Page 47 of Ruthless Desires, Vol. One (Ruthless Desires Series Extended Editions #1)

Elliot

Having Wren curled up in the tub with me is becoming one of my new favorite things. I prefer it when we exhaust her so thoroughly that she falls asleep and I get to bring her to bed with me, but I know that can’t happen tonight. Wren opens at the shop tomorrow. It’s a long drive from here to there, and she prefers not to have to make it in the morning.

We’re also leaving late tomorrow morning for Middle-of-Nowhere, Wyoming, and we still need to finish packing. We didn’t want to take the job, but the woman who hired us is powerful. The type of person you want as an ally. There’s a saying among the people who know her—there are no secrets in Philadelphia. Because if you have one? Sparrow Belgrave knows it. She has eyes and ears fucking everywhere.

Taking this job puts us on her radar. And hopefully, when we succeed without a problem as we always do, it’ll gain us a bit of her trust. Then when the time is right and we need to buy information, she’ll happily sell.

Wren turns her head slightly, looking up at me. “I’m going to miss you.”

“I know, love,” I murmur, kissing the top of her head. “You’re sure you want to stay home?”

She nods.

I bite back the ten replies that rush to the front of my mind, all of which are different ways to convince her to come with us. If she doesn’t want to, that’s up to her. And odds are, she’ll be perfectly safe here. With Finn watching her back, no one will be able to get within ten feet of her.

“Can I ask you a question about Rhett?” she says quietly.

“Can’t guarantee I’ll answer, but go for it.”

“Should I ask him about Sammy? And about why he’s so…”

“Closed off?”

She nods. “I want to know. But I don’t want to push him before he’s ready to open up about it.”

“I don’t think he’ll ever be ready, love.”

She sags against me with a sigh. “I understand that.”

I squeeze her lightly. Reliving his past is a nightmare for Rhett. His mom passed from cancer not long after Sammy was born. Rhett’s dad put him through hell before her death, and it only got worse after. And then Sammy was killed, and Rhett was absolutely done with his father. He moved in with me and my parents for the remainder of our senior year.

To this day, Oliver and I don’t even know the extent of abuse that Rhett went through. Just what he’s decided to share.

There are things Wren needs to know. At some point, she should know everything that Oliver and I do. But it’ll be slow going for Rhett. You can’t force trust.

We stay in the bath for a few more minutes. After I help her out of the tub, she presses her body into mine. We’re both dripping a ton of water onto the bath mat, but I don’t care. Any shred of closeness I can get to her, I’ll take.

“Thank you for taking care of me,” she says.

I brush a hand down her back. “It’s the bare minimum, love.”

Wren places a tender kiss to my chest before we dry off and get dressed. As much as I want to keep her all to myself for as long as I can, it’s not fair to the other guys. We only have tonight to be with her, and I love them too much to be selfish.

Downstairs, Rhett and Oliver are in the kitchen. Oliver hands Wren a bowl of chocolate chip cookie dough ice cream, planting a kiss on her lips as he does.

“What’s this for?” she asks with a smile, popping a spoonful into her mouth.

“Tradition,” Oliver says. “We always have ice cream the night before a job. Helps with the jitters.”

Wren raises an eyebrow. “Ice cream before, sex after. Any others?”

“You’ll have to wait and see,” I say, taking my own bowl from Rhett. “For now, just enjoy.”

We settle in the living room. I sink into one of the armchairs facing the couch, where Wren sits down with Rhett and Oliver on either side of her. Rhett hasn’t said a word since we came down, and he seems more pensive than usual.

Maybe he’s still tired.

Sneaking an arm around Wren, Oliver balances his ice cream bowl in his lap. “Five.”

“Five?” she asks.

“Five orgasms a day.”

A slow smile creeps onto Wren’s face. “Can you come that much in a day?”

“Not for me, princess. For you. I promise I’ll give you at least five orgasms a day on this trip if you come with us.”

“Oliver,” I scold. “She already said no.”

Wren hides her giggles by taking another bite of her ice cream. “It’s a little late for me to change my mind. You guys are leaving while I’ll still be at work.”

He pouts, but she kisses him, and when she pulls away he’s grinning.

“You’re still visiting me before you leave, right?” Wren asks, glancing at the three of us. Rhett watches her intently as she does so, which I think is a little odd, but whatever.

“Of course,” I say. “What would Friday mornings be without coming to the coffee shop?”

“Miserable,” Oliver says. “You’re my favorite part of Fridays.”

“Wow,” Rhett says, cutting him a teasing look. “I’ll make sure to tell your mom that the next time we see her.”

Oliver’s eyes widen. “Fuck.”

Every Friday, we have lunch with Oliver’s mom. Our cover is that we work in finance. So on Fridays, we “take a half day” to catch up with her. Sometimes Oliver’s sister joins, too. Obviously we’re skipping tomorrow, but we try to prioritize it when we can. Out of all our family, Oliver’s mom and sister are the only ones we’re consistently in contact with.

