Chapter 28
IVY
What the fuck?
A clanging noise echoes through the house in an annoying alarm-like fashion, making me wince. It sounds like someone is smashing a spoon on a metal pan. Bram stirs at my side and turns, cracking a sleepy smile when he realises I’m staring at him. Who can blame me? The guy looks like a Greek fucking God!
“Wakey-wakey!” Callen’s annoying voice makes me collapse back into the pillows before he bursts inside without knocking.
“Hey!” I sit up. “I could have been naked!”
Callen smirks. “It’s nothing I haven’t seen before, princess.”
“Go to hell,” I groan, noticing the saucepan tucked under his arm and the whisk in his hand.
“Up and at ‘em,” he says, bashing the pan again to emphasise his point. “Seb wants to go over our plan before the others arrive.”
All my drowsiness instantly vanishes, and I throw the duvet back. “Have we heard from them?”
“They’ll be here this afternoon,” Callen replies. His gaze lingers on my thighs. “You might want to shower first, though.” He winks. “We don’t want Bram’s cum dripping all over the place. It’s a trip hazard.”
I yelp and look down, making Callen cackle. Asshole. There’s no cum at all, but Callen had me and knows it. Bastard.
“Jesus!” Callen covers his eyes as Bram gets up, stark naked. He approaches Callen, his dick swinging back and forth like a threatening pendulum. “Put it away, man!”
“We’ll see you soon, Callen,” I say pointedly as Bram pushes him out. “Tell Seb we’re on our way.” Bram slams the door behind him. “Has he heard of boundaries?”
Bram raises his eyebrows. You’re kidding, right?
My eyes stray to his dick, which is already hardening and begging for my attention. He notices and gives me his best ‘come back to bed’ eyes.
“No,” I say firmly, standing up. “We have to get ready.”
He corners me, tips my chin upwards to look into his eyes, and presses his cock against me. Are you sure about that?
Ignoring my lusty desires, I step away. “We’re going to kill Alaric today,” I remind him. “I need to be in peak physical form, not limping from taking too much cock!”
Bram chuckles as I head straight for a cold shower.
I need it after that…
When I’m done and completely cum-free, I change into comfortable, yet practical, tight-fitting leather trousers and a complementary black polo neck. They cling to my curves and show off my figure. When I was younger, I often felt too self-conscious about my body to wear tight clothes, but I shed those insecurities long ago. Who gives a shit that I don’t have a perfect hourglass silhouette with a tiny waist and boobs that fit into cute triangle bras? I have big tits, an arse, and grabbable love handles that the Dukes—and Bram—can’t seem to get enough of. I put on red lipstick and mascara, then tie my hair up in a high ponytail to keep it off my face. Now, I’m ready for business.
The others are already sitting around the breakfast table when I join them. Freddie wears a black, perfectly pressed suit with a tie, giving me serious James Bond vibes. I’m unsure whether he slept last night, but he looks better than he has in days. He’s styled his overgrown stubble into a cut-throat slick design, and he’s back to looking like his old self. Seb’s also opted for a formal look: grey trousers with braces over a white shirt. His sleeves are rolled up to his elbows, and his top few buttons are loosened to reveal his inked skin underneath. Bram’s more casual in a plain white t-shirt and jeans, while Callen is sporting a black t-shirt with torn jeans, his fair hair still wet from showering.
Someone must have ordered food or gone out early to grab some because the island is laden with scrumptious breakfast treats: fresh juices, coffee, a pot of tea Bram has commandeered, alongside French pastries, cereals, and fruit bowls.
Aside from Callen, whose plate is already covered in croissant flakes, everyone else’s plates are untouched.
“We waited for you,” Seb explains, his voice husky.
Callen wolf-whistles. “You’re dressed to kill.”
“That’s the idea,” I reply. My chair screeches across the floor as I take a seat. “So, what’s the plan, Seb?”
“Let’s eat first,” he says.
I pour myself a stiff black coffee, ignoring my stomach’s desperate need for a delicious Pain au Chocolat.
“Talk first, eat after,” I demand.
“She knows what she wants,” Callen says. “You can’t keep a woman on the edge for long. Although Ivy likes to be kept on the edge, don’t you?”
He winks while I try to avoid thinking about how he fucked me over the ledge of a building a few days before.
“When are they arriving?” I ask, changing the subject.
“They’ll get here mid-afternoon,” Seb says. “Then we’ll make our move this evening. Stephanie says you know the code for the weapons’ store here?”
I nod. Upstairs, a walk-in wardrobe hides a secret room that should contain all the supplies we need. I snuck away from the others yesterday to take a sneaky look to confirm that we wouldn’t be left defenceless.
“It has everything we need,” I confirm.
“Now we’ve established that, can we eat already?” Callen groans, patting his stomach. “I’m dying here.”
He reaches for the Pain au Chocolat I was eyeing, but I’m faster.
