Page 51 of Give Me Peace

“Did I say riveting? I definitely meant boring. Total waste of time. So, what brings you by?” He fidgets, still refusing to look at me. I take my opening when his focus is on something across the room and launch myself over the foot of his bed. I scramble toward the book as Kash shrieks like a banshee.

“Best Friend!” He growls, attempting to cut me off, but I’m smaller and quicker. I snatch it away and shove it down my sweater. My body heats with embarrassment because I have no freaking clue why I just did that. Kash raises his eyebrow at me. “Is that supposed to stop me?” He grins devilishly, not an ounce of remorse for his brazenness. I shuffle across the bed, nearly getting tangled in the mound of covers, and climb to my feet. I’m out of breath, slapping loose pieces of hair from my face as I go digging down my clothes for the big reveal. When I pull the book out and eye the cover, my jaw drops.

“Are reading smut?” I ask in disbelief, my lips quirked in amusement.

“Hey! It’s got plot, too, thank you very much,” Kash retorts, trying his best to seem annoyed. Mom used to read every raunchy romance she could get her hands on, and the few times I’d picked up her kindle instead of mine were pretty revealing. The covers alone told me everything I needed to know, so I never peeked inside them. My brain wasn’t curious the way it is now. I flip the book open, skimming through a few sentences, but nothing scandalous pops out at me.

“Sweetness,” Kash warns, his bottom lip trapped between his teeth. I ignore him, skipping toward the back of the book. A few more pages of searching and I feel the blush I’d just gotten rid of come barreling back with a vengeance. Jesus, that’s graphic. I shift from one foot to the other, scanning a few more passages. Kash chuckles, sauntering over to take his tome of filth from my hands.

“Any thoughts?” he asks, his voice pitched low. “Since you were so eager to read it and all.”

“Uh…descriptive. Very descriptive.” I laugh, but it sounds slightly manic. Kash smirks, his thumb brushing across my too-hot cheek.

“I think Kade was onto something. This shade of pink is definitely a new favorite of mine.” I swat his hand away, fake glaring at the comment. “Come on.” He pulls me back down, tucking me against his side as he pops a sucker in his mouth. We lay quietly for a while, my eyes scanning their room for more insight to both Kash and Krew. The walls are dark grey, blending beautifully with the black furniture. Very dark and moody. There’s only one bed, but it’s king sized. I find that a little surprising, but to each their own.

“Are you okay? I sort of left the rest of you to deal with that bomb on your own last night.” I toy with the leather bracelet on Kash’s wrist as I wait for him to answer.

“That’s because Kade is the one who needed you most and you recognized that. Don’t feel bad about being there for him. I think the real question is, are you okay?” Kash pinches my chin between his finger and thumb, tilting my face up so he can look me in the eye.

“I’m good. Havok and I have made peace with our past. I don’t see a point in dwelling on it, and if I had known it was something he hadn’t disclosed to the group, I never would have said anything. I know he has a lot of guilt and shame for the way he treated me, so I can understand why he didn’t want to tell any of you.” Kash hums in thought but doesn’t offer his personal feelings on the matter.

“As long you’re good, then I’m good, Best Friend.” I smile, enjoying the ease that always comes with being around him. “I bet I could take him, though. One good swipe at his knees and Kade would drop like a sack of shit.” He snickers, the sound too adorable to match the badass vibe he’s going for.

“Oh, my God!” I gasp, pointing directly beside him. “Is that a spider?!”

“What!” Kash screeches, flying up and over me as quickly as he can. I laugh—hard and loud—unable to hold it back a second longer.

“Yep. You could totally take him.” I pluck the sucker from his mouth and stick it in my own, wiping the tears from my eyes. He fixates on where my lips are wrapped around his candy, his expression darkening to something I can’t quite pinpoint.

“You find that funny, do you?” Kash grins, gripping me just above my knee. He squeezes it over and over again, making me twist and turn as I laugh like crazy. It feels like I beg for ages before he finally relents. He steals the sucker back, making a show of licking it before leaning down to speak.

