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I co
uld’ve fallen asleep easily afterward, but Bishop carried me into the shower and helped me clean up—and for once, I didn’t care that the water in these old houses was never quite hot enough. His warm body surrounded mine, slick skin pressing against me as he lathered soap over me with possessive, greedy hands, making me feel perfectly cared for and content.
After we toweled off, we crawled under the covers together, and I draped myself over his chest like a cat, my legs tangling with his. He kissed my hair and murmured comforting words as sleep finally claimed me.
“Oh, I see how it is. Nobody thought to call us for this little sleepover?”
I blinked awake at the teasing voice, catching sight of sunlight streaming through the windows of Bishop’s bedroom.
He grunted beneath me, a sleepy sound, and I felt him stir as he woke up too.
We both turned to gaze at Misael and Kace, who stood just inside the bedroom doorway.
Misael had been the one to speak, and he winked when he caught my gaze, letting me know he’d just been teasing. I knew the guys didn’t get jealous of the one-on-one time they each spent with me, especially since I had never shown preference or favoritism toward any one of them. How could I have, when I cared about them all equally? When my heart was bound to each of theirs just the same?
Still, I didn’t like even the hint of him feeling left out, so I threw the covers off, making Bishop grumble good-naturedly, and traipsed across the room, completely unabashed at my nakedness. There was a time when I definitely would’ve been, but now I relished the hungry glint that came into Kace’s and Misael’s eyes as they watched me approach. I threw my arms around Misael’s neck and kissed him soundly, rubbing my bare breasts against his chest as I did.
He reacted instantly, looping one arm around my waist to keep me close while the other roamed my body, sliding over the curve of my ass and squeezing.
“Oh, I see how it is…”
Kace’s tone was teasing too as he mirrored Misael’s words from earlier, and when I finally broke the kiss with the dark-haired boy, I stepped eagerly into Kace’s arms, letting him claim my lips with his own. His tongue swept the seam of my mouth, and as soon as I opened for him, he took the kiss even deeper.
By the time we broke apart, I was breathing hard. It had been meant to be just a sweet greeting, but as so often happened with these boys, my emotions had spiked beyond my control at just a touch. I could tell both of them felt it too, and when I glanced back over my shoulder at Bishop, I saw him watching me with heat and approval in his eyes.
He liked seeing me do this with his friends.
And I liked having him watch.
Misael groaned, sounding truly pained. “Dammit. Now all I want to do is crawl into bed and keep this goin’. But there’s actually a reason we came by this morning.” He glanced at Bishop. “Nathaniel needs us. He’s got a job he needs taken care of.”
Disappointment flooded me. I’d been completely on board with Misael’s “crawl into bed” plan, and I wasn’t ready to go back home yet. Hell, I wasn’t sure I’d ever be ready. I was tempting fate by staying out so long—it was only a matter of time before my mother realized I hadn’t actually reconnected with my old Highland Park friends. That I wasn’t spending all of my free time with those stuck-up girls, but with three boys from the wrong side of the tracks.
But still, I couldn’t keep myself from glancing around the room at each of the boys as I perked up a little. “Can I come again?”
Bishop smiled indulgently. He seemed a lot less nervous about the idea of me entering Nathaniel Ward’s home than he once had, and a strange sort of pride rose in me at that thought. Somehow, against all odds, I had won the crime lord over. It probably helped a lot that his wife liked me, and Nathaniel seemed head-over-heels in love with Josephine. I imagined there wasn’t much in the entire world he wouldn’t do for her.
“Alright, Princess. You can come.”
The other two boys nodded in agreement, and I kissed Kace again, rising up onto my tiptoes before sauntering across the room to collect my clothes. All three of the Lost Boys groaned as they watched me, and I bit back a smile.
The butler didn’t seem at all surprised to see me with the boys when we arrived at Nathaniel’s house, and I realized that whether I had wanted to or not, I had become a part of this world.
That thought didn’t scare me anywhere near as much as it once would have.
When we were brought to Nathaniel’s study, I expected the older man would tell me to wait in the library like usual. I was actually hoping to have a chance to talk to Josephine. I hated to burden her with my troubles, but I wanted to ask her advice. Although I was actively trying not to think about it, the confrontation with my father in his office was weighing heavily on my mind. I felt like an animal in a trap that was slowly tightening around me, and I had no idea how to get out of it.
But instead of sending me off, Nathaniel waved me inside his study with the boys. I shot Bishop a questioning glance, but although his brows drew together, he nodded.
When the door closed behind us, Nathaniel strode around his desk to take his seat, picking up a half-smoked cigarette from the ashtray and taking a long pull before speaking.
“Have you three heard of Claudio Vega?” he asked.
All three boys shook their heads. I didn’t even bother shaking mine, since I was almost positive the question hadn’t been directed at me.
Nathaniel nodded, not looking surprised. “He’s a new player on the scene. A lower level criminal who’s been rising up the ranks and gaining more strength. He’s not big enough to be a threat to me—yet. But he could be. So I’d like to cut off that possibility by bringing him into my fold now. I want to form an alliance with him to keep Luke Carmine in check.”
I stood silently as all three boys reacted to that. I still wasn’t quite sure why Nathaniel had wanted me to be here for this, since I certainly didn’t know the ins and outs of the power struggles among the criminal organizations of Baltimore.
