Chapter 4 : Deferring The Plan

Eden

"What the hell were you two thinking?!"

I shudder behind the security of the bedroom door, watching a man who just arrived throw a fit of rage in the living room.

Dante is lounging leisurely in a chair, flipping through the news on the TV that repeats my photo over and over again. Whoever this man is, he obviously wasn't clued into my abduction.

"We had to act quickly, Mason. Settle down," Ryder barks, sipping on a crystal glass full of scotch. He turns to peer down the hallway, his eyes finding mine. He winks. I blush. "You woke up the captive, Mason. Care to meet her?"

The lanky man in a suit turns, his jaw dropping when he spots me listening in. He turns quickly to address the brothers. "You let her walk around with free-will?"

"She's harmless," Dante snorts. "We have an understanding with Eden. Right?"

I poke my head out of the doorway to nod, but Ryder motions for me to join them in the living room. I do so, making a point not to tug at my skirt like Dante so proudly mentioned last night.

Mason is neither masculine in strength, nor as intimidating as the brothers are. He isn't much of anything except for being irritated and lanky.

Dante cranes his neck, peering down the hallway to see me through the slit of the door; a situation we have been through before.

"Were you eavesdropping again, Eden?" Dante asks, leaning his elbows forward so they dig into his kneecaps. "You remember what happened last time, don't you?"

My mind flickers to the kitchen, their savage desire to have me, for me to have them.

"I think she likes the prospect of sneaking around," Ryder says, looking at Dante. They both mimic looks of familiar yearning. "Maybe that's the outcome she's looking for."

"What are you two talking about? She is a hostage, dammit," Mason snaps. "A hostage you should have never taken in the first place. I have to report to your father, and he is going to be pissed to see her up and walking around freely, while neither of you is even trying to hide your faces from her."

"She's seen everything already, Mason," Dante says, a hint of a smile in his words.

"Everything?" Mason bites. He looks between the brothers, furious. "I hope you're joking. You two aren't f*cking her, right?"

Ryder sets down his glass, leaning forward like he's whispering in my ear, even though we stand yards away from one another. "We did partake in some naked fun, Mason."

Mason sighs in exasperation, running a hand through his hair. "Was it the only one time at least?"

"Maybe you should ask her that," Dante says. "Was it the only time, Eden?"

I have to swallow the desire that rises from the sight of them on impulse. They are like two hungry, rogue lions on the prowl. I feel as small as a gazelle at the watering hole.

"It wasn't," I get out at last.

Mason throws up his hands. "You have to be kidding—"

"This won't take too long," Ryder snaps, pushing past him as he charges down the hall. "We have some unfinished business to adhere to with our captive."

Dante pats Mason on the shoulder, wordless and starving. He veers down the hallway in tow of his brother, but Ryder picks me up off the ground, my legs wrapping around his waist. He chuckles and lays me onto the bed, our lips already locked in a tight, mauling manner.

I can feel him undoing my skirt, thankful that even in their throws of passion, they don't rip the only clothes I have here. The skirt falls, the shirt is undone, and I come up for air from the kiss. It doesn't last long.

After closing the door, Dante creeps up on the other half of the bed, his chin digging into my cheek while he kisses me upside-down and all over. His lips nibble at my neck. I gasp at the amount of hands on my naked body at one time. It's overwhelming.

"What do you think? Is she a screamer? A moaner?" Ryder taunts, his fingers sliding into my sex casually, prodding in and out at an achingly slow pace.

I threaten to do both, Dante's rough tongue dragging over the curve of my breast before landing on my hardened nipple. I curl my fists into the sheets while they seem to hold a conversation over my naked vulnerability with ease.

"I seem to recall she's a moaner," Dante breathes into my neck. I shiver, patches of chills striking down my spine. "But maybe we can make her scream."

Ryder hums a noise, his fingers hitting the right spot too many times over and over, drenching my thighs as I try to pinch them shut on his hand.

"Oh, no. We can't have any of that," Ryder snaps, jerking his fingers out of me so fast that I call out, laying limp at their disposal while Ryder pins my knees outward and into the bed. It hurts, but in the best way. "Much better."

"She likes to struggle," Dante speaks against my breast, the other one stuck in his cupping palm. "We can fix that."

He moves suddenly, pinning my arms over my head and into the bedding, using just one of his palms to restrict both of mine. I pant every breath like it's my last; my heart slamming against my chest.

Ryder removes his pants and underwear quickly and then centers himself in front of my wet, needy folds before easing into my core without mercy. He gets the reaction he wanted initially, a scream of utter pleasure ripping through me at last.

