Page 49

Fitz

My suggestion about taking my baby girl out worked. I was a little shocked that the rest of them took it, but lately, they’ve been listening to me a lot fucking more. Maybe there’s something to this being a mature adult shit?

Nah.

As convenient as it is to get my way, I don’t want anyone assigning me a bunch of responsibilities because I’m growing up or whatever. I’ll reserve my knowledge drops for when it benefits me the most and is least likely to earn me a bunch of mind-numbing work. That’s much more me, anyway.

Pulling up to the front steps of the admissions building on my Vyrus Alyen, I sit back to watch for her. I wanted to visit with my baby girl while she got dressed, but Chess insisted that a proper date wouldn’t happen if I did. He was probably right, but that doesn’t lessen my excited tics as I do the one thing I truly suck at: waiting.

Patience may be a virtue, but it’s one of the many I don’t possess.

The one downside to winning the conversation the other night was my unwilling election to spokesperson. I’ve been telling our girl that I want to share her with the group forever, but she doesn’t believe me. My one assignment for the evening is to convince her she should formally date all of us—a feat that won’t be easy since those other morons have been holding out on her.

I don’t know why my friends have such deep emotional shit going on inside of them and refuse to say it out loud. We’re the tippity-top of Apex staff society and any of the females here would cut off a toe to be chosen as the center of our cream puff.

Why wouldn’t Delores?

We’re hot, rich, and eager to make her scream. Okay, I am, and the others need a little push to get past their hang-ups, but that doesn’t make my statement less true. Growing up with Felix means I’m well aware of his skill in the bedroom and I can’t imagine the other two are older than dirt with no fucking skills. Together, we make that three-fingered doucheweasel look like the participation prize in a school science fair.

“Ooh! We’re taking your bike? Can I drive?”

The excited squeal of the girl in question pulls me out of my thoughts and I turn to look as she approaches. I purposely kept our transportation secret to see what ass-hugging outfit she’d wear and how hard it would make my dick to see it straddling my other baby.

Of course, she could wear a potato sack and my cock would salute, but who am I to quibble?

Both parts of me are pleased as fuck to see she’s clad in an alluring mash-up of her usual tight leather or sinfully short skirts. Her rainbow locks are gathered in two space buns that pull half her hair off her face while the rest cascades over her shoulders onto the bad ass leather jacket she’s sporting. Under it is a tiny black dress short enough to ruffle around her thick thighs in a tempting ripple.

Baby Girl has legs to her neck and the knee-high ‘fuck me’ raver boots only accentuate her assets.

I may fucking die of a boner before we get there, but if so, what a way to go.

“Do I look okay? Cori said I should still be me, but get a little fancy. Rufus suggested some crazy contraption that I was sure would get me kicked out of a nice restaurant and you said that’s where we’re going, so…”

Her nervousness is adorable, especially since it’s taking every ounce of control I have not to bend her over this bike and fuck her until everyone on campus knows she’s mine.

I blink as that thought makes my tiger push at my skin, shaking my head to clear it before I kick the stand out. Dismounting, I walk over and pick her up, spinning us around for a moment as I look at her sparkling eyes. That weird feeling of possession rears its head again and I whip my head around to snarl at two fifth-year assholes checking out her ass from the lawn. Those little shits will have to wait, though. My girl needs me.

“You look fucking fantastic, baby girl. In fact, I may have to take some eyeballs before the night is through, so make room on your body part souvenir shelf.”

Hell if I know if she has one, but when in Rome…

Her eyes widen, and she smacks my chest lightly. “Shhhh. Todd’s parents were furious about that, and no one knows about my trophies. If they find out, I’m even deader meat than before. Keeping them secret meant they couldn’t get reattached, you know.”

My jaw drops open as I set her on her feet. “You have a fucking severed body part collection shelf? For real?”

Every time I think she can’t get any sexier, she surprises me.

“Well, not really a collection, because only the three fingers, but… I figured it’s possible more will come. It’s your M. O.” Her cheeks turn bright pink and I have to count down from fifty to keep my animal in check.

