27. Roxy
Roxy
“Inever thought I’d come back here,” Maddy sighs, snuggling into the blankets further before reaching for a Malteser.
We have sweets, chips, and enough hot chocolate to last a month. Edward Cullen sparkles on the screen in front of us, and we are wrapped in layers of soft blankets. We have a real life sleepover happening here!
“I don’t know why,” I yawn, crunching on a chip. “This place is fucking magnificent. Also remind me to buy you new hair products; I’ve been using the shit out of them. Feel how soft my hair is!”
She reaches over, gripping a strand and giggling.
“It is soft,” she gasps, and I give her a look saying, see! “But I don’t want anything. Honestly, when I left this place, I was never looking back. It holds some bad memories for me.”
My brows draw. “Are you okay with being here now?”
Turning onto her side to face me, she smiles.
“Considering just outside that door awaits Ash and both twins,” she gives me a look. “And I’m here with my best friend... I’ve never been better.”
Her words make my heart warm.
“You can totally live here even after all of this is sorted out,” Maddy shrugs casually, as if she isn’t offering me everything. “Unless you wanna go back to your home.”
Suddenly, my throat feels dry.
“Well...” I swallow. “Before this, I was actually living in the studio.”
Maddy’s smile fades.
“Roxy...”
I shrug, trying to play it off. “It’s not as bad as it sounds. It even has a shower. And the coffee machine is an added bonus.”
She shakes her head, pushing up from the bed with her elbow. Reaching into the bowl of treats, she throws a Malteser, and it hits me right in the forehead.
“Ow!”
“You deserved that,” she snarks as I rub my forehead dramatically before grabbing the chocolate and popping it into my mouth. “You know, we’ve really got to be better at telling each other things.”
My heart stutters in my chest because she’s right.
“No, I mean it, Roxy. I think the universe made our paths cross. Think about it! When I met you, I was dealing with all this... Devils stuff and you were dealing with your brothers. Now you are one of us... We can help each other; we just need to let each other in.”
Nodding slowly, I sit up as well.
“You’re right,” I murmur. “Sometimes it feels easier just to deal with things on my own.”
She reaches over to grip my hands in hers. “Because that’s the way it’s always been. I get it. But things have changed, and you’ve got hundreds of people who now have your back. Once you are one of us, they’ll put their lives on the line to make sure you’re okay.”
The backs of my eyes burn. It’s a concept I can barely wrap my head around.
“Like you and Ash paying for my studio,” I choke out.
Her face crinkles, like she is trying to recall what I’m talking about.
“Don’t pretend like you didn’t pay my studio rent for the next year...” My voice tapers off as she continues to look at me with a confused look. Sighing, I shake my head. “Fucking Kai.”
Of course it was him. I should have known. My heart is heavy. My sweet sunshine.
“Speaking of no more secrets,” she croons, waggling her eyebrows. “Care to tell me why not one, but two, Devils are shadowing you like obsessed puppies.”
I roll my eyes, but I can’t help but laugh. My cheeks heat as I think about them all waiting for us. I’ve never felt safer than I do right now; those three terrifying men guarding us like we are the most precious things in the world.
It’s a feeling I could get used to.
“Well...” I hesitate, mind reeling about where to start. “I think I have a crush.”
Maddy squeals, jumping up and down on her knees. Chocolates and chips spill everywhere, but neither of us seem to care. We cackle like school girls and it’s everything.
“Both?”
“Both,” I confirm with a Cheshire grin. “Maddy, they are so fucking hot and crazy and sweet. I can’t even deal.”
She pulls an incredulous face. “Sweet?”
I bite my lip, thinking about everything they have done for me. “So sweet.”
Her eyes soften, and she sticks out her bottom lip. “Yeah, they are pretty sweet,” she says gently, a faraway look in her eyes. “Protective, too.”
The door whips open, and we both flinch, clinging to each other.
Kaleb glares at us through the doorway. “I heard a scream.”
His dark eyes are on me, and everything else fades away. Even from here, it’s as if his eyes are cleaving through my soul. It knocks the breath out of my lungs.
“Yeah, Kaleb,” Maddy sighs, her voice dripping with sarcasm. “Or Kai, whoever you are. We are totally getting kidnapped up here in this penthouse, where you three are guarding the door.”
His glare slides to her before coming back to me.
Ash ducks over his shoulder.
“Angel,” he grits out.
She sighs, turning to me to shake her head, exasperated. “Yes, Ash?”
He bites his lips, eyes sliding up and down her pyjama-clad body. “Are you ready to head home? I’m hungry for your cunt.”
Her mouth pops open, and I choke on a laugh, although my face is heating.
“Ash!” she chastises him. “I’m sleeping here tonight. It’s a sleepover. Go cuddle your twins and ask them all about Roxy. It seems they’ve got a little crush.”
I turn a glare on her, but she just shrugs. “Bitch,” I mutter.
“She also called them sweet, which is just plain concerning,” she fake whispers to Ash.
I groan, throwing my hands over my face and burrowing deeper into the blankets. Peeking through my fingers, I see Kaleb, his eyes shining with amusement.
“Out!” I groan.
Finally, I hear the door slide shut, and I playfully shove my best friend.
“I fucking hate you,” I groan.
Wrapping her arms around me and hugging me tight, she laughs into my hair. “No, you don’t.” She’s right. “Tell me about it?”
I peek up at her. “Tell you about what?”
Her smile is so devious I already know what is about to slip out before she utters the words. “How kinky and depraved the sex is.”
And to think I thought she was the innocent one.