She whipped her gaze to mine as if surprised to be called out so directly.“What else am I supposed to do?”
“Well, I know I sure as fuck don’t want to miss out on what might be our last night.”
She shifted her weight from foot to foot, the discomfort obvious.“I can’t choose,”she signed.
“No one’s asking you to,” Knox said.
“I knew you liked me.” Wade smirked then winked at Knox. I knew the two of them had slept with Hera together, but the comment made me wonder if Wade was just being an asshole as usual or if there was actually something between the two of them.
Before I had to wonder long, though, Brax interrupted. “I’m fine with it.”
Which was one hell of a statement. Out of any of us, Brax was by far the most possessive, the most jealous. If even he was agreeing, well, hell might have just frozen over.
Hera furrowed her eyebrows, then looked over at Kit in question.
Kit let out a soft laugh. “I am far too old to worry about things like jealousy. I wouldn’t give up a night with you, no matter what the circumstance.”
Which meant we were all on the same page.
Well, almost all of us.
Knox walked up to Hera, ignoring the way she backed up until she pressed against the closed bathroom door, caged in by Knox’s larger body. He set his hand on the door beside her but didn’t touch her. “You know what we want, Hera, but it’s up to you. None of us would force you into anything you aren’t comfortable with. So, do you want this?”
“What is this?”Hera asked.
Knox grinned, and an increase in the pheromones he let out drew a groan from every single person in the room. “Thismeans that all six of us will spend the night together. Enough of dancing around the uncomfortable, of trying to hide things, of pretending things are different than they are. Tomorrow will change everything one way or another. Tomorrow, we make a last stand and win or lose, things won’t stay the same. I’ll be damned if I give up a moment with you before that.” He leaned in closer until all Hera would be able to see was Knox’s face. “Tell us yes, and we’ll spend all damned night showing you exactly how we feel.”
I held my breath, surprised to find just how invested I was. I’d slept with Hera plenty of times, but something about this felt different. It felt strange, like putting everything out in the open, like embracing the truth, and I really wanted that.
I wasn’t stupid enough to think tomorrow would go off without a hitch. We couldn’t achieve what we wanted without sacrifice. It meant tonight was our last chance, and I didn’t want to miss any of it. I wouldn’t push Hera, wouldn’t force her into it, but I closed my hands into tight fists as I waited for her answer.
It felt like it took forever, but Hera brushed her lips against Knox’s in a barely-there-kiss before she looked past him, at us, and nodded.
Andboywas that all the foreplay I needed…
* * * *
Knox
Wondering if there was actually a bed large enough for six people was the sort of question I never figured I’d have to think about—yet here I was.
If we survived this all, maybe we’d have to look into one of those huge family beds, ones that would give us the space to actually stretch out.
And somehow, the idea of that didn’t bother me as I would have expected. Even just a few weeks ago, the thought of seeing anyone else touching Hera might have set me off.
What had changed?
Maybe I’d finally realized that what I thought I wanted or needed wasn’t always the truth. I needed Hera, and even if I hated to admit it, I was pretty sure I needed the others, too.
They were annoying sometimes, troublesome always, but they’d become part of my life so quickly that I couldn’t imagine not seeing them anymore, not having them at my back.
Still, I rewarded Hera with a passionate kiss, trying to tell her how proud I was of her bravery. She could have said no, could have run away, but she didn’t.
No, not Hera. If anyone was brave enough to stand before the five of us, it was her.
When we broke apart, she gulped and bit softly at her bottom lip. The questions in her eyes were obvious and beyond adorable.
How will this go?