I grab her hand, needing to put a little space between us to maintain control. Once I lead her to the bike, I throw a leg over and look at her with a feral smirk. “I’m falling down on the job, baby girl. I owe you some gruesome tokens of my affection.”

Hand to Hera, her eyes goddamn sparkle at that.

She takes the helmet from me, mounting my bike like a pro as she asks, “Where are we going, anyway? Cori seemed to think it was fancy and I have to assume someone dropped her a hint.”

Chuckling, I shrug. “Chess loves to gossip. We’re going to The Jade Sceptre. It’s one of the closest Khan owned places to us.”

I feel her tense up and I rev the motor for a second before grinning over my shoulder. “Relax, baby girl. Being in public at a family place is a good thing. It will show the sheep we’re serious.”

“Okay, Fitz. I trust you,” she replies as she wraps her arms around me.

Gunning the motor, I take off into the night as I realize how fucking painful this trip is going to be. Then I remember her bright smile, and it makes my gut flutter.

Worth it.

The Jade Sceptre has a six month waiting list and a line down the block.

Dolly bites her lip as I park my bike in front of it, tossing my keys to a valet with a snarl. I’m sure she thinks we’re going to get turned away or challenged, but neither will happen unless someone wants to die. I’ll walk into any of our places any fucking time I want or I’ll send my father pieces of his henchmen in separate boxes for months.

Even he isn’t stupid enough to cut Felix and me off from the family perks. That kind of anger breeds rebellion, and so far, his crooked shit hasn’t been retaliated against. Pissing us off more would be foolish.

So I take her hand, walking up to the podium with a toothy grin at the small cat working it. It might be a caracal, but regardless, the flunky recognizes me immediately. His naturally lined eyes widen, and he gestures for the bouncer to lift the rope immediately.

“Prince Fitzgerald,” he says in a hushed whisper.

My girl looks at me, giggling a little at the formal moniker. I narrow my eyes at the idiot and growl, “Enforcer to you, moron. And give us the royal table, even if you have to kick someone out.”

“Aw, but I like Prince Fitzgerald. It makes you sound so…”

“Ridiculous?” I grumble. “My father has a thing for history and, being the oldest, Felix and I suffer for it.”

She bats her lashes as she snuggles my arm against her breasts, whispering, “I want to know. Please?”

Shaking my head, I grin down at her as the snooty maitre’d leads us to a booth in the back that looks fit for a king. “Only if you tell me your middle name. I couldn’t find it in your files.”

“Fitz!” she hisses. “I’m not telling you; it’s embarrassing.”

I shrug and wink as I let her scoot into the booth before me, giving the host a glare when he seems like he’s going to touch her. “Price of admission, baby girl. Show me yours and I’ll show you mine.”

Once the fox shifter slinks off, she gives me a little smirk. “We’ve already played that game.”

Laughter escapes me before I can stop it and I throw an arm around her as I scope out the dining room. I see several local goons and quite a few mini-bosses, plus some tigers who would throw themselves in front of a tank to protect us. That eases my worry about having her away from the school when so many morons seem to think they can threaten what’s mine without consequences.

“Fair, but let’s play another one tonight, shall we?” I pause when a waiter steps up to take the drink order and after I get us drinks, I give her my best princely smile. “Truth for a truth.”

Delores narrows her eyes at me suspiciously. “Where’s the escape hatch?”

“No escape hatch unless you’d be breaching someone else’s confidence. Deal?” I bat my lashes at her, trying like hell to look innocent. I probably look like a demon wearing a pie tin like a halo, but it’s worth a shot.

Sipping the Dr. Pepper, the shifty vulpine slips in front of her. My girl thinks for a moment before nodding slowly. “Okay.”

Brilliant job, Fitz!

“Tell me your middle name,” I say. My eyes dance as I pick up my whiskey, waiting for her to complain.

With an adorable huff, she crosses her arms over her chest, giving me a spectacular view. “Diamond. My name is Delores Diamond Drew, and if you laugh at me, I’m punching you in the junk.”

Not the boys ! I wince a little, rubbing the back of my neck with my hand as I choke back laughter. She’s right; it’s stupid as hell, but she didn’t choose it. Her dumbass mother did, and that’s not her fault. “Your turn, baby girl.”

