He meant the Brotherhood men, specifically Kipton, Malcolm, Pierce, and King Winston. Grey didn’t talk about them often, and every time he did, the air around us thickened with tension.
I placed the dress back on the bed. “I figured they would be.”
He took a step toward me and held my stare. “They won’t touch you.” His eyes darkened. “I’ll make sure of it.”
I gave him my most confident smile, even though my heart was racing at the thought of being in the same room with all four of them again. “I know.”
Perfectly dressed dinner guests gathered in small clusters all around the room. Some sat at linen-covered tables decorated with colorful floral arrangements and fine china. Servers moved from group to group with silver trays of fancy food and others with trays of champagne.
I made my way around the room, greeting every guest with a smile.
“You did a beautiful job, Lauren. Everything is immaculate,” one woman complimented me.
Lauren. I was never going to get used to that name.
And I didn’t do anything. Mrs. McTavish did. I suppose she was the real lady of the house.
I paid careful attention to the queen and Grey now that I knew their secret. No one else may have noticed their stolen glances, but I did. I wondered if she knew how he still felt, if he ever spoke to her, if he ever touched her. If he went off in a jealous rage every time the king put his hands on her. If he took her in the bathroom, pushed her against a wall and shoved his fingers in her cunt to prove it belonged to him and only him.
Then I blinked back tears when I realized I wasn’t really wondering about Grey at all. I was simply missing Lincoln.
The secrets reminded me of what we had.
“You look comfortable in your new life,” a familiar voice said to the back of my head.
My stomach dropped and fear crawled up my throat.
Kipton.
I focused on looking forward. “I guess prison suits me.”
He laughed, a single, loud, arrogant sound. “Is that what you call all of this?”
In some ways, yes. But over the years, I’d grown comfortable here. I suppose that was what people did when they had no other choice.
I’d adjusted. Just like Mrs. McTavish said I would.
“I was sure Grey would have broken you by now,” Malcolm Huntington’s voice boomed on the other side of me, making me flinch. He trailed a fingertip up the side of my neck, sending bile straight up my throat.
I swallowed it back down before I threw up all over his expensive shoes. Knowing these two men, they’d make me lick it off.
“Sorry, gentlemen, my mother never taught me to share my toys.” Grey walked up and wrapped his arm around my waist.
Malcolm dropped his hand. “You’re going soft on us, Van Doren.”
The king walked up, and Grey shifted his gaze between him and Malcolm. “Well, we don’t all share the same fucked-up tastes as the two of you.”
What was that supposed to mean?
Kipton grabbed a handful of my hair in his fist and pulled my head back. “What would happen if I told her to get on her knees and suck my cock?”
Grey tensed beside me but his expression remained calm. “IfI agreed to share, she would get on her knees and suck your cock.” He ran his fingertip along the side of my face. “She listens to me.” His fingers moved to grip my chin as if to make a point, even with Kipton’s hand still in my hair. “Onlyme.”
This was brutal Grey, the beast within, the man who terrified me and made me feel safe all at the same time.
I kept staring forward, praying they hadn’t noticed the change in my breathing or the way my pulse thrummed in my veins.
Kipton leaned in next to my ear, not even caring that Grey was still standing here holding my chin in his fingertips. His grip in my hair tightened so hard my scalp ached. “He won’t always be around to protect you.” He let go of my head with a jerk. “He’ll have to turn his back at some point.” He moved in front of me, a sinister grin spread across his face as he moved his focus to the queen.Did he know about her and Grey?It sounded a lot like a threat. “And when he does, you’re all mine.” He glanced from Malcolm to Winston. “Maybe I’ll let everyone have a turn.” His gaze trained on Grey. “My mother doesn’t give a fuck if I share my toys.”
Grey dropped my chin and glared at Kipton. “It seems you’ve forgotten who you’re dealing with.” He moved his gaze to King Winston. “Perhaps it’s time to remind you.”
When I was a kid, I always thought of monsters as scary things with ugly faces. It turned out, most of them were just humans.