Gabriel’s POV
I looked behind me when the doors opened. Aria walked inside with a small smile on her face.
Nick motioned for her to come to sit with him. She walked behind him, leaned over the couch, and kissed his cheek.
“Later,” she mumbled.
Nick furrowed his eyebrows. “What? Why?”
She didn’t answer. She walked around and sat next to me, leaning her head on my shoulder.
“I want my brother right now,” she said to Nick.
A huge grin spread across my face. I looked at Nick. He was glaring at me, and I stuck my tongue out at him. He huffed and rolled his eyes.
I lifted Aria and sat her on my lap. I kissed her cheek and pulled her to me.
I wondered what happened with Cassie to make her need me. Not that I was complaining. I would have her need me 24/7.
“What did you want to talk about?” Aria asked, lifting her head to look at me.
“We were talking about calling Victor,” I said, rubbing small circles on her back. “We wanted to include you.”
I saw fear flash in her eyes, and it made my blood boil. I can’t wait to get my hands on that fucker. I guess Nick saw it too, because he growled loudly.
“Don’t be afraid, love,” he said, trying to stay calm. “He will never hurt you again.”
Aria nodded, not lifting her head to look at him. She took a deep breath and placed her head on my chest. My heart swelled. I wanted to hold her like this forever. I placed a kiss on top of her head and wrapped my arms around her.
“When are we calling him?” Aria asked quietly.
“As soon as Petra arrives,” Zack answered.
“She will be here earlier than she said,” Patricia added.
“When?” Mike asked, raising his head to look at Patricia.
“Tonight,” Patricia said.
That’s great. We can call him today. I really wanted to get this over with. I can’t watch my sister afraid. I wanted to get rid of him. I needed to get rid of him.
I buried my nose in Aria’s hair and rocked her softly. I could tell she was afraid. I wanted to take her fear away. I wanted to take away every bad feeling she ever felt.
Why didn’t Grace take me? Did she want Aria specifically? Or did she grab the first baby she could reach? Too bad the bitch was dead. I will never be able to find out. Goddess, I wish she took me. I would be the one Grace abused. I would be the one Victor was aware of. I would be the one afraid, not her. She would have grown up happy and safe next to our grandma. She would never know fear or pain. I would give anything to take away her fear. And I will do everything. She will be happy and safe, just like she was supposed to be from the moment we were born.
A loud ‘aww’ snapped me out of my thoughts. I raised my head and saw Annie looking at us with a big smile on her face.
“You two are so cute,” she sighed.
Aria chuckled and raised her head to look at Annie. From the corner of my eye, I saw Nick rolling his eyes. I smirked. Jealous bastard.
“I have to admit, I am jealous, Minnie,” Zack said with a mischievous glint in his eyes. “I thought I was your favorite brother.”
I glared at him. I know he was doing this on purpose. He was trying to piss me off. My grip on Aria tightened.
“Sorry, Zack,” she chuckled. “It’s kind of hard to compete with this twin thing. You are my second favorite, though.”
I smiled victoriously. Take that, you fucker. I kissed Aria’s cheek and smirked at Zack.
“As long as I am your favorite mate, I am not complaining,” Nick interrupted.
Aria turned to him. “You are the only mate I have.”
“Yes, I am,” he said with a huge smile. “Remember that always.”
Aria rolled her eyes and buried her face in my chest again. I chuckled and leaned my head on hers.
“Back to the important matters,” Mike sighed. “When are we calling Victor?”
Aria stiffened in my arms. I held her tighter.
“Tonight, or tomorrow morning,” Blake said. “Depends on if Petra has anything to add.”
I heard the door open. Jake and Cassie came back inside. Jake had a worried expression on his face, and Cassie looked like she had cried. I will have to ask Aria what that was about. Although, I think I know.
Zack’s eyes fell on Cassie, and I could see he was worried. His hands twitched like he wanted to hold her.
“Hey, baby,” Blake said as he reached out for Cassie.
“Hey,” she said, taking his hand.
Aria looked up at her, and Cassie gave her a small smile.
“Are you okay?” Blake asked Cassie as he caressed her cheek.
“I am,” she smiled at him. “Don’t worry.”
“I will always worry, baby,” Blake said, kissing her temple.
Zack was glaring at Blake, his fists clenched by his side. Jake elbowed Zack, and he turned to glare at him.
“I will start making dinner,” Annie said, breaking the tense silence. “Aria, Cassie, will you help?”
Aria raised her head to look at Annie. “Sure.”
Cassie nodded and stood up.
Aria wiggled in my arms, and I let her go. I felt cold and empty as soon as she got off my lap. She turned to look at me and gave me a small smile. She leaned down and kissed my cheek.
“Love you,” I told her.
“I love you too,” she said with a small smile before turning around and following Annie to the kitchen.
