Page 117 of Wicked Deceit
“Thanks, Mom,” I choke out. Burying my face in her neck, I force myself to take a big breath, taking my mom’s words to heart. Banishing my stupid insecurities into a little box, into the back of my brain, I regain my composure.
The boys and I have cemented our bond in iron. Through thick and thin, murder and mayhem, crazies and cults, we’ve survived it all. And now, here we are, finally living our long-sought-after new beginning.
“Howmuchfuckingstuffdid you bring?” Seger gapes at the sea of boxes swamping our large living room, leaving barely any room to walk through it or see the other side. I crane my neck, look up at the towering boxes, and snort. I could probably mountain climb the boxes and touch the hanging chandelier dangling from the ceiling eleven feet above our heads.
Chase scoffs, waving a hand. “Everything, duh.”
“Did you empty your whole damn room?” Carter grumbles, eyeing the label on one box with a scowl.
“I think he did,” Zepp says, rubbing his chin.
“You’re worse than a fucking girl,” Seger goads, pushing at his shoulders.
“Shit balls! I like my stuff. Besides, my dad is moving to some secluded villa with Ainsley. He didn’t have room for all my shit, either. He didn’t even leave a bedroom for me. What if I visit?” He grumbles, running a hand through his shaggy blonde hair, seeming truly offended his father moved to Italy in a villa with his sister in tow.
“Can we fucking hire someone to do this shit?” Seger asks, leaning his head against the wall with his eyes closed, ready to sleep away the rest of the day.
“Spoiled brat,” I mutter, eyeing the boxes again. I didn’t even bring this much junk.
Well—maybe. I just packed what I thought I’d need for the school year and for the next four years. My parents even gifted us pots, pans, silverware, and anything we would need in the kitchen. Seger’s favorite was the Pizza Pizzazz my parents bought us as a housewarming gift.
“Spoiled brat?” Seger asks in a teasing tone, knocking me out of my thoughts. Shit, I hope we have a big bed here somewhere because I’m ready to sleep and ignore everything else, especially Chase’s massive amounts of boxes.
Seger snorts, pushing himself off the wall he almost fell asleep against and comes alive with mischief in his eyes. Coming toward me, I see the predator lurking beneath, and I take a step back, feeling like the tiny prey he wants to sink his teeth into. Which, okay, that wouldn’t be too bad of an idea, but seriously.
“No, no,” I yelp when he throws me over his shoulder, slapping my ass a few times. I will feel those stings on my cheeks for the next week if he keeps that up.
“We’ll show you spoiled brat, Angel.” He grunts, marching up the steep steps to the house's second floor. We swerve left and right, with the guys behind us laughing when I continually punch Seger in the kidneys, but he doesn’t budge. Not even a grunt of a yelp leaves his lips.
Seger slides me down his body, caging me in with his arms. “We’ve got a little surprise for you, Angel,” he whispers, trailing his lips along my jaw, nipping and sucking. A breathy moan squeaks out when I curl my fingers into his shirt, pulling him closer. His body melts with mine, showing me how affected he is by the heated kisses he’s leaving behind.
“Save that for the surprise, asshole,” Chase says, forcefully pushing his way in between us. He slaps Seger on the shoulder, knocking him out of the way with a grunt. “Come here, Sunshine,” he says softly, pulling me into his chest.
“You wouldn’t believe what a fucking dump this place was,” Carter’s gruff voice says from beside me.
“Really?” I ask, looking around at the beauty of this house. It’s in pristine condition with wood floors, freshly painted walls, updated light fixtures, and not to mention a fantastic kitchen my mother went cuckoo for, claiming she wanted to host Thanksgiving here instead.
Chase sniggers in my hair, whipping me around. He forces my back to his chest, pressing his palms over my eyes. “This house was once owned by a crazy drug dealer and his army of skanks.”
“For fuck’s sakes, Elf Ears. It was not. You’re making shit up now,” Carter grumbles to my left.
“This place was bank-owned, left for dead by the previous owners. The carpet was stained, and the ceilings had water damage from bursting pipes and roof damage. The air conditioning didn’t work, nor did the heat,” Zepp says, trailing a finger up my arm and leaving goosebumps in its wake.
“We bought this dump at the end of June,” Seger muses, pushing what sounds like a door open.
I frown. “That was like two months ago,” I huff—secret-keeping bastards. I knew they were up to something and being all sneaky over the summer, but I didn’t know why. Well, I guess this is why.
Chase snorts. “But it was for a good cause, Kace. The look on your face when we pulled up was priceless. You thought we would live in some frumpy bungalow that would barely contain us. We bought a house for all of us. There’s enough room for your video games in the basement, football practice in the backyard, Carter’s insane work, and so much more.”
“Parties!” Seger says in a shout full of excitement.
“I live here, too. You can’t party all the time,” I say, pointing a finger in his direction.
“Nah, Angel, I won’t party all the time,” he says, laughing again, letting me know he’s ready to live the whole college experience. “Just sometimes,” he says with a pout.
“Compromises,” Zepp says, thwacking his brother in the back of the head—or what sounds like a thump since my eyes are still covered for some strange reason.
I smile at the first of many compromises I will have to make living in a house full of boys. “Hmm, compromise,” I hum, preparing my list. “Put the toilet seat down after you pee. I almost fell into it the other night at your apartment. Falling ass first into cold toilet water isn’t fun.”
