Pope notices me and nods for me to join them. I slowly make my way toward the sofa that has Alex’s blanket draped over the back. I pull it over my lap and look between them both. Pope has his gaze focused on the laptop in his lap while Omen just sits there looking off into nothing, clearly lost in his own thoughts.

“Are you hungry?” Pope asks. I shake my head. “When was the last time you ate?”

I scoff. “How about we skip the part where you act like you give a fuck about me and just ignore each other?” I snap. I don’t wait for a reply as I pull my phone out of my pocket, bring up my Kindle app and search for a book to read. I nearly laugh out loud when a book pops up but it's the name of the author that has me shaking with silent laughter.

Alex Denver.

That’s the fucking author’s name and she even has a duet calledBloodlust. Either this is the universes way of mocking me or fate has a cruel sense of fucking humor. I can’t decide which one it is right this second. I download the book and start reading it. Just as I hit chapter three and start really getting into it, I’m dragged out of my book by the sound of Omen’s voice.

“He won’t keep you.” I flick my gaze to him and narrow my eyes.

“Well that’s fine with me because I’m not a woman who wants to be kept,” I snark at the fucker.

“You cloud his judgment and need to go before you destroy what he’s worked for.” I scoff and roll my eyes.

“What exactly have I done, Omen? I never came to any of you. I kept my head down and tried hard to stay off your fucking radar.Hesought me out and hunted me down!”

Pope shakes his head, urging Omen to shut up but he ignores him and pushes on. “He watched you for months, for the four of us it was a job. We waited for you to fuck up and lead us to that cunt but he obsessed over you.” My face slackens and I suddenly feel cold.

“W-what?” I sputter.

Omen’s features darken as he leans forward and rests his arms on the tops of his thighs. “The night on the plane may have been the first time you spoke to him but it was your second time seeing him. Want to know how many times he’s seen you in person?”

“Omen, that’s enough!” Pope snaps trying to reign him in but it's too late, Omen is on a roll and he wants to prove his point that I am fucking things up for them without even trying to.

“How many hotels did you stay in thinking you were safe because you locked the door? Want to know how easy it was for him to break in and stand over you while you slept?” My chest rises and falls as terror grips my airways making it hard for me to breathe. “You are a fork in the road that needs to be removed.”

“I don’t want to be anything to him,” I spit out.

Omen just sits there with a ghost of a smirk on his face and shakes his head. “I would have believed that if I didn’t hear you fucking him a couple of hours ago. Seems like my opinion about you was correct.”

Anger ignites inside me. “And what opinion is that, asshole?”

“That you’re like every other bitch in the world, you spread your legs to make your point,” he fires back.

“Fuck you!” I scream at the bastard. “I fucked him because I wanted to, not because I wanted anything from him. And let’s get something straight, asshole. I don’t fuck men, ever point blank period, bitch.” Realization dawns on his face. Pope coughs and gapes at me.

“Alex was your first?” Pope mutters. I cross my arms over my chest and slouch back into the sofa. I fight the urge not to blush in shame. I hate that he brought up hearing me and Alex but I have no one to blame but myself.

“Shit,” Omen mutters. I see him and Pope share a loaded look before they both turn to me.

“Get your ass up,” Pope snaps then tosses his laptop to the side.

“Why?” I ask.

“Because you can't stop what’s done to you, you can only survive it and you won’t survive him if you stay here.” I stare at Omen in confusion. “Does he know you were a virgin?” I duck my head. “Answer me!” he roars. I flinch and nod. “Get up, we need to move now before he gets back.”

“Why?” I push as I climb to my feet and keep the blanket wrapped around me, suddenly chilled to the bone. Omen rushes out the back door as Pope comes toward me. I take a step back, making him halt his advance.

“Alex is a fixator. He may not have shown it tonight, but him knowing he was your first will make him hyper focus on you and he’ll want to work out your breaking point. He’ll destroy you if you stay, Tatum.”

“Why do you suddenly care?”

He sighs. “Because I was in love with a girl who gave me the gift you gave him tonight and much like Alex, I would destroy everything in my path to get to her. We need him to keep his head clear and finish what he started so we can all move on. Until he accomplishes that, we’re all stuck here living like this.”

I scrunch my face. “You all hide out here because you’re hunting for my brother. Why do you stay with him?”

Pope’s eyes darken. “Because he’s the only person in this fucking world that we trust without question. What he did for us we can never repay. Alexander Denver is our brother and we would die for him without a second thought. Having you around will complicate things. We’ll take you to the airport and put you on the next flight out. We’ll keep Alex from coming after you.”