Page 59 of Heart of a Killer

“It didn’t come back to me all at once, only the bad stuff first. But when the other memories came back, too, I remembered watching you for hours on the computer, and I saw how our father hurt you.” His voice catches. “I wanted to save you, but when I finally got up the courage to finally see you, you had already saved yourself.”

I didn’t expect the water pooling in his eyes and the red splotches on his cheeks when he turns toward me.

“I tried for a long time to be happy with other women. They only saw me as ugly, a monster to never be loved. Then I saw the way you looked at Nicole.” His face twisted in anguish. “You looked at her the way I wanted you to look atme. With a desperate longing to be loved and accepted.”

The tears running down his face are real. He is crying for me, and I reach for his cheek to brush the fallen tears away. He catches my hand in the air and holds my palm up to his lips. He plants a kiss in the middle before bringing it to his cheek, pulling me closer to him.

“I’ve only ever wanted you to accept me and love me the way I have grown to love you. Unconditionally.”

My thumb brushes under his eye to catch the moisture still welling up.

“Why do you think I wouldn’t love you for you?”

“Because you’re gay. You want Brie, and I want you to be happy. I’m sorry for everything I did and all the pain I’ve caused you. I never wanted you to hurt yourself because of me,” Alex weeps.

“None of that matters anymore. The heart wants what the heart wants.” Leaning my forehead against his, I take a deep breath before continuing. “Is it so wrong to want you both? Could you—”

Just as I am about to ask him, Brie interjects. “Would you have us both? To love?”

The butterflies in my chest flutter as I look over Alex’s shoulder at Brie.

Alex holds me at arm’s length, looking between Brie and me, his brows pinched and redness still covering his cheeks. He marvels at us. “You two would wantme?”

“Yes,” Brie and I say in unison as we catch each other’s eyes. She giggles and runs to us. Our bodies press together in a bear hug, and Brie whispers, “This is the family I’ve always wanted.”

Her words bring warmth to my chest, and I feel complete.

23

Brieanna

“Come on, let’s go inside,” I say, grabbing Skylar’s and Alex’s hands and dragging them into the house.

They don’t give me any arguments and allow me to pull them through the living room toward the stairs. We need to find a shower because this dried blood is starting to get unbearably itchy.

I turn toward Alex, letting go of their hands. “Where’s the shower, Daddy-o?”

Alex’s face is slowly returning to normal from crying earlier as he walks past me, going upstairs. Watching him show his vulnerable side is something I’ve never seen from any man, much less someone as confident and badass as he is. For him to think we wouldn’t want him, those admissions tugged at my heart. I couldn’t be with anyone else after Skylar and Alex. They are mine. They are my family. The ones who love me for me, and I feel the same for them. I have no judgment in me for their complicated and messy situation. Too often I have been judged, and I would never make them feel that way with me.

Skylar and I follow him up to the bathroom, which is dimly lit with soft yellow light. It’s small, with just the necessities, and covered in old vintage butterfly wallpaper, much like the rest of the house.

Pulling my shirt off, I sing, “Let’s shower!” I wiggle my eyebrows at them and bite my lip, needing to escape these emotions.

Skylar giggles. Alex’s eyes darken and a wicked smile spreads across his face.

Alex flips on the valves, making the pipe whistles. He unclasps his jeans, exposing more of the muscles that lead to his cock. My mouth salivates at the sight of him. I want to run my tongue over his sweat-slicked skin. Skylar teases her shirt off, taunting me with the underside of her breast. I follow them, removing the rest of my clothes. My nipples harden and my sex clenches. I’ve died and gone to paradise.

If this is sinning, I want to be damned forever.

I step into the ceramic tub and let the scorching spray hit my chest. My back arches and my head leans back as the stream beats down on me. Alex gets in front, blocking the water. A pitiful whine starts to leave my lips, but it’s quickly cut off by Alex’s hand wrapping around my throat. Skylar’s perky nipples rub along my back as she steps in behind me, sending a shiver down my spine.

“What should we do with her?” he asks Skylar.

The pupil in his good eye completely eclipses, and he tightens his grip.

“Hmm,” Skylar hums in my ear. “We should play with her.”

The devil below, save me a seat, because I refuse to return from this bliss.

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