49. Chapter Forty Eight

Chapter Forty Eight

S tepping into the frat house at Waversea is surreal. It feels like a lifetime since we were all last here, not merely two weeks. Having been through surgery, multiple x-rays and a constant drip of the best morphine money can buy, my arm is now held to my chest in a tight sling to support my collarbone. Wyatt ushers in behind me with our bags, micromanaging every move I make. I don't have the energy to chastise him for it. Already, just from walking from the car to the front door, I'm exhausted.

My feet begin to drag as I shuffle towards the staircase and Garrett slides out of the kitchen to help me. I wrap my right arm around his shoulders to lean against him. I gave up resisting when Avery straddled me in the hospital bed and spoon fed me jello. As if reading my mind, Garrett groans.

"Lay off the desserts for a while, big guy. Without your good looks, you've got nothing to fall back on." I bark a laugh, which sends a sharp slice of pain through my shoulder.

"Fuck off, I'll always be beautiful." I say, despite the grease in my hair and the whole hospital ick lingering on me. I just wanted to get out of that damn place as quickly as possible. Easing me to the top of the stairs, Garrett forces me to walk the last twenty feet to where he's opening my bedroom door. An angel is lying upon my bed. Her blonde hair pools around her as she sleeps peacefully, the rhythmic rise and fall of her chest making everything I've been through worth it. I'd jump into the firing line for everyone in this house, including Avery.

"She fell asleep waiting for you," Garrett flashes me a smile as he turns to leave, then pauses. "I'm so glad you're home," his breath whooshes out of him. The smile shifts for something much more vulnerable to take its place. I offer out my right arm and tuck Garrett into my side.

"Me too, brother. Me too." After giving me a tight squeeze and actually making a ‘squee' sound, Garrett leaves me. I stand in the doorway, unable to bring myself inside. Avery insisted on coming back to Waversea early to get my room ready – and it looks fucking perfect. Eventually, I shuffle in. Wyatt appears with my bag in his hand, throwing it across the floor and closing the door behind me. Avery's eyes flutter open and her bright smile eases any pain I might have felt.

"You're back." She rises to greet me, kneeling on the mattress. I twist to sit on the bed with a huff, each movement feeling taxing on my usually strong body. Tender hands slowly push their way around my stomach from behind as she rests her head on my good shoulder.

"I know I've said it a hundred times, but I'm still so thankful for you saving me. If you hadn't been there…" she whispers into my ear, ducking her head to place a kiss onto my neck. My right fist clenches. As long as I live and breathe, no one will be taking Avery away from me. Unclenching my fingers, I turn to rest my cheek on her head. Anger has no place in here right now; I'll reserve it all for later.

"If this is leading to a ‘thank you blowjob', can I redeem at another time?" Her laughter lifts my heart as she lowers me onto my back, but she doesn't outright say no. Removing my shoes, she flicks on the TV and snuggles up to me. Sleep begins to pull me back under but I'm eager to stay in Avery's company. Her curves are pressed against me in an oversized nightshirt, her bare leg hooked over mine in the flannel pajamas I've been wearing for two days.

"Hey sweetheart, would you be able to run me a bath when I wake up?" I breathe heavily as the darkness takes me away before I can hear the response. The next thing I know, Avery is gently shaking my arms as I wake from the most peaceful sleep, thanks to the effects of the painkillers I was given before leaving the hospital.

"Your bath is ready," she smiles sweetly. The cast of golden hair hanging around her is like a halo, lifting me from one dream into the next. I should tamper down the swell of affection growing within, but I'm done hiding. I came too close to leaving words unsaid and emotions unexplored.

Reaching up to cup Avery's cheek, she shifts and grabs my offered hand, helping me out of bed. Despite feeling much more rested, I allow Avery to lead me into the bathroom I share with Dax, and watch her unbutton my long-sleeved pajama top. Smoothing her hands beneath the red checked material, her lips brush my neck as she tiptoes up to push the top over my shoulders with extreme care. The dressing taped to my chest is huge in comparison to the size of the bullet hole, but that'll work in my favor for the sympathy vote.

"Enjoy your soak," she breathes into my ear before strolling towards my bedroom with swaying hips.

"Aren't you going to help me take my trousers off?" I ask, readjusting my stiffening erection. At least that still works. Avery smiles over her shoulder at me, battering her blue eyes as she opens the door to reveal a topless Dax on the other side. He winks and blows me a kiss before sidestepping Avery to advance on me. "Actually, I think I'll manage," I say in a light tone. Before Avery started slipping into my bed at night, I typically slept and moved around the house naked. Which is why Dax isn't fazed as I shake my pants down, he then helps me into the tub, careful not to get my dressing wet as I relax in the warm water.

