Page 29 of A Dove To Break (The Dove Institute Collection #1)

“Yeah. I… I don’t know what happened. I panicked and didn’t even realize it. I’m sorry,” I say before looking at Adrian, who is sitting beside us. “Adrian, I’m sorry.”

“It’s okay. I’m sorry I triggered you,” he says, leaning over to gently kiss me. When I pull back, Brent grabs my face and kisses me hard, making Fiona gasp loudly.

“Why is that hot? Is that not hot? Fuck, I wish I had a brother. I’d grind on my brother too if he looked like him,” Fiona says. Adrian moves the blanket off me right as Brent grabs my bare ass and pulls my hips against his. “Oh sweet baby Jesus, I’m gonna come!”

Adrian, Brent, and I burst out laughing as I move to sit beside Brent. Fiona is wide-eyed but grinning. “I’m not biologically related to Brent,” I say. “Turns out, Edward stole or bought me when I was little.”

“Oh, thank God! I was going to tell you not to let him come inside you, or your kid might come out fucked up.”

“That’s insensitive,” I laugh.

“What? Why would anyone consensually breed with their sibling?” she asks. “Anyway. I love this.”

“You talk a lot,” Adrian says to Fiona with a teasing smile.

“And you bitch a lot,” she quips, making Adrian laugh heartily.

“As awesome as this is,” Brent says. “We should get going. We can talk in the truck.”

“Oh! Come on. I brought you clothes,” Fiona says as she jumps up with a bag in her hand to drag me down to the guest bathroom. When I shut the door, she hugs me. “I’m so glad you’re okay! How do you feel?”

“Eh. A little sore,” I say.

“I bet. You look fucked up, girl,” she says.

“Ouch,” I laugh.

“Have you looked in a mirror, babe?” she asks, eyeing me suspiciously before pushing me toward the sink.

“Oh fuck!” I say loudly. “Oh my God!”

“Seconds later, the door comes open. “She’s okay. She hasn’t seen herself until now,” Fiona says.

Most of the white has been replaced with a blood-red hue, like someone poured wine onto my skull. There are visibly broken blood vessels in my eyes. Dark purple and black bruises wrap around my throat, and there are small red dots on my face, heavier around my eyes and lips.

“What the fuck?!” I say, stuck in a state of shock. Fiona turns me around and starts dressing me as I stare off into space.

My throat is sore, but I feel pain differently after being whipped bloody so many times growing up. I knew it was bad, I almost died, but I didn’t think I looked like this . I look fucking possessed.

“Hey,” Adrian says, cupping my cheek. “Whatever you are thinking right now… You are wrong.”

“I look hideous," I say blankly. “I can’t go into public looking like a freak.”

“You can and you will,” he says simply. “Would you like to know why?”

“Why?” I ask with a sigh.

“Because hiding means that you have something to be ashamed of. You have absolutely nothing to be ashamed of, because you did nothing wrong. You did not ask to be strangled almost to death. You didn’t ask to be violated your entire life.

You didn’t deserve anything that happened to you, so you are going to keep your head held high and own it.

You do not give them any more power than they have already stolen. Okay?”

“Yes, sir,” I say.

“Also… don’t call me sir. The only time I ever want you to address me that way is if I’m about to fuck you. You are my equal, Alania,” he says.

“What if she wants to call you Daddy?” Fiona asks, and I laugh.

“Okay. You can call me Daddy,” Adrian says with a grin before kissing me.

“Then you have to call me Mommy,” I say, matching his smile.

“Okay, Mommy. Let’s go,” he says, smacking my ass.

“I’ll just stay the brother,” Brent laughs. “Adrian can call me Uncle.”

“Yeah, right,” Adrian laughs.

“Oh shit!” Brent shouts as he spins and hugs Adrian.

“What is happening? I’m lost,” Fiona says. I look at Adrian, and he nods but waves us all out of the bathroom.

“Adrian is bisexual. So is Brent,” I say. “They’re both very good boys.”

“Goddamn it, that’s hot!” Fiona says as we step out of the house. “Raul, are you Bisexual?”

“Sure am,” he says. Adrian stops and turns to him, visibly confused. Raul laughs and pats his shoulder. “At least I know now why you never brought it up again.”

“What are you talking about?” Adrian asks.

“Truck. Come on,” Brent says, opening the back door and pointing. Fiona sits up front, and Adrian pulls me into the back before Raul gets in beside me. With Brent driving, Fiona up with him, and Raul back here, I’m confused. I ignore that and instead listen to Adrian and Raul.

“What are you talking about?” Adrian asks.

“Adrian, buddy. You remember in college how we shared a dorm room?” Raul asks.

“Yeah?” he replies.

“You and I got absolutely trash drunk once and stayed in to hang out,” Raul explains. “Half of the time we were drunk, we were fucking.”

“You’re lying,” Adrian says in disbelief. “Really? I don’t remember that.”

