Chapter 9

“Serena, I’m home,” I utter as I enter. Home smell. I finally understand what it means. Mine is a mix of house cleaners, coffee, dirt, and leather. I like it.

The lights turn on, and while taking my constricting gloves off, I go straight to the sink to splash water on my face. I feel the cold sink under my palms, the wet drops trailing down my face and neck, the fresh taste of water in my mouth, the ache in my muscles.

I had to help Uri take care of his donor’s body yesterday since Raph gave his unavailability at the last minute—surely too busy following his husband—and then I helped Gabe find the dirt he needed on his next donor. After that, I went to Rague’s place and installed Serena’s security system while keeping Sully, Rague’s brother-in-law, company. He seems to be doing better since he was kidnapped. But those shadows veiling his eyes have become permanent. I need to find the person who put them there.

The elusive Phoenix.

They are the Moriarty to my Sherlock, the Joker to my Batman, the Sylvester to my Tweety. Every time I get close, they slip through my fingers, and my irritation is growing exponentially. Because nobody evades me and my cyber skills.

Nobody.

That’s why, instead of going back to my bear, I spent all night at the base looking for new information. And I realized that finding August Gene Baker was exactly what Phoenix wanted. They intentionally left a trail for me to follow. They contacted the hitman and stood him up on purpose. But why? To see if I’d follow? To study my level of expertise? Learn more about me?

At two a.m., I let Serena take over and fell asleep on the sofa near the lab—how Uri prefers that to a bed is inconceivable to me.

I dry my face and turn toward my queen bed. I took a shower at the base, but I need to change these wrinkled clothes. I open my closet and stare at the row of gloves in different colors, types, and fabrics. I wore a pair while I was with my bros. I didn’t feel like explaining to them what is going on. Not because I don’t trust them. I fucking do. With my life. I just want to be sure this is not temporary. I don’t want to jinx it. To create disappointment in case my condition comes back.

Unreasonable, I know, but I want to keep doing it for a few more days.

Still, I can’t believe I don’t need gloves anymore, unless of course it is cold outside. But that’s all, thanks to a certain grizzly.

I’ve been so busy, we’ve only exchanged a few texts. Some very bossy, and others uber hot. He’s amazing at filthy talking while giving my hole a pound, why not sexting as well? I clench my aching ass, smiling at the feeling.

Trust, though, seems a hard thing for him to give. Having to kill his own cousin might have caused the wariness and suspicion.

I can see how a part of him is always alert, ready to pounce. I want him to let his barriers down with me. I feel the urge to soothe him, to assuage the hardness in those deep eyes, dark as ink. Mesmerizing. They have me all twisted in fucking knots. I know it’s not gratitude or the out-of-the-world ecstasy his cock gives me every time he’s inside me. He is…more. My more.

Even with the frightening possibility of turning numb again, I’d still want to be with him. I’d feel everything when we have sex, his warm breath, passionate kisses, smooth skin, curvy, hard muscles, the scars that make him look fiercer—like the grizzly he is. We could just fuck all the time. And fight. That sounds like a good plan B to me.

I move toward the gloves with the intention of bagging them, maybe throwing some away, but stop just an inch from a red leather pair. My hand turns into a fist. It’s too soon. Don’t need to rush into things. It can wait.

I grab a shirt and a pair of jeans and place them on the bed. I open the second drawer and move my hand over the different pairs of panties. I choose pink satin this time as my lips curl up imagining Hunter’s heated eyes.

My home’s style is industrial since it used to be an old warehouse. I kept the gray concrete walls and slate floors and the exposed beams and pipes. I left one metal grid panel to separate my workstation from the rest of the open concept design. The only rooms are the toilet and Serena’s. Everything is…visible. Making up the rest of the space are the bed, wardrobe, shower stall, gym area, small stainless-steel kitchen, leather loveseat, mega TV on the wall framed by bookshelves filled with DVDs—mostly animal kingdom documentaries—and the tortoises’ fenced area with a green house in the corner near the tortoise door that leads to the covered back garden.

I move to the fridge and open the drawer, grabbing the plastic container filled with earthworms and sliced fruit.

“Kim, Kourtney, Khloe, breakfast!” I shake the container and see the first wrinkly head peeking out of the greenhouse. They get enough vegetables from the garden outside, and have an automatic feed dispenser, this is just an extra I give them from time to time. When I reach their corner, only Kourtney and Kim are out, slowly making their way to the eating zone, while Khloe, the capricious sister, comes through the tortoise door, munching on a chew toy.

It pissed me off when Linda dumped three, fifteen-inch leopard tortoises outside my home in retaliation for my lateness to her birthday dinner a few years back—she’s such a crazy, vindictive witch. But in time, I grew fond of them with their stubby legs, long stretchy necks, and bumpy bicolor shells. So much that I’m thinking of getting another one and calling it Kylie.

After feeding them, I make myself a ham sandwich with mayo, lettuce, a slice of tomato, and pickles and move to my computer with a bottle of iced tea. Food is so fucking amazing. All the different tastes and possible combinations. It’s damn mind-blowing.

I’m glad Hunter and the boys liked my cooking. I followed Serena’s instructions, but I was surprised by the outcome as well. I will get better, though. Partly because I want to hear again that sweet tone in Hunter’s voice when he thanked me. Okay, mostly because of that.

Work! I have a couple of ideas for a new game with three brothers as the PCs—the wicked trio might have inspired me—but my creativity is bouncing inside my skull, I can’t hold a thought still. When that happens, I usually need to distract myself and what better distraction than snooping around people’s lives?