“Now I want your full name, asshole. I know it must be bad because you get cranky when people use even your whole first name.”

You have no idea, little bunny.

I sigh and lean in, looking into her eyes. “I’ll whisper it, only for you to hear because it’s ridiculous. I can’t even get monogrammed shit because my dickface father wanted us to sound regal.”

“Okay.” Her face is full of glee, and it makes my chest hurt to look at her.

“Fitzgerald Ulysses Castor Khan.”

It only takes her a minute, but she slaps her palm over her mouth before the giggles can escape. She looks at me with renewed softness, despite the laughter she can’t quite control. When she finally locks it down, she lets out a long breath. “Oh, Fitz. I’m sorry.”

“It could be Chester Cheetah or Felix Ivan Nestor Khan,” I drawl with a satisfied smirk. “My brothers don’t have it much easier, unfortunately.”

That sends her into another round of laughter that has her wheezing, and although I’m going to get my ass kicked, I can’t stop. I want to make my girl look like this all the fucking time, even when we’re not naked. The pure joy on her features has my entire body buzzing with happiness; it’s damn near intoxicating.

“Do the others know?” she asks when she has control again and I shake my head. “I mean, they know mine and Chess. Felix is fucking vicious in keeping his under wraps.”

The mischievous look on her face tells me that information will probably get her a nicely warmed ass in the future, but that’s a future Dolly problem. I’m merely a purveyor of information. “My turn.”

“Yes. You get two because ‘fuck’ and ‘fink’ are worth it.”

“Ooh. Fairness is sexy, baby girl.” I take a deep breath, hoping the humor has warmed her up enough to broach this shit. “Do you like all of us? Like sexy times and such like us?”

Her eyes widen and her entire body tenses against mine. It’s silent for a long time—or it feels like it—and she swallows hard. “All of you? Like you and Chess and Felix and Aubrey and Rennie?”

I nod, tilting my head as I run my fingers through her hair. “Yes, baby girl. All of us.”

Dolly chews her lip for a minute, looking at her hands as she fiddles with the folded napkin in front of her. “I… I mean, I like everyone and um, I would like to get to know?—”

Rolling my eyes, I grasp her chin and turn her face towards me. “No escape. Do you like all of us or not?”

“Yes,” she whispers as her eyes meet mine. There’s fear in them, as if admitting she desires more than one of us will get her in trouble with me.

No fucking way.

My hand slides down to her neck, pressing lightly as I smile. Her breath hitches as I hold her in place and I make a mental note that she might have a few darker kinks to explore when the time is right. “Good girl. See? That wasn't so hard, right?”

Felix will lose his goddamn mind when I tell him.

“What’s the other question?”

This time I inhale slowly, hoping the important task they have assigned me won’t freak her out. “Would you consent to dating all of us if we asked? Just us and just you, baby girl. No one else is invited.”

Her pulse thumps under my hand and I brush a thumb over it lightly before tipping her head back more, so she has to keep looking at me. The question hangs in the air and I wait, allowing her to process it without pressure. Her tongue darts out to wet her lips and I bite back a groan.

I may not make it through this damn dinner. I hope there’s a nice fucking bathroom.

“You’re asking for… everyone? Even Felix?” she finally asks.

Nodding, I give her a gentle smile. “I know. Chess would have been a better choice because he’s got the words, but he’s so damn jumpy around you, baby girl. You make him feel shit he’s never felt before and it’s taken him a while to get a grip.”

“Is this just because you want to protect me? I’m not a weakling, you know, and no one has to put their… claim… on me to keep me safe. I don’t want that.”

Shit. Now she thinks we’re doing this out of pity, but little does she know none of us does anything for people we don’t want to.

I shake my head and grin. “Trust me, baby girl. While we want to protect you, there’s not an altruistic bone in most of our bodies. Boners, however, seem to be a different story since you hopped onto campus.”

That earns me a little giggle and her cheeks heat as she looks at me again. “Then… okay, but I have conditions.”

“Driving a hard bargain, eh? What are these conditions? I have to know before I agree to anything or my twin will murder me.”