Page 31 of Atlas
I smile softly at her. “I liked that too.”
She wrapped her arms around my bare waist, nuzzling against my chest. Fuck, this feels like what I would imagine a home feels like. “Can we do that some more?” She asks and I nod while leading her back to her bed. Once we climb in, I turn the light off before laying back down on her chest, letting her slowing heart beat lull me into the calmest sleep of my life.
Chapter 13
Lauren
“Oh, my god…” I moan in pleasure as my eyes roll back in my head. “This is the greatest thing I’ve ever tasted.”
Stevie and Janie snort as I take another bite of the cake. We all sit around the small table at Nuts About Dough while trying Stevie’s mom’s cake recipe, which I’m pretty sure is an orgasm in cake form.
“Seriously,” I say, pointing at the cake while swallowing my mouthful. “This is better than sex.”
Janie barks out a laugh. “Speak for yourself! Fox and I went camping over the weekend and I swear to God, he was cutting wood and bent me over a log…I felt him in my chest he was so deep.”
“Ugh, shut up…” Stevie whines as she slumps back. “My poor vibrator is on his last leg. I need a man so bad.”
I shrug as I take another bite. “I’m fine with cake.” I mutter.
“Well yeah,” Stevie scoffs. “You’re married to Atlas, you get it whenever you want.” I have to stop myself from flinching. It’s really difficult to hide that Atlas and I are in a fake marriage to my friends, but we only allowed Janie and Fox to know. Well, itwas supposed to be only Janie and Fox, butsomehowAsh and Derek found out as well. The more people that know, the more likely our lie will come out and if the wrong person finds out… I shake my head. Insurance fraud is something that I’m sure I could get a slap on the wrist for. Atlas, however, is on probation. It’s so hard though, having to lie to my closest friends.
“Lauren?” A cold chill runs over me, and my body stiffs at the familiar male voice. Looking up, I see Andrew at the entrance staring at me, and I feel cold and heavy all at once.
“Oh HELL no,” Janie’s tiny body jumps over the chair and she marches right up to Andrew. “You get the FUCK out of here.” She yells and I see Stevie frantically tapping away on her phone. Oh god no, who is she texting?
“Lauren,” Andrew’s voice is pleading. “Listen, can we just talk for a minute?”
Before I can respond, there is a loud bang. Looking up to the counter, Stevie’s seventy-something, five-foot nothing, on a good day, Croatian grandmother, Nika, stands with her hand on the large knife she just drove into the cutting board.
“You,” she barks at Andrew in her thick accent, “get the fuck out of here before I cut your testicles off and feed to the rats.” I watch as Stevie smacks her face with her hand.
“Baka!” She cries out and looks at her grandmother before saying something in what I’m assuming is a mix of Croatian and English as she walks over and grabs her tiny grandmother, ushering her into the back room.
Andrew looks back to me. “So?”
“So?” Janie huffs. “So get the fuck out!”
“I wasn’t talking to you, you little bitch!” Andrew snaps at her and I stand up, not willing to let Janie get talked like that.
“Don’t you speak to her that way! You heard her.” I wish my voice was half as confident as Janie’s.
Andrew walks up to me, roughly brushing by Janie and gripping my wrist tightly. I let out a small cry in pain when he jerks me.
“Hey!” Atlas’ near roar causes my heart to stop. I turn to look as he, Fox, Derek and Ash all enter the suddenly very tiny-feeling front of the bakery.
“Get your fucking hands off my wife.” I watch in horror as he clenches and unclenches his fists. Oh my god, he is going to prison. This is it.
Andrew chooses to be smart and lets me go. I instantly run to Atlas and touch his chest.
“Hey…Hey look at me.” I say frantically, while gripping his tight jaw. God, he’s tense and his eyes are locked on Andrew. I run my hands over his neck, and pull him slightly to try and snap him out of his trance. “Hey baby,” I whisper. His eyes snap down to me and his expression softens. I give him a soft smile and reach up to kiss him on the lips softly. He claims me in a possessive kiss, gripping my hips with his hands. When we break, I’m lightheaded and stumble against him.
“Come on,” I whisper, while holding his face. I need him to stay focused on me. A task that is thankfully becoming increasingly easier. “Take me outside.”
“Go on, At,” Fox states. He looks just as pissed as Atlas did. Though it’s understandable, he did walk in to see my abusive ex towering over his girlfriend.
I pull Atlas outside and to the parking lot. Breathing is becoming increasingly easier with each step we put between us and the restaurant. Atlas stops a few feet from his vehicle and I see it, it’s like he changed his mind. “Nope.” He growls as he turns around and starts back towards the shop. “I need to kill him first.”
“No no no no!” I run and place myself in front of his massive body. “Come here.” I say and pull him back to the parking lot. Iget us to his Tahoe and open the back door before climbing in. He looks at me confused as I motion for him to get in.
