24. ~Sebastian~

"She's got one hell of a dirty mouth."

I looked up at Damien as I made it to my sixtieth push-up. "Are you talking by your standards, or in just a surprising way because of the whole sunshine innocence thing she's got going on?"

"By your standards, Seb. Even Cal's actually."

"Damn, that's unexpected. In a great way for you, right? It meshes well with how you are."

"It does, yeah. I mean, I was trying to take it easy and keep it toned down, but she wouldn't have it. She kind of pushed it along—a lot."

"Hmm."

"What?"

I finished my push-ups, then shifted onto my ass, leaning back on my hands and watching him pacing up and down, his white gold tiger hoodie open and swooshing about him with his erratic movements. "You like her taking the lead."

He started at my observation, then frowned and thought on it for several moments. "Shit, maybe I do."

"There's nothing wrong with that. In fact, it's probably exactly what you need with you so worried about screwing things up and all that."

"Yeah," he answered, a pensive expression clouding his features. "It's good. It's all good."

"So, what kind of dirty talk?"

"No way."

"What?"

"I'm not telling you that shit. It's private. Just between her and me."

I grinned as I pushed back to my feet and snatched a towel off the bench, dabbing at my sweat-drenched face, neck, and my soaked white tank. "That's shockingly chivalrous of you. Who knew you had that in you?" I teased.

He grinned back at me. "I'm as surprised as you. I guess she just brings it out in me. Like you finally opening up again because of Skylar."

I smiled as I thought about that, about her and how far we'd come. It hadn't been an easy road, that was for damn sure. But it had absolutely been worth it all. Worth fucking everything, actually, to have her with us.

"I'm gonna try to get Cal out of his room and do some gaming in the den. Do you want to join?" I asked.

"Nah, I'll let you two hang alone. With everything he's just gone through, I don't think spending quality time with the likes of me is gonna be something he's up for. Maybe once he's readjusted we'll talk and work up to that."

"He knows you're in the house and he was fine with it, if not a little surprised. You don't need to continue to actively avoid him."

"Like I said, little bro, I'll give it some more time."

"All right, I hear you. You gonna get your workout on in here then?"

"Kind of," he said, shrugging off his hoodie and tossing it on the bench beside me, then cracking his knuckles. "I'm going a little stir-crazy being cooped up here until all of this is over. I get that the workout helps you to sublimate, but for me I've gotta go a little more hardcore to pull off the same effect. Some shadow boxing will have to do it."

"Luke is busy maintaining the hefty security presence around all King holdings, the borders and here at the manor so he can't take time out to spar, but I can go a few rounds with you."

He shook his head vehemently. "No way. You know what a beast I become when I get in that fight zone."

"I'm sure I can handle it."

"I don't want you to have to. We're doing really well rebuilding things between us. There's no way I'm gonna risk that been fucked all over from a sparring session going sideways."

"I believe you have control now even if you're still doubting yourself so much. In fact, I would call Sky in here to be your sparring partner because she'd love to sink her teeth into a real fight, but she's busy."

"You'd really trust me that much? With Skylar?"

"She does and I do now. So, yeah. But she's indisposed."

"She's been spending a lot of time with her dad, huh?"

"Yeah. It's to be expected. They were incredibly close before that estrangement. It left a hole for her."

"And she's working hard to make sure it doesn't happen again, trying to persuade him to stay here in Rossun, right?"

"Yeah. Seems like it's an uphill battle, though, from what she's been telling me."

"I bet he's gonna go off with Riley."

"What?"

"It's clear they've got something going on, something he's not up for letting Skylar in on, probably because of her mom and all that. Maybe that's why she's not getting any definitive answers from him about staying. It's about Riley and not him intending to go back to that mercenary group." He lifted a shoulder. "Just a theory."

And a damned good one. "Thanks, I'll put this to Sky."

Just as he headed to the mats to get started with some shadow boxing, a voice coming down the corridor toward the gym caught our attention, pulling him up short. Or, voices, one sounding distanced like it was on speakerphone mode.

"Soon."

"Soon, huh? And how would you react if I gave you that real vague answer?"

"You're not me."

"Asher."

"I'll let you know as soon as I do, Jonah. You know from your experience with me suffering through something similar that these things are incredibly difficult to gauge and everyone reacts differently, at different paces too."

"You think he's gonna be okay?"

"He will be. You know Cal."

"He's a hell of a fighter. I get why you're doing this, we all do. Just miss you, brother."

"I miss you too."

"And I'm including your monster fuck stick in that. You know, in case it wasn't clear."

"It's always beyond clear."

"Good. Keep it to yourself going forward. That thing you told us about with King was a one-time thing, a one-off. Any more and it's not gonna go down well with me, Aurora, or Kill."

