Page 294 of Pretty Ruthless Monsters: Complete Series

QUINN

For a long moment, no one moves. Nico’s gaze drops to the thin scar across the rings on my chest—their marks crossed out by my own hand. I see the storm of emotions in his eyes—possessiveness, tenderness, and still some leftover pain from that night.

And then there’s something dark and hungry that makes heat pool in my belly.

I glance at Atlas and see that same heat reflected in his gaze as he looks me up and down. His jaw is tight, and the muscles in his throat visibly work as he swallows hard. His hand rests on his thigh, his fingers flexing like he’s fighting the urge to reach for me.

Killian stands perfectly still, the way he always does when he’s feeling something intensely. Only his eyes betray him, burning with a need that I can almost feel in the air between us.

Goosebumps race across my skin, and I resist the urge to cross my arms over my chest. I feel vulnerable but not exposed. I feel seen. Wanted. Chosen.

“Well?” I look at each of them again in turn. “Are you gonna make me ask twice?”

Atlas is the first to break the spell, rising from the couch and approaching me slowly, giving me time to change my mind. Like I would. Like I haven’t been wanting this for too damn long.

“You don’t have to do this now,” he says. “You’re still healing. We can wait.”

I smile up at him and touch his face, tracing the line of his jaw. “Maybe you can,” I tell him honestly. “But I can’t. I could be at death’s door, and the last thing—the only thing—I’d want in this life would be your marks on my skin.”

“If you’re sure…”

“I’ve never been more sure of anything,” I say, meaning every word.

That’s all it takes. His control snaps, and he surges forward, claiming my mouth in a kiss that takes my breath away. His hands cup my face, holding me like I’m something precious even as his mouth takes mine with a hunger that matches my own.

I lean into him, fisting my hands in his shirt. I want more. I need more.

There’s movement behind me, and then Nico is there, his chest warm against my back as his hands slide around my waist. His lips find the sensitive spot where my neck meets my shoulder, and I shiver, caught between them.

“So fucking beautiful,” Nico murmurs against my skin. “Our sexy, stubborn wife.”

Atlas breaks the kiss, his breathing ragged as he stares down at me. His pupils are blown wide, and he blinks like he’s coming out of a dream. “You’re really sure about this?” he asks again, like he’s afraid they’re going to break me or something.

“Yes,” I breathe, arching back against Nico. “I want this. I want you. All of you.”

I don’t hear Killian crossing the room to join us, but I feel his hand slide into my hair, gripping it just firmly enough to tilt my head back. His kiss is different from Atlas’s—more controlled, more deliberate, but no less intense.

When he pulls back, I’m gasping and my lips are tingling from the force of his kiss. “You’ll wear our marks again,” he says. “And everyone will know you’re ours. Forever.”

“Yes,” I nod, feeling Nico’s lips trail down the base of my neck while Atlas steadies me with his hands on my waist. “And you’re mine.”

“Always have been.” Nico’s voice vibrates through me. “Since the first moment I saw you.”

Killian steps back and reaches for the knife but Nico stops him. “Not here. Not like this.”

With a quick nod, Killian seems to understand. He moves forward again, sliding his good arm around me and lifting me off my feet in one smooth motion. I wrap my legs around his waist instinctively and throw my arms around his neck.

But the movement jars his injured shoulder, and he grunts in pain, letting his grip on me falter for just a second.

“For fuck’s sake,” Nico says, reaching out to steady us both. “Put her down before you drop her and add to her injuries.”

Killian scowls, but the pain etched in the lines around his eyes is unmistakable. “I’ve got her,” he insists, stubborn as always.

“You’ve got a bullet hole in your shoulder,” Nico counters, gently disentangling me from Killian’s grasp. “And a dislocated arm that’s still healing. You’re just as bad as Atlas about ignoring your body’s limits when it comes to Quinn.”

Atlas snorts, not even bothering to deny it. “A hundred percent worth it though.”

“Every time,” Killian agrees, reluctantly letting Nico take me.

Nico lifts me easily, cradling me against his chest. His ribs must be hurting too, but he doesn’t show it. There’s nothing but desire in his eyes as he looks down at me.

“Bedroom,” he says. “Now.”

Atlas leads the way, Killian following close behind. I curl against Nico’s chest, perfectly content to be carried, to be taken care of by these men who would kill for me. Who have killed for me.

Nico sets me on the edge of the bed with a gentleness that makes my heart squeeze in my chest. Then they stand before me, these three dangerous, beautiful men.

