CHAPTER2
CASSANDRA
Apollo takes the wheel. Tristan is in the passenger seat, with Oreo on his lap. The dragon shifter rolls both windows down, and the dog pops his nose into the early morning air. He even lolls his tongue out, enjoying the wind. The rest of us pile on the back seat, my legs squashed between Ren and Donatello’s.
Mental note: avoid getting another man into this relationship. The car wouldn’t fit him.
I shake my head, feeling the beginnings of a migraine. There’s just so much going on. With being a wanted criminal and developing powers and being kidnapped, I didn’t stop to digest the relationship thing. Having sex with a bunch of hot men? Sure. This is my wet dream coming true. But there’s more. There are feelings involved, and I’m in love with them. I’m not fucking all of them while only loving one. There are real, legit feelings inside for all of these men. Feelings I’ve never felt for anyone else.
So I guess I have a harem. Is this the correct definition? Wouldn’t a harem be a collection of women under one man? So this might be, what, an inverted harem? A reverse harem? I would Google it if I still had a phone. Feels like forever since I last had one.
Ren leans against the window, reaching out to intertwine our fingers. His gaze turns blurred, lost in the distance as Apollo rushes us down the road, trees racing past. Donatello was lucky this car had shaded windows, but he still carried a jacket around to serve as a head wrap. I sneak a glance at him and, to no one’s surprise, he’s staring at me. His knee brushes mine, the length of his thigh pressed against my leg. Even when we’re both dressed, this sort of electricity passes between us, goosebumps rising on my skin.
I swallow. His eyes pin me to the spot, and my mouth dries. I watch the edge of his irises turn red, something I learned means mostly lust. My body responds in kind, warming to his proximity, until I remind myself this shouldn’t happen. I lean away, pressing my back to the seat and forcing my gaze ahead.
My eyes find Apollo’s through the rearview mirror. There’s apprehension on his face, and he looks back at the road. Everyone’s wearing seat belts this time, so I know he’s not worried about another accident. He’s just worried about me fucking everything up because of my feelings towards Donatello.
And he has a point. I’m also afraid of that. I can’t help but trust the bastard, even after he tried to eat me in the bad way. The memory of his maker telling him to capture me and him willing to obey still hurts, and I avoid thinking about it.
My brain bickers with my heart. In my rational mind, I know I should use whatever help Donatello offers, take advantage of his strength, knowledge and contacts, but not trust him again. That’s the safest choice. My emotional mind, though, just wants to grip onto the possibility of his maker having mind-controlled him.
I need a minute. What wouldn’t I give for a safe place to sit down and just... Digest this entire thing. The powers, the responsibilities, the relationships. There’s just so much going on, and so little time to think it over.
And on this harem note — being the center of this relationship, I am responsible for them. Being the girl who got it all started, with killing the Light Mage and whatnot, I’m twice responsible. I can’t get any of them hurt, much less because I give my heart control of my brain and trust Donatello too soon.
If any of the others gets hurt because I gave him another chance... Fuck, that would kill me.
Gripping Ren’s fingers to ground myself, I sneak another glance at Don. He’s still gaping at me like I’m the most beautiful thing he’s ever seen, and I hate how he’d probably tell me exactly that if I asked him the reason he’s gawking. I missed him so much, and I wish we could just go back to what we had before, but how is that possible?
Apollo drives and drives, and Oreo gets bored and comes to my lap. I rub his belly as he naps. Tristan starts playing with the buttons on the console until Apollo roars at him. Ren decides to break the silence with a song, a deep-throated song about the past and words in the wind that reverberates with every chord in my heart. I lean back, close my eyes, and listen to him until Apollo slows down.
Opening an eye, I search for his gaze in the rearview mirror. “Why are we stopping?” The idea of stopping with so many people chasing us makes my heart pitter-patter, and if that makes me a coward, then I’m a coward. Being kidnapped was so not nice, and I’m not ready for a trip down that specific memory lane.
“Gas,” Apollo replies. “We’re going down and I don’t want to risk it.”
Always responsible. I shoot a smile at him and he smiles back, surely reading exactly what I mean. The boys say I’m their fated mate, as if fate has written our stories, and when I look at Apollo stopping by a gas pump, I can’t help but believe it. Each one of them brings something different to this group. Characteristics I don’t have, abilities I would miss.
Apollo’s responsible. He’s always thinking ahead, always worried about the possibilities. Even when he’s mad, even if he’s the most possessive and the one who gets angry first, he’s the one who thinks of all the details.
Tristan is a rock, no pun intended. The moment Apollo parks, he exits the car and looks everywhere around us, eyes wide as he takes the place in. There’s no one around and the cashier is busy with some customer inside the convenience store, but he keeps an eye out, anyway. He’s always focused on protecting me.
Ren tightens the hold around my hand. He’s my ground, my warmth, my comfort. He consoles me and he warms my heart when I need it the most. “Bathroom?” he asks, always thoughtful.
I nod. “Good idea.”
He slips out first and takes Oreo in his arms so I can exit the car. Once I do, Ren puts the dog back down so he can keep on dreaming. He’ll surely let us know if he needs to use the bathroom. Ren starts off once my hand is on his, and I hear soft footsteps following us.
I look over my shoulder to find Don’s eyes on me. He smiles softly, following us with the jacket over his head. Donatello is the brains of this group, clearly. He knows more about everything. He knows people and places and stories, and he has plans and backup plans and ideas.
Donatello’s the first one who held my hand and helped me out of trouble. Maybe that makes everything hurt way more.
We walk to the corner of the gas station, just out of sight of Apollo, Tristan, and the gas pumps. There is one bathroom, and I’m already afraid of using it. Crap, the number of diseases I could get from here. I curl my lips in distaste, but there’s not much choice, is there?
Ren chuckles, as if reading my mind. “Either this or you’re gonna have to pee on the curb.”
I laugh along, letting his hand go. “Thanks. That convinced me.”
The bathroom is not as bad as I expected, though I’m pretty sure I’d be horrified if I had an UV light. I do my business, my thighs trembling after squatting so I won’t touch the toilet, then I thank all the gods for toilet paper. The mirror over the sink shows me a girl in dire need of changing her ripped and dirty clothes. Prince let me shower, but he never offered me new stuff to wear.