Chapter Twelve

Waking up this morning with Aleko wrapped around me like a monkey, and Ninja lying beside my head on the pillow, is a huge wake-up call for me. Not only did I get a full night's sleep without the nightmares that have been plaguing me, but it also just feels right. Like I'm home for the first time since my dad died.

Dad is still something I want to look into after what Jake spewed at me about Mom cheating. I've been pushing it aside with every other emotion, burying it all deep and locking it away for future me to deal with.

Past me is a dick.

"Good morning, Cherry." Aleko inhales deeply into my neck, squeezing me a little tighter with the arm he has draped across my chest and the leg he has lying over the top of mine.

"Good morning, you." I gently pry my eyes open, unable to turn my head because I don't want to jostle Ninja.

With a low groan, Aleko rests on his elbow and looks down at me lying on my back. His eyes move from me to Ninja and the most stunning smile I've ever seen graces his plump lips. The strangest sensation bubbles from my toes to my thighs, my stomach, my heart, and actual tears begin to prick my eyes.

Concern makes him scrunch those expressive brows and he tilts his head a little. "What's wrong?"

No secrets. No lies.

I sigh a little. "I'm just so fucking in love with you and I'm super happy. Okay?" I roll my eyes to make the damn tears disappear, huffing an awkward laugh at my vulnerability this early in the morning. So early, in fact, that my breath is probably rancid too.

Aleko chuckles, shaking his head. "I fucking love you too, babydoll. Let the tears fall. I wanna taste them." He wags his brows and smirks before leaning down and licking the corner of my eye, where a tiny tear managed to escape. "Delicious." Then his lips press against mine so tenderly, my nipples perk right up and I moan with satisfaction.

The way his tongue slowly gains entrance into my mouth is just as good as when he's rough with me. He's able to erase anything and everything around me with this simple connection. Bringing my hand up to his head, I cup his cheek and try to hold him in place, but he moves away all too quickly, making me pout like the twenty-one year old I am. My stomach chooses that moment to grumble loudly, and I concur; we are not amused that the kissing has stopped.

"Let's get some breakfast before you waste away." Aleko gives me a quick kiss and gets out of bed, his thick cock standing to attention. Man's got an iron will if he's rocking a boner like that and not doing anything with it. He pulls out a pair of boxers from the top drawer of his dresser and casually slides them up and over his cock, hiding some of the good stuff. At least his chest and shoulders are still on display.

"Can't move. Ninja is sleeping." I shrug, wanting to keep the real world out a little bit longer. Here, in his bedroom, the outside doesn't exist.

"Ninja, come and get some breakfast." The little traitor wriggles from his position nestled against my head and moves onto my chest, where he does the cutest stretching anyone has ever seen, then he runs over to Aleko's outstretched hand and jumps on. "Oh look, you can move now." He winks, that stupid sexy smirk etched firmly onto his face as he picks up his phone and leaves the room.

If he wants to play that game, I'll see how blue he'll let those balls of his get before he gives in.

With this thought in mind, I untangle myself from the bed sheets and look around the small room for something completely unsuitable. Aleko's T-shirts are far too predictable, his hoodie and cut are draped across the top of his dresser in the corner of the room… no, also too predictable. Fuck it. Naked it is. My cellphone is dead, not that there is anyone other than Spence or Aleko who would text me, but I put it on charge anyway. I have a couple of side quests in my game I want to complete later.

I need to use the bathroom first, so I sneak out and sleuth it next door without being seen by Aleko, who's busy in the kitchen, hopefully making coffee if the smell is anything to go by. After finishing what I need to do and washing my hands, I take stock of my reflection in the mirror.

The deep bags beneath my eyes are a little brighter than they have been, my skin a little more flush, and my grin a whole lot wider. There's still a lot of work to do, but my mental load doesn't feel quite so heavy as it once did.

Jake is dead. Goblin is dead. Isaac and Brick need to be dead, but they and the other Rebels are currently in jail awaiting trial. I do feel bad about Booker, Cameron in particular though, because they were never overall bad guys. They just got caught up in Rebel shit because they love to ride, to race, and they wanted to be a part of something bigger than themselves. Yeah, okay, they still did bad shit. But so did I until I figured out a way to swap aspirin out for the drugs I was delivering to the Stonebrook and Rockford dealers when I was the Rebels' lackey.

We all do what we've gotta do. My reasons may have been more life and death than theirs, but toh-may-to toh-mah-to.

With a deep breath, I ready myself to be my bold self and tempt my man—the thought still makes me giddy—back into bed.

Just as I wrap my palm around the handle of the door, I hear voices out in the living space. I can't make out what they're saying, but whatever it is must be funny because there's a deep rumble of a laugh mixed with the one I love so much, and there's another I don't recognize.

Fuck! I'm naked!

I quickly look around for a towel. Why are there no towels in the bathroom except the tiny one beside the sink?

As I'm trying to figure out how the small hand towel will cover my pride, there's a heavy knock on the door.

"You ‘avin' a shit in there, darlin'? Only, I'm bustin' for a piss and Psycho'll kick my arse if I do it in here."

The British one. Is it Slay? I can't remember, and it's not really important because there's no way out of here for me without at least something being seen! If I ask them to turn around, they'll want to know why and… actually, that's not so bad. I'm not doing anything wrong here so there's no reason to panic.