"How are you feeling?" Dax asks from his position perched on the sink's counter.

"I'm alright man," I lie, "just trying to focus on getting my strength back. Keep moving forward, right? Besides, this is gonna be a killer scar one day." He chuckles along with me but doesn't say anything else, allowing me to rest my head back. We all have our roles to play, a finely balanced dynamic to maintain, and brooding is Wyatt's forte. But the truth is, I thought I was fine before I re-entered this house. Now I'm not so sure. My mind wanders into nothingness, where no thought or pain can reach. A vast open space that I could easily lose myself in if Dax didn't break the silence.

"Mafia or vampires?" he asks. Him and his damn collection of raunchy paperbacks. Avery reappears with a jug to wash my hair, answering for me.

"Don't hold back the good stuff, Daxy. Be a good boy and dig out the monster smut." Dax does as he's told, while Avery attends to sitting me upright, massaging my scalp with frothy shampoo before rinsing it all out.

"Maybe I'll get shot more often," I joke .

"I'll wash your hair for you whenever you like, if you promise to never take a bullet for me again. We were so worried about you." I snort at Avery's response, knowing full well I would take that bullet for her a thousand times over if it meant she's safe. Once healed and strong enough, I'll be heading the investigation as to why her home was broken into in the first place. From what I've understood, nothing was taken. Those men were there for her.

Dax returns with a book in hand, the cover questionable. Avery finishes my hair and pats her hands dry, sitting on the floor by the tub. I lean my good arm over for her to hug while Dax crosses his legs on the countertop and opens the book.

"Ohh!" Avery straightens excitedly. "I love this one! The minotaur and the milkmaid." I look up at the ceiling blankly.

"You guys are weird," I remark. Either way, Dax and Avery take it in turn to read a chapter each until the water turns cold. I find myself oddly fascinated by the time the milkmaid has got to the actual ‘milking' but Wyatt calls through that it's time for dinner. Dax carries over a fluffy towel from the heated towel rack and uses his upper body strength to lift me from the tub. Wiping the soapy water from my chest first, he then wraps the towel around my waist .

Back in my room, Wyatt is placing a stack of pizza boxes onto the dresser with Garrett carrying plates and Axel balancing a tower of smaller containers. The two bedside tables have been moved to the foot of the bed and are covered in bottles of soda, plastic cups and dip pots. Axel moves onto the bed after flicking The Fresh Prince of Bel Air onto the mounted TV so I can lounge in the center. One may think the scene is spontaneous, but it's an exact recreation of how we spent one summer when Dax broke his leg. He couldn't play ball, so none of us did. Instead, we all suffered the consequences of Garrett's terrible diet and needing to get back into shape afterwards.

Despite how Wyatt has been since we arrived here, he has always been the most thoughtful one out of us all. He relishes making others happy even though he will shrug off any praise if we try to give it to him. Opening the box lids, the smells of baked grease flood the room as Dax helps me step into some boxers. Smells like heaven to a man stuck on jello for two days.

After fixing the sling back around my neck and left arm, Dax then helps me to nudge across the bed. Garrett hands me a plate piled high while I'm squished into the Kingside bed by four masses of muscle-two at the headboard and two down by my feet. I glance around, unable to shake the sense that something is missing when I realize it's not something, but someone .

"Where's Avery?" I ask. Wyatt doesn't take his focus off the TV, but his frame tenses and I roll my eyes. I thought we were over this shit.

"I suggested maybe we keep this as a boy's night, and she agreed. It's been ages since we all hung out together." He answers tentatively. Probably because he knew it's a surefire way to irritate me. None of the others attempt to argue or agree with him, just continuing to eat with their eyes focused straight ahead. And that seriously pisses me off.

"Okay, everyone out." I say loudly, which does grab their attention, judging by the wide-eyed gaping expressions I receive. "Everyone can fuck right off." I shove my plate into Axel's hands and try to shove Garrett off the bed with my feet, but I only end up hurting myself. Pain slices through my tensed shoulder, causing me to groan and clench my teeth.

"Hey, hey. Take it easy," Dax says, placing a hand on the back of my neck but I shake him off, despite the agony it continues to cause me.

