Page 8

Vasha

Waking up in a strange place sent fear spiking through my heart, until I heard the murmur of Slider’s voice coming from another room.

I glanced around, not seeing any windows or anything really.

There was the bed I was lying on and a chest for clothing.

I saw our empty bags next to it.

Getting out of bed, I made sure my legs would hold me before I went in search of my husband.

I knew we had to be at the safe place he’d mentioned, but I was curious about our temporary home.

Leaving the bedroom, I saw a large open area and quickly spotted Slider and three other men at a table.

Plates of food were in the center and my stomach rumbled, reminding me I hadn’t eaten in far too long.

I approached, noting the way they went silent as I drew nearer, even though none looked my way except Slider.

He gave me a cautious smile and I realized he was worried about my reaction to this place.

I understood why we were here.

He was keeping me safe, and I appreciated it, even if I did worry the lack of natural light might make me slightly crazy before too long.

Even in the captivity at Grigori’s home, I’d still had a window, even if it did have bars across it to prevent me escaping.

“Hungry?” Slider asked, holding out his hand toward me.

I slipped my fingers across his palm and he pulled me down onto his lap.

His whiskers scraped my neck as he nuzzled me and I felt my cheeks warm.

I recognized Stone, but the others were new to me.

One of them smirked a little, even though he hadn’t lifted his gaze from the table.

“A little,” I said.

Slider reached for an empty plate and filled it with biscuits, eggs, and bacon.

There was a gooey white substance that he added to the plate before putting butter on top.

I didn’t know what it was, but I trusted him.

If Slider thought I should eat it, then I would.

Or at least I’d try.

As I ate, he pointed to each man at the table.

“You already know Stone, but next to him is Lynch. You didn’t get a chance to meet Fangs, but he rode here with us. Kraken is taking a nap, but he’s here too.”

“You have a lot of men above us keeping an eye on things, and making sure you’re safe,” said Stone.

“The four of us have a room a bit down from yours. You and Slider have the private room and a private bath, so you don’t have to worry about any of us walking in uninvited.”

“We volunteered to stay down here and help protect you,” Lynch said.

“If you’re uncomfortable with anyone here, you just say so and someone else can come down.”

I chewed and swallowed, taking in their words and trying to process everything.

I didn’t understand why they cared what happened to me, or if I felt uneasy.

They were men, rough men at that, and it was odd that they had such a tender side.

Then again, I’d never known men could be nice until I met Slider.

Maybe nice wasn’t precisely the word for him, but he was far better to me than anyone else had ever been, even Anatoly.

My friend’s loyalty had only gone so far, and while he’d helped me escape, there were plenty of times he’d done Grigori’s bidding, forcing me to do things or go places I didn’t want to.

“Why do you care?” I asked, trying not to sound bitchy.

I was genuinely curious.

The men looked at one another before Stone answered.

“Because you’re family. We’re Hades Abyss even if we’re from a different chapter. You’re Slider’s old lady, which makes you one of us.”

My brow furrowed.

“Old lady? I’m only eighteen.”

Lynch snickered and Slider squeezed my waist.

I didn’t understand their amusement, but I could feel the slight shaking under me that said Slider was laughing too.

“It’s just a term for the woman a biker claims,” Stone said.

“But if you prefer wife, seeing as how the two of you are married, then that’s how we’ll refer to you.”

Kraken came into the room and claimed a seat at the table, yawning wide enough his jaw cracked.

He gave me a slight smile before his gaze flicked to Slider.

I felt my husband’s grip tighten a little.

I didn’t know what I wanted to be honest.

As long as I was Slider’s, that’s all that really mattered.

What he called me didn’t really matter.

The fact he wanted to keep me, wanted a family with me, was all that I cared about.

He made me feel safe.

No, it was more than that.

He made me feel desirable.

I didn’t feel dirty when he looked at me or touched me.

I went up in flames and craved him.

Just one look was all it took for me to get wet, not that he’d acted on it since he’d come to find me.

I wouldn’t break, but he seemed worried.

It was touching, and sweet…

and incredibly frustrating.