“We just swapped spit, sweetness. Congrats, your best friend status has been upgraded.” His breath is hot against my ear, but chills erupt in the wake of his words. At the promise in his voice. Kash pulls back, a slow, satisfied smirk stretched across his face.

And then he boops my nose.

Chapter Twenty-Five

Kash

It’s rare for me to sleep in. Most nights I don’t get more than five consecutive hours before my brain is up and running. Yet every time I find myself in Saylor’s bed, I don’t have nearly as much trouble. I could lay beside this girl forever. My arm is slung across her waist, my chest flush with her back. As casually as possible, I put some space between my very hard dick and her very soft ass. This is the most intimate position we’ve ever been in, and I sure as fuck don’t want her to wake up panicked because my cock is nestled against her like it’s finally found its home.

Shit, this is the closest I’ve been to any woman, not just Saylor.

It’s been two weeks since Ro popped Kade in the mouth, doing what the rest of us were too pussy to. He deserved what he got, not that I’d admit to feeling that way. It’s clear Saylor wants to move on and keep the past in the past, and I respect that. That doesn’t mean we don’t feel a sense of betrayal from being kept in the dark for the past three years. I’m trying to be understanding, put myself in his shoes and all that shit, but it’s hard not to pass judgement. I, too, would be ashamed if I were him.

Kade’s our brother; we’ve forgiven him. But there’s a weird tension between us now that the truth is out and in the open. I can’t help but notice how much we’ve been clinging to Saylor ever since. Aside from my idiotic twin, we’ve basically attached ourselves to the poor girl. It’s a wonder she hasn’t snapped and told us to give her some damn space. I press my nose to the back of her neck, soaking up the sweet scent of coconut lingering from her shampoo. I get a sick sense of satisfaction knowing that I’m the one who picked it out.

“Did you just sniff me?” Saylor’s sleepy voice makes me freeze. I’m bouncing around excuses in my head, searching for something slightly less creepy than the truth of yes, I did just inhale her like a man starved of oxygen, when she flips over to face me. She cracks an eye open, giving me a small smile before closing it right back.

“You weren’t here when I went to bed,” she mumbles, burying her face against my chest. “Did I have another nightmare?”

“No. Just couldn’t sleep without you,” I answer honestly, brushing a few strands of hair from her face. She hums in contentment, making me grin like a goddamn fool. I don’t think Saylor even realizes how much she’s allowed us to worm our way in. She takes comfort in us just as much as we do her. Loch’s no touching suggestion flew straight out the damn window. If she had even once indicated she wasn’t okay with us being close, we would’ve backed off. But I think it’s helped her, just like I thought it would. I don’t want her to be like I was, afraid of my own fucking shadow. I’ve just now gotten to the point where I can go out alone without feeling the need to analyze every person I pass.

“Sleep, sweetness. I have to go into town for a bit, but I’ll be back shortly.” I drop a kiss to her forehead, but she’s out cold. Extricating myself from the covers, I make sure she’s tucked back in, then head to my and Krew’s room to freshen up. My brother is lying in bed, arms folded behind his head as he stares blankly at the ceiling.

I should feel guilty, because I know it’s fucking with him that I’ve been sleeping better with Saylor than I have with him. It’s always been the two of us. Even when the guys came into the picture, I still needed Krew more than anyone else. He’s had my back, protected me in a way that no one else ever has. It took me a long time to make it through a single night without waking up in a cold sweat, searching for a threat that no longer existed but still plagued my mind, nonetheless.

“Little bro.” I lift my chin in greeting and grab a fresh change of clothes from the closet. He grunts, never taking his focus from whatever he finds so fascinating above him. After I’ve washed my ass and dressed, I find the sad sack in the same position, looking more or less like someone kicked his puppy. Except Krew would never own a puppy. Too many warm and fuzzies attached to something so fluffy and cute.