Lately, Meg and Linda are getting my attention. In the last months, they’ve been acting odd. Meg keeps lying to me, but is it related to her health or something else? And Linda? She’s traveling again. She’d stopped for a while, probably to stay near Meg. It’s not unusual for her to go on trips since she works freelance from time to time, but the places she’s going don’t make any sense, small towns in the middle of nowhere, desert islands, Detroit. Plus all the confabulating with Gabe. He’s a lawyer and gives all of us advice, has covered our asses more than once, but….something stinks, and it’s not Hunter’s dog.

And I’m thinking about Grizzly again.

I swear, I don’t know what’s going on with me. If I don’t obsess over his safety, I obsess over him. I’m hopeless and feeling…stuff. Emotionally. He has a hold of my body he’s well aware of because I told him what he does to me. But honesty was the best policy in this case, right? Right. Butallthe extra feelings weren’t expected.

“Serena, show me Hunter’s case file again. The one related to the murder.”

The wall in front of me fills with pics, newspaper articles, police files, medical examiners’ reports, and more.

His cousin, Father Cal—Cal Penn—was killed inside St. Joseph Church almost eight years ago. Pushed from the pulpit, he fell on his back on a row of pews and broke his neck. The pulpit looks like a traditional one, raised six and half feet above the sanctuary floor, so it checks out. The police report says that they received a call from Hunter’s phone at nine-fifteen p.m. in which he confessed to killing his cousin.

In his written confession, he added that he felt uncontrollable rage after he discovered that Cal abused and molested some of the churchgoers’ kids. So that evening, he backed him onto the pulpit, made him give his last confession, and pushed him off.

The Father had a too-swift death in my opinion.

I sent all this documentation to Uri and Michael, and they confirmed a suspicion I already had and added a couple more.

The body was found five feet from the pulpit. Hunter is as big as a tank, if he shoved someone from an elevated position while feeling furious, that person should land nine feet away certainly not five. Maybe Cal tripped, scared by Hunter’s advance…but why lie and say he shoved him then?

Then there’s the small, torn piece of fabric found on the pulpit’s floor, it was denim with a small red flower on it. Hunter was wearing his police uniform that evening. But it could be unrelated to Cal’s death. The cleaning lady worked at the church twice a week, perhaps it was hers?

Also, Hunter never disclosed how he found out about the priest’s sins. But the detective who investigated the case speculated that Hunter simply wanted to protect his informant. A parent? Or a kid’s friend?

Ugh! All suppositions. Let’s see the facts.

Father Cal was quite loved by his church congregation, who were shocked by the whole situation. But with a little digging, the police found out that the accusations were true. He abused twenty kids that we know of.

The murder was a nightmare for the mayor and his impending re-election, the Church which didn’t want to deal with another scandal, and the police force who had one of their own under attack. The case was closed quickly, and the trial ended even faster since Hunter pled guilty.

My eyes fall on a picture of Hunter at his police graduation two years before the murder. He looks young, proud, and filled with righteousness. He’s smiling at his cousins, Opal Denver and Jasper Penn—Cal’s siblings—with so much happiness.

What really happened that evening? I have a gut feeling that there’s more than what he confessed.

I saw the way his whole body tensed when I found the cross in his dresser. I didn’t want to pry and upset him even more so I just kept my mouth shut. But I want to know so fucking much. I want to know why was Hunter at a Catholic cemetery when he was shot at. And if the two mercenaries are related to the murder of his cousin.

The Vulture needs to contact me ASAP.

“Incoming text from Hunter Bear,” Serena lets me know. “Do you want me to read it?”

“No, thanks.” I tell her as I grab my phone.

Hunter Bear: Where are you, Red?

Me: Missed me?

Hunter Bear: Where?

Me: U sound like a jealous BF…and the B is for Bear

Hunter Bear: Okay

Okay? Did he just agree to be my boy…bear-friend?

Me: I’m home

Me: U didn’t fuck me hard enough. I can still walk

Hunter Bear: Tonight

Me: Whatever u’re planning, make sure u ruin me properly this time. I’m starting to think u’re all talk

Hunter Bear: I’ll talk, and you’ll scream around my cock. You know you will

My dick twitches and starts plumping.

Me: I just need a hard reminder. I’ll see u later

Hunter Bear: Always give it to you hard and rough

I’m hard now! Can hammer a damn nail with my cock. What can help me deflate it? Ah! I open the Foster And Not Bros chat, which I renamed Bros Spouses.

Me: I found the perfect playdate for Rague. They can communicate in grunts and do all the things grumpy fuckers do, like glower at sunny days and flip off people who flirt with them.

Ollie: Hey! Only I can call my husband grumpy

Uri: We called dibs long before you came along

Lori: Are you talking about Magnum P.I.?

Gabe: Who?

Me: He’s larger than life in all ways, starting with his black mamba

Lori: Massive black mamba. Yeah baby, ride that snake!

Gabe: Lori, stop whooping. This is a place of work

Lori: How can you hear me from thirty floors up in the clouds?

Rague: Black mambas aren’t massive, but long and poisonous

Uri: Nice, could use with one of the donors.

Me: Gabe, did u spit your morning coffee all over one of ur precious contracts?

Gabe doesn’t answer. Sometimes, I think he’s irony-impaired. I should try and load a microchip in his robotic brain.

Lori: Where did his long, black snake spit its poison?

Michael: TMI Lori

Sari: What size are we talking about? Raph’s or Rague’s?

Uri: How do you know their sizes???

Sari: I accidentally saw…them

Ollie: Mine too?

Michael: How about me?

Sari: Mmm

Me: U fuck with no care of your surroundings, so I might have got a glimpse of…something as well

Lori: And you’re also so bloody noisy, deliciously so

I can hear Lori’s purr from here.

Rague: Stop spying on us, Lori!

