3. Damian

3

DAMIAN

I push open the door to my office, and my eyes immediately fly to the naked girl bent over my desk. She’s like a sacrificial offering in the dim light, her brown hair spilling down her back. My brother Nikhil stands nearby, smirking like he holds the keys to the kingdom.

And if her being naked wasn’t enough of a hint, her hooded eyes, separated lips, and pink cheeks would be a key indicator of what happened in this room before we walked in.

“Make sure you get someone to clean this room before Monday,” I mutter, averting my gaze. It’s far from the worst thing I’ve ever seen. I’ve put eyes on naked women throughout my entire life, and there’s nothing special about this one. Cassius, on the other hand, chuckles beside me, gawking at her like she’s some kind of toy. Then again, that’s all women are to my brothers.

Cassius no stranger to women in various states of undress, but Nikhil? This is something new. He’s been acting differently lately, and that’s something I’ll have to talk to him about.

“Damian.” Nikhil’s voice is almost monotone, but I can hear the slight mischief in it. “I’m happy you could join us.”

The girl begins to scramble against him, but Nikhil holds her down easily enough, and when he bends down to whisper something in her ear, she stops moving altogether. I don’t have a clue what he said, but it hardly matters.

“Where’s the spy you were going on about?” I snap. My time is valuable, and this feels like a waste. If there’s anyone who knows how much I hate my time being wasted, it’s him.

“Ah, yes.” Nikhil grins, and for a moment, I wonder if my brother has lost his goddamn mind. He’s always been the cunning strategist, always serious. But lately…things have been different.

I need to talk to him about that.

“Her name is Anna Tryst,” Nikhil says, a wicked smile playing on his lips. “She was in the wrong place at the wrong time.”

My gaze falls back to the girl. She shivers, and I can practically see her skin prickling with goosebumps under the weight of my gaze. She’s like a cornered animal—frightened, yet defiant.

“Speak plainly,” I demand, my patience wearing thin.

“She overheard you, Damian. When you and Cassius…took care of that loose end.”

My blood runs cold at the implications. If she knows our secrets, there can only be one outcome. “Kill her,” I order without pause, my words sharp as a knife.

“Wait,” Cassius interjects, stepping forward with desire clear in his eyes. “Look at her, Damian. She’s beautiful. We can’t just kill her. It’d be such a waste.”

It’s times like these when I’m grateful that I’m the eldest. “Beauty doesn’t buy her life,” I snap.

“Before you decide,” Nikhil says, “I think you should look at her a little bit closer.” My mouth opens to speak, but something in the way Nikhil watches me makes me reconsider. He wants me to see something in her face, a message hidden beneath the surface. “She wouldn’t still be alive if she weren’t special.”

With a heavy sigh, I step closer, examining the girl’s features.

I look over her carefully. She’s not a common beauty; there’s something different about how she looks, yet she’s stunning nonetheless with gorgeous green eyes, skin kind of on the tanned side and beautiful, vibrant hair. The girl’s defiant eyes pierce through me, and suddenly I feel like the air has been sucked from my lungs. She bears a striking resemblance to someone I lost—someone I loved deeply. The ghost of that love lingers in the curve of her lips, the tilt of her chin.

“Damian,” Nikhil murmurs, gauging my reaction. He doesn’t say the name, but he doesn’t need to. It’s written all over his face. I didn’t think it could ever be possible to see her again, even in another’s features. “Still want her dead?” he asks, his voice taunting yet cautious. He knows how much those memories hurt me, how deep that wound still runs.

No, I don’t.

Anna’s gaze remains locked on mine, unflinching and fierce. She doesn’t beg for her life; she stands her ground, just as Mikayla did all those years ago.

“Answer me, Damian,” Nikhil presses, the tension between us palpable.

My heart hammers inside my chest, torn between the darkness that urges me to silence this girl and the ache that begs for a chance to explore this haunting connection. The room seems to close in on me, suffocating my thoughts and clouding my judgment.

This isn’t like me. I’ve always been the calm-minded brother, ready to do whatever it takes. But not with that face…not with her.

“Damn you, Nikhil,” I grind out through clenched teeth, voice too low for him to hear. My fingers curl into fists at my sides, knuckles turning white with the strain. But I can’t bring myself to give the order. “Let her live,” I grit out.

I don’t have a choice. All of those years ago, I made Mikayla a promise. Even if she’s dead, I can’t go back on it.

Nikhil nods, his expression unreadable. I can’t shake the feeling that he’s won some kind of twisted game, but it doesn’t matter. As I look away from the girl who looks so much like Mikayla, I swear I see a flicker of gratitude in her eyes. But it’s gone just as quickly as it appeared, leaving me to wonder if it was ever there at all.

The air is thick with temptation as I watch Nikhil bend down. He whispers something inaudible to me, but the intent is clear when he glances up, his eyes piercing my soul.

Cassius wastes no time, his eagerness palpable as he moves closer to Anna. “A girl like that…after what we just had to do, I want in.”

“Come on, Damian,” Nikhil beckons, his voice husky as he takes hold of her breast, his mouth enveloping her nipple. “Join us.”

Anna bucks under Nikhil’s touch, her eyes fierce and defiant as she pushes back against their advances. “I am not your doll or your slut!” she snarls, her voice trembling with rage. “I refuse to submit to you!”

