20. ~Caleb~

"Motherfucker… ungh… yes! Fucking yes!" I roared as Cas pounded into my ass like a madman.

I was sore, my ass almost raw with it, but that just took it to another level for me as pain always did.

My hands were slapped to the tiled wall of the shower, my fingers digging into it for purchase as he fucked me at a deliciously brutal pace, stabbing and abusing that sweet spot deep inside me so fucking incredibly.

My nipples were burning with white-hot pain, blood dripping down all over my pecs from his knife play when he'd first burst into the shower and jumped me.

His soapy hand was fisting my cock with a vibrating force of motion.

Something had ignited inside of him last night after our playtime with Skylar.

After we'd settled her into one of the spare rooms, I'd taken my old room, and just as I'd been about to fall asleep, Cas had come in and pounced on the bed, then started slurping at my cock. After I'd come, he'd disappeared for a few minutes, then come back with a canister of whip cream. He'd rolled me onto my back, slapped my ass to make me present to him, and then he'd hooked his fingers in my hole, spreading it wide as he'd then sprayed the whip cream inside, filling me to the brim. He'd devoured me then, eating and licking every drop out of my ass, before then fucking me and filling me again, this time with his hot cum.

I'd passed out shortly after all the way to morning to find him wrapped around me and deep in sleep.

Or so I'd thought, until I'd gone to take a shower, and he'd jumped on me again merely ten minutes later.

And here we were now with him reaming my ass in that ruthless way he knew I loved and torturing the fuck out of my cock at the same time.

I'd already come once and he'd followed me over and he'd sprayed his cum inside me. Not five minutes later, he'd then fucked it back into me with his cock, making it feel all the more full, even more than it already stretched me usually to accommodate his girth.

His hand left my cock for a moment and he chuckled at the whimper that escaped me.

He reached up and tweaked my burning nipples, sending shocks of pleasure through me. He gathered the blood and smeared it all over his other palm.

"Look down," he commanded.

I didn't even think, I just did it. Hell, the state he had me in, I'd do any fucking thing he asked, no question.

"Fucking shit," I choked as I watched him smear the blood all over my shaft.

"Mmm… yeah," he breathed, licking my neck, then nipping at my jaw, sending sparks of sensation through me. "Your beautiful ass is squeezing my cock exquisitely."

"Cas, fuck," I gasped, watching his hand fist me, mixing all my pre-cum with the blood, the sight driving me out of my ever-loving mind. "I'm coming… ungh… I'm coming for you."

He pushed against the tip with brutal pressure, making me squirm and cry out.

"Not yet."

"Please… I can't… I need to come… I need—"

He slapped his free hand over my mouth, my pleas muffled by his palm.

It had me squirming and twisting as his torment of my cock didn't let up for a moment and he actually stepped up the intensity and furor of his fisting motion instead.

I threw my head back against his shoulder, whimpering into his hand,

"Feel me spilling inside you, all that hot cum filling you up," he growled at my ear.

Oh fuck.

His thrusts became uneven then, and he rolled his hips, grinding deep at a maddening pace.

And then he jerked and shot his cum deep inside my ass.

The sensation was out of this world and as he released my tip, it slammed up against all the rest and had me roaring out into the shower as I came all over the tile, fucking back on him, completely lost to it as the force of my orgasm wrecked me to pieces.

When I finally came down from it, I was panting and majorly out of it.

He slipped from me, making us both groan, and then he was gathering me to him and easing me under the shower, supporting most of my weight, as he started washing me, cleaning me off, while I sank into him, moaning to myself.

By the time he was done and turned off the shower, I was coming back to reality.

He still carried me out of the shower and dried me off, wrapping a towel around my hips, all sweet and caring gestures he always did with me.

Despite his reputation, behind closed doors, with those closest to him, Cas was never shy about showing his feelings, or lavishing us with attention and adoration. Once he allowed somebody close, he didn't hold back. He gave them his all. Considering the dark world he walked in, it made it all the more extraordinary that he could exhibit all of that, that he could feel so deeply and give so much. It was one of the things I most adored about him. Worshipped, actually.

"Jeez, Cas," I said, stumbling in my step on wobbly legs as I tried to make it out of the bathroom. He was there in the next second, a black towel wrapped around him too, his long hair wild and still damp. I smiled as he took my elbow to steady me. "Is that enough now to tide you over?"

"Depends how long we're talking," he said, grinning back at me.

"Two days, I'm thinking."

