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That evening, while I was making dinner for the first time in what felt like months, the guys were noticeably happier. Being at the house wasn’t just good for me, it was good for all of them too. We were able to relax, away from everyone else. We didn’t need to worry about being overheard during any conversation. The house staff was minimal and they were all gone by the end of the day. The guards outside stayed outside and they always stayed far enough away from us that they couldn’t overhear our conversations when we were outside. It had become the spot where we could get away from everything going on and just be ourselves.
While the guys were excellent at their jobs, they needed downtime too. Where they didn’t need to worry about some random person trying to get Adrik. Or me. No one knew about the house. I felt safe around the guys, but they felt safe at the house.
Viktor had brought his computer into the kitchen while I was cooking, but I made him put it away. “One night, Papa Bear. One night with no work. Or at least until dinner is over. You all need a break,” I said, pulling the ingredients for dinner out of the refrigerator. He started to argue with me, but I made my eyes go dark and stared at him.
“I don’t know how I feel about your demon eyes, sestrichka. I know you’re just doing it to be a shit, but you do look scary,” Viktor said, his deep belly laugh filling the kitchen.
“That’s kind of the whole point, Viktor,” I said in a very loud whisper, making him laugh even more. His loud laugh was one of my favorite sounds.
Adrik was close by, leaning against the counter, his arms crossed across his chest. Misha was helping me, Andrei was also close by, ready to jump in when I needed him. Ivan and Stephen were across the island, laughing and talking with Viktor. I caught myself looking at everyone and couldn’t help the smile that stretched across my face. Adrik walked up behind me, kissing my neck softly. “What are you smiling about, solnishko?” he asked quietly.
“This really is the best day ever. We all needed this today,” I said, turning toward him so I could look at him. He looked relaxed and happy as we all laughed and talked in the kitchen.
“We needed a reason to celebrate,” he said, pressing his lips against mine gently.
They all talked more during dinner than they had in a while. It was obvious that they were all more relaxed than they had been since Ivan and I were taken. I knew the guys were stressed to see me hurt again, but I didn’t realize just how stressed they’d been over it. We’d all had to deal with quite a lot over the last few weeks.
Later that night, once Adrik and I were alone, he brought it up as well. “I had us come here because I knew it would help you, but I think it helped all of us,” he said, taking his shirt off and putting it on me for the night.
“You noticed too, huh?” I asked, watching him while he buttoned up his shirt on me.
He nodded his head. “You’re lighter, but I think everyone is lighter too. I knew the guys were getting stressed, but I didn’t realize just how stressed they were.”
“They’ve been too busy babysitting me,” I said, grinning up at him.
He wrapped his arms around my waist, pulling me tight against him. “Don’t apologize for that either. They would happily do it again. They like babysitting you more than pretty much anything else they have to do. You didn’t hear the argument that happened when we made their rotation schedule after the meeting with Henry,” he said, smirking at me.
“They argued? Why would they argue?” I asked.
“There’s an odd number of them. There’s an even number of hours in the day,” he said, clearly still amused at the memory.
“Shut up.”
“No, it’s true. They argue like children sometimes,” he said, laughing.
“I happen to love it about them. I always wanted to know what it was like to have brothers. Now I know,” I said.
“You’re biased though, solnishko,” he said. “You love them no matter what. And it’s usually you that they’re fighting over. I sometimes have to remind them that you’re mine.”
I tried not to laugh, but I couldn’t hold it in. It was just such a funny picture in my head to think about. “I don’t want to cause problems between all of you,” I said. While he was also amused at it, I never wanted him to feel like there was any reason to feel jealous. For any reason. He was becoming much more sensitive to my moods shifting, so he picked up on my worry right away as he looked into my eyes.
“It’s not a problem, Sephie. You shouldn’t worry. They’re big boys. Mostly. Just as long as I get the most time with you, they can fight as much as they like,” he said, his sexy smirk making me feel the warmth spread over my body.
“I love them all, but not like I love you, Adrik,” I said. When I would think about how much I loved him, the warmth that spread through my body was a low-level rise in temperature. The warmth that was spreading over my body now was a raging inferno, but I knew it was mine and not coming from him. I inhaled sharply, looking up at him. I saw the surprise in his eyes, followed immediately by lust.
“Blink, love,” he said. He was surprised to see my eyes go dark. I knew he could feel my warmth, but I wasn’t sure he was feeling it at the level I was yet. I put my hands on his chest, trying to push the fire that was building inside me to him. I looked at him, chewing on my bottom lip.
“No.”
He raised an eyebrow, but looked away. I knew he was struggling to control himself, especially since my eyes were dark. I put my fingers under his chin, forcing him to look at me again. “Sephie…” he said. I could hear the uncertainty in his voice. His hold on my waist was loosening, like he was fighting keeping me close and stepping away from me for fear of hurting me.
I smiled at him, trying to keep my eyes as dark as possible. He cursed under his breath. “I don’t know if I can control myself, solnishko,” he said.
“Then don’t try,” I said as I ran my hand up his chest to the back of his neck. I pulled him down to me, my lips crashing into his. I felt his hands slide under his shirt to my bare skin. His touch was leaving a trail of fire across my skin. I knew I wouldn’t be able to hold back either. While I was still wary of being able to catch my breath, I couldn’t wait any longer.
His lips moved down my neck, making me moan quietly. “I’ve missed this so much, Sephie,” he said. He ran his hands down my back to my ass, picking me up. I wrapped my legs tight around him. My lips found his once more. I started to unbutton his shirt I was wearing as he held me up. I was desperate to feel his skin against mine. I let his shirt fall to the floor, my arms clinging to him once again.
He walked us toward the bed. He leaned his head back, so he could look at me. “Are you sure about this, love?” he asked. I could tell my eyes were definitely still dark by the look in his eyes. Seeing how much he wanted me made me want him even more.
