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“Are you okay? Where were you?” Kailan asked as he stepped forwards.
“Uh, in the gym,” I said dryly as I waved a hand to indicate the state I was in. Where else did they think I was? “I couldn’t sleep so I thought I’d run on the treadmill,” I added when they still looked unsure.
“You should have woken me. We were worried,” Harris eventually spoke up.
“It was early and we all had a long night with my nightmares. I didn’t want to wake you, and I didn’t need to. I was fine.”
“Here honey. Drink this and sit down for a few minutes,” Aleks told me as he appeared at my side with a cold bottle of water. I took it gratefully and untwisted the cap, gulping down the ice cold water greedily. Maybe I should take water with me next time, I pondered.
“How are you feeling today?” Nick asked as I sat my shaky ass down on one of the stools at the counter.
“Better. I’m sorry about yesterday. I just…it all got too much,” I tried to explain.
“Nothing to be sorry for, darlin’. We all have days like that,” Kailan shrugged as he jumped up on the counter beside me.
“Did you hear from my brothers?” I asked with a wince. I hated the way I had left things with them all, but I’d just been at my breaking point and I knew it. I needed them gone so I could allow myself to break for a little while.
“I spoke to Kade last night. They’re back home. They said to let you know that everyone is fine. They’re all going to stay with your mom and dad for a while,” Harris explained.
“I need to go to them. This is all my fault. I should at least be there to help,” I sighed.
“Just say the word and we’ll make the arrangements, Evie,” Aleks told me. “But wait until you feel sure you’re ready, okay? There’s no hurry. Everyone is safe and your brothers are on top of everything right now. You need to worry about yourself.”
“I’ll think about it,” I replied. “But we should go soon. My mom and dad need to see that I really am okay. They must have been so worried, and I miss them too.”
“Whenever you’re ready, sweetheart,” Harris told me as he came to my side, wrapped his arm around me and kissed the top of my head.
“Eww, stop touching me. I’m so sweaty,” I argued as I gave him a playful shove to the side.
“Why don’t you go and shower and I’ll make us all some breakfast?” Nick suggested.
“Pancakes?” I asked hopefully. Nick’s chocolate chip pancakes were the best I’d ever tasted.
“Anything for you, baby,” he told me with a wink. I loved it when he did that. It was so sexy and had me grinning like a love sick school girl every damned time.
“I should get dressed too. Save me some pancakes,” Aleks said as he started to follow me from the kitchen.
When we reached the stairs I turned to him and smiled mischievously, the memory of his kiss playing on a loop in my head.
“You know…” I started as I took the first few stairs, then paused and turned back to him. “…I got you really sweaty before. You should probably shower too.” It was not like me at all to be so forward. I wasn’t shy before everything that happened and I had too much confidence, I had been told once or twice, but when it came to sex and intimacy, I had always allowed the man to take the lead, always a little less sure of myself in those scenarios – not that there had been many. Just Harris and Dean.
“And I suppose you’re worried about conserving water, huh?” he teased with a sexy smile.
“Well, I just figure we should all do our bit for the planet, right?”
“Of course. I totally agree. Lead the way my little eco-warrior.”
I was smiling like a loon as I hurried my pace up the stairs and made my way into my room, Aleks right behind me. It was what these guys did to me – not just the way they turned me into a needy vixen, but also the happiness I felt when I was with them. Despite everything – and let’s be honest there was a lot! I was in the middle of a serial killer nightmare, but despite that, and all of my fear and trauma, my four guys could still make me smile. They could make me forget, just for a little while, and in those times I got a glimpse of a future I wanted – a peaceful, happy future with all of them and Zack. No matter what came next, I was already confident that Nick, Harris, Kailan, and Aleks were going to be a part of it, and that gave me more hope than anything else had for as long as I could remember.
Aleks closed my bedroom door behind him after he entered, then he followed me right through to the bathroom, closing that door too as I leaned into the shower cubicle to set the water running. When I turned back to Aleks nerves flooded me. Had I been too forward? Was I even ready for this? It had been amazing with Kailan, but there was a part of me that still feared I’d freak out at their touch, even though I trusted them entirely. What if my trauma from the past reared its ugly head at the wrong moment and I completely ruined everything?
“Evie, look at me, malenka,” Aleks said softly, and my eyes automatically searched out his. Nick had told me me Aleks lost his eye overseas and that he wore a prosthetic now, but I couldn’t tell which eye it was. They were both beautiful, sparkling under the lights as he focused on me with so much intensity and patience. “It’s okay if you’re not ready for this. There’s no hurry. We have all of the time in the world to be together. I’m not going anywhere.”
“No!” I cried. “I’m ready. I want this Aleks. You mean so much to me already and I want everything with you. I…I guess I just can’t help worrying I might freak out on you after….well, everything. Sometimes it’s hard to control the memories that sneak up…in here.” I pointed to my temple.
“If that happens, then we’ll deal with it, but Evie, nothing you could do would stop me from wanting to be with you. We all have these demons from the past and we’re all doing our best to fight them, but they will make themselves known from time to time and we just have o learn to live with that. I believe we can do that, together.”
“Together,” I agreed with a nod. I took a step towards him and instantly his hands were on my hips, pulling me closer. He kissed me chastely just a peck on the lips.