"That sounds dangerously close to you making a demand of me."

"You bet your hot little ass that it is."

"I do enjoy you demonstrating your possessiveness."

"I'll show you just fucking possessive I can be as soon as you get back to Hexwood House. Aurora's gonna be right there backing me up too."

"Can't fucking wait."

"Don't be too much longer."

"I'll be back before you know it."

"Until then, brother."

"Until then."

I heard some cursing and then Asher burst on into the gym, his gaze darting between me and Damien, quickly assessing things, before he then focused on Damien.

"Up for a sparring session?" he asked, even as he opened his shirt then shrugged it off his shoulders, tossing it onto one of the benches.

Damien's eyes lit up. "Fuck, yeah."

"It might hurt."

"Might?" Damien challenged, giving it right back to him.

Asher smirked. "It will."

"Much better. Although, I've gotta warn you, we have to keep it above board now. I've got a thing going with this goddess I've started seeing."

Asher rolled his eyes. "It was only ever going to be above board. I'm flattered, though."

"Well, you're a real sexy piece, it can't be helped."

Asher let his overt flirtations roll off his back as he took position on the mats and assumed a fighting stance in his shirtless state, only clad in a pair of black jeans. He hadn't even bothered to grab a pair of grappling gloves of which there were many around the room. It was bare knuckle all the way with him then.

He crooked his finger at Damien. "Step on up. Give me your best shot."

"Uh uh, not happening," Caleb spoke, rounding the corner in just a pair of his gray sweatpants, and storming across the gym in the next beat, a wild, unstable energy coming off him that had me tensing and the other two staring out at him in surprise.

"Cal, what—" Asher started.

Caleb thumbed me and told him, "Bastian's a good fighter, been training harder the last two years, you'll get what you need."

"And why not me?" Damien asked.

"Because I need you."

Before anything more could be said, Cal slammed his hands into my brother's chest, making him jar painfully against the nearest wall.

"What the—" he choked.

Cal was in his space in the next second, sliding his hands up and down his chest. "You've wanted a piece of me for a really long time. It's your lucky day. Now's your chance, D."

I saw Damien's shock give way to a spark of lust. He'd had his eye on Caleb for a long time, his unrequited crush had gone on for years. Having that now seemingly being requited had to be a hell of a mind-fuck.

I was about to step in, when Damien blinked and shook it off, telling Caleb, "That's not a good idea."

"What did Caspian tell you?" Caleb bit back, basically seething with it.

"Nothing. Not more than I already know about what happened to you, anyway. But this is about my girl."

"Your girl?"

"I'm seeing Seb's friend. It's going really well, and screwing around with you or anybody else isn't something I want to be doing because it'll mess up the first good thing I've had going for me in a while. I'm sorry, Cal."

Caleb stilled for a moment.

When he finally did speak, as Damien watched him warily and with a shitload of concern matching mine, his voice was a pained rasp as he uttered, "So much has shifted. It's all… different."

He pushed off Damien and shoved his hand through his hair in clear distress.

"Cal, it's okay," I said, rushing to him. "Being back here with all of us in this house with so much going on, it's a lot after what you endured. It's gonna take some time."

"I'm fine," he muttered, jerking back from me.

And then his gaze locked on Asher.

His eyes flamed.

Asher held up his hand, discouraging what had clearly just crossed Caleb's mind. "It won't help. Not like this. Not with me, Cal."

"I beg to differ."

"I don't."

"This is just because you only had one free pass with your loves. If anyone can get their way, it's you. Go on, call them up, get permission."

"I won't be doing that. And you shouldn't be attempting this."

Caleb was in his space in the next moment, glaring down at him, intensity flaring as Asher gave it right back to him, standing his ground as though he wasn't being challenged with somebody invading his space.

And then he grasped Caleb's jaw, taking him in a clear submissive hold.

Surprisingly, it had Caleb's eyes flickering with uncertainty and he squirmed a little.

He didn't like it.

That wasn't how he normally was around dominants like Asher and Caspian.

"You need to dominate," Asher told him, releasing him, as he obviously recognized Cal's reaction. "I believe that's how you, being how you are, can begin to work through what was done to you. You can't get that from me. Not these days, my friend."

"You can get it from me," Caspian spoke, his shadow falling over the door a moment before he came into full view, his gaze trained steadily on Cal.

Caleb swung around in surprise. "You think I'm fucked in the head now, ruined."

"Then prove me wrong."

They stared at one another for a moment, each of them trying to weigh up the other and where they were each really coming from beneath the surface impressions.

And then Caleb gave a tight nod.

In the next moment, Cas was leading him away with him.

"Jesus," Damien breathed.

"Impressive restraint," Asher told him.

Damien smirked. "Right back at you."

Fuck me. What a fucking mess.