He’d refused to speak to his brother for a week afterward.
But he’d never been afraid of the high board again. Two years later, he’d joined the high school diving team and had been a top diver.
As much as he hated to admit it, he needed to be pushed again. That was the only way to slip through a crack in that mental block that had thwarted him for so long.
But Sam wasn’t going to do it. He’d fucked things up. He’d missed his chance.
With a groan he rolled over in bed, scooted Sasha’s big, furry self over, and tugged the blanket over himself. He hadn’t gotten sleep in a week, but his body was succumbing to the exhaustion now. He couldn’t think about this anymore. He needed to let go, to move on, to accept.
Right. Who was he kidding? That wasn’t going to happen anytime soon. So he did the only thing he knew to do to make the thoughts quiet: he played Mario Brothers in his head like that kid he used to be, watched the little mushrooms get crushed, and fell into a deep, dream-filled sleep.
Which meant a few hours later, he didn’t hear the lock on his kitchen door turn or the hushed voices soothing Sasha or the footsteps that surrounded his bed. He didn’t hear anything at all. Not until six whispered words brushed against his ear. “Hello, there, gorgeous. Time to play.”
Gibson’s eyes flew open at the familiar feminine voice, the sound of Sam mixing in with the dream he was having. He blinked in the dark, disoriented. Unsure whether he was still in the dream or not. But the blinking didn’t help. Blackness enveloped him. Something was over his eyes. “Sam?”
Fingers pressed hard against his lips. “Shh. Alert a neighbor and you’ll pay for it.”
Sam’s voice held threat despite her conversational tone. He tried to reach out for her, but his hands wouldn’t cooperate. Metal jangled. He was cuffed. His heartbeat picked up speed. Oh, shit. It was happening.
Anxiety surged, all systems going on alert. “Sam . . . wait.”
“Get him up.” Some cool edge he’d never heard from Sam had entered her voice. “He’s a risk here with the neighbors so close.”
Rough hands grabbed him. Big hands. “You heard the lady. Time to go.”
Pike.
Which meant Foster was the other guy grabbing him.
Oh, fuck.
They didn’t give him a chance to do anything but cooperate, his hands bound and his legs still half-asleep. They hauled him out of bed, the world feeling like it flipped over in his head at the sudden movement. His bare feet hit the floor. The instinct to fight back welled in him. These were his friends. He’d agreed to this, but he knew what this meant—reality was setting in. Fight or flight beat through him.
When the guys tried to make him walk, he jerked out their grip. “Get your hands off me. Let me talk to Sam.”
The guys didn’t grab him again, but a quick slap hit his face. “I didn’t say you could talk. And you certainly can’t speak to my guys like that.”
The slap wasn’t hard, but it stunned him because he hadn’t seen it coming. And his two best friends had just witnessed him getting hit by a girl. His face burned and it had nothing to do with the slap. What had he been thinking when he agreed to this?
There was some rustling around, but he couldn’t pinpoint who was moving where.
“And you’re not going to need these where we’re going.” Sam grabbed the waistband of his pajama pants and yanked down.
“Sam, wait, no.” He tried to reach for her, stop her. He wasn’t wearing anythi
ng beneath. But she knocked away his bound hands and dragged his pants down.
Cool air hit him and embarrassment burned up his spine. He put his cuffed hands in front of himself. It’s wasn’t like he and his friends had a high level of modesty. Pike and Foster used to share women, so they had seen each other naked. And Gibson had watched Foster scene before at the Ranch. But never had he been exposed in front of them.
“Mistress, please.”
“Begging. Better.” She grabbed the chain between his cuffs and lifted. “Move your hands. No hiding.”
He squeezed his eyes shut behind the blindfold. And jolted when she cupped his balls, as if measuring if he was enough for her. She gave them a little tug, which made his cock take notice. Blood rushed downward.
“Yep, this’ll do just fine.” She released him, leaving him there naked with a growing erection. In front of his friends. “Now turn around and bend over so I can see what else you have to offer.”
“Red.” The word tumbled out, landed hard between them before he even knew it had passed his lips.