10

ROSE

The sight of my father humming to himself while he straightened his tie was the most beautiful thing I’d seen in years. Growing up, I'd heard people say that the most beautiful things laid in the smallest moments, but I wasn't sure I'd actually experienced that, at least not until now.

Hell, if I wasn't standing and staring at all the happiness wafting around dad, then I probably wouldn't have believed it. It looked like a fantasy at this point, and it took everything in me not to start sobbing. Dad looked hopeful, more hopeful than I'd seen him in a while, and I didn't miss the color returning to his cheeks as he prepared for this dinner with Mr. Fret.

I'd never seen him this enthusiastic about anything since his health failed, and it was refreshing to say the least. For a few hours, I allowed myself to forget that in forty eight hours, I’d be moving into a den of wolves. That I was now going to be living with the same men that had sworn to make my life a living nightmare.

Like that wasn't enough, I also had Levi to deal with. I would be lying if I said he hadn't been clouding my mind recently. His words from the other day kept on swarming around me, so much that I could recite the words and reenact that moment if I wanted to.

“Stop it, Rose.” I muttered the words to myself. “Get over it. You have to.”

In the blink of an eye, I pushed back the memory of Levi’s hateful words at school and the way my own body had betrayed me in the library. I told myself it was nothing and it really wasn’t, because this wasn't the first time Levi and I had broken up. Tonight was for Dad, and I would rather die than let anything ruin that.

"You look beautiful, Rose," dad said, turning to me. He was beaming like a proud father and for a moment, I allowed myself to think that all was well in the world.  I wore the silk dress the guys had bought me, not because I wanted to, but because, I didn't have a choice; it was the only thing I had that looked expensive enough for a night like this.

It felt like a second skin, the fabric rubbing against my sensitized nipples, a constant reminder of Enzo’s hands. Call me a slut or whatever, but the mere thought of him was more than enough to have me dripping, and I hated how torn I was in between enjoying it or feeling repulsed.

I waited till dad was finally ready, before we headed to our destination for the night. Mr. Fret’s estate was grand, but it lacked the sharp, cold power of the brothers' home. It felt heavy and suffocating, and when Mr. Fret greeted us, his eyes didn't just look at me, they crawled over me. It was the same lust I saw in Enzo, Nathan, and Rowan, but without the honesty. It felt slimy, and it made my stomach churn.

“You made it.” His smile was wide when he clapped Dad behind his back. When he reached out to kiss the back of my hand though, his touch lingered. “You look breathtaking tonight, Rose. Just like your name.”

“Thank you.” I stuttered, desperate to pull my hand away from his grip. When he didn't budge, I looked to dad, but he was too occupied to notice anything wrong.

He finally let go, before ushering us inside. The house was more intimidating on the inside, and no matter how hopeful I tried to be, I just couldn't shake off the eerie feeling that seemed to echo around me. There was something wrong about this place, I just couldn't put a finger on it. Yet.

"Rose, please, come sit beside me," Mr. Fret insisted at the long mahogany table. “Nothing can go wrong with a beautiful damsel by your side.”

"I’d prefer to sit by my father, thank you," I said, offering a tight smile. "In case he needs anything. You know he just had his surgery, and his needs can be quite a lot"

If Mr Fret was offended by my response, he didn't show it. He only settled down in his seat, before getting straight into it. The dinner started with talk of the company, of turnarounds and investments. My father was animated, his eyes sparkling with the dream of saving his life’s work.

It felt like watching a little child ogle candy, and I couldn't tear my eyes away, but then, the front door opened, and the air in the room didn't just change, it shifted.

I didn't have to turn around to know it was them. I had no idea why, but my pussy gave a sharp, treacherous throb, and the phantom sensation of being filled to the brim returned so vividly I nearly gasped.

It was a miracle how no one had heard me, but it was an even bigger one how I hadn't already combusted as Enzo, Nathan, and Rowan walked in like they owned the foundation the house was built on. Beside me, my father’s smile vanished instantly. He looked like he’d seen ghosts, and that was me being mild about the whole thing.

