AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“We’ve always shared everything. When our families first came to America, we all lived together. Not for long, because our families, like all the Bratva, had money hidden, but it took about six months for them to access it. We were three young boys, forced to live in close quarters, we bonded and that bond never failed. I have never had anything that I wasn’t willing to share with my brothers and they feel the same. When we dated in high school, it always felt weird to kiss a girl and then not offer her lips to them. I think Dimi was the first to suggest that finding one girl we all wanted would work better for us, but as soon as he said it, it made sense to me.”
“Do you guys share each other too?” she asks cautiously.
“No. Lev and Dimi are my brothers, not my lovers. Although if my preferences swung in that direction, they’d be my first choice.”
“So have you ever had a relationship with a woman you’ve shared before?”
I wasn’t expecting her to be this curious, but it’s not disgust in her eyes, it’s open intrigue, and that’s more than I could have hoped for after all we’ve put her through.
“We’ve shared women for a night or two, but never long term.”
“Then how do you even know if you’ll want it long term? What happens if after a few months one of you decides they don’t want a third of a woman and leaves?” she asks quickly, her pitch raising in question.
“This isn’t something we’re going into blindly. We’ve spent years talking about how we think this will work. What we all need to be able to balance the others out. What our roles in the relationship would be. We know this is what we want, and we want it with you. I know that bringing you here the way we did hasn’t given you the best first impression of us. But I promise, once Orlov and his supporters are dead, the only important thing in our world will be you and our relationship.”
“And if I’m not interested in being in a four-way relationship with the three of you? What if I’m gay, or A-sexual, or identify as a man. What then?”
“Are you gay or A-sexual or identify as a man?” I ask cautiously.
“No, but?—”
“Alabama, there is so much that you don’t know. So much that we need to tell you to give you some idea of the depth of feeling we have for you. And soon we’ll tell you everything but, for now, just know that when we say we know you, it’s because we know you. We saw everything, watched everything, observed everything. If you were gay, we’d probably try to convince you to give being bisexual a try. If you were A-sexual, we’d love you anyway and we’d connect with you on a spiritual and mental level, and if you identified as a man, then maybe I’d reconsider which way my sexuality swung. The truth is, we’ll take you however we can. We’ll do anything, be anyone, change everything, just to be yours.”
Sighing, she shakes her head. “If you all made the decision not to let revenge rule your lives, why have you allowed it to ruin mine?”
“We didn’t plan it that way and I hope, eventually, it won’t feel like we ruined anything. Taking out vengeance on your father honestly wasn’t even on our radar, until it literally dropped into our laps. We’ve spent years trying not to allow our families’ past to affect our future and then there it was; this chance to set right all the wrongs that were done to us.”
“My biological father’s head on a platter,” she scoffs.
“Exactly,” I agree. “The moment we saw a chance, we took it and we’ve been rolling downhill with a plan that became so obviously clear the moment we decided it was our time to take charge. For what it’s worth, I’m sorry that we had to bring you here this way. I wanted to speak to you when we first saw you again in Columbus, but the others thought it would be harder for you to accept us ultimately bringing you here if you felt like we’d been lying to you for a year.”
“I guess that makes sense.” Nodding, she exhales slowly.
“Are you hungry?” I ask.
“Not really.”
“You barely ate at breakfast.”
“Vik force fed me snacks before we went down to the beach.”
“Well, Roza’s been cooking up a storm, and word of warning, never tell her you’re not hungry. I’m not sure if it’s a Russian thing or just a Roza thing, but she’ll take it as a challenge and keep cooking until you give in and eat.”
Standing up, I hold out my hand to her and she eyes it, like it’s a snake ready to strike. Right when I’m about to give up and drop my hand, she tentatively places her fingers against my palm. Holding her reverently, I help her up. I know I should release her now she’s standing, but being this close to her, touching her… it’s intoxicating and I don’t want to let go.
Pushing my fingers through hers, I lace our hands together, then lead her away from the pool and toward the table that’s laid for lunch on the other side of the patio. The weather here is so beautiful that we use the outside dining space almost all the time. We’d eat dinner out here too, if Roza didn’t like to decorate the dining room in the evenings.
Vik is already sitting at the table, but Dimi isn’t here yet as I pull out Alabama’s chair, only letting go of her hand when she sits. Taking the seat next to hers, I fight the urge to move my chair closer and drape my arm across her shoulders. Being close to her feels right and even if all I ever have is this innocent intimacy, I’ll take it.
Dimi strolls onto the patio with a wide grin on his lips as he slides into his seat at the head of the table. “How was your walk?” he asks, focusing all of his attention on Alabama.
“It was nice, thank you,” she answers politely.
“Good. Did Lev tell you he’s going to give you your first swimming lesson after lunch?” he asks happily.
Alabama’s head snaps in my direction and she narrows her eyes as she glares at me. “No, he didn’t. I don’t need to learn to swim.”
“You do and you will,” Dimi says, turning it into an order.
