Page 42 of Love Thief

It’s after midnight. Xan hardly sleeps, so he’s still lively and awake, but Evie and I are flagging.

“I’m so tired again, I’m going to bed. Are you okay in James’s room, Xan?” she asks him and he nods at her. Standing, she kisses him, turns to me, picking up my hand, and says, “Come through when you’re ready.”

As she walks away from us both, I look at Xander. “This is a fucking nightmare. We can’t keep this up, we’ll all be basket cases. The touring hasn’t even started yet, and that’s hard work in itself. Maybe I should leave her at home, so at least she isn’t battered every time.”

Xander turns to me as serious as I’ve ever seen him. “No, she has to come. She has to be with us. If you leave her at home, they’ll find another way to get to her and we won’t be there to sort it. Ensure she stays with us, Marcus. It gives us a chance to keep her. Otherwise she’ll be smoke in the wind again. She’s good at it, you’ve seen her this six months. She’s ghosted you and the Greystones, and that takes some doing. With us, always.”

Chapter

Twelve

EVIE

Iwake with two men in my bed. What on Earth!

Xan is on top of the bed covers on one side, and Kellen on the other underneath the covers, both asleep. This is major for Xander as he never sleeps. He’s practically an insomniac. They’re both spewing heat like boilers on full gas, and I’m overheating quickly.

I wonder when Xan came in. I never even noticed. Maybe he was there from the get go. I heard them talking, but was too tired to look up.

Not wanting to move and wake them, I reflect on my bolting from Vegas. Feeling a bit of a fool. Grace Simpson, of all people, got me so twisted out of shape. But was it just her? I should have stayed and fought. I should have told them to get lost. I should have?—.

“Don’t do that, you won’t be able to make sense of it.” Xander is watching me.

I shuffle up the bed and stick out my arms and pull the covers down. “I’m so hot,” I huff and puff. “And I know, but I feel like an idiot. I should’ve just waited for you and Kell to come and then ask to go or sort it out, but I ran. I was so angry and upset. I’ll have to apologise to Tommy. I flipped out on him. I’d no one to talk to. She was my only friend.” I can feel myself starting to get upset again.

He brushes the tears away. “It hurts when friends do shit. We probably haven’t told you half the stuff that’s happened to us. It’s a long list of crap. People selling us out, recording us—admittedly doing ridiculous stuff, but still we trusted them. I had someone clone my phone so they could sell my messages. He’d been with us for four years, decided we didn’t pay him enough, and voila, money, money, money.

“Kellen had it worse. When his wife miscarried, they tried to get pictures of her bleeding. When she was pregnant again, they constantly filmed her, hassled her, filmed Kell in the hospital and tried to sell it.” He’s calmly stroking my hair as he talks.

“How have you managed? Because to be honest, I feel like I’m not hanging on well.”

He gives me a sad smile. “We kept each other close, Gabe and Levi as well. We discuss things and we don’t lie to each other no matter what. You can come to us Evie. Don’t leave. Stick around and we’ll keep you safe.”

I look into his face knowing he is totally sincere. “But this is only for six months tops. What happens when you both leave? I fear my life will be in tatters and I’ll be rebuilding with limited resources.”

“Six months,” he chuckles. “No chance. If you and Kellen want to go your separate ways, fine. But it doesn’t mean we won’t be around. You have children together, and?—”

“I don’t want a divorce in six months. If you need to hear it now, I’m telling you I don’t.” I turn to look at Kellen and wonder how long he’s been listening to us. “I told you I want to give things a go, a real go. I’m happy, Evie. I don’t want a divorce. However this started out, I don’t want that.” I nod at him and I can't speak. “I love you, Kitten. I know I don’t say it a lot, but I do. I always fucking have. I don’t want you to go. We’re better with you.” He points at himself and Xander.

“I’ve actually slept more for the first time in years, so I’m happy with no divorce,” Xan adds grinning.

“Xander, I’m not having you in bed every night,” I laugh at him.

“Spoil sport,” he laughs back at me, kicking himself out of bed still fully dressed. “I’ll put coffee on, don’t rush.” He grins at us and leaves.

I turn and look at my husband, his beautiful green eyes are rimmed with black and are shining at me bright and clear. Totally focused. “I love you, Kellen Russell.” I lean in and kiss him. “I won’t run off, I’ll stay and talk it through.”

“Thank fuck. I can’t take much more abuse from Xander, our sons, and your brothers. I’m being ganged up on.”

I smile into his mouth and he pouts as he kisses me.

He deepens the kiss, but then pulls back and holds my face. “I love you, Evie Greystone. I didn’t want any of those women, not one. Just you. I came off that stage at the club hard as rock and the only person I thought of was you. I want you, Evie, always. Let me show you how much I love you.”

I’m so surprised. He’s never said anything like that before. Jesus, I’m going to cry again. I plunder his mouth, gasping at the intensity of his kisses. What the hell is wrong with me?

I shove off all the blankets and stroke him, his cock twitching at every caress. Wriggling out of my sleepwear, I sit astride him so I can watch his face. Positioning myself over him and lowering onto him, he hits every spot, moving his hips to make sure.

“Move baby, feel me so deep.” He holds my hips and pushes me backwards and forwards. Sitting up so we’re nose to nose, he holds me around my back. I love the feel of him like this, so deep and holding me so close.

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