Page 29 of Damaged & Deadly

His thrusts turn frantic as he nears his release. My jaw throbs, my eyes puffy, my core molten as, with one final thrust, he drives into the back of my throat and empties himself on a roar, “MINE!”

Struggling to catch my breath, he drags me to my feet, cementing my lips against his in a feral kiss. “Yours,” I pant.

A groan behind me has me spinning around, finding Oliver standing with his cock in his fist, cum coating his hands. “Fuck, that was hot,” he grunts.

Wide-eyed with surprise, I look over my shoulder to Cain, who is sporting a smug smirk, and I realize he knew Oliver was there the whole time.

A chuckle bursts free as Cain takes me into his arms and leads us under the spray of hot water, washing me clean before Oliver greets me with a warm towel.

“Hey, you.” He softly kisses my lips as he wraps the towel around me, and I smile adoringly up at him.

“Hi.”

God, I’ve missed him. As I stare up into his gorgeous face, I see nothing but love and affection. There’s no anger, no concern, no confusion. Just love. I don’t know how he does it. How he can be so confident, so level-headed and sure. Feeling the need to tell him, I blurt out, “I’ve missed you,” only making his smile grow wider as he pulls me in against him, kissing the top of my head.

“I’ve missed you too, Trouble.”

***

“Luc’s here,” I tell the guys later when we’re in Cain’s office, pointing at Giovanni’s tower on the map. It’s one of the areas they haven’t searched yet. “Giovanni lives there, along with Santos and his closest advisors.”

Cain’s brow hitches, intrigued by that nugget of information. “We’ll put people on it.”

“Just be careful.” I give him a thankful smile as I sink back against Oliver’s warm chest. I opted to sit in his lap, needing to feel him close to me and soak up his effortless sense of calm.

“It was Santos who killed my mother,” I confess. I haven’t had a chance to really think about that until now. I shake my head. “Apparently, she went to him for money, and she must have told him about Luc, or maybe he had someone follow her…” I trail off with a shrug. “I thought it was her pimp/boyfriend at the time. He was always yelling at her, beating on her… I just assumed he went too far one day.”

Memories of that day assault my mind. The image of her lying there, the terrified look in Luc’s eyes when I found him. My subconscious likes to relive that day in my sleep, reminding me of the turning point when our lives went from bad to worse. I remember always being so angry at my mom. I couldn’t understand why she couldn’t just grow up and be a mom. Luc deserved that much. It was too late for me, I was already an errant teenager, but he was only five years old. Guilt sickens me as I recall thinking we would be better off without her. I thought life would be so much better if I weren’t constantly cleaning up her vomit when she passed out from a binge, skirting around her leering boyfriends, or hiding in the closet with Luc, humming to him in an effort to drown out the noise of her headboard smacking against the wall when she was working. Oh, how wrong I was. Those first few years on the street, I’d have given anything to go back to that time.

The brush of Oliver’s finger along my jaw pulls me from my depressing memories. “He’ll get what’s coming to him.” One side of his lip lifts in a smirk. “No one messes with the Reaper and gets away with it.”

“Hell, no,” Cain agrees. “His death is written in the cards. I’ll make sure of it.”

Confidence rings in their voices, and I wish I could feel as optimistic as they do. “I don’t even know how we’re going to get to him or Giovanni. Even when Dante is with them, they have security guards and are rarely ever alone, and the underground tunnels ensure we can’t get to him on the street.”

Oliver’s arms band around me in an attempt to reassure me. “We’ll work it out.” Pressing a kiss to my temple, he lifts his head, meeting Cain’s gaze. “What’s, uh, happening with the other two?”

“They’re in.”

Frowning, Cain leans forward, placing his forearms on his desk. “Red, how exactly do you see all of this playing out?”

“I don’t know, but I trust them. Giovanni has been as cruel to them as he has to you. There’s no loyalty there.”

“Mmm,” is his only response, clearly not believing me, not that I can blame him. “And after?” His intense gaze burns into me. There’s no anger there, no judgment. He genuinely wants to know how I think this will work out in the end, and I get it. The churning of unease in my stomach says it can’t end well. How can I get two sets of men on different sides of this war to not only agree to get along for the sake of what we have to achieve, but to agree to… I dunno, share me? Be in a relationship with me? I haven’t the faintest fucking idea how that works. Actually, no, I do know. It doesn’t. I’m clinging to all four of them, unwilling to lose Cain or Oliver but not wanting to give up whatever I have with Enzo and Dante.

Eventually, I’ll have to choose. When this is all said and done, they’re not going to want to be in each other’s lives, and I can’t be in two separate relationships with two different groups of men. It just wouldn’t work. However, despite knowing there’s an end date, I can’t end things with any of them yet. With an apologetic look, I sigh. “I don’t know. I just… They…” I shake my head, unable to find the right words. “There’s just something there. I have a history with both of them, and over the last month, I’ve realized they aren’t the men they let the world think they are.” I implore Cain with my eyes. “Just, please, trust me. I wouldn’t have asked you to spare their lives if I didn’t think there was something worth saving.”

He blows out a breath, his expression softening. “I do trust you, I just… I don’t trustthem.”

I nod, understanding perfectly. He has no reason to trust them, and only time will tell if any sort of trust can be built.

“But you’ll work with them?”

He and Oliver share a loaded look before he meets my gaze again. “Yeah, we will, but don’t go getting any ideas. That’s as far as it goes. We’re doing this for Luc and Evie. When it’s done, it’s done.” Getting up from his chair, he strides around the desk until he’s standing in front of me. I have to crane my neck back to look up at him, but he leans in until he’s at eye level with me. “For now, when you’re with us, you’re with us, and when you’re with them…” He grimaces. “I’d rather not think about it.”

I slide my hand under his Henley, relishing the feel of his warm skin beneath my palm and the rippling of his muscles as I glide my hand along his flesh, lifting his top as I climb higher. “Okay,” I breathe against his lips, before sealing the promise with a kiss. It’s an easy promise to keep. When I’m around them, they consume my every thought. They own my body, know it better than I do, anticipating my needs before I can put them into words. They speak to my soul, bathing it in their strength, their confidence, their honesty. Before them, I didn’t think I needed anyone. I believed the only person I could rely on was myself, but they’ve shown me how wrong I was. They’ve proven that not only can I open my heart and let people in, but that I’m actually stronger for doing so.Theystrengthen me. With them at my side, I’ll never be alone and never have to carry the burden of my problems by myself again. They’re not only willing to lighten the load, but they’ll shower down love and respect while doing it. My gangsters. My Rejects. The two fundamental pieces of my soul I never knew I was missing.

Chapter 12

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