20. Grace

Chapter twenty

Grace

T he fact that all of us slept in one room that night was noticed by the staff, I was sure, especially after all of the noises we were making. No one mentioned anything, of course, but I could swear the server at breakfast was eyeing me funny while he poured my coffee.

Jesse shot me a wink across the table, and I blushed, trying not to smile as I stared at my egg whites. Gregori ignored the jovial mood at the table, sipping his coffee slowly as he stared at his son across the table.

“You really can’t have someone just deliver the equipment?” he asked, exasperated.

Oh god, here we go again.

Ever since the guys explained the plan last night, he’d been bent out of shape that both Anders and Levy needed to go pick up all of Levy’s tech equipment. I watched as Levy flickered out of view and sighed, moving my eggs around with my fork as I contemplated just going back to bed .

“For the last time, I do not want strangers, even paid ones, going through Levy’s things,” Anders snapped. “I don’t allow people to traipse through my home unsupervised.” Something brushed my knee and I jumped, nearly throwing my fork across the table. I leaned back in my chair to see if maybe stone-hearted Gregori had a cat we’d never seen, when I felt a phantom hand brush across my thighs, shifting them apart. I glanced up at the spot where I thought Levy had been, a blush creeping up my face as I slid forward in my seat, those invisible hands pulling me closer to the edge of the chair.

“The house is clear, no one has approached it in days,” Anders announced caustically. He refused to touch the food in front of him, and I had no clue what he’d been eating for the last few days, because he never ate in his father’s presence. I tried to keep my face as neutral as possible as lips trailed up my inner thigh, forcing me to widen my legs as Levy shifted between my thighs. His hot breath feathered over the thin cotton of my panties, and I felt his lips brushing over them, teasing me cruelly.

I glanced over at Erik, my eyes wide. “What’s wrong?” he signed quickly as Gregori continued his argument with Anders.

“Levy’s under the table,” I signed back, gasping softly as I heard a soft tearing of fabric, and then a tongue was running up my suddenly bare slit. My whole face must have been bright red at this point, and I picked up my fork and poked at my food, trying to look normal as Levy ate me out underneath the table.

“You clearly do not spend enough energy training your employees if you’re that concerned with them going through your things,” Gregori pointed out drily as I covered my mouth with my hand to muffle a whimper that threatened to escape. Levy’s large hands wrapped around my thighs, forcing my legs open as he devoured me, his tongue gentle as it teased my sore entrance. The soft, warm teasing had tears forming in my eyes as my core clenched, and I wanted to squirm. Gregori was right next to me, one glance over and he’d know, I knew he would know. I gripped the arm of my chair until my knuckles turned white.

“Need I remind you that you had one of your staff arrested when you found her in the master bedroom?” Anders retorted. I couldn’t breathe; if the air escaped my lungs, it would be as a moan, and that could not happen. Erik and Jesse were both watching me, drinking their coffees with devious looks on their faces. I bit my lip as Levy latched onto my clit, sucking it into his mouth until my eyes nearly rolled back into my head. I could feel the orgasm about to crest, and I was going to bite my own lip off to stay quiet. I came with a shudder as Gregori banged his fist on the table, my whole body trembling, and wave after wave of pleasure rocked over me, Levy refusing to let up until every muscle in my body was liquified.

“Grace, are you alright?” A bucket of ice-cold water could not have sobered me faster. I glanced over at Gregori, who was eyeing me with…well, I’d have called it concern if he had a soul, but in this case, most likely curiosity. One last kiss on my inner thigh as my dress was pulled back down, and the shoulders between my legs disappeared.

“I just…” I gasped out and stared at the table. “I don’t like it when you fight,” I lied swiftly, and I heard Erik cough, probably muffling a chuckle that bastard .

“I see,” Gregori mused, and I wiped my eyes, pretending to brush away tears, while in actuality I was hoping that my arousal wasn’t leaving a puddle on the seat underneath me.

“I’m sorry, Kitten, we will talk about something else,” Anders announced, his eyes glittering with mischief as he stared at me. I had no doubt who orchestrated this whole event. My darling husband had a twisted sense of humor. Levy flickered back into view as he reached for his coffee, his tongue darting out to lick his bottom lip as he grinned at me.

Honestly, I was on Gregori’s side for this. I didn’t want them to leave either, not when Levy was barely healed, and god only knew what my twisted brother was up to. But I had the good sense not to argue with Anders once he’d put his mind to something. It was like bashing your head against a brick wall and expecting anything more than a headache.

