Just One Kiss (The Town of Pearl 8)

“Excuse me?,” she replied.

“I think you need looking after. I think you also need a ride home.”

“That’s not happening. I’ll walk, thank you.”

“Not alone you won’t,” Salvatore added.

“We’ll drive you in the truck. It’s safer with us.” Gabriele even added his remarks.

“I don’t even know you, what makes you think I would go with you, or that you have the right to make me?” she asked, raising her voice.

“Calm down. No one here is going to hurt you,” Lucifer told her.

“Yeah, I’ve heard that before. Thanks but no thanks. Leave me alone,” she said and pushed by him and continued walking.

“We can’t let her walk all the way back to the Anderses’ place alone,” Lucifer told his brothers.

“Then we’ll follow her,” Salvatore stated.

“Oh yeah, that will go over well. She’ll think we’re stalkers. Didn’t you see how fearful she was? Seems she didn’t like being touched,” Maxwell added.

“Yeah, we all noticed that. She’s got her guard up. Let’s see if we can ease her fears a little so maybe she’ll at least let us follow her home,” Gabriele suggested then started walking away to catch up with her.

“There’s a lot for us to discuss tonight, once we know Lucia is home safe and sound,” Maxwell told them.

“Agreed,” Lucifer said.

“Count me out. I’ll ensure she gets home safely, but you k

now I can’t be part of this. She may know about Lindsey already,” Salvatore said.

“Fuck that. Lindsey was years ago. You’re a different man and you hadn’t hurt her. Besides, we haven’t discussed this entirely as a family. We’ll need to do that tonight, to know where we all stand. I don’t really even know her, but I’m definitely attracted to her,” Maxwell admitted.

“Come on, let’s catch up with them,” Lucifer said, and they followed him.

* * * *

Lucia felt on edge. Her belly quivered, her breasts felt swollen, and for some crazy reason other body parts seemed on alert. It was disconcerting to say the least. How could she be attracted to these men? And she was attracted to all four of them. Was there something in the water? Had she been sprayed with some sort of invisible trick gas that made her interested in four brothers at the same time? This wasn’t something she was used to or had knowledge of until coming here. The entire ménage thing had never even occurred to her before, and why should it?

She hadn’t been given a choice here. Who were they to tell her that she wasn’t walking home? They told her it was dangerous and that they were concerned. Really? Why? What gave them the right?

She had to put a halt to this immediately. She wasn’t like most women. She had been assaulted, drugged, and raped. She woke up in a hospital with a concussion only to find out days later, as she gained back her memory, exactly what had happened. She couldn’t handle another man, any man being close to her. She feared intimacy. She was broken in so many ways. Her innocence, her control and power as an individual, as a woman, and as a human being had been stolen from her. She wasn’t normal. She was scared, and all she wanted to do was run.

“Lucia.”

She heard her name, the strong male voice, and she turned around to see Gabriele.

The name of an angel, how ironic. He wasn’t her angel. He wasn’t one to protect her, watch over her, and make her heal from the pain and the fear. So what was he? Who was he?

“What do you want with me? Why are you guys doing this? What is this about?” She confronted him, and he stared down into her eyes, his expression going from firm to compassionate in a blink of her eye.

“We want to get to know you. We want to look out for you to ensure that you’re safe, and as to what is this about? I think it’s about this town and what it stands for. As men of the town, we watch over and protect all women and children.”

“Protect them from what?”

Gabriele looked uncomfortable as he glanced toward his approaching brothers.

“Any danger.”