Dhalia POVSitting, I smile at them all.“Look, Angel, I’m not sure what’s going on in that pretty little head of yours. This isn’t part of your hen night,” Blake leans down in front of me.“You say that, but Carl even replied to me while I was outside, so you can stop the act now,” I bite my lip.“We need a video,” the grumpy guy pushes past.“A video I can do. What sort?” I smile at him, and his eyes widen.“Chase,” Blake snaps, and he turns to look back at me. “Look, we need you to make your daddy aware that we want the money,” Blake steps forward and pushes Chase away.He holds out his phone.“Something like, ‘Please help me, save me.’ Right?” I smile at Blake.“Yeah, but more serious.” He mutters and holds the phone up. “You tell him we want the item or a million to cover its worth. If he doesn’t send it quick enough, you’re getting hurt,” Blake’s words are vicious as he leans into my face.Heat floods through me. I’m unsure why Carl would set up this, but I think it’s fun either
Chase POVWe walk away from her to talk. This entire situation is fucked up. So much for it being quick, easy and straightforward. She’s a fucking crazed one, mocking us and begging in a way that is saying don’t save me. She’s drunk. She wasn’t meant to be drunk.“So now what? If we don’t use her to get it back, we look weak. But if what she said is true, we’re not getting it, they will happily take her back in pieces,” I don’t like this. He used us to solve his fucking problem.“We can’t send her back,” Blake argues. I know that he’s right. It won’t look good. We need to find some use for her, so it seems like we did more than bring her here for a quick holiday.“Got to agree with Blake. Carl used us to escape her. We throw her out. What’s to stop him from hurting her?” Jax looks at me.“Are you joking? Who gives a shit if he hurts her. This isn’t on us; the only reason I agree to her staying is so we don’t look weak.” I argue, and Blake grabs the back of my neck.“You need to calm d
Blake POVI leave that room and walk through the house to the den; stepping in, I close the door and throw myself down on the sofa. That fucking hurt more than I want to admit. The sound of the door has me turning and looking.Jax walks over and sits beside me. “He’s stressed; you know, the grumpy fucker forgets basic shit,” his words are full of humour. It isn’t stress; it’s the start of Chase hiding this again and putting us through the shit caused by it.He cups my chin with his hand, his fingers pushing into my cheeks as he forces me to look at him. “You know what he’s like. Give him a bit of time, and he won’t act like that again,” his words try to reassure me, but he’s a fool if he thinks this is a split-second panic.He’s set to push us both away to hide the truth until he’s convinced she has gone.“I’ll hunt him down later for you if you want?” His words have me laughing, and he releases my face, his finger stroking along my jaw.“I’m surprised you left him with her,” I glance
Jax POVDhalia walks over and sits at the table. Her eyes are fixed on her phone, and she looks like she is considering something. She’s stunning, so I’m confused over Carl not wanting her.Her dark hazel hair is now flowing down her back, but it clearly shows she hasn’t brushed it. Something about her eyes is captivating; they match her hair perfectly. She has a few freckles across her face, which I’m hoping become more prominent when exposed to the sun.The best thing about her, though, is her confidence. Her dress shows her thighs perfectly, and I don’t care what any man says. A woman with thick thighs is to die for. Give me a woman that so many consider plus size any day over those perfect models. Groaning, I glance at my food and force my mind to think of something that isn’t her body.“How many people have you spoken to?” I ask, needing to know if they will find out she’s safe and alive.“None. I’ve not replied to anyone. I was thinking how amazing it is that everyone is messagi
Warning: This chapters contains MM erotic scenesChaseWalking through, I see Jax has left with Dhalia. It's a good thing. She knows; she walked out of that room and saw me with Blake. Pouring a coffee, I sit at the table and go through emails. The sound of Blake walking through the room raises my head.He doesn't even acknowledge me. He walks straight past me and into the kitchen. I watch as he makes himself a drink while staring at his phone."I'm sorry," my words are quiet and he laughs."You're not. When are you ever sorry?" Turning, he looks at me, and I know I hurt him again today with how I reacted. I've accepted I'm the problem within our dynamic, they have no issue with letting the world know they fuck each other, but I do."I'm sorry now," I reply, and he snickers. "Blake, I'm trying.""How?" He storms over and throws the laptop off the table. "How are you even trying? Tell me, Chase, as you're not. You are hiding everything; it's rare that you even accept that this is real.