As promised, the remainder of breakfast was calmer, discussions centering mainly around the next hospital fundraising event. Somehow I found myself agreeing to attend and sit at Gregori’s table. Evidently, I was to take a more active role in things now that I shared the family name. I didn’t care, dress me up and send me out to dinner with stuffy old doctors any day. At least I could be useful, and maybe calm some of the animosity between Anders and Gregori, or separate them enough to avoid any more fighting.

After breakfast, Levy and Anders grabbed their things and got ready to leave. We gathered in the front hall, Gregori safely tucked away in his office, and I smacked Levy on the chest as he chuckled. “Evil,” I hissed at him, and he leaned down to press a kiss to my forehead .

“The food here is so bland, I just wanted something tasty for breakfast,” he murmured in my ear, and I couldn’t help but smile, even as my cheeks flushed with heat.

“The first hint of anything amiss, and you turn around and head back,” Erik ordered, and Anders nodded, leaning back against the wall. I approached him tentatively, and when he didn’t move, I stood up on my tiptoes and pressed a soft kiss to his cheek. At first, I thought he wouldn’t react, gazing at me with an unreadable expression on his face. Then his hand was cupping my cheek and his mouth was on mine, making me gasp. He took that as an invitation to deepen the kiss, his tongue tangling with mine until I was forced to break it off, panting breathlessly.

“We will be back in a couple of hours,” he told me, holding my chin between his thumb and his forefinger. “Stay away from my father while I’m gone.” He let me go, and I nodded, dropping back to my heels.

“Be safe,” I told them both, and Levy winked at me as he followed Anders out the door. Arms wrapped around my waist, and I leaned back into Jesse’s chest, sighing heavily. I hated that all we could do now was wait.

“When Anders says a couple of hours, does he mean two hours or does he use it interchangeably with any amount of time?” I asked, checking my phone for the thousandth time. It was my personal phone that came with my go-bag, and the only numbers in it were for my men. I had sent Anders a text at the two hour mark, asking how it was going, and nothing.

“Don’t read into it,” Erik muttered, but I caught him checking his own phone from where he was sitting on the loveseat. Once again we were camped out in the guest room since the rest of the house felt horribly uncomfortable, like a museum exhibit we weren’t supposed to be in.

I sighed and rolled onto my stomach, resting my head on my arms as I tried to resist the urge to text Anders again. Jesse flopped down on the bed beside me and ran his fingers across my spine, trying to soothe my nerves.

A knock on the door startled me, and Erik was out of his seat in a heartbeat, shifting from relaxed to serious faster than I could fathom. He opened the door and greeted one of the maids, who whispered something and then quickly left. I sat up as Erik groaned. “We’ve been summoned,” he signed to Jesse. “Something about a warehouse dispute that apparently Gregori wants us to handle. We are officially hired thugs, through marriage.” He rolled his eyes as guilt clawed at my stomach.

“All of us?” I asked, and he shook his head, grimacing.

“Just Jesse and I apparently; the ‘young Mrs. Howell’ can relax with an afternoon tea.” Now it was my turn to grimace, and he looked at me apologetically. “Sorry Angel, just be thankful you don’t have to listen to him speak for the next two hours. Wander around, maybe try to find some junk food in this nightmare of a mansion.” He smiled and gave me a gentle peck on the cheek before grabbing Jesse’s arm and pulling him away. I sighed and flopped down on the bed again, checking my phone for the hundredth time. Maybe going on a chocolate hunt wasn’t such a bad idea after all .

Slipping out of the guest room, I headed down to the kitchen. I’d never actually been inside it, but I’d noticed the direction the food always came from and made an educated guess. The silence of the house wasn’t quite as overbearing as I began to hear the familiar sounds of dishes being moved around and soft bickering filtering down the hallway. I hesitated outside the door, wondering if I would get in trouble for being here. There was sort of an unwritten rule in this house about where people were allowed to be, and this felt a bit like toeing the line. Peering inside, I was shocked by the amount of people in the expansive kitchen. This must be where the staff came to hide out; no wonder it felt like this house was staffed by ghosts.

The noise dimmed abruptly as someone caught sight of me, and everyone froze. “Mrs. Howell,” the portly butler—were they called butlers in America? That felt so weird—announced, and everyone stopped to stare at me. Yikes. I held up my hands in supplication, wincing at the formal title.