Lori: Am not! You should stop fucking your husbands in…easily visible places

Raph: Turn the other way unless you want me to gouge your eyes out next time

He’s so damn possessive of Michael. Reminds me of my bear and while Raph’s words make my eyes roll with annoyance, Hunter’s growly behavior sends a shiver down to my toes.

Gabe: How about you only fuck behind locked doors?

Raph: How about you shut the fuck up

Michael: Okay, enough!

Michael: Ollie! How are things going?

Ollie: A bit better. But will stay two more weeks

Lori: In the dungeon?

Rague: It’s a very nice cottage-dungeon.

Of course it is. It”s our safe house, filled with all the essentials for the end of the world. We also got rid of many donors in the forest surrounding it when we started the family business.

Me: Did Rague build a red room? Like Uri’s?

Uri: I don”t have a fucking red room.

Ollie: We don’t need one… *wink wink*

Michael: I’m making more cookies, I’ll bring them later

Raph: Tell me the truth, babe, is cooking your way to get back at me?

My psycho brother doesn’t see a reason to lie to his husband to try and protect his feelings.

Michael: Rami likes them, you troglodyte!

I hope he won’t force me to try one again—now that I can actually taste it.

Uri: I doubt that. But we can use them as a weapon. They could be a one-way ticket to hell with a precise hit on the head

Lori: Bones, are you man-struating? Need extra sugar? I can give a ring to a baker who can actually makes biscuits for you.

Sari: Men have a monthly hormonal cycle. Dips in testosterone can cause irritability.

Me: You mean Michael is actually man-struating?

Lori: Or maybe, he’s really trying to torture Bully Boy. Just move to the next step, Bones, and give him the one-way ticket.

Michael: Are you really comparing my cookies with hell?

Raph: Torture, not hell, babe.

Lori: My hell will be a straight one.

Lori: Imagine you are chained to a wall

Lori: And mere feet away, a naked, dripping, and smiling Henry Cavill is inviting you to join him

Lori: While touching his long

Lori: Hard

Ollie: Lori, we got the point!

Lori: Point? Was I making one?

Gremlin is nuts.

Michael: Fuck you all!

I lay my phone down. I’m sorry for Michael but if everybody says his cookies taste bad they must be.

How would Hunter interact with my family? Probably just like Rague, with glares and succinct replies. Aaand I’m thinking about Grizzly again. Hell!

Time apart is supposed to be a good thing, right? Then why can’t I concentrate on anything?

Maybe I should go exercise for a while. Just as the idea comes through my head my phone starts ringing, and the smile turning my lips up is immediate. It’s Hunter’s home number. I can’t believe he has a land line.

“Papa Bear, miss me?”

A retching sound comes from the other line. It has to be Ash. “You need to come back.”

“Why? What happened?” I jump from the chair as worry explodes in my chest, making it hard to breathe.

“It’s a life-and-death situation.”

I’m already grabbing my keys and reaching for the garage door. “Need to bring a doc?”

“Why, you have one on speed dial?” I hear Ren asking.

“I have three… So?” I push impatiently.

“No.” Ash’s reply calms me down a notch. No need of a doctor is a good thing. “But I need you to help me go through the bridge.”

I freeze near my car door. The video game?! “Are you fucking kidding me? I…” I take a big breath. Relief spreads inside my chest together with irritation. “Fuck! Hunter is fine?”

“Yes, of course.” Ash snorts.

“But that answered our question,” Dare cryptically says.

“Our? What are you, an elite alien group with one brain?” I scoff.

“That would be too cool!” Ash makes an idiotic frat-boy laugh.

“Sharing a brain with you?” Ren sounds disgusted. “There’s only farts, dicks, and video games in there.”

I hear the sound of a slap.

“Move that fucking gamer ass of yours and come here.” Ash is so damn crass.

“Who can say no to such a charming invitation?” I deadpan.

But my reply is lost breath. “They hung up on me!” I waste more oxygen. How can Hunter endure this every day? Is that why he’s all growls?

An hour later, I’m at Hunter’s again.

Ash opens the door when I’m getting out of my car. “What took you so long? Ooh, nice ride!” He’s looking at my Hyundai with too much interest.

“Don’t even think about it, Rude One!”

“Rude?” he pffs while scratching his ass—hand inside the pants. He’s also an uncouth, overgrown kid.

“I had to grab some stuff first. Help me with these boxes.” I open the trunk and hear a whine coming from him. “Do you want me to show you how to get to the next Bloody Kills level or not?”

“Ren, come the fuck out here!” he screams as he drags his pink crocs to my car. “FYI, the name of your game sucks.”

“I know. The marketing team chose it.” I grab a couple of boxes, cutting my palm on the rough side of one. Cardboard cuts fucking hurt!

“Wha?” Hollywood appears on the threshold with a long, black snake wrapped around the whole length of his arm. A real snake. “What’s with all the boxes?”

“A little adjustment to your security system,” I answer vaguely.

Ash doesn’t seem interested as he grabs a small box. “Dare takes care of the house security,” he tells me then turns to his brother. “Ren, give a damn hand.”

“And you fucking take more boxes, you lazy ass,” Ren counters. I can see my reflection in his mirrored glasses. They are fighting again, which I’m starting to think is an hourly occurrence for them.

They’re waving their middle fingers at each other when Dare walks to my Porsche, and the two of us take all the stuff inside.

“Where’s Hunter?” I look toward the hallway and see that the door to his room is open.

“Went to the pet shelter next door,” Dare lets me know. I told him to stay home!

“Is he there alone?” I inquire. I should go. I want to go. Fuck, the security system!

“Ahhhh! Stop the jealous act. First game, then…that.” Ash points at the boxes we placed on the dining table as he drops heavily on the sofa next to Ren and his bracelet snake. “Then you can fuck the old man, or vice versa. Don’t want to know.”