DhaliaI leave with Jax to grab some things that I need. As we shop, I can't help but feel uneasy. Maybe we're not in my city, but that doesn't mean someone won't see me. I also hate that a reporter is trying to follow us.Jax had a few guys block them, but there's a risk they will get a picture with me in it. Then what? At first, I didn't care, but now, I would rather Carl and my father not find out I'm alive.I got clothes easily enough. Underwear is proving more difficult; Jax smirks whenever I pick up a set. I look at the strappy lingerie, and picking it up, I debate over it.My eyes rise, and Jax is staring at me."You three are fucking weird," I say out loud, and he laughs."We're not weird."Okay, he's right. Maybe not weird. "Fine, complicated."He nods. "Chase is complicated and complicates things. It would be easier if we could be honest with who we are." He shrugs."I meant the fact you all fuck each other and then invite women in to join you as well to acquire a different
BlakeWe forgot about her; I admit I did. Even though she was in my view, I forgot about her. We all looked at each other and considered what we should say and how to answer her question.The whole event is fucked up but amazing. Jax loves it; then again, he's got a thing for torture and blood."Also, what did he take?" She looks at us, and I sigh. This is where she fucking laughs."Kittens," I smile at her.She laughs and almost falls to the floor. "Wait, you're serious?" She looks at us in disbelief, and yes, we're serious."Yes, he took Kittens." I shrug, and she stares at us."Fuck sake, the kittens had a collar on. Each collar had diamonds on. Between them all, they are worth nearly a million." Chase groans. "The kittens aren't the issue, the diamonds are.""So you use kittens to smuggle diamonds?" She stares in shock."We close down illegal or messed-up kitten and puppy farms. Diamonds are placed on the collars; the animals are moved into this city for a check-up. The animal she
JaxShe's amazing. She had fun taunting Chase about stealing Blake. I don't think I have ever seen Chase worry about losing one of us as much as he did at that moment.My phone buzzes, and I take it out. Glancing at the text, I reply quickly and place it away. All they have done is complain about the film. Apparently, there is no storyline, just murder, blood, and guts, which is me.Dhalia doesn't seem phased by it, though. These sorts of films phase most people, but not her.At some point, she changed into something more comfortable. By the end, she had fallen asleep against me; that's how unaffected she was by it."So what do you think?" Blake slouches back more into Chase. I know he means Dhalia, but I'm still not sure."We need to keep her here to keep her safe. I'm pretty sure she will run screaming and find her ex, and the risk of death is less scary than me." I point out the facts.I lose myself, and I accept that I do. I'm lucky to have Blake, someone who isn't scared or freak
Dhalia POV After shopping today, I felt a sense of relief I hadn’t experienced in what felt like forever. It wasn’t just about the shopping itself, though I did need some new clothes—my body has changed so much in the past year. No, it was more about finally getting out of the house, about reclaiming a little bit of the freedom I’d been missing. The walls of our home, which once felt like a sanctuary, had started to close in on me. Chase and Jax, in their well-meaning but intense desire to protect me and ensure I had time to heal, ended up suffocating me without even realising it. Don’t get me wrong—I love them for how much they care, but I didn’t need to be housebound for months, or placed on bed rest for weeks after giving birth. I know some women would relish the idea of doing nothing but resting and being pampered, but it drove me crazy. That’s why, when Chase casually mentioned going shopping, I jumped at the opportunity. I was out the door and in the car before he could even t
Chase POVI watched Dhalia as she moved through the store, her steps light and full of purpose, and it hit me—I might have gone too far. In our well-intentioned but overzealous efforts to protect her and Jacob, Jax and I had smothered her. When I casually mentioned the idea of going shopping, I expected a discussion, maybe some hesitation. But instead, she practically bolted for the door, grabbing her coat and leaving without a word. That was proof enough. We had suffocated her under the guise of safety and care.Seeing her so happy to be out, to be free to do something as simple as shopping, was a wake-up call. We had reduced her life to the confines of our home, restricting her to the roles of mother and partner, leaving little room for her to just be herself. That’s why I suggested she could return to work if she wanted to. Jax may not like the idea—he’s still riding the wave of his overprotectiveness—but after more than six months of keeping her tethered, it’s time we give her bac
Blake POV The last few months have been a whirlwind, a mental and emotional gauntlet that none of us expected. It wasn’t the physical demands that took their toll on me—it was the psychological strain, the constant push and pull of trying to navigate our lives while Chase and Jax became increasingly overprotective of Dhalia. My attempts to ground them in reality often felt futile, like trying to anchor a ship in the middle of a storm. Dhalia, poor Dhalia, bore the brunt of their overzealous protection. At five months pregnant, they decided it was too dangerous for her to continue working. Mind you, her job was sitting in a cozy little bookstore, reading and managing sales. There wasn’t anything remotely strenuous about it, but they convinced themselves—and her—that it was unsafe. It seemed harmless enough at first, just a precaution. But by the time she hit seven months, their obsession to shield her and the baby from every possible harm became all-consuming. They wouldn’t let her
