SARAH I can’t stop smiling. Like, actually can’t. My cheeks hurt. My lips are trembling, and my thighs? Well, don’t ask. But if you do, I’ll tell you I feel like I’ve just returned from some battle, victorious and sore in all the best ways. I mean, I wish someone had told me sooner how naughtily good forbidden sex feels like. I would have definitely started it younger. Jaxon’s hand is wrapped firmly around mine as we walk barefoot back to the VIP lounge. “Wipe that smirk off your face, would you?” Jaxon taunts me as he grips my hand a little bit tighter with his own smirk wide on his face. “What? I can’t smile anymore?” “You can, you can. My bad.” He adds, and I shake my head, looking away from him. By the time we’re very close to the VIP section, he leans into me, and his lips brush the skin above my left ear. “Be cool, alright?” Mentally, I roll my eyes. Be cool, he says. I just had one of the naughtiest make-out sessions of my entire life in a public beach, pressed against a rock like a horny little mermaid, and he wants me to “be cool”? Yeah, okay, sure, I’ll try not to walk like I’ve been ruined for life, because between this and all the things they’ve done to me since we met, I don’t know how I’m supposed to return to Durmont as a normal member of the society. Ronan and Malachi aren’t on the daybeds we booked, so we go looking for them in the lounge. We walk into the soft lighting of the lounge, where the DJ’s tempo of music is sexy and slow. Malachi and Ronan are standing by the bar, tall and shirtless. Ronan is saying something, and Malachi is shaking his head, as though he’s trying to suppress his laughter with a glass trapped between his lips. Their heads turn simultaneously when they spot us, and I swear I feel my soul exit my body. Jaxon and I are supposed to keep what just happened between us a secret, right? I raise my chin and do exactly what Jaxon said: I stay straight. Straight back, straight face, and I can feel myself walking straight into hell. We approach them, my hand still snug in Jaxon’s, and the moment we stop in front of the bar, Ronan’s eyes dance between the both of us. “We thought you'd never come back.” Malachi speaks softly, and hands me a drink like he’s been waiting for me. It’s a strawberry margarita, cold enough to fog the glass. His eyes stay locked on mine. He doesn’t so much as blink. “Thanks,” I say underneath my breath as I reach for it. He doesn’t reply. Just studies me like he’s trying to x-ray my soul. I can feel his stare burn into the skin of my face. I tactically avoid eye contact, suddenly very invested in the salt on the rim of my glass. If I look at him too long, he’ll see every filthy little thing Jaxon just did to me in my eyes. And we don’t want that now, do we? “You guys talked for quite a while,” Ronan says. My drink goes the wrong way down my throat, and I double over coughing. “Easy,” Malachi says, placing a firm hand on my back and grabbing a bottle of water from the bar. He opens it and hands it to me without looking away. “Thanks,” I manage between coughs. What the fuck? Do they know? Can they see it? I tried to keep a straight face. I swear I did. Fuck. I look up to Jaxon as he scratches the back of his head. It’s very casual, nothing like the stance of a man who just ate me alive against a boulder. “Yeah, we wandered around the beach a little. Almost got lost.” Ronan raises a brow. I can swear I see the corner of his lip twitching. “Did you now?” “Mhm.” Jaxon nods. He looks away from Ronan to the bartender and orders himself a mocktail. “Not really feeling alcohol tonight.” Jaxon? Sober? Ronan turns to me and cocks his head. He’s waiting for me to say something, maybe slip up. I know I have to be careful. Whatever I say next needs to ease the tension, not add to it. I open my mouth, ready to toss in a joke…Maybe about beach meditation or chasing seagulls, when my phone starts ringing. I turn my head to find my purse seated beside Malachi. “I helped you carry it,” Malachi speaks up. “From the daybeds.” I give him a quick nod and fish my phone out. It’s an unknown number, but I can tell from one glance that it’s also a Durmont area code. Every muscle in my body tightens. The brothers must see my face because instantly they’re all speaking at once. “You don’t have to answer,” Malachi says gently. “Kitten,” Ronan adds with his right hand circling my back, pulling me closer to him. “You came here to get away from all that.” “You can let it go to voicemail,” Jaxon finishes. But I can’t. I can’t ignore it. My gut is twisting. With everything that’s happened…I just don’t want to. “It might be from work,” I say, plastering the most painful smile I can muster. “I haven’t really had time to check in with all that’s been happening. They could need me. I have a company to run, remember?” The brothers exchange a knowing look. They know, I know they know, and they know I know they know. It’s not work. Luke would have emailed or called me if it was so important. I swipe to answer. “Hello?” A woman’s voice responds from the other end of the line. “Mrs Wellspring?” I grit my teeth at the title “Mrs.” Not for long now. Not for long. “This is Maddison Walter. I’m Aaron Connor’s lawyer.” My breath hitches, and my fingers freeze against my phone. The devil could get himself a lawyer? Impressive. Even behind bars, and with blood on his hands, he still finds a way to haunt me. Will I ever be free from the torment of this man? “We need to speak with you urgently,” she says. I don’t ask what for. I need this conversation to be over as soon as possible. “I’m on vacation,” I reply sternly. “I won’t be back till next week. You’ll have to wait.” “But—” “I said you’ll have to wait.”She sounds frustrated, but I don’t care. She’s not in the position to make demands, and I’m not the girl who used to take orders. “Thank you for your time,” I reply with a very flat tone before ending the call. My hands begin to shake violently. My lungs seem to forget how to breathe. The room suddenly feels too warm, the music is suddenly too loud, the dim lights are now too bright. I start to hyperventilate, sucking in long and hard breaths to keep myself alive, afloat. Jaxon is the first to react by stepping in front of me. “Hey, hey, breathe. Look at me, baby. Just breathe.” I’m trying. Fuck. I grip the stool in front of me. I’m fucking trying. Malachi takes my phone and slips it into his pocket before he reaches for my shoulders and touches them gently, careful not to overwhelm me. “In through your nose, out through your mouth. Slow. Like that.” Ronan rubs my back, firm and steady. “You’re okay. You’re safe. He can’t touch you anymore.” He can’t, can he? God. I’m so fucking tired. My knees give way, and Malachi catches me before I hit the floor. I slump into the nearest lounge seat, and the tears come rushing down my cheeks. “Why won’t he just leave me alone?” I whisper. “Why can’t he let me go?” The guys say nothing. They just stay close. Their presence alone makes it a little easier to breathe. Eventually, I wipe my face and force a tiny smile. “God, I must look like a mess.” “What you need, baby, is a fucking good party,” Malachi says, standing. “That’s what we came here for, isn’t it?” Jaxon raises a brow. “And how do we do that? Throw one of ours?” Malachi smirks and shakes his head. “That’s going to take a lot of time and a whole lot of work. What about that party your hot friend invited us to? From earlier today?” I frown when I think of her. She was thirsting for Jaxon…or thirsty for Jaxon. However they fucking say it. Suddenly, Aaron is the least of my problems. How do they always do this? Jaxon blushes. The man actually blushes. “I’m not sure that’s a good idea…” “What’s the worst that could happen?” Malachi asks. **** 6 HOURS LATER, and exactly 10:30pm, my jaw drops to the ground as we’re seated in the car. Thankfully, I’m not the only one. Malachi’s eyes look over the row of people intensively fucking right outside the building. We count six different pairs. “What the fuck is going on here?” Ronan asks.