“She’s my wife. No reason you can’t call her that,” Slider said.

Kraken got a strange look on his face before looking away.

“Maybe I should see if Wizard could find me a wife like Surge found Vasha for Slider. The sluts at the clubhouse are fun for a while, but eventually every man wants more.”

Stone snorted.

“Speak for yourself. Nothing wrong with enjoying a different woman every night. It’s not like we forced them to offer themselves to us. They’re here because they want to be.”

Fang’s brow furrowed.

“I can see the appeal of having the same woman in your bed every night, as long as you can trust her. Not sure I trust anyone enough to claim them.”

I shifted on Slider’s lap, a little uncomfortable.

I knew they said those women came of their own free will, but it seemed so odd to me.

Why would anyone want to be with so many men with no offer of something more permanent?

While I enjoyed being in Slider’s bed, I couldn’t imagine letting anyone else touch me the way he did, or kiss me.

He was the only man I wanted, and the idea of being with multiple men because it was fun was too foreign of a concept for me.

It wasn’t that I thought badly of those women, I just…

didn’t understand.

What did they get from it?

“When you’re finished eating, I’ll show you where our bathroom is. You can clean up if you want. I always like taking a hot shower after a long day on the road,” Slider said, pressing a kiss to the side of my head.

A shower did sound nice.

I finished eating, then stood and picked up my plate.

I carried it to the sink, then returned to the table for the other empty dishes.

There was soap and a sponge by the kitchen sink, so I ran some hot water and started washing the breakfast dishes.

It was the dead silence at my back that drew my attention.

I glanced over my shoulder and nearly dropped the plate in my hands when I discovered all of them staring at me, and Slider looked a little pissed.

Had I done something wrong?

Wasn’t I supposed to clean the dishes and clear the table?

It’s what I’d been taught.

I knew things were different in this country, but surely they weren’t that different.

Women still took care of the men and families, didn’t they?

I turned back to the sink and finished the dishes, then went to the table to clear the leftovers, but Slider reached out and wrapped his fingers around my wrist.

“Vasha, you aren’t a maid. You don’t have to clean up after us.”

“But it’s what a wife does. Someone else cooked, so I should clear the table. Is that wrong?”

Kraken rubbed the back of his neck, but Stone, Fangs, and Lynch stood up and walked off.

Slider looked both frustrated and amused, even though I didn’t know how he pulled it off.

The two should have canceled each other out.

I had a feeling there would be a steep learning curve as I tried to navigate my new life.

“I did it wrong?” I asked.

“She’s like a throwback to the nineteen fifties,” Kraken said.

“On the one hand, I kind of like it. On the other…”

Slider nodded, seeming to know what the other man meant.

I didn’t.

Was there something wrong with me wanting to take care of them?

Even if I hadn’t been taught it was my place, I found that I enjoyed doing things like cleaning, dishes, and laundry.

There was almost something soothing about it.

“I don’t understand,” I said.

“Women here are just different,” Slider said.

“It doesn’t mean you’re doing anything wrong, kroshka . I’m just concerned that you’re going off your training and not doing the dishes because it’s what you actually want to do. What made you stand up and clear the table?”

I opened and shut my mouth a few times before shrugging a shoulder.

“It needed to be done,” I said.

“Besides, I like doing things around the house.”

Slider shook his head, but there was a smile on his face as he stood up.

He reached for me, tugging me away from the table and the remaining dishes.

I glanced at the leftovers and wondered if someone would think to put them away.

When Slider shoved me into a small bathroom, I noticed that our things were already in here.

Had he done all this while I’d slept?

It was obvious he’d put our clothing away as well, since the bags had been empty this morning.

At least, I thought it was morning.

With no windows, it was hard to tell.

“I’ll get you something to change into. Go ahead and get in the shower. Towels are in the cabinet under the sink.” Slider gave me a nudge toward the shower stall.

It wasn’t as spacious as the one at his home, but it was still nicer than where I’d bathed in Russia.

The water only took a moment to warm up, then I quickly undressed and got under the spray.

Slider came back, setting some clothing on the bathroom counter.

