Chapter 6

Ava's POV 

I woke up with a warm weight between my legs and my heart still racing from everything that happened at the pool. The guys had left me there on the couch sometime in the night, but I could feel their hands on me even now. My thighs were sticky, and when I reached down I remembered Marcus’s cum. I sat up fast, pulling the blanket over myself. Damien had said “You’re ours now” like it was the easiest thing in the world, and I wanted to believe him. But the note on the pillow kept flashing in my mind.

This is only round one.

I slipped out of the guest wing and walked back to my room on shaky legs. The house was quiet. I showered, trying to wash away the night, but my skin still remembered their touches. By the time I was dressed and downstairs, Derek was already gone to another meeting. The staff moved around me like always, but I kept thinking about the dock warehouse and the shipment. What if that was real? What if Derek was doing something bad?

I needed air. I grabbed my sunglasses and headed to the pool again. The water looked cool and inviting. I dropped my cover-up and slid into the pool, letting the water cover me up to my neck. The guys were already there. Marcus was floating on his back, Damien was splashing around like a kid, and Lucas was sitting on the edge of the pool, watching me with those same intense eyes.

Marcus spotted me first. “There she is. Good morning, beautiful. Sleep okay after our little talk?”

I forced a smile. “Yeah, fine. Thanks for last night. You didn’t have to stay.”

Damien swam over and leaned on the edge right in front of me. “Of course we did. You looked so pretty on that couch. All flushed and shaking. You came for us, didn’t you?”

I felt my face heat up. “It was… intense. But I shouldn’t have let it go that far.”

Lucas didn’t say anything at first. He just watched me, his stare quiet and steady. Then he stood up and climbed out of the pool. Water ran down his body. “Come here for a minute, Ava. Alone. I need to talk to you.”

I followed him up to the guest wing without another word. Damien called after us, “Take your time. I’ll wait downstairs if you need company.”

The door to Lucas’s suite closed behind us. He walked over to the big bed and sat down, patting the spot next to him. “Sit, please. This won’t take long.”

I sat. My heart was beating fast already. “What’s up? Is it about the shipment? Or… something else?”

He looked at me for a long time, his eyes searching my face. Then he reached into his bag on the floor and pulled out a leather belt. It was his, I could tell by the simple buckle. He held it up between us.

“Ava,” he said softly, “I’ve been watching you for months. Not for Derek. Not really. I was hired. By someone who wanted to keep you safe. Not from me, but from him. From what he’s doing to you. From everything he’s hiding.”

I blinked. “What? Hired? By who?”

He didn’t answer right away. He just set the belt down and took my hands in his. “I’m Lucas Reed. I work in security. Your husband… he’s been hurting you for years. I saw the texts. I saw how he treats you. I couldn’t just watch. So I asked to be assigned here. To protect you. Not to replace him. But to make sure no one else hurts you like he does.”

My mouth went dry. “You… you’ve been here since before the three of you even knew I existed? Watching me?”

He nodded. “Every day. I saw the nights he ignored you. I saw the way he left bruises on your heart even when there were no marks on your skin. I couldn’t do nothing. So I came. And now I can’t leave you like this.”

Tears burned my eyes. “But why now? Why tell me after everything happened at the bar? After last night?”

“Because last night changed everything,” he said, his voice still calm but low. “I saw how you looked at Marcus. How Damien touched you. How you came for us. I realized I can’t just protect you from outside anymore. I have to be part of it. I have to be inside it. With you.”

I swallowed hard. “Lucas… this is insane. Your job… my marriage… what if Derek finds out?”

He reached for the belt again. “Then we don’t let him. But right now, I need you to feel something real. Something that isn’t fear. Something that’s just for you and me.”

He stood up and walked behind me. I felt his hands on my shoulders first, soft and warm. Then he took the belt and wrapped it around my wrists, pulling it tight but not hurting. He made a quick loop and clipped it around the bedpost. Not tight enough to hurt, but enough that I couldn’t move my arms in front of me.

“Lucas… what are you doing?” I asked, my voice small. My heart was racing.

He came around to face me again. “I’m tying you up so I can give you my full attention. No hands on me if you don’t want them. Just me. Look at me, Ava. Don’t look away.”