I feel my body, the bed, and the entire world rock with his thrusts. Dante keeps my hands down, stark naked now and leaning over me so he can kiss my lips into submissive silence. I kiss him back like I've never kissed before; or ever again, for that matter.

Everything is throbbing, drenched, and warm. So very, very warm.

I'm sweating, and I hardly get to move, only feeling the vibrations of Ryder's hips when he grinds deep into my arousal.

"Damn, you were right," Ryder grunts, his voice more stern than ever before. "She is so tight."

"I told you," Dante says into our kiss. "You better hurry up. I'm losing patience."

Ryder strangles an exhale when he comes, his hands leaving bruising aches into my thighs that he pinned aside. He stammers back, leaning on the wall while Dante takes his position between my knees. I tremble like an earthquake, cracking along my surface and threatening to break in half.

Dante yanks me toward him by just a mere hold on my hips, bringing me straight onto his erection. I go weightless to time, to knowledge, to reality. In fact, f*ck reality. This is far better than that.

"Come here," Ryder snaps, yanking my face sideways so he can make out with me. My mouth is already raw and sore, but he persists. "So soft," he repeats. "Such soft lips."

"Makes me rethink having to let her go," Dante heaves, slamming into my body with his own, causing swells of orgasms to march through my body. "There we go, baby. Relax into it."

My eyes close on impulse, my body goes numb, and I feel like I fall straight through the soft bed and float off into another universe.

Sweat lines my body but I'm tucked into a warm blanket anyway, both of the brothers filled with passionate relief while I endure something else; something a million times better than just one simple orgasm.

"She will probably be knocked out for a while, Mason," Ryder hums from the hallway. "Keep an eye on her while we go speak with Felix."

"Your dad wouldn't approve of any of this," Mason hisses.

"We didn't plan on telling him about it," Dante shoots back. "Just make sure she's okay and that she stays here."

"Stays here?" Mason snaps. "Why should she stay here? You have to let her go! She is a hostage, not a toy to play with."

"We know that," Dante bites. "We know she has to go home; we just have some qualms in making it happen."

I stay laid out, half conscious, interested in their whispering confessions.

"She has bruises, Mason," Ryder says. "She has them all over her beautiful body, and I know it wasn't from us."

"That cheating boyfriend of hers, no doubt." Dante sounds angry.

"Dante, do you hear yourself? Are you seriously concerned about her boyfriend's infidelity right now?" Mason is practically bursting at the seams with frustration. "Whatever shitty life she had before, she will return to. This isn't a pet adoption. She is a stray who needs to go back to her previous home."

"Refer to her as a toy or a pet one more time," Ryder warns. "I dare you."

"Stop acting like you have any pull here, Mason. You're our cousin, so we are partial to your blood, but we were in charge of the heist, and we will handle the aftermath," Dante adds. "That includes what we will do with the girl. When we get back, we will ask what she wants. Simple as that."

"You two are f*cking crazy," Mason replies.

The door closes with a slam, rattling the walls and the entire apartment. I can still hear Mason pacing back and forth down the hall, muttering nonsensically to himself.

My mind is stuck on Dante's words, though.

What do I want? That's a damn good question.

I hate seeing Jack's face on the news, even more so than the idea of going home to it ever again. It's only been a few days, so why do I feel so connected to these men already, and why does it seem like they reciprocate that anomaly?

Mason shakes my shoulder, his eyes heavy and caramel in color, like his unruly, curly hair. "Get up and get dressed."

I swallow, flicking a look to the doorway down the hall where the brothers just left. "But they—"

"I don't care what they said," Mason huffs. "They will not be distracted by a woman they acquired in a bank heist. Now get up and put your clothes on."

I abide by his request, and he hands me my heels from the living room. I slip them on and notice there's an elevator that opens right into their apartment behind the door that the brothers just went through. We follow.

Mason is impatient, clicking around the buttons until it opens into an underground parking structure. The air down here is cold, the lights dim, and I hesitate to step out of the elevator to follow Mason.

"Let's go, Eden. Please. You know you can't stay with them forever. They're bank robbers, for crying out loud. You couldn't possibly think that a few rounds of meaningless sex is worth sticking around for."

His words make sense, but I don't want to hear them. I don't want to accept that this was a fluke encounter. I finally felt free of the world and allowed to express sexual desires I didn't even know I had.

Thinking it over, I feel crazy just rationalizing these last few days into anything other than impulse.

It's a new era. I can sleep with two deliciously handsome men and cut ties right after it.

Not everything has to be emotional, sensitive, or even meaningful.

I hang my head and follow Mason out of the elevator in heartbreaking silence.