I watched through the frosted glass as he undressed and my heart started to race.

He was joining me?

Slider stepped into the shower and shut the door behind him.

The gleam in his eyes told me that maybe he was done waiting.

He’d held me at arm’s length since he’d found me in that motel.

I’d been better for days now, but he’d been too worried about hurting me even though I’d assured him I wouldn’t break.

I wasn’t as fragile as he seemed to think.

Just because I was small didn’t mean anything.

A weak woman wouldn’t have survived Grigori.

A weak woman wouldn’t have run, traveling so very far from home to have a fresh start.

He had to know that, didn’t he?

He cupped my cheek and pressed his lips to mine before deepening the kiss.

His tongue swept into my mouth and I practically melted against him.

My nipples hardened and I felt myself growing slick between my legs.

That was all it took.

Just a kiss.

A touch.

Knowing that he wanted me made me ache to have him filling me.

“You’re so fucking beautiful,” he murmured.

“If I could go back to that first night, change things… I’d have told you then how you made me feel.”

I smiled faintly, knowing he was just being nice.

He couldn’t have felt anything that soon, right?

I certainly had, but I’d been taught that men were different from women.

“How did I make you feel?” I asked as he rubbed his hard cock against me.

“The moment I saw you lying in my bed, I had this need to protect you, to claim you.” He kissed me again, harder.

“It was like some part of me just knew that you were mine. If I’d only known that you really were mine, then that night could have ended differently.”

He slid his hands down the sides of my body to my hips, pulling me tighter against him.

“How?” I asked, my voice sounding breathless even to my ears.

“I’d have fucked you all night. Held you while you slept, and we’d have woken together the next morning. I wouldn’t have been an asshole who made you feel unwanted. Maybe if things had been different, if I hadn’t chased you off, then you could very well be pregnant right now.” He grinned.

“I like that idea, you know? The thought of you carrying my kid. I bet you’ll be sexy with a baby bump.”

“Maybe I already carry your child,” I said.

It was possible.

We hadn’t used protection, and while I knew it didn’t happen often that a woman got pregnant on the first try, it was still feasible.

He gave me a wicked grin before lifting me and pressing me against the tiled wall.

He rubbed his beard against my neck, making my nipples get even harder.

Slider groaned as he filled me, his cock stretching me wide.

It felt so amazing.

I dug my nails into his shoulders and bit my lip to stifle any sounds I might make.

There were still four men sharing this space with us and I didn’t want them to hear me.

Slider pumped in and out of me as he greedily kissed me, making me feel breathless.

He rubbed against me, his body stroking my nipples with every thrust of his cock.

It was almost too much.

And at the same time, not nearly enough.

I wanted more, wanted it all.

I craved the pleasure he’d given me before, but I didn’t want this moment to end, and I knew as soon as we found our release that it would be over.

“I’m going to fuck you every chance I get,” he said, his voice a deep growl.

“By the time we go home, you’ll be pregnant. I’m not stopping until I’ve knocked you up. You want that, don’t you?”

I nodded nearly delirious with pleasure, not only from what he was doing to me, but his words alone made my heart sing.

Yes!

I wanted that, wanted a family with him.

I hoped we’d have a little girl who could grow up in a better place than I had, a child who would know they were loved.

He reached between our bodies and stroked my clit.

Just a few brushes of his fingers and I was coming.

I couldn’t stay silent and cried out, begging for more as he took me harder and faster.

Slider made me come a second time before I felt the hot spurts of his release filling me.

Even after, he was still hard.

My eyes went a little wide when he started thrusting again.

I’d never known men could do that, be ready again so fast.

Grigori had told me…

No!

There was no place for him when it was just me and Slider.

I needed to forget my time in Russia.

“You’re so perfect, kroshka . You’re everything I could ever need or want. I think I owe Surge an entire fridge of beer.”

I bit my lip so I wouldn’t giggle.

Even if Slider hadn’t realized I was his that first night, he certainly seemed content with the knowledge now.

My heart felt full to bursting.

When he pulled free of me, I gasped and went taut.

Why had he stopped?