He reached around with his free hand and playfully squeezed my ass cheek. "Giving your beautiful ass time to recover?"

"Pretty much."

"It doesn't have to be your ass that I take."

I smiled as I took a seat on the foot of the bed, wincing at the soreness of my ass. Before I could even shift my weight to adjust to a more comfortable position, he was there holding out our go-to aftercare ointment.

"Relax on your stomach," he said.

I pulled my towel away then laid down on my silver bedspread, folding my arms and resting my chin on them.

I moaned at the first touch on my skin of his fingers slick with the ointment.

He rubbed it into the spots that needed it the most, knowing so well without me having to say a thing. I grinned to myself as he tried to make it as non-erotic as possible so it didn't work me up again while I was in this sexed-out state.

"Hmm… you do need recovery time. I'm sorry."

"Sorry? For the mind-blowing sex? I think not, Cas. You never have to be sorry for that. And I was all for it as usual, if you recall."

He chuckled. "Oh, I recall. Vividly."

"The four of us coming together last night really worked you up, huh? Or, was it finally coming together with Skylar herself?"

"More than either."

I frowned and peered over my shoulder to find him looking deeply pensive.

"What's wrong?"

He finished with the ointment, then stowed it back in the top drawer of my nightstand. Well, my old nightstand. Although, he hadn't changed a thing since I'd lived here, not a single thing.

"There's been a disconnect lately between the three of us. Having you both move out, you know was intended to give you the opportunity to spread your wings. For you, especially, to live your own life that wasn't so incredibly interwoven with mine. But it's also compromised our brotherhood. So it was nice to come together last night, despite the circumstances. It's just strange that it was another who brought us back to that place."

I pushed off the bed and secured my towel back around my hips. "I'm sorry you've been feeling it so heavily, Cas." And him bringing it up hit me hard, guilt slashing through me too, given what I was working on at the moment. I'd actually planned to tell him about it this weekend, after the fight, but then things had gone sideways. Now, with him bringing this up, that window had been slammed shut. I couldn't do it now, he was already hurting and, although downplaying it, clearly worried about the stability of the three of us as a unit too.

"No matter if we're apart or the distance or time between us, it'll never diminish this connection we share. It was forged in fucking hellfire, there's no breaking it."

He smiled and slid his hands around my waist, pulling me to him. He nuzzled my cheek, then rested his head on my shoulder, and I stroked his long waves.

We stayed that way for a long while, breathing each other in, before we eased back.

"You said distance?" he asked. "What did that mean?"

"A figure of speech."

"Was it?"

"What?"

"Was it just a figure of speech, Caleb?"

Fortunately, before I had to answer that direct question that was kind of dangerous right now, a major distraction threw itself into the fray, as the door flew open and smacked against the wall, the impact making the room damn well reverberate with it.

And then Bastian stormed in and demanded of Cas, "What the hell was that last night?"

"B, what's up your ass? Seriously?"

He ignored me and gestured wildly at Cas. "Showing up at the fight club like that, bringing her here, seducing her, then engineering that foursome?"

"It was you who pushed that foursome," I reminded him. "I had to make you pause, if you remember?"

"I wasn't exactly in my right mind, was I, fucker?"

"What does that mean?" Cas asked, the worry in his voice clear and hitting me down deep, as I then took a moment to see past all the rage coming off Bastian, and to notice how erratic his movements were, and the fact that he looked like a complete wreck at the same time.

He'd pulled on his clothes that he'd left here during our move—a pair of blue jeans and a black V-neck tee. He had the tee on inside out with the fly of his jeans unzipped, and he only had one sock on too.

And then there were his eyes. "Why are your eyes bloodshot?"

Cas brushed past me and took his jaw, examining him.

Or trying to, before Bastian jerked himself free. "I just didn't sleep well last night. Don't try to redirect."

"That's not what I'm doing."

"Then answer my fucking question!"

Cas stepped back and folded his arms over his chest. "What would you like me to address first? The fact that I showed up at the fight venue to put your brother in his place? That I used my standing and presence to go where you couldn't in order to pull Skylar from that despicable situation Damien had trapped her in? That I brought her here for us, because her remaining on the outside is no longer sustainable? That I gave her what she wanted because she begged me to? That I held back in a major way when the four of us played, for you, Bastian? Does that about cover it?"

Bastian stared at him for a moment as he absorbed Caspian's words.

But then he was shaking his head in the next moment. "No. There's more to it."

"I brought her here to get to know her and to bring her into The Jackals."

