Chapter 3 #2
“You can’t fuck me like that and then get all cuddly…” Scarlett puts her palm against my side, but her protest doesn’t go any further than that. She hugs me back and then I set her down. We both fix our own pants. I notice she doesn’t go sprinting to the bathroom. My lips curve. Messy.
“You should start your period on Tuesday,” I say to her, completely cold and deadpan. My heart thumps. Our eyes lock. She draws both hands into fists, red-cheeked and gazing up at me. “I’ve been tracking your cycles. Should I help Widow pick your ovulation days when you’re ready to have his baby?”
Scarlett clamps a hand over her lips. And then she laughs. I’m not sure what’s so funny about all of that. I’m just delivering facts. It’s hard not to know what day of her cycle it is. I follow her around. I know everything. And she knows that.
“Fucking stalker. Oh my God. That’s… Don’t ever bring that up again.” She tosses her hair as she turns away, infecting the air with the smell of shampoo. “Really, Bohnes. Admit it: you just wanted to say the word ovulation.”
“Ovulation, ovulation, ovulation,” I whisper back at her, snagging her bicep from behind in tight fingers. Stopping her cold. “If he gets one, I might start wanting one, too. And you know I’m not a fan of procreation or perpetuating the human species. What have you done to me?”
I’m given a look of pure disgust over Scarlett’s right shoulder.
“I thought you were better than that,” she breathes with faux wide-eyed shock. She draws her arm through my loosened grip and then grabs my hand. I’m dragged into the kitchen, noticing that Widow is back at the counter with Alexei. They’re both drinking. Beer and wine respectively.
It smells…not hideous in here. I hate admitting to being human.
It’s fun to play with blood and joke about licking it, but it’s not a substitute for a good meal.
Ash is tolerable as a kept pet. We can keep him.
And then there’s the rich one with all the resources to make us richer. Alexei is okay, too. That last one…
Widow. He narrows his eyes when he sees us, jaw tightening. He’s the wild card, always trying to one-up me. I tilt my head, scrutinizing him.
“You two have fun screwing each other?” he asks, taking a sip of his beer.
“Is that a legitimate question?” I reply, another hideous smile blooming on my face. “You know as well as I do that she fucks like she runs her gang: with precision. Of course it was fun.”
“Dude.” Scarlett slaps me on the arm, but it’s playful. “Thank you. That’s a nice compliment. I am actually really fucking good at fucking.”
“We’re not going to talk about what happened today, are we?” Widow continues, absolutely bewildered by the rest of us.
Poor thing.
The trauma he has, like cobwebs between his rib bones, I don’t share it.
That’s my one and only blessing. It’s annoying because it makes Adrian both pitiful and forgivable.
I’m going to ruin his life when I tell him what I want in exchange for his breaking the track rules.
I resolve to treat him like he’s strong, like he can handle this.
If he fails, he looks bad in front of Scarlett.
If he succeeds, then I’ll tip my hat to him.
Widow and I are staring at each other. Scarlett, Alexei, and Ash are ignoring us.
“Dinner will be ready soon.” Ash is sitting on the counter, polishing his sword.
I can see Alexei’s intense discomfort. He wants to tell Ash to move his ass away from an area where food is prepared, but he also feels bad for having had his dick in his mouth.
Widow is struggling, but he’s forcing himself through it because he thinks he’s being respectful of the other two idiots.
I would never bother with any of the nonsense they’re putting themselves through tonight.
“These dynamics are fascinating,” I whisper to Scarlett, leaning down to put my mouth against the side of her head, my breath teasing her hair the way she likes. “Let’s make popcorn.”
Her plush mouth shapes itself into something artful, sensual and relaxed. Self-assured. She’s as confident as I am, even in the face of the mob. The mayor. A big shot CEO. Fear is something every person in this room knows how to walk straight through. That’s why we’re different.
I’m fucking half-married to these other men. They’re almost my husbands, which is fine in Ash’s case since he cooks. Alexei brings a big dowry. Widow…he could be the extra weight that tips the scales in our favor.
“Burt may have accidentally done us a favor, I think. The faster we start working together, the harder we hit and the further we climb.” Scarlett turns and presses another kiss against the side of my jaw. “Make sure you get some sleep tonight. You more than earned it.”
The idea of that, of fucking Scarlett and then falling asleep beside her every night, I never imagined that for my future.
Because you really are human, Kellin, and you could be taken out at any moment. If something happens to me, Scarlett is still safe because we have these other boys here.
Out of everything, that’s what our family situation does for me.
I kiss the wedding ring tattoo with a curse for good luck, putting aside any leftover reservations.
I wanted Ash dead, after all, and here he is serving me chicken and dumplings.
With all of the effort we put into rescuing him, I figure these three boys would also come for me someday, if anything were to happen.
We don’t have the safest line of work, do we? Assassination attempts are always possible.
No wonder my wife wants to retire early.