“I’m heading over to Inferno at noon,” Ian reminded me as he pushed his empty plate back.
Dante’s head snapped over, real fear on his face.
“To talk to the owner,” Ian explained, his voice soft, as though speaking to a wounded animal. “Nothing to worry about right now.”
That seemed to placate the man, because he nodded, downed the rest of his orange juice, then started to get to his feet. “I’ll do the dishes.”
“Actually,” Ian interrupted. “The girls are going to do them.”
Everly smiled at Ian. “Gladly, Sir.” She glanced over at me. “May I be excused, my Liege?”
I pulled my arm from the back of her chair, took the kiss she offered before watching her flutter off into the other room.
“Goner,” Ian muttered.
I didn’t respond. Didn’t need to. That woman had me so twisted up, any excuse would’ve come out as complete bullshit.
Heaven glanced between the two of us. “I guess that’s my cue to help.”
My brother grinned like a loon. “Unless you’re keen on punishment.”
“Yeah, no. Totally not my thing.” She giggled. “You can save the spankings for those two. I get the feeling they’ll need it more than me.”
“Doubtful,” Ian taunted. “You’ve got quite the mouth on you.”
I had no idea what had transpired between the two last night, but I knew Ian hadn’t taken Heaven to his bedroom. That told me more than anything. My twin was keeping his distance from her. Didn’t mean he wouldn’t fuck her, but it hinted at the lack of intimacy between them.
Quite frankly, I was a bit surprised. Heaven seemed exactly what tripped my brother’s trigger. Well, aside from the fact she didn’t seem the least bit submissive.
“May I be excused, Sir?” Dante asked.
I watched him for a moment. He intrigued me. There was something about him I didn’t quite understand, and in the short time I’d known him, I was starting to realize he was hiding something. Oh, he was free with his body, but his emotions were in check, locked up tight. The only person he opened up to was Everly, but I hoped that would change in the coming days.
“Yes,” Ian said, his blue eyes locked on Dante, trailing after him even when he disappeared.
“He likes to be alone,” I mused.
“I noticed that. As though he craves the solitude.”
“More like a polar bear than a panda,” I surmised.
Ian laughed. “Hadn’t thought about it, but yeah. Likes the solitude.”
Just another reason this felt right to me. I wasn’t sure what it was or how it even happened, but it was happening. I wasn’t going to pretend otherwise.
“How was the shower?” Ian asked, and I knew he wasn’t referring to the water temperature.
“He’s tense.”
“You think it’s from what happened yesterday?”
I nodded. “Whoever came after the girls is doing it to punish him. Or at least he feels as though he is.”
“I should ask the girls if they need me to pick up anything at their house,” Ian said, pushing to his feet.
“We have to find this bastard,” I told him. “Eliminate the threat.”
“Aye. And we will.”
While I didn’t mind the excuse for Everly to be here under our roof, I couldn’t keep her locked up like some princess in the castle. She needed to be able to come and go without me worrying about her. And I wanted her to be here because she wanted to, not because she had to.
I stared out the window, listening to Heaven and Everly chatter away in the kitchen while they washed dishes. I enjoyed the sound. It seemed I’d spent most of my life wanting this. And though I hadn’t asked Ian’s opinion on the matter, I had realized it wasn’t necessary. We’d always been open with one another, on the same page in every aspect. We worked together, lived together, shared submissives. It was natural. I couldn’t imagine it any other way. But we’d always expected to find a love of our own, to share our submissives in the physical sense but not emotionally. And while this situation seemed to fit the mold perfectly, I got the feeling it wasn’t quite right.
“Can I get you anything, my Liege?” Everly asked, reappearing like the fairy princess she reminded me of.
I was pretty sure I’d found the love I’d been looking for.
“I’m good. Thank you.”
“I’ll be up in the library if you need me.”
I nodded.
“Oh, would it be all right if I got on the internet?”
“Of course.” I got to my feet, carried my glass into the kitchen, and rummaged through the junk drawer. When I located the piece of paper with the wireless passcode on it, I handed it over.
She went up on her toes, kissed my cheek, then headed for the stairs.
Figuring now would be a good time to catch up on a little light reading of my own, I headed down to the basement.
