Chapter Four

Maddox

This is turning out better than I hoped it would. I expected Ivy to turn down my offer, so when she accepted it along with my brothers on a conditional basis, I was pleased. Maverick and I have shared girls in the past, but nothing long-term, so this is bound to get interesting, especially if my brother genuinely likes her.

I knocked on my father’s door and waited until he gave me permission to enter.

“What do you need now, Maddox?”

“I have a slightly odd request. Maverick and I would like Ivy to be pulled from the staff. She isn’t to serve the family anymore.”

“Why is that?”

“We are taking her as our own and we expect her to have the privileges of not serving the family while she is under our care.”

“Is that all?”

“Yes. Consider it done, but if she interferes with your duties, she will be dealt with.”

“Understandable.”

My father and I have always seen eye to eye. I understand him, and he knows I will be the one to carry on his legacy, unlike Maverick. It’s a known fact that Maverick seeks to change the way we run society. He is sympathetic to the female gender and I’ll make sure he doesn’t have the chance to change the way we live.

When I got back to our suite, Ivy and Maverick were sitting on the couch. She had her hands in her lap staring at the floor, which is the first thing I’m going to break. When we are alone, I want her to look at me.

“Follow me.”

“She can stay out here,” Maverick stated.

“She spends time with me. That was the deal.”

“Don’t do anything stupid, Maddox.”

“We are going to get her back cleaned up, and she’s going to get ready to go to bed.”

“How is that spending time with you?”

“She’ll be near me, won’t she?”

I watched my brother roll his eyes before leaving us and slamming his bedroom door shut. The sound was satisfying because it showed that I was pissing him off.

“I’m not big on rules, but you are to always look at me when we are alone. I don’t want you looking at the floor or other things. I expect eye contact from you. Do you understand that?”

“Yes.” She brought her head up to look at me, and my whole body itched to touch her. Her blue eyes fixated on me, making it hard for me to control myself.

“I will also never do anything you don’t want me to. If I touch you in any way you don’t like, I expect you to tell me. I’m not a fucking mind reader and it’s important that you tell me these things. If you cannot do these two things, it will result in punishment. Do you understand?”

“I do.”

“Good. Let’s get your back cleaned up.”

***

Ivy

I followed Maddox to his bathroom, where he got the first aid kit out from under the sink.

“Tomorrow, I’m having the doctor look in on you. I want him to look at your back and your hand. I also want you to talk to him about contraceptives if you’re not already taking them.”

I whipped my head around to look at Maddox.

“You’re getting a little ahead of yourself.”

“Relax. It’s just in case. This way you’ll already be on them if we slept together. Children are a no for me. They come with too many responsibilities and I’m not willing to deal with them. I’m telling you up front that if you become pregnant, you will be on your own.”

“Are you trying to be a jerk on purpose?”

“I’m only telling the truth. I wouldn’t want you to have false ideas about what a family would be like with me.”

“Take off your shirt and turn around.”

I did as Maddox asked, and he carefully cleaned my back. His touches were light and I could tell he was trying not to hurt me.

Once he was done with my back, he ran a bath and told me to soak in it.

“When was the last time you had a bath?”

“I shower every day.” Except for today, I was in too much pain this morning, but I will not tell him that.

“I mean, when was the last time you could relax in a bath?”

“It’s been over a year.”

“This is the life you could have if you stay with me and all you have to do is warm my bed.”

“You say I have a choice, but what you’re doing is coercion. You’re trying to get me to say by bribing me with nice things.”

Maddox didn’t immediately respond, but he was staring at my body. I could see his eye roaming every inch of me.

“You could look at it that way, or you could see it as a business deal. You get something nice in return, too.”

“Until you get bored with me. You’ll have your fill and send me back to being a house servant and probably to some other family.”

“That could happen, but we could work something out. I could have you reassigned to another job. I could even allow you to go back to school to be a nurse if you wanted.”

“Would I have to wait until you were done with me?”

“If getting you into school makes you agree to my deal, I’ll allow you to study while you’re with me.”

“That’s a big promise. How can you make sure your dad would do that for you?”

“My father and I have an understanding. You don’t need to be concerned about the details. Let’s get you out before you turn into a prune.”

He held out a towel and waited for me to step into it before he wrapped it around my body.

“Why are you being nice? Your brother said you believe females are the weaker sex.”

“They are, but I also believe in treating them the way they deserve, and right now you’re not acting out or getting into trouble so I have no excuse to lash out at you, but if you step out of line, I won’t hesitate. I’m not like Maverick. If I were whipping you last night, I would have done more damage.”

Maddox walked me to his bed and pulled one of his shirts over my head.

“Can I have my pajamas, please?”

“You’ll be fine in one of mine for a night.”

“What about my underwear?”

He tossed me a pair of cloth boxers. “You can wear those for now.”

“Thank you.”

“You’re welcome. We will share a bed, so pick aside and climb in. I’ll join you in a few minutes.”

I watched as he retreated into his bathroom. I looked around his room and I tried waiting for him, but the bed was too comfortable and I couldn’t help but let the sleepiness claim me. It’s been a long time since I’ve been in a bed this warm and comfortable.