"I may be the one who was shot, but Avery has been stalked by these fuckers for months. They sent a message for us to stay away, and we didn't. As a result, she was hunted down by a gunman in the house she felt safest in. And instead of washing her hands of us then and there, she's been at the hospital comforting me. I don't need a boy's night like the old days. That's not how it is any more Wyatt. You need to get with the fucking program or get the fuck out."

Hanging their heads, they all begin to edge out of the room which is actually the opposite to what I had expected. I'd expected Wyatt to hang up his vendetta for tonight, for me, and to fetch Avery with a murmured apology. Despite hugging his empty plate to his chest, Garrett stares longingly at the pizza, but I give him my angriest stare until he leaves too.

Now I'm alone. Swallowed by the darkness within, visualizing that void which I could easily lose myself in. I've never shouted at my brothers before, I don't even know where it came from. But I suppose I'm not myself right now; I'm in pain, I'm fucking furious for no particular reason and all I want is Avery cuddling me again. Yet I don't call for her. She shouldn't see me like this. I've been so mellow in the hospital but now I'm back here, I feel apprehensive. What if Avery is in trouble right now? I couldn't do shit.

A soft knock sounds against my bedroom door just as it opens, and I don't need to look to see who it is. I smell her honey and vanilla shampoo before she kneels beside the bed, her big, beautiful eyes looking up at me with worry. "Axel said you might need some female company." Not just any female, this one specifically but I don't tell her that. I may be ready to confess the thoughts I've been having, but whether Avery is ready to hear them is another issue .

"I don't know what came over me," I sigh, leaning into her touch. "I kinda lost my shit." I hang my head, annoyed at myself. She rounds the bed and strokes her fingers up and down my chest gently. I wanted all of us here. It feels right when we are all together but I'm too stubborn to say it out loud. I'm not going to beg Wyatt to put himself in a position I know he'd hate, even if it is for me.

"Trauma isn't something we can control. At times, we may think it's buried so deeply, it almost doesn't exist. But when you least expect it, that damaged part of you will come to the surface and force you to face it." A tear leaks from my eye so I look away from her, desperate for her not to think I'm weak. Her soft hand moves across my cheek and pulls me back to face her. "You never have to hide your pain from me."

"I don't…I would hate myself if…" I fail to find the words. Avery seems to find the exact ones I need to hear without hesitation.

"You can't scare me away, Hux." I close my eyes, focusing on breathing. On not cracking into a thousand pieces with her watching. The faintest touch of lips presses against mine. Salt invades the seam of my mouth, my own tears mixing with the lifeline Avery offers me. I reach out with my good arm, my hand encompassing the width of her nape. I hold her steady, keeping her with me, encouraging her to keep kissing me. Avery drowns in my tears as I drown in her comfort.

Peeling back, Avery beams at me with the brightest smile. One I don't particularly feel deserving of after the show I made to my brothers.

"Stop being so proud. I literally owe you my life. Now, can we eat? I'm starving." Her stomach growls on cue. I find myself copying her smile, nodding and sitting upright.

Avery hands me back my plate of food before bending forward to grab herself one. Her perfectly rounded ass, covered in pink frilly panties, peeks out from beneath the nightshirt, my mouth drying up at the sight. I'd do something stupid that I'm definitely not in any position to be doing, if it weren't for the shadow pacing back and forth beneath my doorframe.

"Come in Garrett, the food's going cold." I shout, the action pulling on my throat uncomfortably.

The door bursts open with a loud bang and Gare rushes in with his empty plate like a lion pouncing on its prey. Between his grunts and lip-smacking around a slice of pizza he's barely lifted from the box, he slurps a fizzy drink. I'm morbidly disturbed to say the least, but Avery finds it amusing. Her giggles distract him, like a deer in the headlights as he whips his eyes towards her.

"Shh," I whisper. "If you spook him, he might eat us." A wrong choice of wording, as Garrett's stare grows even more intense. Avery makes a point of shimmying under the cover, barring her body from his view and fully enjoying his pout.

My chest eases, the chokehold of anguish finally loosening its grip and a full smile stretches across my face. I feel semi-normal again. Semi-me again. Avery coos and strokes a spot of the cover in slow circles. Garrett, taking full advantage of her attention, cocks his head back and forth before rounding the bed and curling up between her legs, pizza box in hand. She strokes her fingers through his hair as we eat and watch TV. Despite half of the guys missing, this feels better because if Avery is by my side, I don't need to worry about her being in trouble. And call me selfish, I just want to have her around.

"Little Swan?" I ask after a few episodes, as my eyelids are starting to grow heavy. Avery hums in response. "Read me the rest of the damn minotaur book."