Craving Trix (The Aces' Sons 1)

She sighed, reaching up to wipe gently at some of the blood smeared across my cheek. “Wanna go home?”

“You get shit straightened up with your dad?” I asked quietly, ignoring my throbbing head as I leaned down close.

“Yeah, we’re good,” she whispered back before pulling away.

“We’re gonna go, Pop,” she called to Dragon, who was standing a few feet away talking to Casper.

“How you feeling?” Casper asked as we made our way toward them.

“Not as bad as he is.”

“No doubt.” He chuckled. “He’s lucky you kept your shit together. Got any idea what set him off?”

“No, and I wasn’t gonna go crazy on the kid. He’s family.”

“Gonna have to watch him,” Dragon said darkly. “Don’t have time for this shit.”

“Think he might be juicin’,” I mentioned, feeling like an asshole for saying anything about it.

“Done right, that shit won’t fuck you up,” Dragon said with a shake of his head. “Has to be somethin’ else.”

“Might be doing it wrong,” Casper pointed out. “He’s what—twenty? Who’s he getting it from?”

“No idea—not even sure he’s doin’ it,” I mumbled, reaching out to pull Trix against my side.

“Nah, you’re right. He’s doin’ it,” Dragon said. “Boy’s gotten huge.”

“We done?” I asked tiredly, scratching at the blood that was drying on my face.

“Yeah, get outta here,” Casper said with a sympathetic smile.

“Love you, Papa,” Trix said softly, stepping away from me to give Dragon a hug.

“You, too,” he mumbled back, kissing the top of her head as he glared at me.

I shook my head and turned as Trix moved back to my side and we started walking toward my bike. Goddamn, I was sore.

“What do you want for lunch?” Trix called out as I situated the ice on my face. My jaw had some mottled bruising that I would have ignored, but my girl was all about babying me and I wasn’t going to stop her.

I wondered if I should moan a little so she’d come check on me.

“Don’t have to make me lunch, Bea,” I called back, leaning farther into the couch with a sigh.

Will had gotten some good hits in, but he’d been too sloppy. I knew he’d been taught better, so he had to have been completely out of his mind when he went after me. It drove me nuts, because I couldn’t figure out what had set him off.

He’d been a moody little bitch lately, but I figured it was just his age. We’d all gone thorough that stage—the one where we wanted to be the big man on campus, but were surrounded by much bigger men on a daily basis. You had to just grow out of that shit, eventually find your place in the pecking order and work your way up.

“I can make you soup,” Trix said sweetly as she came back into the living room.

“Baby, I don’t need soup.”

“Applesauce?”

“You’re joking, right?”

“You should have something soft—”

“Steak,” I cut in. “I want steak and mashed potatoes.”

“Your mouth, though—”

I reached out and grabbed a hold of her hips, letting the bag of ice fall onto the couch as I pulled her onto my lap.

“You’re sweet, you know that?”

“Your face looks like it hurts,” she replied, reaching up to run her fingers through the short hair on top of my head.

“It’s fine, Sweetbea,” I reassured her, sliding my hand up her side. “Looks a lot worse than it feels.”

“You still shouldn’t have steak. Your cheeks are cut—”

“Mouth feels fine, too.”

“It was bleeding.”

“Not bleedin’ now.”

“I didn’t like watching that,” she confessed softly. “I know I should find it hot or something, but I didn’t. I knew you would win, but I still hated it.”

“Shouldn’t have had to watch it. Wish your dad had kept you inside.”

“There was no way he could have kept me inside.”

“Doesn’t make a lot of sense,” I teased quietly.

“I didn’t want to see it, but I had to know what was happening.”

“Shit like that doesn’t happen very often,” I said, sliding my hand up her back until I could run my fingers through the ends of her hair. “But you’re gonna have to get used to not knowin’ what’s happenin’.”

“I don’t think I’ll ever get used to that.”

“You can handle it. Hell, you were born to handle it.”

“Doesn’t mean I like it,” she replied with a frown.

“Kiss me,” I murmured, ready to change the subject. I reached up to grip the back of her neck.

“But, your mouth—”

“You don’t kiss me right now, I’m gonna be usin’ my mouth for other things in about three seconds.”

“Is that supposed to be a deterrent?” she asked laughingly, leaning forward to press her lips gently against mine.

“Such a badass,” I said into her mouth, licking her bottom lip. “I get in a fight and you don’t get pissed or hysterical, you just wait until it’s over and then baby me.”

“Was I supposed to be hysterical?” she asked, smiling.