Page 113 of Wicked Deceit
A watery smile crosses my lips as my eyes memorize the curve of his high cheekbones and jaw. His blonde hair is unkempt, sticking up all over his head with grease coating his longer strands, telling me he hasn’t been taking care of himself today or yesterday, or possibly the day before that. Tears burn my eyes again when he scrunches his nose, and his softly spoken words come rushing back to me.
“I miss you so much, Sunshine. You should have seen it. I walked through fire. I shit you not. I have battle scars for you, and I don’t regret a thing,” Chase whispers beside my bed, clinging to my hand, his lips pressing into every knuckle. “I,” he starts in a soft voice, emotions crackling. “I’m not doing okay, Kace. My mind is devouring itself, and it’s throwing me into a pit of darkness, and you’re not here to lure me out. I'm trying, at least, really trying. Shit. I started talking to a therapist. I think—I think it’ll help, and it has a bit. Talking about you, my mom, my dad, and everything in between is helping. So, yeah, that’s what’s new with me.” He kisses my temple one last time, lingering against my skin. Noise from the other boys filters through the room, pulling him away.
“Has he been okay?” I whisper, continuing to stare at him. Every bone in my body wants to curl up beside him and cuddle, but my body isn’t cooperating with me anymore. I try to lift my arm, but the adrenaline must have worn off, and everything is crashing. And all I want to do is go back to bed and sleep for another eight hours to wake up again and be with my family—my boys, my parents, and my siblings.
Seger nods. “He's stronger than I’ve ever seen him. You’d be so proud of him, Angel. He, his dad, and Ainsley talked to a therapist together. They put him on some new meds and a new schedule. He’s been trying so hard these past few weeks, even though he wants to curl into a fucking ball and not exist.” My heart swells at the news of Chase and his family getting the mental help they need after this catastrophic bullshit of events. It’s bad enough his father, Tate, went to jail and suffered for crimes he didn’t commit. But to live after walking through fire, sustaining burns, and battling depression—he’s doing so well.
Seger kisses my temple and pulls us away from Chase’s sleeping form, bringing me to the other man in my life.
“He’s been fucking grumpy lately,” Seger murmurs, adjusting his hold on me with a grunt.
I breathe a deep sigh of relief at the sight of Carter sleeping on his side. His arm rests beneath the pillow. Deep even breaths rock through his chest, with the occasional grizzly bear snore escaping from his parted lips. My eyes roam the slope of his nose, which obviously had been broken at some point in his life, and the sharp curve of his jaw dotting with a red-tinted stubble. I suck in a breath, tears burning the backs of my eyes at the multitude of bruises lining his chest. Black, blue, purple, and yellow bruises color the right side of his bare chest. Tears spill over onto my cheeks, and I shake my head in disbelief. How could they? How could they do that to him? My brave Carter took four bullets to the chest, and here he sits—alive and well.
Exhausting sweeps through me, taking every ounce of energy I have. I slump in Seger’s arms, and a yawn forces its way through me. I take a deep breath, snuggling into his warm chest, wanting to stay there forever. The comforting scent of his manly body wash relaxes me more. My eyes close on their own, and my breaths even out.
“Here,” Seger mumbles, shifting me onto the bed as the cool hospital sheet scratches my skin. “Lay with him, make his fucking night. Then maybe he won’t be such an asshole.” He smiles through his entire speech, pulling the discarded sheet at the end of the bed to mine and Carter’s chins.
Carter murmurs something in his sleep, snuggling into his pillow. A warm hand reaches for me from under the cover, curling his fingers around mine. A small smile pulls at my lips at the sight of him, and with one last deep breath, my heavy eyes finally shut for good. Seger kisses my forehead, mumbling something about finding a chair to sleep in. His footsteps retreat, and a chair quietly glides across the linoleum. Finally, silence engulfs us, taking me away back into a darkened dreamland full of nightmares, waiting to greet me like an old friend.