“I’m not jealous!” I mutter. Not now anyway. Unless…“Who the fuck is with him?”

They totally ignore me. Maple suddenly comes drooling from the corridor, aiming right for me—and my leg.

“No! No! Horny dog, we are not compatible. Find an…ugly bitch and hump her!” I move the chair between us and grab the dog deodorant I bought earlier from the top of one of the boxes—the girl at the pet shop assured me it kills any kind of canine odor. I remove the plastic lid and spray it in his direction. A strongly scented misty cloud forms in front of me and then quickly falls on the dog. Maple sneezes a couple of times and after a few seconds, he whines and goes to a small rug near the bookshelves. I won! I raise my arms up in a victory move.

“Ahhh!” Ren is glowering at the TV screen like it’s personally offended him. My game is on, and he just died. He pushes Ash’s head hard. “It’s your fucking fault for distracting me!”

“Like this hasn’t happened a thousand times before,” Ash huffs.

“Is this to improve the house security?” Dare asks me.

“Yeah. Just a few extras. The one you have is actually pretty good.”

“Thanks.”

“You installed the current one, right?” And I bet he was also the one trying to keep Serena out of the system yesterday.

He nods and starts to open the boxes, and I look at him in a different way. He has brawn and brains. The brain part needs work, and I toy with the idea of helping him. But then I push it away. Pretty sure these boys don’t like me very much.

“Dare, the Master needs to help us here first, then you can play together with the techie stuff,” Ren states.

“I told you how to do it already.” I cross my arms. “And stop calling me the Master, I’m Rami.” Only crazy fans call me that. And I have some creepy ones, and I mean creepy,even for me.

“We can’t boost the car, Vel-ma.” Ash pronounces the nickname slowly.

“Gimme the controller.” I gesture to the little ass face. He tosses it, almost hitting my face. “Oh, you deserve what will come to you.”

“Can’t be worse than what I left behind,” I think I hear from him. I’ve seen the medical and police reports. These boys had it rough before Hunter took them in.

I swiftly go over the game settings. The level they reached is not bad, but they need more skills to move over the bridge. I find the hidden back door into the game and add extra skills to their PCs, enough to pass this level.

“Try now.” I toss the controller back to Ash, but it flies past his hands, landing with a thump at his feet. It doesn’t matter how many hours I train, my aim remains crap.

“Watch it!” he barks, but there’s no trace of the usual snark behind his words now that he’s busy playing the game.

I suppose there are worse ways to spend the day. But at this moment, none come to mind.

“Where’s your scarf today?” I ask Dare while taking out the rest of the techie stuff.

“Fred is sleeping in my room.”

“Never seen a squirrel act like that before,” I tell him.

“He’s blind, but still has his natural curious instincts.”

Oh, I see. “Is Ren’s snake blind as well?”

“No. George has no teeth.”

“I thought snakes could regrow their fangs.”

“They were pulled out too many times,” Ren answers, jerking to the right to avoid hitting a pole in the game.

Fuck! These are rescue animals. Maple as well? Is that why he stinks like a football locker room after a game?

“So, you take care of the pet shelter.” I pull a cam out of the plastic bag and take a moment to enjoy the smell of new, sealed products.

“Ren is the animal lover-slash-self-taught vet,” Ash surprisingly replies after swearing at a zombie on the screen. “We just tag along.”

“I can introduce you to a friend of mine, Sully. He’s almost your age, I think. Got a part-time job working at a vet clinic. He wants to become a vet.”

“What clinic?”

I pause a second to remember. “Happy Pet, Happy Home.”

“They are the good ones.” Dare nods.

“Meaning?”

“The docs really care about the animals. So many bastards around.”

“Why don’t you work there then?” I ask Ren.

“They’d never accept me. Self-taught.” He points at himself. I actually see that as an advantage, not a weakness. They’ve been taking care of the pet shelter for four years now. That’s a lot of experience.

“How about you, Ash? Do you have a pig in there?” It would explain his room. Maybe he has a cat and a pig.

“Cat. Sweetie is shy, she stays in there usually.”

Ren snorts derisively, “Shy? Your untouchable cat almost castrated the mailman, that’s why he tosses everything on the ground now instead of using the mailbox.”

“And George? He slithers around scaring the crap out of everybody,” Ash retorts. He waves at Ren’s arm which is indeed, snake-less.

“Whoa, whoa! There’s a long-ass snake gliding around?” I abandon the things on the table and instinctively take a step back. I’m not afraid of snakes, but I need to keep my eyes on them…at all times.

Ren elbows Ash hard. “He’s curious. It’s not weird for snakes. And George has to hide from your bloodthirsty, murderous, wrinkly cat.”

The cat I saw in Ash’s room was a sphinx—no fur, big ears, looked like his skin was inside out. But they are usually very sweet and tame.

“George has no teeth, but he can still strangle us. It’s in his nature. Now, who’s the murderous one?” Ash counters.

“He could.” Dare doesn’t seem worried about the possibility at all. “But he’s a sweetheart.”

Ren pauses the game to kneel on the floor and starts calling. “George. Come here, Georgie.” Georgie? Really?

“He’s here.” Dare points at the table, and when I look down, I see two empty black eyes staring at me. He’s twisted his long body around the table leg a few inches from me. His head is floating in the air, coming toward me. His mouth is open, forked tongue out, and yes, I don’t see any teeth. The creepy hissing is there though.

“Let him taste you,” Ren says.

“What?” I frown, then I remember the documentary I saw on reptiles a few weeks back. “Snakes use their tongue to bring scents back into their mouths.”

“Exactly.” Ren nods. “You don’t look too scared.”

“Like to watch animal documentaries. But this is my first time face to face with a snake.”

