82

AURORA

“You hold my life, and my daughter’s life, in your hands.”

Lucian’s words haunt me over the next few days, right into the spring warmth of March, which chases away most of the cold winter snow. The image of Lucian on his knees, spilling his deepest, darkest secret to keep me, flashes into my mind every time I take a moment to myself.

I can’t escape it, and I shouldn’t.

Would he still feel the same if he knew I was a liar? That most of what he explained to me about the Bratva, I already knew? Would he kill me?

Never did I expect Lucian to be scared of losing me, even if it is only for the benefit of his daughter, but the lines are blurred now. We slept together, and that changed things enough that he placed me in a position of deeper trust and told me everything about his daughter. He still thinks of me as an ordinary woman swept up in the chaos of the Bratva and a completely unwilling participant in things I shouldn’t want to know.

Only, I’m Bratva, too, if I believe everything my mother tells me. And now I know his secret—a secret my mother will kill for. Like the good daughter she trained under her care to make people trust me and spill their deepest secrets, I should tell her. I should have called her the moment Lucian left my room that night.

This is the kind of secret she’s hungry for. The kind that would destroy Lucian.

I should tell her and let her carry out her desire to destroy the family that made her own childhood so horrific.

But I couldn’t.

I couldn’t then, and three days later I still can’t.

It’s a betrayal I can’t stomach and the core of my loyalty wavers.

Lucian’s given me space to process and think, which has been amazing because for a day or two I was certain I would spill my own secret the moment I saw him and that would definitely ruin everything.

I need a plan, but my mind keeps drawing blanks.

Closing my eyes, crisp spring air fills my lungs. Birdsong fills the air as a watery sun bakes down on the garden, drawing flowers into bloom and teasing us with how gorgeous summer is going to be. Selene’s laughter fills my ears, and in the distance, the wind chimes near the back door tinkle as the last cold breeze of winter darts through the garden.

It’s hard to believe there was a terrible snowstorm a couple of weeks ago that started all of this.

“Aurora!”

Opening my eyes, Selene sprints up to me with her curls flying and her cheeks pink from exertion and cold. “Yes?”

“For you!” Selene thrusts a slightly withered but delicately crafted flower chain into my hand and then sprints away again toward the guard she’d roped into find the prettiest flowers. Petals tickle my fingertips and my heart clenches painfully as if it’s trapped within a fist.

She’s so sweet, and she’s the main reason that I can’t make a decision. I’m torn between loyalty to my mother and protecting a child who isn’t mine.

Sliding the flower chain onto my wrist, I huddle a little further into my coat and eye Selene. She pointedly scolds the guard for not following her very exact instructions, which brings a warm smile to my face as my thoughts turn cold.

She isn’t Lucian’s child. He rescued her out of guilt and has been making it up to her every day for the last six years. He told me because he trusts me, and he likes me. Orion likes me too; that much is clear yet here I am.

The real snake in the grass.

Honestly, it’s hard to believe that Selene isn’t his child given how much they look alike. The same golden skin, the same dark hair and hazel eyes. Is his upbringing as a hit man any different from my upbringing as a spy? Sometimes, I wonder if that’s the only reason my mother even had a child.

Speaking of the devil, my phone blares into life and I check it immediately in case it’s someone important. My mother’s ID flashes across the screen with her umpteenth call. My nerves flutter like butterflies in my gut, and I hit ignore.

I can’t talk to her until I’m certain what I’m going to do.

Another bitter breeze blasts past my shins. It’s getting colder and the sun is sinking lower.

“Selene!” I call softly, rising from the wooden bench and stamping my feet against the cold. “Time to go inside!”

“I’m not finished,” Selene yells back, the cold held at bay for her due to her rapid running around.

“Well, your friend can finish up, okay? Let’s go inside where it’s warm, wash your hands and we’ll see about dinner.”

Selene straightens up and turns to me, a challenge in her eyes but just as I prepare for an argument, she relents.

“Don’t break them,” she snaps at her guard, then she stomps up to me and slides her hand into my waiting palm. “You’re wearing it!”

“Of course I am.” Leading her back inside, I twist my wrist slightly so she can see it all. “I’m going to treasure it as long as they stay alive.”

“Wait, they’re going to die?” She gazes up at me with wide, sad eyes.

“Oh honey. Yes, because they’re not attached to the ground anymore. Once you pluck a flower, there’s no going back.”

Her face falls, then her brow pulls together. “Next time I’ll use rocks.”

Laughter floods up at the thought. “Alright, I look forward to my rock bracelet.”

Inside, the warmth is inviting. Ushering Selene in, I close the door but just as I’m about to take off her coat, someone in the kitchen catches my eye that I don’t recognize. Given everything that’s happened these past few days—hell, these past few weeks—my heart jumps into my throat.

“Hey!” I bark, positioning Selene behind me. “Who are you? What are you doing?—”

I barely finish before the person turns around and a wave of foolishness washes over me.

Cassian stands before me, looking completely different from when he pinned me to the floor. It hits me—this is the first time I’ve seen him washed, clean, and in dry clothes.

He looks incredible—nothing like the shell of a man from a few nights ago. It seems his new diet and plenty of rest are quickly having effects.

His long, white-blond hair drapes softly across his shoulders like a cotton curtain, reaching just below his shoulder blades. His tan skin is flooded with color, lacking the gray tint from when we first met. Slim dark brows angle sympathetically over a pair of crystal clear stunning blue-green eyes and the dusting of pale stubble across his chin almost looks like glitter. The buttons of his black silk shirt strain against his muscular chest and one sleeve is ripped at the elbow to sit neatly above his cast.

