Page 56 of Entangled in Them

“So, does that mean we should stay away from her?” I asked.

“It means we should respect what she says,” Ryan said.

Dillon nodded. “And she’s saying that she wants us.”

Well, fuck.

Chapter Twenty-four

Rue

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AFTER WASHING THE REMNANTS of the cream from my body, I’d dressed back in my jeans and t-shirt. I’d been hiding in the bathroom, aware the others had come home, and that they were talking about me. Their voices were muffled and low, and I couldn’t make them out clearly enough to know what they were saying. I couldn’t hide in here forever, though, and I knew I was going to have to go out there.

Swirling eddies of anxiety filled my stomach, and below that was a low hum of arousal that hadn’t been sated.

Though I wanted to believe they were different and that I trusted them, I still found myself with my heart in my throat, wondering about my fate. I was terrified they were going to order me to leave. Perhaps they’d even called the Capello brothers themselves and ask that they collect me early. It had only been a matter of a few days, but somehow, I’d connected with each of them in a way I’d never done with another man. I could hardly believe my luck when all three had seemed to want me—even Ryan, who I’d have sworn would rather see me dead on the streets than anywhere near his home or men.

I could tell the difference between someone who cared about me and someone who was just using me as a body to fuck. After forever without the touch of someone who actually saw me as a person, I didn’t want to lose these guys.

I stood with my hand on the bathroom door handle, my fingers trembling. I squeezed my eyes shut and sucked in a breath, trying to contain my nerves. More than anything, I wanted to believe they’d all agreed that they wanted me around, but I knew they’d never put me above each other. All it would take was for one of them to disagree, and I’d be back on the outside again.

But I had to do this. I couldn’t hide forever.

Summoning all my strength, I opened the door and stepped out. All three men were standing around the kitchen table, each with matching, serious expressions. My gaze darted between their faces, trying to read their thoughts, but none of them gave anything away.

“Rue,” Kodee said, not quite meeting my eye. “You probably already know what I’m going to say.”

My pent-up emotions burst from me in a torrent. Before I could even process what I was doing, I was across the room and on my knees in front of him, clutching one of his huge hands between both of mine.

“Please, don’t throw me out. I won’t say that what we did was a mistake, but we can just forget it ever happened.”

Tears streamed down my face, and I was aware I was making a spectacle of myself, on my knees, crying in front of these men, but I didn’t even care. It wasn’t that I was afraid of being on the streets, alone and at the mercy of other men. I’d spent the majority of my adult life in that exact position, and I’d never kneeled in front of a man and begged. I could handle that side of my life. This, however, was all new to me. I had never felt anything other than hatred and resentment and disgust toward the other men, but never the heartbreak at the idea of trying to get through each day without them.

Kodee didn’t push me away. Instead, he squeezed my hands and helped me up.

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