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“You can come back and stay here Sundays,” Damien says, surprising us both.
“What?” I ask in shock.
He smiles down at me. “There's that surprised face I wanted to see earlier.” Damien looks over at Laney and then back to me. “When you accept my punishments, I’ll always reward you,” he says with a wink. Goosebumps travel down my arms as he moves into me, puts his arm around me, and takes my bag from me with his free hand.
Laney just stands there in the doorway, looking as shocked as I feel.
“We better get you moved in before class,” Damien says, stepping towards the door, Laney gets the hint and moves out of the way. I give her a little wave as we leave. The confidence I felt over this decision begins to fade and nerves start to settle in. What did I just get myself into?
???
I'm all settled in my new room that evening when Damien knocks on my door before letting himself in.
“Can I help you?” I ask, slightly irritated he didn't wait for a response before coming in. I could’ve been naked. He was probably hoping Iwasnaked. I'll have to remember to lock my door from now on. The last thing I want is for any of these guys to see my scars. I don’t want their judgment, and I sure as hell don’t want pity.
I'm sitting at my desk with my legs folded under me, ready to dive into my missed work for the day when he walks up behind me.
“Yeah, I was gonna head down to the race track to get a few practice laps in. Wanna join me?” he asks, running his hand through his hair.
I look back at him and my eyes trace how his muscles flex. A few hairs fall in his face when he lets it go, and I realize I haven't responded to his question.
I clear my throat. “I actually need to get some studying in,” I tell him truthfully. I missed my first two classes on the second day, and I’m behind already. I’m confused as to why he would want to take me for a ride, but I’m even more confused that my initial reaction is to be sad that I had to say no. The idea of whipping around the track and letting loose sounds like a sense of freedom I truly crave at the moment.
“Sounds good,” he says. “Lev is in his room working, so if you need anything, you'll need to be loud enough for him to hear you over his headphones. Alexi’s out. Do you need anything before I go?”
“No, I’m good. Thanks.”
He leaves, closing the door gently behind him. I’m surprised he cares if I need anything. I guess I shouldn’t be though. He helped me unpack my few things and walked me through the snacks in the kitchen and the setup, since their suite is five times the size of my old one and they have an amazing balcony. He even made sure the furniture was what I wanted in my room. As far as punishments go, this is the best one by far. My bathroom is twice as large, and the shower is even better, complete with a steam function that will definitely help with recovery after workouts. There is a king-sized bed, and the furniture has a black aesthetic to it that I love the vibe of.
I decide to focus on the reason I turned down Damien’s offer. I start to work on my tablet, and I’m relieved to find I didn't miss too much in our anatomy class. I've been learning anatomy for a while now, since I needed to know the best place for my blades to hit. Some of my marks weren’t allowed to die quickly; I got paid extra for those. The ones who hurt children, they got to die a slow death for no extra charge though. Our business class didn't assign any homework, but I skim over the notes just to stay up to date in case of a pop quiz.
When I’m finished, I turn off my tablet and set it on the charger, standing to stretch my sore muscles. I debate on going to the gym even though I’m exhausted from the early start to the day. I decide against it since it’s likely I’ll end up going fairly early when I wake up from an inevitable night terror.
I walk out of my room and head to the small kitchen in the suite, hoping to find a snack that’s to my liking. I grab a granola bar and wander around the living area. There’s nothing personal lying around, but the coffee table has a small stack of motorcycle catalogs. I sit and flip through one of them. I’ve always been curious about riding a motorcycle, but it’s not a skill I've needed yet, so I didn't see the point in taking time to learn.
All three of the guys have bikes. Maybe one of them could teach me if I get bored. I throw away my trash and realize it's been quiet this whole time. Is everyone still gone?
I let myself into Damien's room, I walk over skimming my hand over the shelves. He has deep red silk sheets with dark blue accents around the room. It smells like him, and I find myself taking a deep breath. I bet his sheets would smell like him. I slide my hand over them, part of me craving to slide between his sheets.
You’re not goldilocks!I force myself to stand up straight. I refuse to let temptation get to me.
I go to Lev's room next. He's sitting at his computer facing away from me. I'm still mad at him after this morning. Part of me wants to hate him for causing me to feel weak and trapped. Except, another part of me realizes he wouldn't have done it if a certain monster didn’t make him.
His room is green and white. His bedding is piled up high with fluffy white blankets and fur-like green pillows. There’s a divot in the middle of the bed, almost like he made himself a nest. As if he can sense my presence, he slowly turns around while removing his headphones.
“You settling in, Lucky Charm?” he asks.
I nod. “What are you working on?” I gesture to the screens. He has three monitors and multiple hard drives set up.
“Just monitoring some business transactions, keeping up with the books,” he says with a shrug.
“Cool,” I say looking down, pretending to be shy. He sits there and stares at me when I realize I walked into his space and he probably thinks I wanted something.
“I just wanted to see your space, I guess,” I say to him.
He smiles at me. “What do you think?” He gestures around before putting his hands behind his head. His shirt rides up, giving me a peek at the deep V that disappears underneath his jeans, causing me to be temporarily distracted.
He clears his throat, making my eyes snap up to his. What is it about these men that has me so mesmerized? I’ve seen bodies full of sculpted muscles most of my life. But as I look into Lev’s eyes, I see what sets him apart—what setsthemapart. The deep green, the slight pinching of his eyebrows, the softness in his gaze.
