Page 43 of Fractured Constellations
“Chase?” Her voice is scratchy, raw-sounding, and I wince as I get out of the single bed and move closer to hers. When I reach the bedside, I grab the insulated water cup with the straw Blade got for her and hold it out to Chase.
“I’m here, baby. We’re all here,” Chase soothes her as he takes the cup, encouraging her to drink a little before handing it back to me. Blade is on the other side of the bed, his jaw clenched tight, his brows deeply furrowed as he looks at her. His hands hover at his sides, like he wants to reach for her but isn’t sure he should.
We’ve all had night terrors before, and I know that sometimes being held was the last thing I wanted, but she is clinging to Chase, so maybe that’s what she needs.
“What happened? In your dream?” I ask, and her tear-filled eyes turn to look at me, her throat swallowing hard.
“I was dying, all alone, and calling and calling, but no one came.” She breaks down, burying her face in Chase’s chest and sobbing into him. My chest hurts, the pain fracturing inside me as I watch her after she’s shared what is clearly a deep fear.
I catch Chase’s eye, and then Blade’s, and by an unspoken agreement, Blade gets on the bed next to Luna, careful of her drip. I get on the other side of Chase, and though it’s a tight fit, almost impossible, her cries quieten as we all touch her.
“That will never happen, Goldilocks,” Blade assures her, his hand smoothing up and down her spine as he snuggles in close. “We would never leave you.”
“That’s right, Goldie. I’m afraid you’re stuck with us forever now,” I add as she peeks up at me, a small smile on her beautiful lips.
“Promise?”
She damn near breaks my heart with her plea.
“Pinkie promise, the most sacred of all promises,” I tell her solemnly, holding out my hand and extending my little finger.
She untangles herself enough to link her pinkie with mine, and we stay like that, lying around her, our bodies all pressed together and showing her that she is not alone. Not anymore.
CHAPTER TWENTY
“WISHBONE” BY FREYA RIDINGS
LUNA
My eyelids flutter open, the soft snores of the triplets filling the room. Heat surrounds me, and I can barely move, but my body is filled with a warmth so real it’s almost as if the sun is caressing my skin. I first see Chase, his lashes dark against his golden cheeks, his usually neat hair a ruffled mess as he sleeps on the pillow next to mine.
My pinkie finger twitches, and I glance down to find Thorn’s still wrapped around mine, like he didn’t want to let go, even as we slept. I give my finger a wiggle, and his grip tightens, bringing a small smile to my face. I’ve never felt so wanted, so needed like I do right in this moment.
Movement at my back has me wanting to arch into Blade, especially as his hard, morning wood presses against my ass. My body may feel like it’s been hollowed out and filled with lead, but there’s a flicker of heat, a star about to be born, that tells me not everything inside me has been destroyed in the past two days.
The previous days have merged into a hazy montage of beeping machines, the brothers’ voices keeping me anchored, and the slow drip of poison that’s supposed to save me. The irony of cancer treatment isn’t lost on me—feeling like you’re dying to have a chance at living, but what’s different this time is I’m not facing it alone, and that realization is both comforting and terrifying.
I quietly smack my dry lips together, the metallic taste in my mouth making my nose crinkle. My fatigue is bone deep, so I’m not sure I can do more than twitch my little finger, as much as I’d like to take Blade up on the offer that’s pressing into me.
And that pisses me off to no end. I want to be a normal person, able to fuck my stepbrother, or stepbrothers, whenever I fucking like. I snort as my anger is mollified by the amusement at my last thought.
“What’s funny, Goldilocks?” Blade rumbles in my ear, his deep voice not helping the situation as I shiver with want.
“I’m not sure my explanation would make sense,” I mumble, and his arms around me tighten as he nuzzles into my neck.
“Try me,” he whispers, and I shudder again. Fuck him and his sexy morning voice.
“Well, I was just thinking about how I’m too tired to take up your morning wood offer, and that pissed me off, which got me thinking I should be able to fuck my stepbrothers when I damn well please, and that made me laugh, because, well, I mean…” I trail off as deep chuckles replace the soft snoring from moments before.
“I agree, Goldilocks,” Blade purrs as his hips flex, pushing his hard-on into me.
“And we don’t need you to have any energy, Moonbeam,” Thorn adds, his voice sleep-roughened too as he pushes up onto one elbow, reaching over Chase and taking my hand with his ashe places it on my breast and gives it a squeeze. I moan, my eyelids fluttering.
“As much as I also agree and would like to remind you that you did give us free reign, even when you are too tired to take an active role,” Chase adds, his lips ghosting over my arched neck. “Patty will be walking into the room in approximately thirty seconds and I’m not sure she wants to see that.”
My eyes open wide just as the door swings open, and just like Chase says, Patty walks in. She blinks as she takes note of all three guys on the bed with me, a small chuckle falling from her lips. “I see we may need to invest in some bigger beds.”
“That would be appreciated, and if you let us know the cost, we can call it a donation from Banks Industries,” Chase replies, pressing a light kiss on my cheek before sitting up, making Thorn pull back his hand from my tit, which I’d kind of forgotten was there.