I explain that all to Wren, and she can’t hold back a smile. “So that’s why you guys are always in suits when you come in?”

Oliver nods. “Gotta act the part. What kind of financial advisers would we be if we weren’t in suits?”

“Investment bankers,” Rhett corrects.

Waving his hand dismissively, Oliver says, “Same thing.”

I chuckle. “Definitely not.”

“You know who doesn’t know the difference?” Oliver says, winking at Wren. “My mom.”

For the next hour or so, we hang out together, our conversation flowing with a relaxed ease that has me wishing tonight would never end. These are the kinds of moments I’ll never get enough of. Getting to explore the thoughts of these three is one of my favorite pastimes.

But unfortunately, it’s getting late. Wren is yawning every couple minutes. When she glances at the clock on the mantel, her expression saddens.

“It’s time?” Rhett says.

She nods.

“I’ll take you home,” he mutters.

Wren turns to Oliver, leans over, and kisses him. When she pulls away, he grabs her and hauls her onto his lap. He kisses her again, holding onto her tightly, and she doesn’t resist. Eventually, Wren breaks off the kiss with a reluctant sigh.

“Text me when you can?”

He nods. “We will. But we’ll be without service for a couple of days. No internet either for the most part.”

“I’m going to miss you.” She turns in Oliver’s lap, glancing to me and Rhett. “All of you.”

I stand, opening up my arms, and she enters them after giving Oliver one last longing look. I bury my face in her hair, inhaling the sweet scent of her shampoo.

Everything in me wants to promise that we’ll be back in a few days, but I can’t get her hopes up. There’s a chance this could take all week. So instead I kiss her temple and squeeze her shoulders.

“Remember that Finn will be walking you to and from work,” I say. “And if you see anything even remotely suspicious, please—”

“I’ll call him,” she says. “I promise. But I’m sure I’ll be fine.”

“You will be,” I say firmly, mostly to convince myself, but also because there’s a hint of worry in her voice.

Goddammit. I wish she was coming with us. Finn is perfectly capable of keeping her safe, but I’d prefer to do it myself. Giving up control isn’t my area of specialty.

When I finally let Wren go, it feels like I’m making a fatal mistake. But it’s not like I can force her to come with us.

“Don’t forget to grab your water bottle from the gym,” Rhett tells Wren.

“Oooh! I almost forgot. I’ll meet you in the garage.”

After she leaves the room, Rhett turns to Oliver.

“The way she looks at us.” It’s an acknowledgment of something, but I’m not sure what. Doesn’t matter—it sounds like it’s between the two of them.

Oliver smiles up at him. “Yeah?”

Rhett stares at the floor. “You were right.”

Gently, Oliver takes Rhett’s hand in his. He brings it to his lips, kissing each knuckle reverently. “I know it’s hard for you. I’d never pretend it’s not. But you can trust this. I promise it’s safe to.”

The wave of emotions that crosses over Rhett’s face takes me aback. He usually keeps his facial expressions under lock and key, but right now, I can see everything.

“Thank you,” he mutters, pulling Oliver into a kiss. Then, “I’ll be back soon. I love you both.”

We both stand in stunned silence as Rhett disappears through the doorway. I can’t remember the last time I heard those words from his mouth. Not that I’m complaining, and not that I don’t know. I just wasn’t expecting it.

“He’s okay, right?” I ask.

“Yeah,” Oliver replies. Then he smiles. “Maybe even a little better.”

***

When Rhett gets back, it’s been an hour and a half, but we haven’t left the living room. I’m on the couch in front of the lit fireplace, and Oliver is sprawled out with his head in my lap, snoring softly.

Quietly, Rhett grabs the blanket from the back of the couch and places it over Oliver’s body. Then he kisses me on the forehead, his lips lingering against my skin. When our gazes meet, it’s only for a split second before he turns away, but it’s still enough to catch the glimmer of guilt in his eyes.

Rhett hasn’t always had insomnia. It started the year after Sammy was killed, and it’s come and gone ever since. It’s worrisome, and it’s one of the many reasons I’m looking forward to putting Ludo behind us. I can’t help but hope that once we’ve avenged Sammy’s murder, it’ll give Rhett some of the peace he needs. I also can’t help but worry that it won’t help, and Rhett will forever be stuck in the endless cycle of pain, grief, and anger that he’s been in for the past decade.

“He understands,” I remind him, stroking a hand down Oliver’s arm. He’s stopped snoring, but based on his breathing pattern, he’s still out.

Rhett watches us both, the light from the fireplace casting half of him in warmth and the other half in shadow. Then he shakes his head. “He shouldn’t have to miss a person he lives with. I should’ve waited until tonight to get some sleep.”