Each scarred in his own way, each bearing the marks of the lives they’ve lived, the battles they’ve fought. And each of them is mine. All mine.

“Come here,” I say softly, reaching for them.

They don’t have to be told twice. Atlas kneels before me, his hands on my thighs, his eyes locked on mine as he leans in to kiss me again. Nico sits beside me, his fingers trailing down my spine, making me shiver. Killian stands back, watching for a moment before joining us on the bed.

Atlas breaks the kiss, his hands sliding up to the clasp of my bra. “Can I?”

I nod, lifting my arms to help as he removes the last barrier between them and my bare skin. The cool air of the bedroom raises goosebumps across my flesh, but I don’t feel cold. Not with the heat in their eyes as they look at me.

“Those perfect tits,” Atlas exhales, skimming his warm hands down my sides. “Everything about you is fucking perfect.”

I lie back on the bed, letting them look their fill. There’s no shame here, no embarrassment. Just the certainty that I’m exactly where I’m supposed to be, with exactly who I’m supposed to be with.

Nico stretches out beside me, propped up on one elbow. “Do you trust us, mia cara?”

I meet his gaze, then look at each of them in turn. “With my heart. With my life. With everything.”

My panties come off next, leaving me completely naked for them. Nico flashes a wickedly sinful grin as he takes my wrist and nods for Killian to do the same.

“Fuck,” he groans. “The things I want to do to you.”

He kisses my wrist, then reaches down with his free hand to unfasten his belt. In a matter of seconds, he’s pulled it free and is using it to bind my wrist to the headboard. Killian catches on quickly, doing the same with my other arm.

Atlas joins in to bind my ankles to the foot of the bed, and my heart is beating faster by the second. There’s nobody else in the world I’d trust to tie me up like this, but I love the feeling of being at their mercy.

Only them though. Only ever them.

“Fuck,” Killian growls, reaching out but stopping just before he touches my breast. “I could look at you like this all fucking night.”

Atlas runs a hand up my thigh, making me suck in a sharp breath as he gets teasingly close to my eager, needy pussy. “I don’t think I can wait that long.”

Good.

I don’t want them to wait.

“Naked,” I say, looking around the bed at each of them. “I can’t be the only one naked right now. I need you guys to lose the rest of those clothes and fuck me.”

Nico shrugs out of his shirt before I’ve even finished speaking, then starts on his pants. “You don’t have to tell me twice.”

Atlas stands and does the same, stripping down to his boxers. He’s already hard, and his eyes are filled with the promise of everything he wants to do to me.

I let my gaze drift over to Killian, who is also already half-naked—his shoulder injury only slowing him down a little.

The sight of them is enough to take my breath away, and I tug against the restraints, wanting to reach for them, wanting to touch them.

“Make sure you get a good look,” Killian says with a hint of a smirk on his lips as he reaches over to the nightstand and pulls out my sleeping mask. “It might be a while before we let you see anything again.”

“What?” It takes my brain an extra second or two to catch up. “Are you seriously going to?—”

Instead of answering with words, he slides the mask over my head, using it as a blindfold and plunging my whole world into darkness.

I clamp my mouth shut, but can’t hold back a throaty moan when I feel something cold between my breasts. It’s just a tiny point, like a fingernail or a… a knife.

“Oh, shit.” I suck in a sharp breath. “Is that my knife?”

“Maybe,” Killian answers, applying just enough pressure to confirm my suspicions before dragging it down to my stomach.

He isn’t cutting me, just teasing, and I start to writhe on the bed as they drag the point of that knife lower and lower.

“Oh, god,” I whimper. “Oh god, please more.”

But just as I’m begging for more, the sensation goes away.

I don’t even have time to question them, though, before a whole new sensation hits me.

It’s blunt and cool, but not cold and sharp like the blade of the knife, and it’s pressing against my clit so insistently that I can only lie there and take it with my mouth hanging open.

“Yeah,” I hear Atlas’s voice from between my legs. “Look at that pretty little clit throb against that knife handle. I fucking love it.”

It touches me again, sending another jolt of pure pleasure through me.

“I think she wants more of it,” Nico says as the handle teases all around my clit before pressing directly against it again and making me see stars. “Do you want more, mia cara?”

“More, yes, please,” I moan, thrusting my hips in the hopes of getting just a little more pressure.

Atlas presses the tip of the knife handle just inside me, and fuck, that’s exactly what I need.

“Oh fuck, please.” I try to push down onto it, but my restraints won’t allow it. “Fuck, please. I need it.”

“Don’t worry,” he says, working it in and out of me a little more with each thrust. “We’ve got you.”