Dhalia POVI don't speak. I'm not sure I could even if I wanted to. Instead, I sit quietly and listen. He wants to trade me for their goods. I know they will agree. They want them back.Maybe they wouldn't have before, but now that they have found out about Justin, I doubt they would even need to consider it before agreeing. Which I deserve; I should have been honest with them from the start."She's a burden, I'm taking it from you." My stepdad looks between them."No." Jax looks at him, and I sit shocked."We don't need you to get our things back; we already know where they are. Even had we not, we'd not agree to trade her." Chase steps closer, and I stare at him. Of them all, I expected him to agree. He seems to hate me again. I deserve his hate."You think she's something special?" my stepdad laughs. "She's used, past her use-by date, and something worn out and used is really only good for one thing, and that's death."Chase tenses and reaches for Jax but stops when he sees that Ja
Dhalia POVI see someone move and notice it's Jax. Chase and Blake are trying to hold him back, and my stepdad continues to talk. I can't hear his words.All I can hear is their laughter that night; I fight back the sickness and see Jax break free of their holds. I can't let him lose himself. Moving, I step in front of him, but he's looking past me and pushes me backwards as he continues on his path to my stepdad.Wrapping my arms around his neck, I whisper to him. "Jax, come back to me, please. Don't leave me; I need you." I feel his body still, and I stay clung to him. "I don't feel good," I whisper and feel his arms wrap around me. I think I might actually throw up. I stay pressed against his chest, trying to come back to the present, but it's a struggle.I hear talking around me and feel my body being moved, and I stay clung to him. My face is trying to hide in his chest to get rid of the images and sounds from before."Sweetness, you need to focus on something here and now. You'r
Blake POVSitting, I look at the lifeless body. There was no way we were letting him live after what he did. Especially not after he admitted to it and used it to taunt Dhalia."He seems different," Chase's words are barely a whisper, and I look towards him. "Jax, he's different."He's not wrong. Jax held back in a way we had never seen before. He loses it quickly, but today, he held it back for a long time. Then, he stopped, just like that, which he's never done."Do you think he loves her?" Chase's words shock me."What?" Why the fuck would he ask that?"He stopped. Any time we tried, it made no difference. Then there she is, saying a few words, and he stops." Chase mutters and washes his hands. He's jealous."You're jealous of Dhalia?" I almost laugh."Not jealous, I just don't understand it." He turns and glares at me."And now you're getting defensive. Does it matter, Chase? As long as it fucking worked, does it matter who stopped him from losing it entirely?" I wait and watch as
Blake POVGetting back, I watch as Dhalia walks to her room and locks the door."She's not allowed to hide away," Jax looks at us."She may need time, Jax; she found out that her stepdad had never stopped doing that to her." Anyone would need time alone.Jax nods and looks towards her door. "Right, but for a few days, she shouldn't be left alone. It's when everything will be at its worst. All I'm saying is someone needs to sit with her and stop her from overthinking it all.""Well, I'm busy," Chase turns and walks off quickly.As much as I think Jax is the one to help her right now, he and Chase need to talk. "I'll speak to her; you see Chase, he's feeling abandoned," I laugh and walk off. Knocking on her door, I wait.She doesn't answer, and there's no sound of movement, so I knock again. "Dhalia, all I want is to talk."Waiting here, I hear her moving, and then the door unlocks. Stepping in, I walk to her bed and sit beside her. "Today was hard, wasn't it?" I smile at her.Her eyes
Dhalia POVI look at him and wait, wondering what he will say. I saw his panic when he mentioned Jax, so I will never speak of it until Jax feels he can tell me. It's his own story, not mine, and he deserves the time to speak up."Look back, Angel. The signs of everything are there. If you didn't notice, I must hide it well."Look back? I think back to the entire time I've stayed here for signs. There are none. I can't remember one sign that indicated what he has been through or his issues.There's nothing noticeable, I don't think, anyway. "I don't see anything when I look back, Blake."He smiles and nods. "Do you think it's a coincidence that I submit? That I rarely switch to dominate someone? That even throughout the day, I stick to the same rules, and in a way, I do as I am told?""I don't understand?" I don't; what does his submitting have to do with his past?"Give me a moment." He stands and walks out.Sitting here, I wait and wonder what he is doing.He walks back in and sits
Dhalia POV"Now look back at how you felt, how you looked physically, was it healthy, is it worth going back to just to stop the hateful comments?" His words have me pausing and considering it.He won't understand, though. "It's easy to say it and do it, Blake. I was always small. Men were always interested, and women as well. As soon as I put weight on, it became a different story."He laughs and looks at me. "Nine times out of ten, the man who is looking at you and laughing with his friends saying he would never touch you. He would, he is simply too damn scared to admit it." He sighs loudly. "It's a minority of men who find plus-size women repulsive. Most don't care about your size; many actually prefer a plus size woman; they just don't say it."He seems so confident in his words. "How can you be sure?" I ask."Because it's the same with women. You see the women sharing videos and pictures of men who look like us. Perfect, toned, and everything. Many have a man at home with a dad b
Chase POVJax told us to talk to Dhalia, to distract her. I was so ready to walk into this damn room and see them talking, what I didn't expect was...Well... "What the fuck!" My heart pounds hard against my chest. I'm so fucking lost right now and I'm freaking out.If Dhalia does this, then what is Blake going to do? He won't need me or Jax. He can go live a perfect fucking life, happily marry her, have kids and still get that side as well."We were talking, and she distracted me from some depression conversation." Blake grins and winks at her.I don't like this. "Don't Blake, I swear!" I look from him to Dhalia. Hope and despair builds in my stomach, and I never feel like this. Ever."Sorry," Blake whispers, his eyes lowering."Shit!" Hate builds within myself, but it's at me for making him feel like that he shouldn't even look at me. I'm an asshole, I know I am, and that hate for myself just continues to grow. Slowly taking over me."We came in as you skipped eating," Jax says, drag
Chase POVHer expression shifts slightly, curiosity mixing with uncertainty. “Well, how does it work? What will I do? That might help me figure out if I can handle it,” Dahlia says, her voice steady despite the underlying concern.I nod, gesturing to her plate. “Eat,” I tell her, and she does, picking up her fork. I turn to Blake, who seems to be hoping he can somehow avoid eating. He sighs heavily, resigning himself, and starts eating again.“So, here’s how it goes,” I begin, my voice flat, devoid of emotion, because that’s how you have to approach it. “The prey are dressed in specific outfits, and they’re released with a five-minute head start to hide. After those five minutes are up, the hunters begin searching. The rules are simple: the hunters don’t have to kill the prey. They can just torment and torture them. But even if the prey survives being found once, it doesn’t mean they’ll live. If they’re found again, it could mean death.”The words spill out, cold and detached, because
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