That fire…I remember it so well.

“Be a good girl,” Nikhil coos, ignoring her protests, while Cassius grins, clearly enjoying her feisty energy.

“We haven’t had one like you in a long time.”

I can’t tear my gaze away from the scene unfolding before me.

“Am I just supposed to stand here and be objectified?” Anna snaps, her eyes blazing with fury. “Is that what you want?”

“Anna,” Cassius purrs, his voice smooth and persuasive. “If you agree to be our doll for the night, we can offer you freedom, money…anything you desire.” His gaze flickers to mine.

“You’ve never been with three men before, have you?” Nikhil asks, his voice dripping with arrogance as he circles her like a shark. “I can only imagine how enticing our offer must be.”

Her eyes flash with anger, but she remains steadfast. “Your offer means nothing to me,” she spits out, her voice cold and resolute.

“Let’s see if you’re still singing that tune with my lips on you,” Nikhil murmurs as he moves closer to her. Before she can react, his lips are on hers, and her body stiffens in shock. My gut twists with an unexpected surge of jealousy, despite knowing that this is all part of the game.

I expected to see her fight, but the second his lips are on her, she melts against his body, eagerly kissing him back and leaning into his touch.

She likes this.

Cassius joins in, pressing his body against her back, his hands roaming over her exposed skin. He whispers something into her ear, and I can see her resolve wavering even further.

The room is a haze of lust and want, the air thick with the scent of desire. Anna’s resistance crumbles, their touch igniting something within her that I can’t quite comprehend. Her breathy moans echo through the office, and I’m gripped by a wave of anger that it’s not me making her feel this way.

I’ve never been jealous of anything that my brothers have had, especially a girl. For my entire life, I was raised to not believe in love, knowing I’d marry someone I probably didn’t like for the sake of my bratva. And the only time I’ve fallen in love…well, it was far from a happily ever after.

I would never let that happen again.

“Damian—” Nikhil smirks at me, his lips leaving a trail of wet kisses down Anna’s neck. “You sure you don’t want in on this?”

Nikhil is doing this on purpose, waving her around in my face because he knows what I want.

Cassius’s tongue works its magic on her, whispering sweet nothings in her ear as he slides his hand down her body, seeking out her most intimate spots.

I can only imagine how soft her body is to the touch, how sweet she must taste.

“Look at how much she wants us,” Cassius says, his fingers teasing her clit and eliciting a gasp from her parted lips. “Don’t you want a taste too, big brother?”

Annalise briefly looks up at me, and I can see the need written across her features. Then, her eyes are fluttering shut, and that face is pushing me into a past I’ve been so determined to forget.

I feel frozen in place. Sharing has never been an issue for us, but it’s been years since I’ve participated in such depravity with my younger siblings.

“Oh,” Anna breathes out, her eyes rolling back for just a moment as Nikhil sucks her nipple into his mouth, teasing the sensitive flesh with his teeth and tongue.

“Anna,” I growl, struggling to control the anger boiling inside me, “do you want this? If you don’t, tell me now.”

I don’t know where the words are coming from. I’m not some kind of prince charming…and I’d told her sister the same thing.

Her gaze locks onto mine, defiance flickering in her eyes even as her body betrays her. She doesn’t answer, but the message is clear—she’s not going to beg for mercy from the likes of me.

My brothers aren’t doing anything to her that she isn’t enjoying.

“Go ahead, Damian. See what you’re missing out on,” Nikhil taunts, his eyes never leaving mine as he continues to torment Anna with his touch.

As much as I want to look away, to put an end to this twisted display, I can’t tear my eyes from the scene unfolding before me. Cassius’s lips trail down to her sensitive nub, his tongue and fingers working in tandem to drive her wild with pleasure.

“Join us,” Cassius breathes against her heated flesh, his words meant as much for me as they are for her. “She can handle three, can’t you, sweetheart?”

Annalise just moans in response.

I watch as Anna’s body quivers under their touch, her gasps and moans only fueling my own burning desire. The way she melts against them, the way she succumbs to pleasure…it reminds me so much of Mikayla. Even now, years after her death, the memory of her haunts me.

As I stare at the scene before me, I can’t help but feel a pang of jealousy. My brothers, Nikhil and Cassius, are free to indulge in their desires, while I stand frozen in place—an outsider looking in. My chest tightens at the thought.

“Damian, come on,” Nikhil murmurs between his attentions to Anna’s nipple, his voice slick with lust.

It’s then that I notice Cassius’s pants falling to the ground, his cock coming to life. He says something to Anna which makes her hand wrap around him, stroking him as he continues to tease her sensitive nub. My heart races as I hear the wet sounds of Nikhil entering her, making it impossible to ignore just how much she’s enjoying this.

I take a step toward them, feeling the heat radiate from their entwined bodies. But as I get closer, the truth hits me like a freight train—this girl isn’t Mikayla. She’s gone, and this is her younger sister. A girl I don’t even know.

I force myself to remain composed as I address my brothers. “Finish what you started,” I say coldly, my voice devoid of any warmth, as I open the office door. “But when you’re done, make sure she’s safe.”

That’s me fulfilling my promise.