Page 76 of Graves

When I got out of bed, I couldn’t find Blake or Zayden anywhere. I wasn’t sure where they could have gone since Zayden’s keys were still on the kitchen island. At least he didn’t leave the house with her again. As I walked down the hallway, I noticed the closet door was open, and I instantly knew something was up.

I peeked inside, not sure I was truly seeing what I was seeing. A man was tied to a chair, bloodied, beaten, and currently having his tongue cut out by Blake.I was about to barge in there and ask Zayden why the fuck he would involve her in our business, but I looked for a second longer and I saw it. This wasn’t a job he wrangled her into, this wasn’t Zayden pushing her past her limits for his own sick satisfaction. This was forher.

The look on her face said it all, whatever this was, it was personal, and I knew I couldn’t ruin it for her.

Zayden watched her with such awe and such adoration as she butchered a man, practically drenched in his blood as she did so. If I didn’t know my deranged brother was in love with her before, this would have confirmed it. And the way she looked at him once she had finished, that shit hurt.

I’ve been sitting at the island ever since, drinking, pretending that I didn’t see what I thought I saw. That there was something real between them. It wasn’t just fear and adrenaline to get out of a graveyard with a madman. It wasn’t the forbidden temptation and built-up lust on a couch. This was real, their connection raw, messy, and true.

I sat with it for a while, doing my best to convince myself that, in the end, she’d still choose me. That I was better for her, but when I heard her moans, that’s when I poured my first glass. They left the room twenty minutes ago, Zayden carrying her in his arms as they made their way to his room. I heard the shower start up shortly after, and it only turned off a minute ago.

The right thing to do would probably be to accept defeat. Accept the fact that while she cares for me and no doubt loves me, something about Zayden understands her on a level I never can. Something about his twisted, fucked-up soul healsa broken part of her own. He has more to offer her than I do, in ways I never could.

So, yeah, the right thing to do would be to walk away. That’s the thing about the Graves brothers, though. We aren’t known for doing the right thing.

My feet are light as I make my way down the hallway, my pulse pounding with each step I take. I can sneak into a government building and download encryption codes without a bead of sweat. I can slip into somebody’s house in the middle of the night, execute them while they’re fast asleep beside their spouse, and not have my heart rate elevate even a single beat. But right now, I feel like I’m going to be sick, because if she looks at me and turns me away…if she tells me it’s him…

I shake my head at the thought. I’d rather fucking die than lose her.

When I step into the room, Zayden and Blake are curled up in bed. The lights are off, the blinds are drawn, and she’s lying in the middle of the bed, her head on his chest with his arm wrapped around her. My heart squeezes at the sight before Zayden makes eye contact with me.

His eyes aren’t apologetic or sympathetic, not in the slightest, and why should they be? Roles reversed, I wouldn’t be feeling bad for my brother. I’d be basking in the high of having her, in fact, that’s exactly what I did.

In the next moment, her eyes flit open, landing on me. Goddammit. Those eyes. Like nothing I’ve ever seen before. The dark brown one has always been my favorite, but maybe because the blue always reminded me too much of Zayden’s.

“Please?” she asks softly, forcing my eyebrows to dip.

Please what? I’ll do anything she wants, even if it means tearing my own heart out. Even if it means walking away and letting them ride off into the sunset while I sit on the sidelines, silently loving her. But I have to hear her say it. She has to tell me she doesn’t love me, that she doesn’t want me. It’s the only way.

Zayden rolls his eyes before reaching over her, flicking the blankets back on her other side, and giving me a pointed look. I’m surprised for a moment, but I don’t fight it. I kick off my shoes and pull my shirt over my head, leaving my sweats on as I slide into bed behind Blake.

Her back is bare, and it isn’t until I’m completely pressed against her that I realize she’s completely naked. I can’t help but grow hard at the feeling of her silky skin pressed against me. She must feel me because her ass presses against my hard-on as she turns her head over to smile at me. Her wet hair is fanned out against the pillow behind her as she nuzzles closer to me.

I take full advantage of her move, wrapping my arms tightly around her waist before my hand brushes against Zayden. Blake smiles happily as Zayden takes up the space she created, plastering her between us before she closes her eyes. Zayden and I share a heavy look, a million things being spoken silently between us.

She’s not choosing him. She’s not choosing me. She’s choosing us. We could both fight it, tear each other apart in the process, but in the end, it will only hurt her. She wants us, and whatever she wants, she gets.

I’m wokenup by the soft sound of rustling. My eyes blink open to find Blake now facing me, her eyes staring up at me softly.

“Hi,” she whispers softly as the sound of my brother snoring echoes in the background.

“Hi,” I say, pulling her just a little closer to me.

Zayden is lying on his back, arms above his head, while Blake scoots closer to me, smiling as she cuddles in closer. I press a kiss to the top of her head as she nuzzles her head against my chest. We’re silent for several seconds before she speaks.

“I’m sorry.”

I frown at that, pulling back slightly to look at her. A tear escapes her eye, sliding down her cheek as she looks up at me.

“Baby, why are you sorry?”

“I cheated on you,” she says with a wince, curling her lip up and shaking her head. “With your brother,” she chokes out, shaking her head in disappointment.

“Hey,” I say gently, trying to soothe her as I grip the back of her neck with my hand. “It’s okay.”

“It’s not. I thought you were gonna kill him when you came in last night, or me, or both of us. You didn’t, though, you just looked…sad. And I’m terrified that I’ve ruined everything with us. That I blew it, that you don’t love me anymore,” she cries softly, her voice shaking as her face pinches and tears stream down her face.

“Shh, shhh,” I hush her as I cradle her close to me.

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