That’s how, one hour later, I end up with a very poisonous reptile curled around my leg—his small triangular-shaped head lying on my thigh—while playing video games with the triplets.

“Damn it! That’s so simple. Why didn’t I think of that?” Ash keeps cussing at my gaming skills.

“Stop giving me all your ammunition! You take the fun out of it.”

“Like I do that on purpose,” he growls and flips me off.

I have no choice but to flip him off back. And again, I feel strangely at home. The wicked trio reminds me of the dynamics between me and my bros. They would fit perfectly with my family. And Hunter, at my side. Mine. The idea makes me all weirdly tingly.

“My turn!” Ren takes the controller out of Ash’s hands. They’ve been trying to defeat me for thirty minutes now. But the Master is not only amazing at creating games.

“What are your intentions?” Dare suddenly asks me from his seat on the armchair, Fred dangling on his big bicep. Ren freezes.

“Intentions?” I slowly pronounce. Did I just enter a Jane Austen novel?

“He means with Hunter,” Ash explains, pausing the game. The wicked trio has turned all their attention on me. It’s unsettling.

“Um. Well, my intentions are very honest and very dirty.”

“Fucking gross!” Ash mutters.

“Hunter went through enough. Don’t fuck with him.” There’s a clear warning in Ren’s words.

“You got his back and will…try to make me pay if I hurt him. I understand.” I look at each face to get the point across. I hope Hunter knows how much these boys appreciate him. “It won’t happen. I promise.”

Dare sighs while the blonds nod.

“Good.” I turn to the screen. “So, who’s butt do I kick next?”

“Rami?” Hearing my name on Ash’s lips makes me snap my head toward him. The black eyeshadow on his eyes turns his gaze even more grave. “Keep your fucking promise. We turn unfriendly when people break them.” More than when I met them? Pfff.

It’s my time to nod and then to clear my throat. My eyes fall on George. “Do you need volunteers at the pet shelter?” I’d like to see it—I only have pics of it…from my research—and to spend more time with the trio. Since they are in Hunter’s life, it’s only logical to get to know them better.

“Always,” Dare confirms.

“Count me in, and I’m sure I can make some of my bros do it as well.”

My phone starts ringing. Right on time. I push the speaker button.

“Gremlin, need you to volunteer at a pet shelter,” I tell Lori.

His high-pitched voice comes through loud and clear. “Playing with animals and helping with adoption, fuck yes. Cleaning shit and puke, a bloody fuck no.”

All the wicked trio’s attention turns to my call. Better than having it on me, I guess.

But that’s what Lori always does, draws people to him while being loudly, shamelessly, and unapologetically himself. His eclectic wardrobe does that as well. It ranges from loose sweaters and colored skinny jeans to shorts and skirts paired with knee-high boots. He has a sassy comeback for anyone who tries to bring him down and keeps walking with his head high and cute butt swinging.

It’s admirable and so damn annoying at the same time.

“Random question. I not-accidentally slipped an elephant-dose of laxative into an arsehole’s glass. Now I think he fainted inside the bathroom,” he conversationally says. I hear the sound of tapping on a keyboard. Is he at work? I thought they gave him a few days off.

“Are you talking about my brother?” Did he kill Gabe? No, you can’t kill a robot.

“Which one of the bloody Brady Bunch?”

“Bloody?” Ash mouths.

“Gabe, Gremlin.”

“Couldn’t unplug that twat ass even with a Godzilla-dose. No. It’s another arsehole from the office,” Lori explains.

“Are you sure he fainted?”

“I heard a thump and then silence for about…an hour now. Not going to check, mate. The bathroom must smell worse than a pigsty.” That weirdly makes sense to me.

“Call security. Tell them there’s a weird smell coming from the toilet,” Ren suggests.

“Brilliant. And who am I talking to?” I can hear the intense interest in Lori’s voice.

“Ren.”

“Are you one of Reacher’s fucks?”

“Reacher?”

“That’s me,” I sigh.

“No! He’s fucking Hunter, I live with him.” Ren doesn’t look unsettled by the conversation. None of them do.

“You fucked Magnum P.I. and didn’t tell your temporary bestie? Bad Reacher!” Through the line, I hear voices in the background. “Hold, please,” Lori switches to a too sweet voice before moving the phone away, but I can still hear his annoyed tone.

“Where is a piper and a pack of rats when I need them?” He comes back a minute later.

“A mischief of rats, not a pack,” Dare corrects him.

“Who’s that?” Lori now sounds really intrigued.

“Dare.”

“Ren and Dare. Where the hell are you at, Reacher?”

I groan. “What’s with the snarly voice?”

“Your brother was here….I wish he would just pick between a cliff and a bridge and fall off it! Are you at Magnum P.I.’s?”

“Yes. I’m at Hunter’s.”

“He’s fucking busy,” Ash feels the need to add.

“How many people is Magnum shacking up with?” Lori asks.

“Only Rami, for fuck’s sake. And who the hell are you?”

“I’m Lori, and if you keep speaking tosh, I’ll wash your mouth with lavender soap. Button it!” A small growl comes from the other line, and Ash scoffs, not caring about Lori’s threat.

“I’ll bring pizza from In Thin Crust We Trust. Send me a pin.” And I do because I really want to eat pizza, and that’s one of the best places in Chicago to buy it from.

“How about the guy in the bathroom?” Dare asks.

“He crawled out of it. Cockroaches always do, that’s why the big boss was here. Okay, ta-ta.” Lori hangs up.

“What the fuck is wrong with his…accent?” Ash makes a disgusted face. It is weird how Lori mixes British slang with US pronunciation. But I’m used to his quirkiness now.

“What the fuck is wrong with his brain! Did he really drug a guy and then just invite himself here?” Ren sounds incredulous.

I shrug. There are no boundaries in my family nor any fucks to give.