Jax POVAs I sit on the couch, the book resting on my lap, I find myself absorbed not so much in the story itself but in the little marks I’ve made throughout its pages. These marks have become something of an obsession for me. They’re the places where I’ve seen Dhalia react—whether it’s a quiet gasp, a tear rolling down her cheek, or that subtle squirm of excitement that she can’t quite hide. Whenever she reads with me in the room, and I catch one of those reactions, I make sure to mark the page number. Later, when she’s done, I go back and read those specific sections, trying to decode what it is about these words that stirs something inside her.It all started small. At first, I only marked the pages that elicited a blush or a quiet moan—scenes of sex that clearly struck a chord. It didn’t take long to realise that it wasn’t just those moments that mattered to her. She would also react to the tender, the heartbreaking, and the unexpectedly sweet moments with an equal, if not more p
Dhalia’s POVMy eyes are glued to the door. In front of me are three small boxes, one for each of them. They are late, though. They promised to be back by four, and now it’s a quarter past. I’m trying to be patient, but it’s harder than I’d like to admit.Two months ago, I opened my bookstore, and it’s been incredible. Twice a week, we host book clubs, and I’ve made it a point to bring one of the guys with me to each session. It’s hilarious watching their faces as we dive into the discussions. The women seem to enjoy it too—something about discussing steamy romance scenes with a bit of eye candy in the room.The door finally creaks open, and I sit up straighter as they walk in.“You’re late,” I say, trying to keep a straight face.“By fifteen minutes, Angel. Cut us some slack.” Blake winks, leaning down to kiss me. His hand reaches for one of the boxes, but I slap it away.“Don’t touch.”He chuckles, rolling his eyes.“Why do I get the feeling we’re in trouble, Sweetness?” Jax asks as
Chase POVI stay stood in this room, shocked by what she's done. She went above and beyond, I was expecting a small, shop, nothing big. This though, is huge. We made sure that everyone knew not to mention anything to us about it.They weren't allowed to mention the location, the colour of the store, nothing. We wanted her to be in control and do it all alone without our input and she has."I've got something to show you," she grips my hand and guides me back through to the book store part, walking through she stops by some books, and hands me one.There, on the cover is a pink fucking unicorn. She found one? I stare at her and she laughs."Pink unicorn," she smiles up at me."You're fucking crazy, you read it?" I stare in amazement as she nods."I did and I'll admit I didn't enjoy it a single bit, but I had to get it, read it because that's the next book you're reading."My head tilts. "Please say you're joking?" She has to be. Her head shakes, and she places the book back."No, you m
Jax POVI watch as she walks towards us, the dress is stunning, long and golden. She stops in front of me and smiles."If they don't hurry, we will be late," she glares towards the door."Leave them alone Sweetness, they were having some fun before getting ready." We both laugh and I wrap my arms around her. A lot has changed in the past three months, a lot of her stepdads businesses are now fully hers. Although we take care of a lot of them.She wasn't comfortable taking over the strip clubs, bars, and such. So we sort a lot of it out for her. She straightens my tie and I chuckle. Her arms wrap around my neck and she reaches on her toes to kiss my lips."I love you Sweetness," I whisper as I wrap my arms around her and pull her closer. My mind goes back, and I begin to wonder if we would ever have found her had Carl not set her up? It's scary to consider that, to consider where she would have been.Justin's plan was to do what Carl had once she returned to him, so would she still be
Dhalia POV His words float around in my mind. He should have told Jax and Blake, then maybe they would understand the whole issue he has. Something tells me after he does something with them, it brings back what happened with his father. I fight to figure out what to say to him, other than he should tell Jax and Blake. “Do they know any truth in what happened?” I stroke along the scar. “No, I thought them believing it sent me over the edge would stop them from doing anything. It did, but part of me still craved them. Which of course Jax noticed, and made it happen.” “You need to tell Jax the truth.” After everything, he still believes that Chase runs because he’s repulsed. “Jax can’t know. He will blame himself for what my father did.” He’s not wrong, Jax will blame himself to some degree. “What happens if he finds out the truth, Chase? Then how will he feel? Knowing that you kept on lying to him?” “He can’t find out, only we know.” I laugh. “So every man there that day is dea
Dhalia POV After eating, I found myself with more energy than before. Which sucks as I was ready to go to bed. Jax and Blake are currently messing around. I say, messing around, but Blake is more taunting him to get a punishment. It’s nice to see, and it reminds me of at the start. “I’m going to finish my book,” I jump up and walk off. I could have fallen asleep earlier, now though? I’ve got too much energy. Grabbing the book I sit down and begin reading it. About ten minutes later, the movement of the door has me turning to it. Chase walks in with a smile. “So, I found a book.” Really? “You found a smut book that involves a frickin unicorn?” He nods. “I did very well, thank you.” Wait, no! “Pink unicorn, it has to be a pink unicorn.” I watch as he sighs and sits beside me. “Pink is impossible! I have searched and I can’t find it!” His outburst has me laughing. “How about a human-unicorn that’s pink? I found one of them.” “No, it’s a pink unicorn, not half and half Chase. So y