“He’d rather you get the rest. God knows you need it.”

“Well, I would rather have more time with the people who mean the most to me.”

“If we’re talking about what we want,” Oliver mutters sleepily, “I’d love for you to fuck me.”

I snort, and Rhett rolls his eyes.

“But,” Oliver continues, “if we’re talking about the grander scheme of things, I can start staying up later to see you more.”

“No,” Rhett says. “Sleep is important, O. You need it.”

“Say that again.”

“You need it.”

Oliver groans. “The other part.”

“Sleep is important.”

“Exactly.”

“Fuck you,” Rhett grits out.

“You make it sound like it’d be a punishment.”

With a dark smirk, Rhett says, “If that’s how you want it.”

I laugh, shaking my head. “Not now. You’ll fall asleep before he even gets his dick half inside you.”

Oliver groans in acknowledgment that I’m right. “Wren get home okay?”

Rhett exchanges an amused glance with me. “Obviously.”

“Gotta keep her safe,” Oliver mumbles.

The room falls quiet. None of us like that we’re leaving her alone, even with Finn keeping an eye on her. Hell, I don’t like her sleeping at her apartment alone, even though it’s perfectly safe there. But it’s not like we can ask her to move in with us. It hasn’t even been two weeks since we added her to our relationship.

“Fuck.” Oliver sits up, seemingly much more awake than he was seconds ago. “Ludo was watching her. At Evolve that night, when I left her alone for a minute. I didn’t like the way he was looking at her.”

Rhett goes stiff. “What do you mean, he was watching her? How? In what way? And why didn’t you say something before now?”

“I forgot, honestly. He was looking at her like he was…” Oliver hesitates, probably worried about what Rhett’s reaction will be. “He looked interested in her.”

Rhett mutters a few choice words under his breath before he starts pacing. His body is riddled with tension. “I don’t want her anywhere near him.”

“None of us do,” I say.

Shaking his head, Rhett turns to face us. “You know how Ludo can get. He’s fucking sick. And if he has Wren in his sights—no. Just no. We have no idea what could be going through his head. What he wants.”

The three of us lapse into silence. Ludo is known for many things, but some of the more prominent rumors are ones that delve into his darker side. He loves killing—capturing his victims, toying with them, and enjoying their long, slow, helpless deaths. It’s also been said that he’s killed multiple of his romantic partners. Whatever reasons he has for taking up interest in Wren, none of them are good.

“What are you suggesting?” Oliver asks.

“We need to wrap this up quicker than originally planned.”

Another silence. Oliver and I watch Rhett carefully.

We were all heartbroken when Sammy was killed, but of course Rhett took it the hardest. He’s the one who came up with the idea of revenge. Oliver and I are completely on board, but ultimately this is for Rhett. If he wants to change things up, then we’ll follow. As long as he’s thinking straight.

Oliver breaks the silence. “To keep Wren out of danger?”

Rhett nods. “I’ve said in the past that I want to make Ludo suffer. I still do, and I still will. But priorities change. If Ludo has any kind of interest in Wren, I want him to get what he deserves as soon as possible. Sammy will still get her justice. But Wren will be safe, too.”

My mind instantly jumps into planning mode, going through all the possibilities of how we can switch up our current strategy. The idea is to tear down Ludo’s empire, to make him feel as helpless as we felt all those years ago. And then, when he’s at his lowest and he’s suffered enough, we’ll kill him.

“You’re sure you won’t regret it?” Oliver says.

Rhett works his jaw. “No. But I do know that I’ll regret drawing this out if Wren ends up hurt in the process. If she was better trained and we knew she could protect herself, then it would be a different story. But that’s not the case. And I don’t trust Ludo to stay away from her even though he knows she’s with us.”

“Timeline?” I ask.

“Six months max.”

“Fuck, Rhett.”

Our current plan for Ludo’s demise still has two years left. The idea was to draw his pain out for as long as possible. Some of it can be squeezed into a shorter time frame, but not all of it.

“I’m willing to sacrifice certain things,” Rhett says. “Mostly I just want him to feel pain. And then I want him dead.”

“Okay. I can start re-thinking things when we get back from this job. As long as—as long as you’re sure, Rhett. You’ve been waiting a decade. We all have. And once he’s gone, you can’t take it back.”

“I need to know Wren will be safe. And until Ludo is dead, I can’t guarantee that. So yes—I’m fucking positive.”

Oliver lets out a relieved breath. “I wouldn’t mind being able to move on by the end of the year.”

I nod in agreement. We all mourned Sammy’s death when we were teens, but that’s the thing about death. You never truly stop grieving. And while we’re making sure Ludo pays for what he did all those years ago, drawing out the process has been its own special kind of pain.

“Six months,” Oliver murmurs.

I nod, my thoughts racing.

“Six months,” Rhett says, glancing between the two of us. “Six months, and then we’re done.”