I send a text to Papa Bear, telling him I’m at his place and that pizza will arrive soon.

Thirty minutes later, George finally lets me go, and I have finished installing the new security alarm. Dare helped, showing me how competent he is.

“Someone has entered the premises,” Serena’s voice comes from the front door’s intercom.

“Who’s the sexy voice?” A naughty smile grows on Ren’s face.

“Security system,” I simply reply.

Lori’s beat-up car appears on the intercom screen, and I jog to the front door and open it. The car swerves to the right, almost hitting a tree, before Lori yanks the wheel in the other direction. He stops with a harsh braking, making the car hiccup backward. Then a smiling Gremlin gets out wearing a pair of purple skinny jeans, high Mary Janes, and a pirate-looking white shirt, all frills in the front.

He whistles as he takes in a panoramic view of the place and tells me, “Congrats, mate!”

“On?” I walk to his car.

“Let me put it this way: you came, you fucked, you conquered.”

“I didn’t conquer anything. It’s more like Hunter conquered my ass.” It clenches at the thought of my grizzly.

Lori makes a filthy sound as he opens the car’s back door and bends to grab the pizza boxes.

“Hello!” Ash’s leering eyes fall on Lori’s round ass. Lori straightens and pouts his lips while taking a look at Ash, from his dirty blond, wavy hair to the pink crocs on his feet.

“Oh, a few years older, and I would’ve eaten you for breakfast and spit you out for dinner.”

“That’s Ash, the rude triplet.”

“Triplet? There’s three of him? Fuck, I’ll give you guys five years, then we can give life to one of my shagging fantasies.”

I groan. He isn’t the best role model. But am I? None of the people in my family are really.

“Not a chance in hell.” Ash shakes his head at Lori. I understand. I’d be grossed out at being part of an orgy with my bros as well.

“Bummer. Is that a snake?” Lori grabs my forearm, his eyes on George slithering his way out of the house and disappearing into a bush. “I didn’t think your black mamba was a real snake. I’m gobsmacked.” He turns a shocked expression my way.

“Fuck off, Gremlin.”

We enter the house and sit at the dining table. Lori introduces himself to Ren, Dare, and his squirrel in his bubbly, inappropriate way. The wicked trio doesn’t seem to care as they start demolishing two of the three giant pizzas.

“What are you waiting for, a written invitation from the king?” Lori taunts me.

“Hunter is not here yet,” I explain. I should wait, even though the scent of pizza is making me salivate.

Lori takes a slice and starts moving it in front of my face. It touches my lips, and damn, I can’t resist.

“So easy!” Gremlin scoffs, dropping the slice in my hand. I have to use both to stop all the toppings from sliding down. It feels warm and floppy, white flour sticks to my fingers.

And the taste—heaven! Whoever invented this dish should become a god and be accepted on Olympus. Even Maple snoring and drooling on my sneaker doesn’t bother me right now. Nothing can.

Almost nothing.

“Offspring three, would you be interested…” Lori starts to ask Dare, but I stop him.

“Don’t you dare.” I glare at him.

“…in coming to clubs as my wingman, since you’re almost married.” Lori directs the last part at me, sounding ridiculously affronted.

“You proposed an orgy five minutes ago… Did you say…married?” I look at him with confusion.

“You’ve been shagging the daddy bear exclusively, right?”

Daddy—fuck no! “Papa Bear,” I correct him.

“There’s only one papa.” Lori points at himself and then turns to Ren. “And he wants to know, what’s with the glasses, offspring two?”

Give it to Lori to bluntly ask about a sensitive topic.

Ash and Dare visibly tense, but Ren calmly takes a sip from his glass and then smirks at Lori. “A cute thing like you doesn’t want to see what’s behind these spectacles. Trust me,” he says with an unpleasant smile twisting his lips. “Dig your pink lipstick, by the way.”

Lori stares at him for a moment, probably checking himself out in the mirrored glasses. “It’s peach, but cheers. And you shouldn’t judge people solely on their appearances.”

The air feels heavy until Ash’s burp breaks the tension around us. I attack another slice while Ren and Lori reveal their aversion to Ash. I’m too lost in pizza paradise to care. Stringy, warm, sweet cheese, crunchy, not doughy or too thick crust, spicy, rich sausage and sour, smooth tomato sauce…perfection.

“You sound like a porn star. Hump that pizza and get it over with.” Lori makes kissing noises.

“It’s so good,” I say around a bite of indescribable deliciousness.

“Talk mozzarella dirty to me,” he deadpans. Then he leans toward the mic in my bracelet. “Serena, Daddy wants to order this pizza every Thursday.”

She replies with a confirmation in my ear.

“Are you talking to the intercom chick?” Ren frowns at us.

“Man, it was too good to be fucking true, he had to have some screw loose!” Ash raises his arms toward the sky.

“It’s my AI assistant.” Fuck, I didn’t want to spring her on them this early.

Dare freezes. “Your AI? As in you bought her or made her?”

“Made her.”

“A robot?” Ash asks, confused.

“AI isn’t just a robot, but an entire discipline. The goal of AI science is to build a computer system that is capable of modeling human behavior, so that it can use human-like thinking processes to solve complex problems. AI systems work by combining large sets of data with intelligent, iterative processing algorithms to learn from patterns and features in the data that they analyze. Does it test and measure its own performance and develop additional expertise?”

“That’s the longest Dare has ever talked…in his life,” Ren whispers.

“Serena,” I encourage her to reply.

“Yes, I do, Dare. I never need a break, I can run through millions of tasks quickly, learning a great deal in very little time. I’m extremely capable.”

“What have you been trained to accomplish? What’s your objective, Serena?” Dare asks, almost looking excited.

“Gathering information,” she quickly replies.

