“He said you were like his mother and that I was to see only you.”
I look over as three more guys walk into the kitchen. My eyes narrow on the one with the accent who wanted Axel to share me last night.
“Good morning, luv,” he says to Amy, then focuses on me. If blond, bearded guys covered in tattoos are your thing, then this is your guy. While he’s not as striking as Blade or the Thor guy, his body is intense.
He goes straight to the refrigerator and grabs some green slimy type of drink. Then he smiles at me.
“Lookie here.” His bloodshot eyes make me believe he’s still drunk or high. “It’s my lucky morning. I dreamt about you, darlin’.”
Do they all say darlin’? I grit my teeth. And I’m ready to kick him if he comes any closer, but Amy beats me to it with a spatula to his chest, stopping him.
“Axel’s.”
Like that’s a magical word, they all freeze and burst out laughing. He starts to viciously shake that disgusting green slime in the container and kisses Amy on the forehead the same way Ryder did.
She smiles. “It’s true.”
Now they all stare at me. I raise my head, challenging, almost daring them. My heart races. This is no joke. No wonder Ryder wanted to make sure I didn’t wander around. A moment of terror makes me look toward the door.
“You’re shitting me?” One of them laughs and my eyes dart back to them. Amy slides closer to me as if she can sense my unease.
“Axel don’t have a fucking ole lady.” His eyes rake over my body.
Okay, I need to think. I’m in a kitchen. If they come any closer, I’ll grab the frying pan and do what? It’s five against one because even though Amy’s a woman, she’s like Axel’s mom.
“Especially not an uptight snatch like this one.” He snorts as they all laugh. Again, the one with an accent tries to move toward me. “You want to come ride on daddy’s—”
“Fosters.”
His voice fills the room. The warning’s clear and I shiver and almost jump into his arms.
He stands in the doorway smoking a cigarette.
My heart thuds, and I’m so relieved to see him I almost burst into tears. Until it dawns on me that he’s the scariest of them all if the reaction of the others is any indication.
He walks in, examining every single one of them. The prospects stand still and the room’s oxygen level seems to have gone to zero.
Someone slightly wheezes.
Nobody moves.
Nobody says a word. It’s as if we’re all waiting for him.
He’s so unbelievably powerful it’s rather addictive to watch him. Barely able to breathe, I grab ahold of the dark marble island and try not to faint.
My heart is seriously skipping beats. He’s insanely beautiful. But what makes him so terrifying is his lack of fear.
It makes him dangerous. It’s in his eyes—they’re fierce and possessive. Instantly, I’m wet.
“VP, we didn’t know—” The two guys standing next to Fosters hold up their hands as if he has them at gunpoint.
“You didn’t hear Amy?”
His voice is deceptively casual as he brings the cigarette to his lips. But his sapphire eyes are like black ice telling the room the truth.
“Come here, Antoinette.” It’s like a hiss and I almost throw myself at him. One tattooed hand holds me tight.
I should be terrified. A normal girl would have heard the warning bells going off, telling her that the guy who’s holding her is dangerous. Jesus, he’s so unsettling even his brothers are scared of him.
I should… but I’m not. In fact, I can’t lie. All of this turns me on. It’s horrible, but my heart is beating so fast I wonder if he can feel it. And my traitorous legs, which I’ve spent my life training, are weak. I cling to him for support.
Amy sighs and shakes her head but continues cooking what appears to be an egg-vegetable scramble.
“VP… I meant no disrespect.” Fosters looks truly remorseful.
“Antoinette, go put on some clothes and meet me outside,” he says in my ear. Goose bumps pebble my arms.
As soon as he releases me, I’m on the move, running up the stairs. My mind’s at war with my stupid heart. He’s probably taking me back to my apartment, and I need to be happy about it.
“It’s better this way, Toni,” I whisper as I bite my lip, digging into one of my garbage bags. I pull out a T-shirt that used to be pink, but it’s old so it’s kind of gray now.
Removing my dance top, I slip into the shirt, wondering if I should take time to find a bra. Whatever, if he’s taking me back to my place, it makes no difference if I’m wearing one or not. And he’s already seen me naked so… I smooth my hands over the shirt, trying to rid it of the wrinkles.