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“There is nothing to move on from, Dom. I don’t remember him, and honestly, with how he’s treated me, I’m fine pretending that this is my first time,” I say, and Carter looks away. King is quiet and turns the toy off.
“Gracie, we all want you. But you have to know that if you want to be with us, too, then you and Ash will have to come to some sort of truce. He’s our best friend,” King says, and Carter nods.
“I— Yeah, but I’ve never had an issue with Ash. He hates me, and I don’t know why.” Tears start to fill my eyes, and I know the mood is ruined. Dom can sense it too.
“Why don’t we put a pause on any more fun tonight and wait to see what happens? Trust me, we want nothing more than to keep playing, but King is right. We need to have a chat with Ash. It’s only right.”
I wipe a fallen tear, and Carter moves beside me, pulling me into a hug. “Talk to us, baby girl. What’s going on in that beautiful head of yours?” I scoff and run my hands through my messy blonde hair as King puts the toys back in the drawer.
“It’s so fucking stupid. I don’t remember him! So why? Why is he running through my mind? Nothing of importance. It’s just a feeling,” I grumble, and Carter kisses my temple.
“Fuck this. I’m not telling her everything, but she has a right to know.” He looks at Dom, who’s shaking his head profusely.
“Don’t do it, Carter,” he orders, but I’ve had enough.
“It’s okay. I’m going to take a quick shower. You guys can figure out sleeping arrangements,” I say, then rush into the bathroom. I shut the door and lean my back against it.
Tears fill my eyes, and I let them fall.I don’t have any regrets. They made me feel incredible and more like an eighteen-year-old girl than I have since I woke up from that blasted coma. So why does it feel like my heart is breaking?
ChapterNineteen
“You’re an idiot,” I whisper-hiss, and Carter grunts, closing his eyes on the bed.
“We need to tell her, Dom; she deserves to know. Can’t you see she’s drowning?” He doesn’t bother opening his eyes, but I can hear the truth in his tone.
“What if we end up hurting her, and I don’t mean emotionally,” King blurts out, and I groan.
“Everything was going so well. Why did we have to bring this up right now?” Carter says, and I shrug.
“Because we all knew it felt wrong with Ash not being here. Even Gracie was feeling his absence.”
“Should we leave?” King asks, and I look over at the closed bathroom door. The shower
hasn’t turned on yet, and I know there is a sweet, beautiful girl breaking down on the other side. It turns my stomach to ash.
I walk over to the bathroom and gently knock. “Gracie, can I come in?” I say softly and wait for her to turn the knob. I glance back at Carter on the bed and King, pacing the room. After what feels like a lifetime, but was probably only thirty seconds, the lock clicks, and the door opens.
I step inside and find Gracie with her back to me as she stares into the mirror. Her gray eyes are red, and she looks worried. I shuffle closer to her until my chest is pressed against her back. She looks up at me through her reflection, and I wrap my arms around her tight until she relaxes with a sigh.
“Tell me what’s going on in that mind of yours, Bambi,” I say, and she shakes her head, then bites her bottom lip.
“My mind is a fucked up place, Dom. It would only confuse you,” she whispers, still staring at the girl in the mirror.
“I can’t imagine what you’ve gone through, Gracie, but you’re not alone anymore. We will always be here to talk to or just hold you. We’re so incredibly sorry for how things have been the past few weeks, but I can promise you here and now… No matter what happens, Gracie… You have us. That is if you want us,” I mumble, now feeling self conscious. Maybe tonight was just a one off and Gracie won’t want us near her again.
She turns in my arms and places her hands on my shoulders, looking me in the eyes.
“My life is a whirlwind of confusion with a side of ‘is that a memory or a nightmare?’ Dom. I would hate to bring you or anyone else into my mess. I think for now I’d like to just have some friends. I wouldn’t mind the benefits as well, but I’m not ready for anything serious, and how would that even work? There are three of you and only little ole me,” she starts to mumble and I know what she's saying is valid, but I want more than just a hookup.
I have for what feels like a lifetime now. I smash my mouth to hers and kiss away all her worries and fears. I'll be her friend for now. But one day soon, I will call Gracelyn Nicole Rose mine.
Gracie
I get lost in Dom’s kiss until King knocks on the door and tells us it’s bedtime. I pull away from Dom’s lips and giggle. He looks at me with his hooded blue eyes and groans. “I don’t want to stop, but he’s right. We better get some sleep.”
I nod and shuffle around him, but he gently grabs my arm and pulls me back. Glancing at him from over my shoulder, he smiles. “I will be your friend… for now,” he grumbles, then lets me go.
I’m grinning from ear to ear when I exit the bathroom, skip over to my bed, and kiss Carter. He laughs and wraps his muscular arms around me. He has a treble clef tattoo on his forearm, and I can’t believe I’m just now noticing it. I trace it and lay my head on his chest, and he sighs.