“Thank you, Serena,” I cut her off before she reveals too much.

“Can I get one too?” Ash asks.

“If you can build one,” I retort.

“Build how? With burps and insults?” Lori taunts him.

“Fuck you!” Lori throws a piece of crust at him. “Hey!” Ash yells.

“Negative reinforcement. Learn from it, offspring one!”

“Information. Is that why Hunter is working with you?” Dare is studying me. He must have learned that intense soul-searching stare from Grizzly.

“One of the reasons.” I bend over the table to grab a can of coke. I’m parched.

“Nice satin!” Lori smacks my ass. Not too hard, just a friendly slap. But the contact feels wrong. How can that be, when Hunter’s touch is so damn right?

I start drinking, and damn, coke is not bad! The shower of tickling bubbles on my tongue and in my throat all the way down feels nice, and the sweet, slightly bitter flavor adds a perfect kick to it.

“Stop! You’re turning me on, and I can’t bend you over my knees and give you a spanking in front of the children,” Lori jokes, waving his hand in the wicked trio’s general direction.

“We’re eighteen,” Ash stresses.

“Who the fuck is this?” Hunter’s deep, inhuman growl makes all the hair on my body stand.

Lori turns in his chair, not in the least scared by my bear’s furious vibes. “Wow, Magnum P.I., do you crush tractors in your spare time? Climb skyscrapers? Swing on lianas with your monkey friend?”

“Tarzan? Really, Gremlin?” Seems like Ren has adopted the nickname.

“The black mamba is impressive.” Lori is openly staring at Hunter’s dickprint. But Grizzly’s eyes are two dark, blazing flames directed at me.

“Yep, they’re going at it all right. I could get pregnant just from inhaling the air around them.” Ren snorts at Lori’s joke.

With two powerful strides Hunter is in front of me. “Who is this?” he asks me while twisting his fingers into my hair and gripping it tight.

“Hello, I’m Lori, your boyfriend’s temporary bestie.”

Hunter completely ignores him, his heated gaze demanding all my attention as he slowly and forcefully tugs on my hair until I’m standing.

“Boyfriend?” Ren echoes my thought.

“Just to clarify something to my boyfriend.” Grizzly’s voice is more gravelly than usual. It’s his sex voice, and the fact that I recognize it makes me feel hot all over—on top of hearing him saying the word boyfriend directed at me.

Instead of clarifying with words, he chooses actions and slams his big lips onto mine. The kiss is brutal, almost punishing in its ruthlessness, our tongues unrelenting, our teeth clacking as the passion rises.

“Is it getting hot in here? Or is it the unexpected erotic scene that’s firing my groin?” Lori’s rhetorical questions make Hunter’s mouth pull back. He turns to send a scathing look Lori’s way.

“Magnum P.I., you’re no fun. But I got it.” Lori puckers his lips then stands up. “Come on, offsprings one to three, if I’m going to volunteer at the pet palace, I need to see the situation there.”

I hear grunting and groaning and chair scraping. Ren calls Maple before I see from the corner of my eye, everybody filing out the house.

As soon as I hear the click of the door, Hunter turns a feral smile on me that makes me swallow hard.

“Your boyfriend?” My voice comes out breathy and slightly hopeful. What the fuck? Do I really want to be Hunter’s boyfriend? Yes, if it means having all his blazing, hungry attention on me.

Instead of answering he forces me back until I’m pressed up against the cold wall. His arms are bracing me, caging me in. He looks down at me with such hot intensity, I feel like I’m melting all the way inside.

His next kiss is merciless in the best fucking way. Commanding. He’s owning me with his mouth, taking possession of every piece of me, even the broken ones.

My cock aches and throbs as I grind it against the hard ridge of his through the layers of our clothes, the friction sends brief ripples of delight through me.

“Like flirting with others? Letting them think they can have my pussy?” He pulls down the neck of my shirt and sucks the skin of my shoulder into his mouth hard enough to make me cry, certainly leaving a bruise.

I shove a hand in the back of his jeans, cupping his muscular ass. “Fuck, you’re jealous.” My lips are curled up as I take his earlobe between my teeth and pull hard, making him snarl.

He flashes his teeth at me. “Like you were of the triplets?”

I feel my cheeks getting warm at his words. He’s never going to let that go.

He roughly rips my shirt over my head and does the same to his. I have only a second to admire all that dark skin and the mountainous curves of his torso before he proceeds to make hot blood rush through my veins as he sucks from my neck to my pec, leaving marks on the way.

“Want others to know I’m getting enough dick already?” I taunt, attempting to keep my tone light, when in reality, the thought of being fucked by Hunter everyday makes wings flutter in my belly.

He bites, licks, and tortures my nipple, and I hiss. His hands squeeze hard and mold every part of my body, but my weeping jeans-covered erection.

He suddenly spins me and grabs my neck, pushing my chin high while yanking my pants down.

“I’ll rail this hole until it takes my cock’s shape. I’ll give it so much dick, nothing else will satisfy you again!” His growly, angry voice gets absorbed by my whole body, reaching deep inside of me, turning me lightheaded and wanting.

I hear the zip of his pants go down, and then his big hand brushes the edge of my satin pink panties. The sexiest grunt in history escapes his lips as he pulls on the fabric and lets it go with a snapping sound. “I’m so fucking hard for you.” Fuck, me too.

I feel him stroking his long cock against my ass, like a wild bear marking its territory. His belly brushes against my back, the hair tickling my skin.

My mouth opens on a heavy pant, and I move my hand back and grab his hard, bare cock. I slide the heel of my palm over it as I lick along his bearded jawline. He runs his hand into my hair and yanks sharply, pushing my lips to his neck. His hips are thrusting and grinding against my hand.

