Page 55 of Give Me Peace

“Come again?” I ask at the same time Lochlan’s drink of water goes down wrong and he starts hacking up a lung.

“It’s called a reverse harem.” Kash grins at the blank look on my face. “One girl, three or more guys.” Lochlan continues to cough.

“Oh. Ohhhh.” My eyes widen slightly. “Like, they’re all together?” I do this weird thing where I shove my fingers between each other, which makes zero sense, but I’m trying to approach this like I’m not some naïve little girl who’s completely clueless about relationships.

“No. At least not in this story.” Kash holds my gaze as he answers. “They’re devoted to the girl. Basically, four separate relationships.”

“Well, that seems selfish.” I scoff because that’s not real life. Even with my limited experience and knowledge I know jealously and the set number of hours in a day would never allow that sort of situation to thrive. Sounds like a disaster waiting to happen. Kash drops his head back as he laughs.

“Maybe some people deserve to be selfish, sweetness.” He smirks at me, and I get the sudden feeling he isn’t really talking about the girl in the book. I swallow, wondering if I should continue reading. He turns without another word and heads back up the path that leads to the house. “Ro’s getting the food off the grill, be back in a sec!”

I glance at the time on the screen, realizing we’re well into the afternoon already. Damn, I forgot how easily the hours slip away when you’re lost in another world. I had no idea they started cooking. I hop up, stretching my stiff body out as gently as I can. I’m sure my ribs will be a little more sensitive after laying on the ground for so long. I meet Roan halfway so I can help carry the food down. He tries to fight me on it, but I get my way in the end.

Krew and Havok are throwing a football, but as soon as they see the plate of burgers, their game is quickly forgotten. Lochlan refuses to let anyone eat until he finishes making my plate, so I try to hurry him along. It’s clear the guys have worked up an appetite. No one says much as we stuff our faces. I make it through half my burger before I’m full, so I give the rest to Roan.

“Drink.” Lochlan hands me a bottle of water. I raise an eyebrow at his bossiness, but I honestly think he can’t help it. It’s engrained in him to call the shots. “Don’t look at me like that. You haven’t had anything since we’ve been out here and you need to stay hydrated.” I press it to my lips to hide my smile. It’s ridiculous, but it makes me happy that I have someone—multiple someone’s—who care about the small stuff.

After we’re finished, we break apart to do our own thing once again. We’re together, but no one is being forced to do something they aren’t really interested in. Lochlan goes back to watching the rest of us, and I decide to walk the beach for a bit and collect some shells. Just like before, I stay within eyesight of our group and anytime their voices start to sound too far away, I turn back and walk the other direction. When I get bored with that and head back, I find Kash jumping around, waving a chip in the air at a bird.

“Here, birdy-birdy.” He calls to it, like it’s a cat instead of a long lost relative of the pterodactyl. I don’t care that it’s not factually true. It is to me and my brain. Those beaks are way too pointy to be coincidental, and that’s all that matters. Out of nowhere, Kash screams. The noise that leaves him sounds like it should’ve come from a small child, not a grown man.

“Oh my God, get it off. Get it the fuck off!” He starts flapping his arms, doing a great impersonation of the bird that’s now fleeing the scene. Roan is frantically searching for the problem, but I saw it happen. Knew it would before it even did. Because those flying blobs of feathers are evil.

“It shit on me, Loch. Shit!” The rest of the guys stop dead in their tracks. The pause feels like it lasts a lifetime, and then they’re folding over from laughing so hard. I press a hand to my mouth, but I can’t contain my giggles as I watch Kash run for the water. He shivers in disgust as he lets the waves wash away the poop from his arm. I’m wiping the tears from my eyes as he walks back toward us. As soon as he catches sight of me partaking in his misery, a wicked smile spreads across his face.

“Oh, sweetness.” Kash shakes his head. “You better run.” I roll my eyes, but then he takes off at a dead sprint. I squeak, running toward Roan because I know he’ll protect me. And there’s not a chance any of them can take him. Sadly, I’m cut off by Havok, who steps directly in my path to safety. I spin around, but Kash is already on me. I throw my hand out, as if that will warn him away, but he prowls forward. As gently as possible, he bends and scoops me up.

“Kash!” I squirm, thinking he just wants to get me wet, or maybe wipe off any remaining bird crap, but then he starts for the water. With purpose. Havok’s hot on our heels as he brings us closer and closer to that liquid graveyard. “No, no, no, no.” I’m clawing at his back as he strides through the incoming waves. Without a second thought, I wrap my arms and legs around him like a monkey, scooting as far up his chest as I can get. Kash groans, his teeth nipping at my shoulder.

“Get me out of here. Right now, Kash Davenport!” If I knew his middle name, I’d use it, too. Mom always meant business when she dropped all three. He drags his hand up my side until it rests against my face, his thumb stroking my cheek as he uses the other arm to hold me up. I don’t even care that he’s touching my butt, I just want out of this damn water.

“Hey, look at me.” Kash presses our foreheads together. “You think I’d let something happen to you?”

“There are sharks out here. You’re not the apex predator.” I whimper, looking all around us for any sign of a threat.

“I’d fight a fucking shark, sweetness.” I snort at Kash’s growly voice. “What? You think I couldn’t take a measly Great White?”

“Great White?!” I screech, my breaths growing harsher by the second. Kash just laughs.

I’m going to kill him.

“Whatever the threat, Saylor. It wouldn’t stand a goddamn chance.” He tugs my hair so I’m focused back on him. “Face your fears, sweetness. We’ve got you.”

“We?” I go to look, but something brushes against my back and I freeze.

“We,” Havok whispers, pressing in closer so I’m sandwiched between the two of them. “You’re covered on all sides, baby. Nothing is going to get to you. It’d have to go through us first.” I want to argue that a shark, Great White or not, could easily do that—and then I’d be down two of my favorite people—but I think it’d ruin what they’re trying to accomplish. They want me to face the thing that scares me, and trust that, no matter what, they’ll take care of me.

The ocean.

Liam.

Regardless of the thing, they have me.

I exhale slowly, allowing my muscles to relax, then slide back down a few inches, until I’m nice and snug. That creates a whole new problem. Kash is staring at me with so much heat in his eyes it makes me squirm. I shift, but Havok bands his arm around my middle at the same time Kash digs his fingers into the backs of my thighs. The simultaneous pressure makes me gasp. Havok drops his head to my back, pressing a faint kiss to my spine. My eyes flutter as I bite my lip. I’m not dumb enough to mistake what’s happening. I’m turned on, and even though we’re surrounded by water, I’m absolutely certain my bikini bottoms are wet from something else entirely.

“Sweetness,” Kash whispers, his lips lightly brushing mine. He’s going to kiss me. I know it, and I have no intention of stopping him, even though Havok is right here with us, his fingers stroking my stomach. And then something touches my leg and I scream. Havok laughs, pulling a glob of seaweed from the water lapping around us.

“Okay, enough bravery for one day.” I’m pulled away from Kash, who looks like he needs a second or two to get his hormones back in check. Havok carries me back to dry land, handing me over to Lochlan, who’s waiting with a clean towel for me to dry off with. I let him wrap me up and hug me to his chest, refusing to let my mind wander. There’s too much to process and I can’t give it space right now or it’ll take over completely. So instead, I let Lochlan pull me between his legs as the last rays of sunlight fade from the sky. My head is resting against his chest when the first firework bursts through the darkness.