"You… what? Really?"

He nodded. "It's time. I saw her last night in the ring, she's ready. I've been observing her situation much longer than that also. We all need the outlet that those nightly activities provide more than ever right now."

"And she'll bring a balance to it that we didn't have before," I added.

"In essence," Cas said. He laid his hand on Bastian's shoulder. "She soothes you. But you opening up lately also brings worrisome elements with it. Relaunching The Jackals will help to direct that wild emotion and energy, and to take the edge off, especially with having her there."

"Okay," Bastian conceded, calming. Well, somewhat. There was still a flash there in his eyes and he then growled vehemently, "The rest is off the table now. The original plan? No using her."

"There's no need to use her anymore with me bringing her into the fold now, sweetheart," Caspian assured him.

"Use me for what?"

We all jolted at the sound of the voice.

We'd been so caught up in our heated conversation, thanks to Bastian's rapidly growing unhinged state taking it there, that none of us had registered the shadow falling over the door.

Skylar came into view, obviously having been lurking outside, just out of view.

She was wrapped in a vibrant-blue silk robe that Cas had ordered to the house for her late last night, along with a bunch of clothes and toiletries, so she'd be comfortable here this weekend. As she moved, it rose up on her thighs and it looked like the thin silk was all she was wearing. Mmm. Her hair was pulled into a loose, messy ponytail, just adding to the whole sexy-as-fuck look.

She looked between us, spinning her phone in her hand. "Guys?"

Bastian pulled from Cas and went to her, frantically taking her hands. "How much did you hear? Fuck, were you listening outside this entire time? I'm so sorry. It's not what you—"

"It's okay. Take a breath." She thumbed the open door. "Yeah, I was listening for a little bit. You wanted to use me for something, I already knew that much, and I was trying to figure out what that was to be honest. But I only heard the tail end, just bits and pieces that don't make sense without the whole context."

"And you're not upset about the using part?" Bastian asked, incredulously.

She didn't look the least bit upset. In fact, all I was registering was curiosity.

I smiled to myself. She certainly was another level. Of course she hadn't reacted in such an obvious way. Not her. She didn't see things or the world the same, regular way that others did. She was like the three of us with our warped perspective on things.

"I heard you defending me and I heard King assuring you that using me was no longer on the table." A sheepish look came over her face and she looked out at us from beneath her lashes, her cheeks heating a little as she said, "Besides, after the way the three of you took care of me last night, it was made clear that your intent toward me is far from nefarious." She grinned. "At least now."

With Bastian stunned, she pulled from him and addressed Cas. "You brought me here and asked me to stay because you're ready to show me what you want my participation with, yes?"

"That's correct, love."

"It's obvious at this point that you want my skills as Onyx for something. But there's also something else, isn't there? Another reason why you had your eye on me and had Bastian and Caleb infiltrate my life the moment I set foot in Luxe? It's because when you searched out somebody of my skillset you also came across something else, yes? My association with a certain someone? Jett? Jett Bane?"

We all jolted at her bringing that up herself, right out in the open, after all this time.

Before any of us could respond, she went on, "I know who he is to you. Or, should I say, who his older brother is to you. Elijah Bane, your chief competitor and a thorn in your side. He's also a psychopath, just like Jett." She looked at Bastian. "Not the kind of psychopath I playfully called you, sweets."

Sweets? That was damn cute and it had Bastian grinning for a moment in spite of the difficult subject matter.

"No, Jett is the full-on, irredeemable kind. Dangerous beyond measure and completely unhinged. He's one of the reasons I left my life behind. So, if there's been any worry that I was allied with him, that I see him in any favorable way, I can guarantee that's the farthest thing from the truth." She eyed me. "Those texts you asked me about are from him." She shoved a hand through her hair. "I wanted to handle this myself, but that's no longer an option, because now it could impact the three of you."

"Because we've brought you into the fold?" I asked.

"Not just that. Because of a message I received earlier this morning." She swiped open her phone and held it out.

We all gathered around as she pulled up the message in question.

There was a picture that she showed us first of Bastian pushing her up against her bike down some backroad, devouring her mouth, and a clear shot of his cock buried in her cunt with her pants around her ankles and his jeans shoved down to his thighs.

"Jesus," Bastian said, pissed that she had been caught on display like that. He wasn't the only one. "We were in the middle of nowhere."

"Well, Jett, the slippery shit that he is, obviously had eyes there," she ground out, before showing us the accompanying text.