"Am I interrupting?" Enzo asked, his voice a low, dangerous rumble. He didn't look at Fret. Instead, his eyes were pinned on me, tracking the way my breath hitched.

"Not at all!" Mr. Fret chirped, seemingly oblivious to the predatory tension. “Come, come. Have a seat please, we've been waiting for you all night.”.

Enzo's smug smile didn't falter for a second as he took a seat across from mine. For a moment, a small part of me had thought that he was going to insist I sat with him,or worse, sit on his thighs. Luckily for me though, he didn't do any of those as his brother sat on each side of him.

Me Fret wasted no time in getting into business mode again. He began to gush about them, how they were the success story of the century, how some anonymous donor had sponsored them through school and turned them into the titans they were today.

Once Fret was done with the praises and what not, Nathan pulled out a chair, his eyes dark as he stared at my father.

"Why aren't you eating, Robert?” The sound of my father's name on his lips just didn't sit right with me. It had this dangerous undertone that I could swear meant Nathan could just up and hurt my father again if he wanted to. “Lost your appetite?"

The air was suddenly thick with unspoken threats I could barely swallow. My core was clenching, my body remembering exactly how Nathan’s fingers had felt stretching me open only forty eight hours ago. I felt slick, the silk of my dress dampening as I sat there between my father and the men who had ruined me.

For the next couple of seconds, no one spoke, until Mr Fret took the initiative to break it.

"Mr. Robert is a good man," Fret continued, leaning toward the brothers. "I’m prepared to invest whatever he needs. I know you three have an interest in the company as well. I’ll sign the papers tonight... under one condition."

I felt Enzo’s gaze sharpen, but he didn't say anything, at least not yet.

"I just want one night with Rose," Fret said, his voice greasy with longing. I'd never felt more disgusted in my entire life, but I didn't interrupt him. No one did. "One night with her, and the money is yours, Robert. Any amount you want, you can have.”

The silence that followed was deafening. If I didn't know better, I would had suddenly believed that the world had suddenly frozen over. My stomach turned, but strangely, my body was reacting to the sudden, violent shift in the brothers. The temperature in the room seemed to drop twenty degrees, and that was when I knew things were about to go horribly wrong.

Enzo stood up slowly, his knuckles white as he leaned on the table. He looked at me, and for the first time, there was no mockery in his eyes, only a terrifying, possessive darkness that sent shivers down my spine and had my pussy throbbing uncontrollably.

"Little flower," Enzo said, his voice like grinding stones. "I think it's about time you left, the both of you.”

"But…." I started my heart racing. “I can't. We just …”

"Except you like the sight of blood, leave now," Rowan added, his hand dropping to the pocket of his jacket. “Both of you. Now. You wouldn't like it if we repeated ourselves.”

I stared at Nathan, but the moment our eyes locked, I knew there was no use. I didn't wait. I grabbed my father’s arm, pulling him toward the door. He was shaking, his face ashen, but it didn't change anything. We practically ran to the car, the echoes of my heels on the marble sounding like gunshots.

"Rose," my father gasped once we were safely inside the car. "Why did they call you that? Why did they look at you like that? Do you know them? How? When?....”

I tuned him out after that, because I knew his questions would never end, not until I had a good answer to all of them anyway.

"They... they’re sponsors at the school, Dad," I lied, my voice trembling as I gripped the steering wheel. Dad had driven us here, but right now, I didn't think he would be in the right state of mind to do anything than panic. "They think it's funny because of my name. It’s just a joke."

"Stay away from them, Rose.” He grabbed my arm, his grip surprisingly strong. “Do you hear me? Those men... they aren't businessmen. They’re monsters. They’re dangerous."

"I know, Dad," I whispered, tears stinging my eyes. "I know."

But as I drove, all I could feel was the pulsing ache between my legs. I was terrified of them, but God, I was already craving the way they took me. I was a couple of days away from being their captive, and I was already drowning in the need for their touch.