Sinking my teeth into the tender skin, I suck harder and harder until a fuck yes slips from Hunter’s lips. His hips rock more urgently, and his cock slips from my hand.

He’s caged me again, pressing all those heated, smooth, hard muscles against me. His erection slides along my satin-covered ass cheeks, leaving a trail of wet, hot pre-cum on them as he snarls in my ear, “You feel this?” He thrusts his cock harder against the sensitive, puckered entrance. “You’ll ride this fat cock fast and loud after I eat your pussy.”

My brain goes out of order, and I moan a very enthusiastic yes.

“Hands above your head, brace them on the wall. Arch for me, open those sexy legs and show me that greedy cunt.” I do as he orders, and he pushes my panties aside and spreads my ass cheeks, smacking my hole hard. I jump, mostly out of surprise. The pain soon turns into hot, melting pleasure, and I feel my legs trembling under me. My head hits the wall with a groan as Hunter’s wet, long tongue slides between my cheeks and slowly licks from base to top. He pushes his face between them and growls, sending delicious vibrations inside me. Then he spits on it, pushing a dirty moan past lips.

“I will snack on this pussy and then breed it like a mindless junkyard dog in heat.” He rumbles each hot word against my hole.

And the torture starts. His tongue, lips, and teeth are relentless, licking, sucking, nipping. Turning me into a horny, gooey mess. When I feel the wet tip breaching my hole, I scream and start moving my hips, fucking myself on it. He keeps my ass cheeks wide open, painfully holding them, and lets me mindlessly ride his tongue.

I can’t think, can’t talk, can’t breathe. Just feel. Trying like crazy to reach the ecstasy I crave.

But suddenly, Hunter pulls back and spanks my ass hard before standing up. I let out a desperate cry, letting my body slump against the wall.

“Don’t. Move.” The order is firm and final, and turns my lust-filled brain on again.

My back turns cold the moment he leaves the room, I hope to get lube. The temptation to turn and see where he went is strong. Also to defy his demand and fuck with him. But I’ve had enough torture for today. All I want now is to come on his cock.

My hips start humping empty air; my slick hole clenches and unclenches, needing to be filled.

“Miss me?” His amused drawl envelops me before he spanks both my ass cheeks. Then he grabs the fabric of my panties and tears them right off me. If he keeps destroying them, I’ll need to buy them in bulk.

His hands grab my globes, pulling them apart, stretching my hole. Cool air caresses me.

I hear the uncapping of a bottle, and then a trickle of cold lube falls on the crack of my ass. I’m burning with the need to have him inside me again. The slick head of his cock brushes against my hole next and thrusts in without enough prep.

Shit.I’m pulled onto my toes as I hiss at the burning sensation. The stretch is fucking intense, and I slap a hand against the wall.

“You can fucking take it,” he remorselessly states. His unforgiving hands dig into my cheeks and yank my ass back toward his cock, impaling me on it with one hard drive of his hips.

I cry out, pain and delicious fullness spread inside me. Hunter’s hand wraps around my neck, and he turns my head to stick his domineering tongue inside my mouth. His hips grind against my ass, pushing his dick deeper, opening my sore hole wider. So big. I’m filled to maximum capacity.

I’m losing myself in all the feelings again. “You have that fuck-me look in your eyes, Red. It always wakes my filthy, depraved side.” He growls, gripping my shoulder to get better leverage as he starts rutting into me.

I sob as he doesn’t slow down, just fucks into me as deep as he can. So damn deep, burying his cock further than I could ever imagine. I’m leaking profusely with every hard thrust.

I’m pinned to the wall by his dick and stronger body, and I fucking love it. My hips buck as I start rubbing my erection against the wall and pushing my ass against his groin.

“Feel when I yank my cock out.” His breath tickles against the shell of my ear as he does it. “And then shove it right back in.” He rams inside, hitting my prostate and making me scream with ecstasy. “All the way inside my bitch. Again, and again, and again. I could fuck this pussy for hours, feed it until there’s no more space for my cum.”

My eyes roll to the back of my head, and I moan and shoot my cum all over the wall. I’m still coming when he spins me around, hauls me up and locks his arms around my back. I find my knees bent over the flexing muscles of his arms, and my back and hands pushed against the wall.

Then he starts thrusting up into me. My head is spinning as Hunter fucks up into me, his rhythm hard and fast. Beads of sweat cover his forehead and body. His lips curled over his teeth as he ruthlessly loosens my stretched hole.

He’s so fucking strong holding me like this, bouncing me on his dick while I’m bent in half against a wall. All his muscles are working, flexing, and bulging; it’s so erotic, my bouncing, soft cock turns half-hard again.

Even in this vulnerable position, I don’t feel uneasiness, only indescribable lust and something else, something I’m not ready to investigate right now.

“My hole,” he grunts, staring down at our connection, his body vibrating.

I’m fucking buzzing; my body moves up the wall with every pump of his hips, my back scratching on the wood. But I don’t care; more pre-cum pulses from my slit. I grab my dick and start jerking.

“Look at me,” he orders, his dark, deep gaze holding mine as I speed up my strokes, matching the thrust of his hips. My hole suddenly spasms, making him moan, the tendons in his neck tight.

“Milk every drop of cum from my goddamn balls. Now!”

My walls squeeze around him as my back bows upward, and I feel my cum splutter between our bodies. It fucking hurts to come again this close to the first time.

“Yes! Fuck. That’s it. Fucking suck my balls dry!” His cock throbs inside me, and hot jizz fills my ass.

He continues to piston-fuck me through our orgasms until I tell him it’s too much.

“I told you, Red. I need to fill this pussy full. So. Take. My. Dick. All of it. Fucking feel me,” he says breathlessly, moving us toward the table.

Is he trying to kill me?