Unknown Number: I warned you. Now trying to replace me with the city's It-Boy bitch, letting him taste you, mark you, and sink into MY cunt? Lose the boy toy and get on your knees and beg for my forgiveness. Send me a video first of your heartfelt apology, then we'll make it in-person once you've earned my pardon. You won't like the consequences if you disobey. I'll brand you in a much more visible place this time. You. Are. Mine.

His threats were beyond sickening and a growl escaped me.

And Bastian, well if he could spit fire, I was pretty sure he'd be doing that right now. That anger he'd burst in here with, and even what Damien had unleashed in him last night, was nothing compared to what I was seeing right now. He was fucking well shaking with it, his eyes damn well flaming.

But Cas was showing no discernible reaction.

You'd think that would've been a good thing, but with him it was the opposite. It meant he was calculating, planning as he absorbed every little detail. This wasn't just a threat to her, which would've been bad enough, it was to all of us and on so many levels. The fact Jett thought he could come at Bastian too, it would be another level for Cas. He wouldn't stand for that. Ever.

"The rest?" he finally spoke.

Skylar looked out at us, taking in our reactions, and winced. "You're sure you want to see?"

"Yes," Cas responded definitively.

She pulled up the texts, telling us, "This is everything he's sent me since I left."

Unknown Number: The longer you ghost me, the harder I'm gonna go on that tight little cunt of yours, sugar.

Unknown Number: I swear to fuck, I'll make you hurt for me, bleed for me, fucking well cry for me.

Unknown Number: My bad, we both know you'd like that, my little pain slut. I'll have to think of a better punishment, one that doesn't get you off and make your cunt drip.

Unknown Number: This isn't a game you can win, sugar.

Unknown Number: I'm gonna rage-fuck you until you're raw and begging me to show mercy.

Unknown Number: What's that? You don't beg. The way I've heard it, you've gone soft. Gonna be a lot easier to bring you to your knees for me now, make you my good little girlfriend the way it was always meant to be.

Unknown Number: Continue ignoring me while you're in your stubborn phase, but don't think for one fucking second that you can replace me, sugar.

"Jesus Christ," I breathed, once I'd read through them all. "This is beyond obsession."

"And you haven't responded in any way?" Cas asked her.

"No. I didn't want to add fuel to the fire."

"Good." He laid his hand gently on her shoulder. "I need you to tell me everything where your relationship with him is concerned."

She frowned. "Don't you already know?"

"I need to hear it from you."

So he could read her and also weigh her firsthand account to his research to ensure nothing had been missed. And there always tended to be something when an in-person account was missing from research on a person.

Bastian eased her from his grip and wrapped his arm around her. "At least let her wash up and eat first. She clearly came in her panicked after that message, which hasn't given her any time to take care of herself yet."

I saw the urgency of the situation with Cas warring with his care for us and that which was starting to develop when it came to Skylar too after last night.

Bastian didn't know that it went a lot deeper than any of this, what his brother's true crimes were toward us. So I saw Cas containing his reaction so as not to have Bastian suspicious and reading into it. He was nowhere near stable to know about all that yet. Last night had done a lot, brought a ton to light, and one of those things was definitely how on the edge he was right now. I just hoped that getting back down to our work as The Jackals would be enough to help reel him in.

"Yes," Cas said, smiling at Skylar. "Let's take care of you first, love."

She cupped Bastian's cheek and told him, "While I appreciate you being so sweet and thinking about me like that, I actually need to get this out now. It will be the first time I've ever talked about what happened and now I'm there, I have to do it, while I can." She released him and scrubbed her hand over her face, unable to hide her distress. "And then I never want to talk about it again."

My gut twisted. I'd heard such similar words from my sister after what had happened to her, what had been done to her. Despite my attempts, she'd refused to say a word about it, to unload any of it, to purge it.

It had me stepping forward and taking Skylar's hand, urgency I couldn't contain bubbling from me as I told her, "Talk about it as much as you need. No one here is gonna judge you or the circumstances, any of it. No one is gonna think you're weak, a victim, or anything at all close to that. Ever. You're a fighter. You're powerful. You've even given me and Bastian a run for our money. Nothing you could ever tell us will diminish that. It takes nothing away from you. So, talk, get it all out, please, darling."

She looked startled by my words and she clearly wasn't sure what to do with them.

Cas, knowing where my mind had gone, wrapped his arm around me and tucked me into his side. He planted a soft kiss on my cheek, then told Skylar, "I have a compromise."