Isigh,snugglingintothe heat wrapping around me. Warm kisses press into my hair, and hands hold tight to my waist. Another warmth groans behind me, dusting kisses on the back of my neck. Butterflies take flight in my belly at their affections. Sunlight pours in through the windows, erasing the darkness from before.
“You should have fucking woken me up,” Carter’s gruff voice hisses.
“I thought you’d be less grumpy,” Seger whines from across the room with his voice drenched in sleep like he just woke up. A smile burst from my lips, envisioning Seger right now. He’s probably leaned back in a chair with his arm over his eyes and his legs spread wide.
“Calm down, Grumpy,” Chase murmurs into my hair, pressing himself into my back. “She’s here now.”
They hold me tight, wrapping their arms and legs around me. I barely have room to wiggle around, but I wouldn’t have it any other way. Their warmth is my home, and their hearts are mine. And I am theirs—always and forever.
“I wonder how people in monogamous relationships survive,” I mutter. “They never get to enjoy these warm sandwiches. How do they only have one partner? One dick?” I nearly gasp in horror. The feel of their bodies squishing into me feels too good, too warm to want to ever go back to one man. Why have one when I can have four?
Chase snorts into my hair as I process the horror of one dick for life. At least I have variety. Baseball bat, pierced, hearty, orgasm-inducing, and so many more delicious adjectives that would take me way too long to list.
“And she’s back,” Chase mutters in awe, leaving a lingering kiss on my temple. “I missed your voice, Sunshine. And that random brain of yours.” He taps the side of my head with his finger.
“Missed you, too,” I say in a small voice, gnawing on my bottom lip. “Are you guys okay?”
“We’re fine.” Carter swallows hard. “Now,” he adds in a whisper.
Opening my eyes, I find his beautiful brown eyes staring at me. Gloss forms over them, filling with tears as one spills over the edge, traveling down his cheek. Leaning in, I kiss it away, letting the droplet wet my lips.
He examines me, fingers softly running down my face. “We are fine,” he says with a slight nod, placing his forehead against mine. A deep breath rocks through his chest, and a small tremor forces its way through him.
“You’re fine, he’s fine, we are all fine,” Seger says through a chant. “Now, you two need to heal so that we can leave. This hospital gives me the heebie-jeebies.” I peek over at him in a small chair in the corner. He fake shudders with his arms over his chest and his eyes closed, not bothering to look at us.
“What happened to East Point? The others?” I gulp, settling my gaze back to Carter, staring deep into his expressive eyes. “Do we have to go back?” I ask, my breaths coming out in labored pants.
Shit. I can’t go back there. I can’t manage to walk through those halls knowing those assholes watched and planned everything in a secret house at the back of campus. Fuck. Panic bursts to life inside my chest, tightening my lungs like rubber bands, constricting my airflow. Images of my torture flash through my mind. The fish tank, the beating, the stabbing, and their sneering faces staring down at me. I gasp when two hands grip my cheeks.
“Look at me,” Carter demands, holding my face in his palms. “Really fucking look into my eyes,” he growls, pressing his nose against mine and forcing me to stare.
“We never have to go back, Sunshine. East Point is done for. The entire place is a crime scene.” Chase’s fingers brush my skin, working up and down my arm gently. Goosebumps erupt all over my flesh, and their words soothe away some of the panic churning in my gut. My stomach knots at the thought, but I focus on the deep abyss of brown staring at me with concern flashing through them.
“You’re never going back there, and we are never leaving your side. Got it?” Carter grits out, demanding my attention.
“Now breathe, Angel.” Seger materializes above me, running his fingers through my hair. I nod as the three of them help me count out loud. The more numbers I say, the better my breathing becomes, and finally, air flows freely into my lungs.
My muscles sag in their embrace, finally feeling at ease with the fact East Point is no more. But new anxiety settles in. What will happen when I have to go back home instead of on campus, and they go home, too? I swallow hard, shaking my head. I need to focus on the here and now. I will deal with everything else when the time comes. For all I know, I could be in the hospital for another month. Plus, I don’t think the boys would let our relationship fall away because of a three-hour drive.