“Hey!” he objects as I swipe it from under him. “That was mine!”
I take a massive bite, making chocolate ooze out of each end while Freddie and Seb laugh.
Seb shrugs. “Finders keepers.”
The guys talk about old times while we eat: different jobs they’ve worked together, funny memories of what happened on security patrols, a story about Callen getting locked in an elevator with a body. I wonder if this jovial atmosphere is how their lives used to be… until I came along.
“Are you sure you don’t want any more?” Freddie asks, noticing me push my plate away.
I shake my head. I’ve eaten more than enough to re-energise.
“Before we raid their weapon stash, there’s something else I want to talk about,” Seb says.
Okay, here it comes. I’m instantly suspicious, preparing myself for some bad news. Was he buttering us up with croissants before getting ready to deliver a crushing blow? Everyone straightens in their seats.
“Ivy,” Seb addresses me. “After tonight, Alaric will be dead, and you’ll be free.”
Maybe this isn’t a doom-and-gloom speech after all. Perhaps he’s trying to deliver a motivational pep talk?
“I haven’t thought that far ahead,” I say dismissively. There’s no point. Seb predicts I’ll be free, but it’s not that simple. Everything still hangs in the balance. My future is filled with unknowns, and I have a relationship with my sister to fix. “I’m focused on the here and now.”
That’s what Killers Club agents are trained for. To act in the moment. No consequences, no future. All that matters is your actions, your marks, and the blood you spill.
“I know,” Seb says, “but I want you to know you’ll still have a place here with us if you want it.”
“You’d really want me to stick around?” I ask.
“Shouldn’t you have checked with the rest of the group first, boss?” Callen asks. His body jerks as Brams kicks him. “Ouch!”
Freddie stays silent but doesn’t take his eyes off me.
Seb ignores Callen’s complaints and carries on. “Yes. We can’t offer a lot, but we can give you a fresh start. A home. Our loyalty.”
“That’s…” I’m not sure what to say. “I don’t think you speak for everyone.”
“He does,” Freddie chips in.
Bram squeezes my hand in agreement.
“Callen?” Seb prompts.
The bad boy biker sighs. “I guess I don’t mind having you around, princess.”
My mouth falls open.
“If you never want to see us again, we’ll understand,” Seb says. “But think about it, okay? We want you to stay, Ivy. Everything’s changed since you walked into our lives.”
“Yeah, we’ve become the targets of a group of assassins, lost our house, Bram nearly died, Seb’s fiancée became worm food…” Callen recounts the incidents on his fingers until Seb’s glare silences him. “But hey, who’s keeping count?”
“If you want to walk away and pretend none of this ever happened, we’d understand,” Freddie says hastily.
“If I stayed, things would have to change,” I say, clearing my throat. “I’ve lived under the control of men for too long. First, Spencer, then Alaric. I’m not following anyone else’s orders again.”
Seb laughs like I’ve told a joke. “I think you’ve misunderstood. I don’t want you to stay to become a Duke and follow my orders.”
“Great, so she’ll get special treatment too,” Callen grumbles under his breath.
“We want you to stay because we like having you around. We care about you,” Seb says. “And we’d never want you to bow down to anyone else ever again.”
Callen opens his mouth to crack a dick-sucking joke, but Freddie nudges him in the ribs and winds him.
Is a life with the four of them what I want? Could I imagine myself staying with them for good? Could I put up with Callen’s bullshit, Freddie’s brooding, Seb’s terrible jokes, and Bram’s fierce protectiveness? I already know my answer, but I’m not ready to show them my hand yet…
“I’ll think about it,” I say.
“Good, because we want you in our lives,” Seb says. He takes a deep breath. “And even though some of us don’t want to admit it….” He looks at Callen. “We all have feelings for you, Ivy.”
“I won’t be a Dukes groupie that you can use as a fuck puppet,” I say before Callen gets the wrong idea.
Freddie, Seb, and Bram look horrified while Callen laughs and mutters, “Shame.”
“That’s not what I meant!” Seb says, his cheeks flushing. “We’d like to be with you, whatever that looks like, but the decision is yours. I just wanted—needed—you to know that, whatever happens today, you’ll always have a home with us. No other woman could compare to you, or put up with our bullshit. If the last few months have proven anything to me, it’s that we’re not the same without you. And I don’t want to go back to that.”
My heart pounds as the magnitude of Seb’s admission sinks in. I drink more coffee to avoid saying anything, knowing they’re all staring at me, waiting for some kind of response.
Eventually, I say, “We’ll see what happens if we survive.”
Seb nods curtly, putting an end to the conversation and leaving me reeling. He knows I can’t be rushed and respects that.
Callen claps his hands. “So, who’s ready to get armed up?”
“Now you’re speaking my language,” I say.
I could talk about weapons, torture, and dismemberment all day, but feelings? That isn’t a language I know how to speak yet…