I looked up. His eyes were glowing again, that same dangerous but kind light. “You’re safe here,” he whispered. “With me. Even like this. Feel how good that feels?”

My body was already warm, even with my wrists tied. “It feels… safe. Like I can trust you.”

He smiled, small and real. “Good. Because I trust you too.” He started to undress, slow and careful, never breaking eye contact. “Take my shirt off. Let me feel your skin.”

I reached up as far as I could and pulled his shirt over his head. His chest was warm under my hands. He helped me, his fingers brushing mine. “That’s it. You’re doing so good.”

He pushed me back onto the bed. His mouth was on my neck first, soft kisses, then harder. I moaned quietly. “Lucas… your mouth feels so nice.”

He moved lower, kissing my breasts, sucking gently on my nipples until I arched against him. “Tell me how it feels,” he murmured against my skin. “Be honest with me.”

“It feels real,” I whispered. “Like no one’s ever… made me feel this wanted.”

He smiled against my stomach. “Because no one ever has the way I do.” He kept going down, kissing my thighs, then higher. When his tongue touched me I gasped. “Fuck… Lucas. Right there.”

He didn’t rush. He took his time, licking and sucking until my hips moved on their own. “You taste so sweet,” he said, voice rough. “So wet for me already. Tell me, Ava. Are you thinking about me while you come?”

“Yes,” I breathed. “I’m thinking about your mouth. About you looking at me like that.”

He kept going until I came, quiet and deep, my whole body shaking. He kissed my inner thighs after, soft and sweet. “That was only the beginning, beautiful.”

He reached into his bag again and pulled out something else. A small tube. He poured a little clear liquid on his fingers and looked at me. “This is lube. We can use it if you want. Or we can just use what your body gives me.”

I nodded. “Just… use me. Please.”

He slid inside me slow, inch by inch. I gasped. “Oh god, Lucas. You feel so full.”

He stayed still for a second, letting me adjust. Then he started moving, deep and steady. Every thrust hit that spot inside me. “Look at me,” he whispered. “Don’t close your eyes. Feel how deep I am. Feel how much I need you.”

“I feel it,” I moaned. “I feel you everywhere. It’s so intense.”

He kept going, slower now, his eyes locked on mine the whole time. “You’re doing so good. So beautiful like this. Tied to the bed for me. Let me take care of you.”

I nodded, tears mixing with the pleasure. “I trust you. I really do.”

He thrust harder, his hips rolling with mine. “I know. And I’ll keep taking care of you. Every night. Every secret. You’re not alone anymore.”

We stayed like that for a long time. Slow, deep, eye to eye. I came again, and then he did, whispering my name against my neck. “Ava… fuck, you feel perfect.”

After, he untied the belt and kissed my wrists, then my mouth. “Thank you for letting me in. You’re safe with me. Always.”

I lay there, breathing hard, my body still buzzing. “Lucas… I think I’m starting to believe you.”

He smiled. “Good. Because I’m not letting go.”

The door suddenly burst open. Damien stood there, shirtless and grinning like he’d been waiting. “Well, well. Look at that. My favorite girl all tied up for Lucas.”

He walked over and dropped onto the bed. He kissed me anyway, hard and messy, his tongue sliding into my mouth. “We all need you, sweetheart. Lucas is cute and all, but we three need you more. Feel how much I want you right now?”

I was still weak from Lucas’s touch, my mouth tasting like him. “Damien… stop. Lucas just—”

Damien pulled back but kept his hand on my thigh. “I know. But I saw how he tied you up. I want to be the one who does it next. Or all three of us. You’re ours now, baby. Say it.”

Lucas sat up beside me, calm but watching. “She needs time, Damien. Give her space.”

Damien shook his head. “No. She doesn’t. She needs us all. And I need her. Right now.”

He kissed me again, deeper this time. “Come on, Ava. Tell me you’re not wet from watching me watch him.”

I moaned quietly. “I… I am a little. But this is too much.”

Damien laughed softly. “Too much is exactly how you like it. We all need you, sweetheart. Lucas needs you. Marcus needs you. I need you. And you need us. Don’t you?”

I looked at Lucas, then at Damien. My body was still warm. My heart was racing. “I… I think I do.”

Damien grinned wide. “That’s my girl. Now let’s go find Marcus. We’ve got work to do.”