Page 117 of Drama Queen

He’s right. You barely remembered anything from that night when you got home. It’s all coming back to you in pieces over time.

Maddock:

Has this happened again since then, where you can’t remember?

Me:

No. The dreams started before that night and continued. They used to be enjoyable, more of a fantasy, but now they replay our night, ending with rejection.

Maddock:

Who were you with that night?

Kato:

Probably that bitch Tamera. She’s had a thing for you since high school.

His words strike a nerve, especially as I take another sip of the tea she gave me. Now that he’s pointed it out, my anxiety and withdrawal symptoms vanish, leaving me to stare into the cup, wondering if she'd go as far as to drug me.

True, we were decent friends in high school, even dated briefly before realizing we were better off as friends. My brothers warned me she had a jealous streak bordering on stalker, though she never revealed that side to me, nor did I care enough to make an issue of it—until now.

After dumping the tea and purging it from my system, I request a rapid test from a lab we work with on the substance in the tea tin. Once I get a clear answer, I’ll involve my brothers and finally have an answer for Ares, hopefully enough to earn her forgiveness.

Six

ARES

My eyelids peeled apart,cracking as if I’d had a bender the night before, heavy and satisfied with sleep. Grogginess hampers my brain from firing on all cylinders, so it takes me a moment to process that it’s late morning.

Evie never sleeps this late.

Immediately, I’m out of bed, flying down the hallway, and slamming through her bedroom door, only to find her crib empty.

Panic seizes my chest in a tight fist. His words were so sincere. "You’re such a fucking idiot, Ares! Of course, they’d want their child."

Just as I’m exiting her room—vengeful images dancing through my head—I hear it. Her beautiful giggle. Then a deep baritone chuckle.

As I hustle down the hallway and peek around the corner, the scene before me melts my heart, dissolving the sudden worries of moments ago.

Maddock has Evie in her highchair, close enough to be part of the action but not in the way. Her breakfast cereal scattersacross her tray, enticing her to pick them up one by one, babbling as she eats.

He’s stirring something on the stove that smells heavenly while talking to her about his brothers—her fathers—then turns back to slicing strawberries to add to her tray. She gobbles them as quickly as he puts them down, humming her appreciation after each bite.

“Good morning, my Moon. Did you sleep well?” Maddock glances over his shoulder, a cocky smirk tipping his lips.

True laughter bursts free when I notice he’s wearing my cupcake apron. The warmth of our bond thrums eagerly through my veins, but the distrust in my brain doesn’t allow my heart to take the leap it so desperately craves.

Maddock startles me when he turns suddenly, untucking my bottom lip from my teeth with his thumb, and growls, “There are no tricks. This is real. I promise.”

Once released, my lower lip trembles without permission before my teeth capture it again, restricting its movement. “I’m trying.”

His giant palm cups my cheek. “We’re here for you. Every day, from now on.”

He slowly leans closer, giving me the chance to back away… but I don’t. I want him. I wantthem. But I don’t know how to ask for it, how to put myself back out there. I barely survived the last time. What happens when one or all of them leave me or take Evie? Fate could have me then. Heat tickles my lips moments before he presses forward—slowly at first, then desperately, until we’re pawing at each other, tilting our heads for better access, purring our appreciation as our tongues caress and dance together. One of his big hands raises goosebumps as he traces my vertebrae until he’s gripping my ass cheek and pushing his excitement against me.

A screech rips us apart, as we both snap our attention to Evie. Her blue doe eyes sparkle with light as she stares at Maddock and points to the abandoned strawberries on the counter. “Da, da, da, da.”

My heart leaps, but the plethora of emotions on his face solidifies my decision. I’m going to give them another chance. He’s enamored. And by the twinkle in Evie’s eyes, she knows it.

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