, aren’t you, little one?”
He walks away, clapping his hand on Caine’s shoulder as they walk toward my front door. Adam glances back at me. “You’re still coming to class later. And we’re talking about this.”
His tone boasts no argument and for once, I have nothing to say. My body protests any training, but I’m unable to say anything as the three of them walk out of my house.
The weirdest feeling washes over me once they’re gone. The coldness. Loneliness. The feeling that takes over is foreign and I shake it away, turning to the one thing that never hurts me.
Music.