Page 72 of Allison

“Careful there, sugar,” Russell’s voice had rumbled in her ear. Her body had responded to his baritone voice like it had every time she’d been around him. Goosebumps had risen on her skin while her nipples had hardened, and her pussy throbbed with need.

His pet name for her had been the wakeup call she’d needed to pull her back to reality. The one where he didn’t want her, where she’d been a distraction he didn’t need. Allison had stiffened in his arms. “Let me go,” she’d whispered, but had intended to say much more forcefully. As always, he’d stolen her breath. He hadn’t released her, at least not right away.

“Please?” she’d begged. She’d closed her eyes in mortification at the pleading tone of her voice. She’d sounded weak, uncertain, and worse than all of that she’d sounded…sad.

He'd released her then. All thoughts of her sweet tea had left her. She’d turned to hurry from the room. “Allison! Wait, please!” She hadn’t stopped. She’d exited the kitchen to run smack into another hard body.

“Whoa there, sweetheart!” a tall, blonde man rumbled. “Is everything all right?” Allison had known she’d seen the man somewhere before, but his name escaped her. Curtis had been standing just behind the man.

“Hey, Allison, is something wrong?” Curtis had asked her. She’d shaken her head, pushed past the men and headed up to her room, taking the stairs two at a time.

Two days later she’s still holed up in her room again. Emma has been so kind, bringing her food, sitting with her, and holding her while she’s cried her heart out, again.Is the pain ever going to go away?Allison doesn’t think so. What on Earth is she going to do?

45

WORM

It has been over three weeks since Allison walked out of Worm’s apartment without a backward glance. She’d refused to listen to him when he’d tried to apologize for what she’d overheard him say. He hadn’t meant what he’d said or the way it had come out of his mouth. He wouldn’t give up their time together for anything. He doesn’t regret meeting her, fucking her, looking for her when she’d been missing, and not even going to Denver to meet her and bring her home.

Sure, he’d felt guilty for his neglect of his sisters and his mom, but that wasn’t Allison’s fault. He’d been the one who’d let his duty slip. He’d been so consumed with finding Allison; he’d dropped the ball. That wasn’t on Allison. That was on him. He understood that now. He has spent many hours in contemplation over the events of the last month and came to an understanding. Hewascapable of managing his family, his obligations to his team, and caring for Allison. He knows that now, but how is he going to fix this when she won’t even speak to him?

Worm slams his fist into the heavy bag over and over. He’s been at the gym for several hours. He’s ran through every bit of his workout routine, sparred with several others working out today, and now he’s doing his best to beat the stuffing out of the banana heavy bag in front of him.

“What the hell did that bag do to you?” Mercury asks, strolling past him to drop his duffle bag next to Worm’s on the bench sitting along the far wall. Worm ignores him and continues to attack the bag as if it had indeed done something heinous to him. He isn’t in the mood to talk about it.

“I don’t think the bag is the culprit,” Wallace chimes in, joining them with his bag in hand. Worm looks around to see more than half his team has shown up at the gym. He rolls his eyes upward toward the ceiling, closing them, while dropping his head.Fuck!It’s an intervention. Worm had helped arrange one for Hack when he’d been pining over Lisa before she’d finally gotten past her hang-ups about Hack being fourteen years younger than her.

Worm throws a few more punches in rapid fire. “This isn’t necessary,” Worm declares, stepping back from the bag, bouncing on the balls of his feet, taking a much-needed breather. “You can all go home now. There’s nothing to see here.” Worm walks over to his bag, pulling his water bottle out and tipping it back to down several large swallows.

“Are you attempting to use your Jedi mind tricks on us?” Wallace asks with a smirk. “Because it’s not working, Obi Wan. We can all see right through your bullshit. You’re torn up over Allison, but you’re too much of a pussy to do anything about it.”

Worm sees red. He throws his water bottle to the side, not caring that water splatters across the gym floor and wall. He moves on Wallace, arm drawn back, ready to tear his head off. Strong hands grab each of his arms.

“You don’t want to do that,” Mercury growls in Worm’s right ear. “I know you’re pissed. Wallace could have said that better” —Mercury scowls at Wallace— “but he isn’t wrong.” Worm struggles harder for a moment, noting Virus is holding his other arm. “We can all see how much you’re struggling with this. Let us help.”

Worm stops fighting against his friends’ hold. Mercury and Virus let up their grip and Worm shrugs them off, rolling his shoulders and neck in an effort to calm the urge inside him that wants to tear Wallace’s head off his body and then take on the rest of them. Despite having spent the last four hours working himself to a frazzle, Wallace’s words have given him a second wind.

Worm knows his friends are correct. Absolutely, he is torn up over the situation with Allison. She refuses to talk to him, to give him a chance to explain himself, apologize for his harsh words and tone. The last thing he’d ever wanted to do was to hurt her, but he has. “You’re right,” Worm drops his head, all his anger leaving him at once.

He collapses onto a bench, getting his ass wet from the water he’d thrown. Serves him right for throwing a tantrum like a toddler. He is better than this. Isn’t he? “I hurt her, Wallace.” Worm lifts his head to meet his friend’s gaze. “I hurt her so badly she won’t give me a chance to apologize, to try and explain that I didn’t mean it.”

“I know,” Wallace walks over to take a seat. He pauses mid-squat, noticing the water. He stands back up grabbing a towel to wipe off the water before taking his seat. “Emma has been trying to convince Allison to hear you out, but she’s stubborn.”

Worm chuckles. “She sure as hell is, but I wouldn’t have her any other way.” He lets out a sigh. Wallace grips Worm’s shoulder closest to him.

“You two will get past this. I just know it,” Wallace assures him. “She’s worth it, right?” Worm meets Wallace’s stare.

“Yes, all day, every day.”

Wallace grins and squeezes his shoulder again. “Good, then we need to get busy figuring out how to get your girl to give you the time of day.”

Another chuckle leaves Worm. “That’s going to be easier said than done, I’m thinking.”

Wallace nods. “It sure is,” Wallace grins. “Those girls are a force to be reckoned with. I do my best to keep on Emma’s good side. She’s sweet as apple pie most of the time, but when you hurt her feelings…she can be…how shall I say this nicely? Like a Wookie who’s losing a game of space chess.” Worm laughs, shaking his head. Wallace is a totalStar Warsnerd.

“Any suggestions?” Worm cocks a brow as he glances toward Wallace at his side.

Wallace looks thoughtful for a minute. Then shakes his head. “Haven’t got a clue.” He looks at Worm with an apologetic expression. “I don’t know Allison very well. Even though she’s been in our home for weeks, I haven’t seen her or spent very much time with her.”

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