“I’m so sorry,” Cassian says in his deeply silky voice that drips like honey. “Lucian told me you would be helping me with my recovery and I wanted to come and talk to you about it.”

My mouth snaps closed. “Oh. Right. Of course.”

Holy shit.

“I’m Selene.” She slips from my grasp and skips forward, holding out one hand for him. “Aurora said you're her friend.”

Cassian drops to his haunches, bringing him more to her level and my eyes catch the way his muscular legs bulge for freedom within his jeans.

“Did she now?” There’s a playful glint in his eye when he looks up at me, then he takes her hand and shakes it. “I’m Cassian.”

“What happened to your arm?” She immediately begins to investigate it, running her fingers over the cast. “Was this when you hurt your head?”

“Yes,” Cassian replies easily. “I took a really bad tumble because…do you want to know why?”

My heart jumps slightly, wary of what details he will give her.

Selene nods.

“I forgot to tie my shoelaces.”

Selene gasps loudly and spins to face me. “Is that true?”

“Oh yes.” I nod solemnly, fighting to keep the amusement from my voice. “That’s why I always ask you to check. It’s very dangerous.”

“That’s so silly,” she says. “Can I have a drink?”

“Of course.” Unzipping her jacket, I scoop Selene up and place her on a stool, then move to the fridge in search of some juice. Cassian lingers like a warm shadow—and while I’m used to Orion doing the same thing, there’s something different about Cassian’s presence. It’s like I need to keep my eye on him at all times, though I can’t work out if it’s because of suspicion or curiosity.

“Orange?” I offer and Selene nods. “You want any?” Offering to Cassian is just polite but he declines.

“I don’t mean to intrude on your time with Selene, I was just hoping you could tell me how you think you could help me?”

That sentence could have been incredibly condescending, but something about Cassian’s soft delivery makes it much nicer. He’s so beautiful, in body and voice, that I briefly wonder if I’m dreaming again.

“I have some training dealing with trauma of all kinds,” I explain, pouring Selene’s drink and setting it down. “Back when I was studying, before I settled on what I actually wanted to do, I dabbled in therapy which actually pairs well with childcare if you think you’ll be around kids in pain.”

“Ah, so you think I am a child?”

“No!” I chuckle and warmth beads the back of my neck. “Far from it, but from everyone else here, I’m probably the only one that stands a chance at helping you. Since um—” I glance at Selene. “Since outside help is off the table. Besides, I’m your rescuer, right, so it’s only fair I help you put the pieces back together.”

“My rescuer huh?” Cassian’s eyes slowly drift down my body, not that there’s much to see since I’m still wearing my coat, then they dart up to meet my eyes and the force of his look sends me slightly off balance. “I look forward to it.”

With a wink that’s far too sexy for his own good, Cassian departs. Heat cascades over me from head to toe and I bite back a sigh.

“Your face is red again,” Selene grins over the edge of her glass.

I shoot her a playful glare. “You gotta stop pointing that out.”

Cassian’s wink taunts me for the rest of the day. Every time I play it back in my mind, heat crawls down my spine, and I'm hopeless by the time night falls. Throwing myself into the shower, I cling to the hope that washing away the dirt of the day will also wash away the lingering warmth, but it doesn’t. If anything, the water running over my body makes it worse because each droplet becomes the lingering touch of Orion or the heat of a kiss from Lucian.

Amidst the water and steam, my fingers take on a mind of their own and before I know it, they’re inside of me as I writhe against the tile wall. My eyes close and Orion melts into the shower with me—without his glasses. Each thrust of my fingers are his fingers. Each grind of my palm against my clit is his palm, desperate to make me feel good. It’s working. He holds me close and kisses my neck, lightly biting into my shoulder. He brushes my hair away from my face, tells me I’m beautiful, and thrusts his fingers so deep that a gasp punches deep out of my chest.

Then he pulls back and it’s not Orion, it’s Lucian. He kisses me hard, leaving my lips aching and grinds against me with his thick cock dragging across my thigh. His lips tease my earlobe, then he whispers a stream of filth in my ear; all the things he wants to do to me.

“I want to take you apart, Aurora. I want to spread you wide and fuck you so hard I can see my cum leaking out of you. I want to make sure you can’t walk once I’m done with you, and you’ll wear my bruises with pride. You won’t be able to move without your pussy missing the thickness of my cock?—”

My legs give out and I slide down the wall, panting as the fantasy consumes me. Water pours onto my breasts, so I angle my torso slightly so that droplets impact down on my nipples. An ache builds in my wrist as I work my fingers deeper inside myself, rolling my hips down onto my palm at the same time.

Then it’s Cassian who lifts his head from my pussy, my juices clinging to his chin, and he winks at me. Then he’s on top of me, pinning me down like he did in the kitchen with the promise of not letting me go until he’s tasted every inch of me.

It’s too much.

My muscles turn to iron when my orgasm hits, and I muffle my pleasure-filled cry by slamming my other hand over my mouth.

As I come, as waves of carnal lust crash over me, it’s not just one man in my mind but all three.

Lucian, Cassian, and Orion all around me, fighting for the best position to fuck me.

Just that thought brings a second orgasm crashing through me before the first is even over and I slump, utterly spent and exhausted, against the tiles.

Fuck.