Okay. Breathe. It's fine.

More knocking.

"Did you fall down the loo?"

"Oh for fuck sake, Sledge, go outside in a bush. Leave my old lady alone, she can take as long as she likes."

Sledge! I was close…

Also, Aleko calling me his old lady so casually is doing things to my insides that I can't explain as anything other than… right.

"Aleko?" I call through the door.

"Yeah, baby?" He's on the other side in a heartbeat, rattling the handle without waiting for an invitation inside. It's locked. "Open up for me, Cherry."

"I'm naked!"

He chuckles in response before speaking. "It's okay." He pauses, then directs what he says next in another direction. "Thanks, Bear. Turn the fuck around, Sledge, if you don't want those pretty eyes of yours on Grinder's trophy shelf."

"That's low, mate. Proper low." Sledge laughs, and I'm assuming he turns around because as soon as I unlock the door, the handle is turning and Aleko is inside.

"You're a much better breakfast than what my brothers brought over for us." His eyes scan the length of me as his hands roam across my skin. My head. My neck. My arms. My waist. My hips. Then he grips my ass and lifts me, making me squeal a little in surprise.

He places me on the countertop beside the sink and slams his lips against mine, immediately demanding entrance with his tongue. We battle it out, hungry for each other in every way as he grips the back of my head, his hands entangled in my hair. I hook my fingers in the waistband of his boxers, ready to pull them down and guide his hard cock into my wet pussy. I don't need any warming up because this man has me constantly ready for him with just his presence.

Aleko stops me, gripping my wrist and sucking on my tongue as he pulls away to raise that damn sexy-as-all-hell single eyebrow. The smirk that joins it could burn me up to cinders right there with how hot he makes me.

"Fuck me, Aleko." My tone is breathy and heavy with lust.

"Demanding little thing, aren't we?"

I nod, giving my best innocent pout and looking up at him through my lashes.

The grin that breaks out across his face is one for the picture books, because it's the most devilishly sexy thing I've ever seen.

"What my cherry pie wants, my cherry pie shall get." In one swift move, his boxers are on the floor and his cock is thrusting deep inside my pussy.

Aleko captures my screams with his mouth, gripping my ass with one hand and the back of my head with the other as he pounds into me. The hand on my ass moves around to my front and he pushes it between us to rub against my clit. An orgasm is building pretty quickly, the deep and fast thrusts hitting all the right places, causing all the right friction as I try to contain my noises to low moans. It's difficult because Aleko is a machine and I want to scream to the heavens how amazing this man's cock feels inside me.

"Fuck, I'm so close!"

"Yes, baby, come all over my cock." We speak between kissing, exploring each other's mouths with our tongues as he pushes impossibly deeper inside me.

I raise my knees and wrap my arms around them, gripping Aleko's sides for support and scratching across his skin as he thrusts harder, faster. The tips of my toes tingle first, then it builds and takes over my entire body until I scream out in pleasure. His hips stutter as he comes inside me, then holds himself there for a few moments, his kisses becoming gentler before he pulls away and rests his head against my shoulder.

After we've both regained our normal breathing patterns, Aleko places a soft kiss against my lips and begins pulling his cock out. The movement makes me shudder, an aftershock of the orgasm giving almost as much pleasure as the thing itself.

I move to slide off, but Aleko holds up his palm. "Wait a second, Cherry. I look after what's mine." He holds up the small hand towel and runs the cold tap over a quarter of it before encouraging me to open my legs up for him.

The coldness is a shock at first, but it's soothing as he wipes me clean.

"Go and pee."

I don't need to be told twice. Even though the whole reason I ended up in here to begin with was to pee.

Thankfully, Aleko turns away instead of outright watching me, but it's still a little odd to me that he would want to stay while I use the toilet.

"I'll go and grab you something to put on, Cherry."

"Thanks."

Aleko winks on his way out of the bathroom, quickly returning with a large black T-shirt with the SOK logo in white on the short sleeve. He also hands me a pair of his boxers, probably more for his own sanity than my modesty because the T-shirt is pretty big and covers everything.

"You all good to go, babydoll?"

Now semi-dressed, I nod and take his offered hand in mine, linking our fingers together as though it's something we do every day.

I could definitely get used to this.

Bear and Sledge are sitting on the leather couch on their phones, and Kincaid, the new prospect, is standing by the front door like a sentry, but her tough fa?ade is cracking a little with Ninja in her palm as she feeds him sticks of vegetables from the pocket of her prospect cut—no doubt prepared by Vanessa before they all came over.

"Good to see ya, kid. We're here to help ya plan shit."

Sledge's accent is confusing at the best of times but, "What shit are we planning?"

A knock on the front door attracts all our attention and Kincaid leisurely opens it up. I'm half-expecting a dozen more SOK brothers to walk through the door—may as well have a party at this point—but it's none of them.

"Spence!" I run over to my best friend and jump into his arms for a squeeze. "What're you doing here?" It's just dawning on me that there's no reason for Spencer to even know where Aleko lives, let alone actually be here.

I move back and rest my hands on my hips, looking not very menacing at all in my oversized tee and boxers, but Spence knows I need answers.

"Your man called me this morning. Time to Shawshank your mom, Bitch!"