“I’m sorry, I’m not here to bother you. Please, carry on,” I told them quickly. A few of the workers who looked like kitchen staff went back to work, but everyone just continued to stare at me like I had three heads and a gun pointed at them. “I was just… um… I was looking for a snack?” I asked, and one of the older maids smiled at me and beckoned me closer. My steps were tentative as I walked through the kitchen, now feeling extremely out of place. At least most of them started to speak once more, although it was a lot more muted than before.

“I’ve been eager to get a glimpse of young Mr. Howell’s new bride,” the woman announced, drawing me toward a set of cupboards in the far corner of the kitchen. “I always assumed his father would arrange something like this, but at least it appears that you two are somewhat fond of each other.” She smiled, and I flushed red at her implications.

“Have you known Anders long?” I asked, and she nodded brusquely, opening the cupboard and revealing a large bag of flour. I watched in shock as she shifted the flour to the side, uncovering an assortment of treats that were definitely not on the Dr. Howell-approved shopping list. I grinned as she stepped back and gestured for me to take a look.

“I’ve been here since he was four going on forty-five.” She smiled fondly, and I quickly snagged a chocolate bar from the cupboard, clutching it to my chest like a prized jewel. “He comes in here to eat all the time, and he asked us to stock up with snacks for his friends, you included,” she explained, and I beamed. Of course he did, because he always wanted us fed.

“Thank you,” I told her. “I’m sorry to interrupt everyone.” I glanced around the room, and several pairs of eyes suddenly found something else extremely interesting to stare at. She clicked her tongue, and I smiled.

“No problem dear, we don’t get much excitement around here, so it’s nice to have guests,” she explained. A large bell rang nearby, and I nearly leapt out of my skin. “Just the doorbell, sweetheart, nothing to worry about,” she assured me, and I saw one of the maids slip out of the room.

“I’ll get out of your way. Thank you again.” I smiled, and she patted my arm gently before I headed back out, tucking my treat in the pocket of my sundress and pulling out my phone, checking it again. Finally, a message! I opened it quickly and frowned, scanning it once, then twice .

Anders

Did you get my present?

What the hell? What did that mean? I backtracked, going instead to Gregori’s office. The door was closed, so I knocked carefully, studying the message again to see if it suddenly made more sense. The door jerked open, and I found myself face to face with Erik, who looked concerned.

“Have you heard from Anders?” I asked, and he opened the door wider, letting me inside.

“No Angel, we haven’t.” Erik frowned, and I held up my phone, ignoring the annoyed look Gregori sent me for interrupting their meeting.

“The fuck? That’s all he sent?” he asked, and I nodded, feeling a cool little prickle of unease brush the back of my neck. “And nothing from Levy, either?”

“Nothing. I was hoping you knew what it meant, like if it was a code or something?” I asked, and he shook his head, handing my phone back as he quickly signed with Jesse.

The door opened again, and Gregori actually grunted in annoyance as a maid entered, holding a medium-sized box.

“This arrived for Mrs. Howell,” she announced softly, holding it out for me to take. Erik snatched it out of her hands, and her eyes widened as she backed up, quickly leaving the room. He turned the box over, studying it. There was no address on it, meaning it was hand delivered to the front gate. Grace Howell was written across the top, and it was wrapped in plain brown paper.

“Maybe a wedding gift?” Gregori offered, but Erik’s lips twisted, his brow furrowed, deep in thought. He set the box down on the table and flipped open the pocket knife he always had on him, slicing the brown paper carefully and inspecting the box underneath.

“I don’t like this,” I murmured, stepping closer. Jesse grabbed my arm and pulled me behind him as Erik carefully slid the blade under the lip of the box and lifted it slowly, before flipping it up completely, revealing… What the hell was that? A wig?

“Jesus fuck,” Erik swore, taking a step back, and I realized it wasn’t a wig, it was someone’s hair. A someone who was still attached to it. I let out a strangled cry as Gregori brushed past us to study the fucking head someone had sent me in a box. Jesse guided me down into a chair, even as I started to panic and push against him.

“Erik please tell me that’s not Anders,” I rasped as Jesse held me tightly. The hair was too long to be Levy’s, but I didn’t pay attention to the color. Anders hair was long enough, it could be— oh god, no.