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Chapter Thirty-Five
Raven
“Want to go on an adventure?”
I look up from the book I’m reading and cock my head at Baxter standing in the doorway. We’ve been back from the holiday for a couple of weeks now and everything has been great. Well, aside from the continued prank wars that are constantly causing chaos in the house. I swear if I find peanut packaging in my bed one more time, I’m going to lose it.
“What kind of adventure?” I ask warily, suspicious that this is yet another one of Nix’s set ups.
“The stabby, fun kind.” His dark eyes gleam with an excitement that sets my pulse racing.
“Absolutely,” I say, discarding the ‘The Death Club’ with a small pang. Sorry gorgeous Irish Niall, my own sexy psycho needs me right now. “Shall I get changed?”
I look down at the black yoga pants I’m wearing, which will be fine for whatever Baxter has in mind, but my white T-shirt might not fare so well.
“Absolutely not. You’re perfect. I love it when you wear white.” Baxter grins.
It’s a good thing he knows how to do laundry, otherwise I’d seriously be running low on whites with the amount of blood he likes to spill. There’s definitely something about me covered in blood – sometimes my own, but mostly his – that turns him on and into overdrive. I’m not complaining, though I probably would if he weren’t so good at getting the stains out.
“I’ll just say goodbye to Phoenix.”
I slip from the room and head towards the garden where she’s playing with Rebel and Thorn. They have water pistols and are having a massive water fight, even though it’s far too cold for that. It may be sunny and uncharacteristically warm for this time of year, but I still think the paddling pool they’ve set up is overkill, especially this late in the afternoon.
“Get your mum!” Thorn shouts, swinging his pistol round at me. I scream and dive behind the slide just in time to escape a blast in the face. Phoenix squeals with joy and runs towards me, trying to pump her super soaker as she goes. I back away slowly, but I’m so focused on Nix and Thorn approaching me that I don’t notice Rebel creeping up behind me until his strong tattooed arm wraps across my chest, pinning me helplessly against his hard body.
“Teamwork!” Thorn and Phoenix cheer and whoop before high fiving like pros. Rebel is soaked, the cold water from his drenched shirt immediately soaking into mine. I shiver.
“I don’t know how you do it. It’s freezing.” I shake my head.
“Want to know a secret?” Rebel whispers in my ear. His breath tickles my neck and suddenly I’ve forgotten why I’m even out here as all I can focus on is the hard lines of his body pressing against me. I nod, lick my lips, swallow.
“I offer to refill the guns. I fill Thorn’s and Nix’s with warm water from the tap, but fill my own with water from the pool.” He spins me round to face him and kisses me deeply.
“Oh?” I breathe when he finally lets me free.
“Phoenix wanted to be a penguin so we filled the paddling pool with ice.” I laugh. “Don’t worry, we didn’t let her swim in there.”
“Mummy! You should go in the paddling pool, it’s really nice and warm,” Phoenix crows. Yeah, no. Even if Rebel hadn’t just told me his secret, there’s no way I’d ever trust Phoenix when she’s grinning at me like that. I quickly look at Thorn and his face is a picture of innocence. Too innocent.
“I’m sorry baby, I don’t want to get wet.”
“You’re already wet, mummy. I can see your bra.” She whispers this last bit like it’s a secret she doesn’t want the boys to hear and when I look down, sure enough the front of my white shirt is see-through.
“So you may as well!”
I try to think of a way out of this but I’m coming up short.
“Thanks baby, maybe some other time. I actually came out here to—argh!”
Thorn lunges at me and grabs me around my thighs, hoisting me up over his shoulder to Nix’s delighted screams and claps. In a few short strides he’s crossed to the small paddling pool and—
“Don’t you dare!”
“Did you hear that Nix? She dared me.”
“Yay!” she cheers.
“No I didn’t! I said don’t you dare!”
