Page 23 of Secret Baby Daddies
“How many men do you have over there? What are you into? This is going to be much louder than your solo sessions, isn’t it?” Aaron was going to die and I was going to be the one to finish him off.
“You listen to her solo sessions?” Jace’s voice was deadly.
“Kinda hard not to, man. We’re practically sharing a bed here.”
“We arenotsharing a bed, Aaron! What is wrong with you? Stop talking or I promise you that I’m going to blare Nickleback all day and night!”
That did it. He went silent. It was great he wasn’t stirring up the giant men hovering over me anymore but I almost missed him as soon as he pretended he was gone. He’d kept their focus away from me. Without him, their eyes all settled on me, then each other, and then my apartment before coming back to me again.
“No.” Luc shook his head. “Abso-fucking-lutely not. Pack your bags.”
I laughed, thinking he was joking. “It’s notthatbad.”
“We had to stop in the stairwell to let a rat the size of a Great Dane pass.” Maddox shuddered. “Do I even need to mention you seem to be spending time screaming back and forth with your neighbor?”
“Through paper thin walls while sleeping in an apartment with a cardboard door, might I add.” Jace shook his head even more aggressively than Luc. “There’s no way you’re staying here. What the hell are you even doing in a place like this? Jesus, Harley.”
A flash of anger had me standing up on my bed so I wasn’t glaringupat him.
“How dare you? Just because you fucked me doesn’t mean you get to come in here and do whatever the hell you want. You can’t just spout off whatever shitty thing you think. This place may have rats and a few raccoons and crappy walls, floors, and ceilings, but it’smine.”
“I’ll sign over the deed to our house if that’s all that’s keeping you here.” Luc was dead serious.
“Your sex house? No, thanks.” I turned up my nose and crossed my arms. “I’m just fine here. Y’all can go.”
“If you think we’re letting the woman growing our kid stay in a potentially hazardous place, you’re nuts. You’re coming with us. You want to walk out or be carried out?”
“Carry her! This will be fun to watch!” Aaron piped up, not helping at all.
“Shut up, Aaron!” Before I could turn back to the men threatening to kidnap me, I was airborne. I screeched and flung my limbs out but before I could fall I was pinned against a rock-hard chest. Jace held me bridal style and glared at me like he was daring me to fight him. “This is crazy. I don’t even know y’all! You don’t know me! I could be a maniac! I could have a collection of guns under my bed and my own manifesto. You don’t want that energy in your house! It’s a sex house, not a doomsday prepper house. Be reasonable.”
“What do you need for tonight and the morning? We’ll send someone to pack up the rest of your things tomorrow.” Luc grabbed the one semi-decorative item in my apartment, a pretty basket someone had thrown out, and looked around. “Talk, little bunny. I want to get you out of here.”
“Oh, my god. Little bunny? Isn’t that just the cutest thing.” Aaron was going to be the death of me. Death by fury at one’s neighbor would be a new one, probably.
“Aaron!” I sighed and wrapped my arms around Jace’s neck, holding on. “Fine. Whatever. Take me away and be my knights in shining armor. I’ll just come back tomorrow. My phone is somewhere in my bed, I think. I just need one outfit from my closet for the morning. I want to bring my flowers. They don’t deserve to be abandoned here.”
“Of course not.” Luc rolled his eyes but I thought I saw the hint of a smile.
“Any specific one?” Luc opened the closet and let out a long, quiet whistle. “Huh.”
I knew what he was seeing. A perfectly organized closet full of luxury bags and clothing I kept as a memento from my past and as an emergency option if I ever couldn’t make ends meet.I’d lost several things over the years. What I had left wasn’t anything compared to what I’d started with.
Maddox let out a low chuckle and I twisted around to see what he was doing. He looked downright mischievous as he picked up the little stash I kept next to my bed. Hidden away for privacy, in a zippered bag, was my vibrator and my favorite romance novel that was downright filthy. I could feel my face burning and did the only thing I could. I buried my face in Jace’s neck and groaned.
“If I’m lucky, this apartment building will collapse and end my suffering.”
Only Aaron responded. “Amen, sister.”
CHAPTER 20
Jace
I was fuming. My body was tense and buzzing like I was preparing for a fight. Maybe I was. Whatever Harvey had done to send his daughter running in the most dangerous direction possible was going to send me off the rails and straight to his door with a fucking baseball bat. Maddox had checked her fridge and cabinets. She had nothing. She was scraping by with whatever scraps she could find . That was over. She wouldn’t struggle ever again.
Harley sat next to me in the backseat with her arms crossed over her ample chest and her bottom lip poking out. I didn’t think she knew she was pouting because she’d been doing her best to look unbothered. I was struggling to keep my hands off of her. The tiny shorts she wore revealed so much skin that I wanted to sink my teeth into.
“I don’t want to go to the sex house. I think it would be awkward if I wanted to eat a bowl of cereal in the morning and there was a couple banging on the counter next to me.” She kept that nose in the air, showing signs of her upbringing.
