Page 67 of Tangled up in You

Laying on my side facing her, I lifted one arm in a silent invitation. She scooted up against me and I cuddled her close.

“We’re not going to let anything hurt you ever again, little girl.”

“I know. I know I’m safe now, but I just can’t shake the sounds and…” She shivered.

“When you go through something so horrific, it takes you a while to process it. There’s no rush on your healing, baby. We’re not rushing you, take all the time you need.”

She nodded into my chest. “I love you, Justin.”

“I love you too, sweet girl, we all do.” I looked forward to the day when she would understand how deep our love went.

CHAPTER 2

LAYLAH

“Laylah, baby?”

I groaned at being pulled from such a good sleep.

“I know, I’m sorry, babygirl,” Micah apologized. The side of the bed dipped down and a second later, his hands ran through my hair. “We need you to eat something, though. You need to take your antibiotics.”

I nodded and sat up slowly. He supported me until I was steady. My back was so sore. It had taken the most damage since I’d curled in a ball, trying to protect my head from my father’s angry blows.

“We ordered chinese with extra duck sauce just for you.”

Sliding across the bed, I stood and took his hand. “That sounds good.” My stomach rumbled at the thought of fried rice.

Micah held my hand until we got to the couch, then he helped me settle into the deep cushions.

“There’s our girl,” Aiden said before handing me a greasy takeout box.

I was so damn thankful for them.

“How are you feeling, little love?” Justin asked.

“Better. I’m really hurting, though.”

Aiden’s brow arched. “Yeah? On a scale from one to ten?”

“Hmmm, about a six.”

“Which really means about an eight,” Micah said.

“How about after dinner, we’ll give you some pain medicine and you can take a bath?” Aiden suggested.

“That sounds amazing.” The idea of a long soak was almost enough to make me cry.

“Can she take a bath after taking the medication? Won’t it make her drowsy?” Micah asked.

Micah was so wonderful. He was the more quiet, thoughtful one. He was the type of man that would take you to a new restaurant, just because he heard you say you might like it. He was harder to read than the others. He was softer, gentler than Aiden and Justin. He’d be such a thorough Daddy Dom. I smiled at him and he winked at me. It was silly, but it made me happy.

“We’ll just have to keep an eye on her. Make sure she doesn’t get to sleep and fall under the water,” Aiden answered.

“Oh no. We might risk seeing Laylah naked? The horror!” Justin teased, probably because he saw my face flush. Justin was the mischievous one, flirty, hot, walking sex on a stick. He made at least one innuendo to me daily.

Aiden chuckled into his noodle dish. Micah raised his hand. “I volunteer as tribute.” Micah never teased me sexually. That was new.

Heat rushed from my face down my chest at the idea of he and Justin actually wanting me.

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