Page 156 of Pretty Broken Wings

Then, I shove those thoughts back down. I’m comfortable, and I just want to sleep. Gage and Axel will protect me from anything that wants to hurt me. Oh, and Buddy.

I sit up, trying to look for Buddy.

“She’s here,” Gage says; then I feel something jump up on the bed. It’s her.

With a contented sigh, I settle back down into the warmth. And then I pass out.

CHAPTER SEVENTY-SEVEN

I wake up late the next day feeling like I got the best sleep of my life. I’m warm and comfortable and… safe.

Yawning, I stretch out slowly. I’m in the spare room, and the bed is empty.

I start to remember yesterday. The fucking. The orgasms. The… bed sharing?

I sit up straight. Was that real? Frantically, I search my mind for dreams of being touched. But nothing comes. I feel more rested than I have in a long time.

I relax a little.

Oh my god. I’m starting to… trust them.

The thought makes me both scared and relieved. The kind of relief that washes over my entire body and makes me sink down on the bed.

I’m not sure how I feel about all that. But I do know in this moment, I’m happy.

That happiness doesn’t last long. I go to the kitchen to find a note from Gage saying he has a work thing and he’ll be back. I heard the shower running in the bedroom, so Axel must be cleaning up.

Suddenly, there’s a knock at the front door.

Buddy barks, running to it. I check the peephole and see a mailman walking away. A package.

Holding Buddy back, I open the door and grab the package. It’s addressed to Gage from someplace called Optic Connections.

It takes me a second before I realize what it is.

It’s Gage’s glasses.

For a second, one blissful second, I’m excited for him. Then, everything crashes underneath me.

I’m no longer needed.

I stand frozen, staring at the box.

Gage doesn’t need me anymore.

He has his glasses. He doesn’t need me anymore.

I’m stuck, staring at the box for a while, until Buddy’s cold nose brushes my hand.

I rip my hand up to my chest. The peaceful numbness that I’m so used to is creeping back in.

Buddy boops my leg, brushing aside some of the numbness. I take a step back, trying to get back into that world.

She chases me, stepping on my feet.

I’m no longer needed. Because at its root, being here was a job.

Buddy’s jumping up and down now, thinking the package is for her.