“I fucking remember,” he laughs. “I didn’t shit right for a week.”

“Valid,” I say, and he smirks at me.

“It started with us talking about Edgar. You got upset, and I, in my infinite wisdom, offered to suck you off to make you feel better. And you said, and I quote, ‘ If you swallow my cock, I’ll let you take my ass.’ ”

“Damn. So I didn’t take his ass virginity?” Brent asks.

“Afraid not, buddy,” Raul laughs and looks back at Adrian. “I sucked you, and you violently throat-fucked me.”

“Also valid,” I say.

“See? She can verify,” Raul chuckles. “I fucked you, you fucked me. We fell asleep and never spoke of it again.”

“Well, goddamn, Raul,” Adrian says. “I don’t know what to say to that.”

“You don’t have to say anything, Adrian,” Raul says. “I’m proud of you for facing all of this, by the way.”

“I don’t know if I am,” Adrian sighs. “Feels like a death sentence.”

“You aren’t Edgar, man. This is a different time, and we have far more power to fight back this time,” Adrian says.

“Worst case, we can die together,” I say with a shrug. “You can be the one to drive the bus to hell.”

“Silly,” he relaxes as he chuckles before kissing my temple.

“Ah. That reminds me,” Raul says. “Fiona. Why did you put her in that dress?”

“Because I can,” she says simply. I sink into the seat and put my head down, prompting Adrian to lean over and smack the back of Raul’s head.

“Hey, dipshit. Might want to include context to avoid sounding like a dick,” Adrian says.

“Oh fuck. No. That’s not what… fuck, I’m sorry,” Raul says, pulling me into a tight hug. When he pulls back, he looks sad. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to imply anything bad. You are beautiful and perfect. Fiona is just being a teasing little brat.”

“How?” I ask.

“Because last night I told her not to give you anything that showed you off, or I might not get through the day without being inside of you at least once,” he says bluntly, and Fiona giggles in the front seat.

“I appreciate you explaining, but that was very golden retriever of you,” I say.

“What?” he asks.

“It means innocent and wholesome. Docile,” I say, and he frowns.

“We are here. Keep your dick in your pants,” Brent laughs and shifts the truck into park.

“Did you explain everything to Fiona?” Adrian asks Raul.

“I did. I just left out the bio family part for fun,” Raul laughs.

“Ready?” Adrian asks me.

“Yeah,” I sigh.

“Let’s start a fucking war, Little Dove,” Adrian says, offering me his hand.

“Let’s do it!” I say with a smile, finding the confidence I fed him last night.

We all get out and I straighten my dress.

It is a knee-length, pastel pink dress that accents my skin tone perfectly and flows freely down my body.

It hugs my tits, and the neckline dips down to show a generous amount of cleavage.

I have my hair pulled up into a flat clip that lays comfortably against my head.

I can’t fucking stand those claw clips, so when a girl in college showed me these flat ones, I bought three.

My nude heels click against the polished floor as we walk through the building.

I have Adrian on one side and Brent on the other.

Raul and Fiona are behind us, and we all walk with confidence.

We stop at the start of a long hallway, and Adrian pulls a pistol out from behind his suit jacket and pulls the slide back to verify that a round is chambered.

“Expect me to use it,” Adrian says as if to warn me. “When you walk into this room, you are my wife. Our wife. You hold just as much power as we do. You do not submit to them. You do not lower your eyes. They are not your masters. Okay?”

“Okay,” I say with a smile. He kisses me before looking at Brent. I step back, and Brent doesn’t hesitate to grab his face and kiss him.

“Own it,” Brent says softly. Adrian grunts and kisses him again. I look over at Raul, and he looks… jealous?

“You can kiss him too, ya know,” I lean over and whisper to Raul. He smiles and rolls his eyes at me, but steps up when Brent and Adrian pull back. Adrian doesn’t get a word out before Raul kisses him so passionately that it knocks the air out of me.

“Woo. Is it hot in here? Goddamn,” Fiona says, fanning herself.

“Shh,” I laugh.

“This is a war worth fighting, Adrian. I will stand and die by your side,” Raul says before kissing him again.

“Hey,” I hear a man say from behind us. I nearly jump out of my skin and jump away from him so fast. Before I can get too far, Adrian pulls away from Raul and catches me.

“It’s my dad. You’re okay, Little Dove,” he says, kissing my forehead.

“I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean to scare you,” the man says. Adrian turns me around, and he is undoubtedly his father. It makes Adrian look like a copy-and-paste job. With him is a woman who Adrian also shares features with.

“Uh. It’s okay. I’m a bit… unstable. I’m sorry,” I say, bowing my head. Adrian sighs and grabs my chin and lifts my face.

“Head up, Little Dove. You are free now,” Adrian reminds me.

“I am Paulo,” he says, offering me his hand. I hesitantly shake it, but the woman grabs me up in a tight hug. She is so strong for such a tiny woman.

“Ma, don’t break my wife,” Adrian laughs.