“Is Cassie okay?” Blake asked Jake as soon as the girls left the room. “What happened?”
“Nothing,” Jake said coldly. “She is fine, don’t worry.”
Blake sighed and looked at Zack. His gaze hardened. Zack looked back at him, his eyes narrowing.
I sighed and rolled my eyes. I felt Nick’s eyes on me, and I turned to look at him. He had an amused expression on his face.
“It wasn’t as funny when somebody tried to steal your girl away,” I whispered so only he could hear me.
His amused expression turned into a pissed off one, and I laughed out loud.
Aria’s POV
We were in the kitchen helping Annie make dinner. Cassie and I were peeling the potatoes and carrots, while Annie prepared the meat.
“So, what happened, Cass?” Annie asked after a while.
“Nothing,” Cassie mumbled.
“I won’t put pressure on you to tell me, but I know something happened,” Annie said as she looked up at Cassie.
“I was overwhelmed seeing Zack,” Cassie said with a small sigh. “I thought he was dead.”
Annie stared at Cassie for a few moments before nodding her head and looking back at the meat she was preparing. I could tell she knew there was more. But Annie would never pry. She was the kind of friend that would always listen and try to help, but she would never push you to tell her anything you didn’t want. That’s what I loved most about her. I knew I could always count on her and I also knew she would never make me feel like I had to tell her something I didn’t want to tell.
We continued preparing dinner in comfortable silence.
I glanced at Cassie once in a while. She looked better, but I know how she really felt. I went through the same thing when I saw Jake.
Was Cassie, right? If Nick and I weren’t mates, would I be back with Jake?
I sighed internally.
It didn’t even make sense to think about these things. Nick was my mate. I loved him. I couldn’t imagine my life without him. When Cassie talked about Nick not being my mate, my heart felt like it was breaking into a million pieces. I felt actual physical pain thinking about not being with him. He was mine.
We finished preparing dinner.
“Ari, can you please get the others?” Annie asked me as I finished setting the table.
I nodded and walked out of the kitchen.
The guys and Patricia were still talking about Victor. It made my heart clench in fear. I shook my head, clearing my thoughts. I was safe. I was with my brother, my mate, and my friends. I am safe.
“Guys,” I said, interrupting their discussion. “The dinner is ready.”
They looked at me and nodded. I walked back to the kitchen, and they soon followed.
The dinner was tense. Blake and Zack kept glaring at each other. Cassie was staring at her plate, not looking up at anyone. Blake tried to get her attention, but she only gave him small smiles now and then. Every time Blake touched Cassie; Zack’s jaw clenched. He really had it bad for her. I didn’t understand why he never told her how he felt. I didn’t think it was because of Jake. Maybe Zack was just afraid.
Nick placed his hand on my thigh, interrupting my thoughts. I looked up at him and he was eyeing me with worry in his eyes.
“Are you okay?” he whispered so only I could hear.
The others were chatting among themselves, not paying attention to us.
“Sure,” I nodded. “Why?”
“I called you a few times,” he said, his eyes roaming all over my face.
“Sorry,” I smiled. “I was just thinking.”
He smiled back, relaxing immediately. “Okay, baby.”
“What happened?” I asked. “Why did you call me?”
“Are you done eating?” he asked me.
I nodded, and he smiled at me.
“Gabe,” Nick called my brother. “Do you need us here when Petra arrives?”
Gabriel and the rest of our friends looked at us.
“No,” Patricia answered instead of Gabriel. “I will be here when she arrives. She is not very comfortable around a lot of people. I will explain everything to her and the rest of you can meet her tomorrow.”
The rest of us just nodded. I could see that most of my friends were relieved. Today was hard for all of us. It was physically and emotionally tiring, especially for Cassie. We all needed to rest.
Nick took my hand in his, pulling me up.
“Wait,” I said. “I need to help clean up.”
“Don’t worry,” Mike said. “You girls cooked. We will clean up.”
“Thank you,” I smiled at him.
Nick took my hand in his again. “Goodnight, guys. We will see you tomorrow.”
As soon as we entered our room, Nick’s lips were on my neck.
I moaned quietly, wrapping my arms around his neck, and pulling him closer to me.
“Fuck, baby,” he groaned. “I missed you.”
I pulled his hair, removing his lips from my neck. I saw a displeased look in his eyes. It made me chuckle. Before he could complain, I pulled him back to me and kissed him hard. He opened his mouth and our tongues touched. It sent electric sparks down my body.
He grabbed my butt, lifting me. I wrapped my legs around his waist, and he carried me to our bed. He placed me down gently and laid down between my legs. He never broke the kiss.
My heart was thumping hard, and the area between my legs was throbbing. I needed him inside me.
I didn’t even know when he undressed me. I couldn’t pay attention. The only thing I felt was him. The only thing I saw was his brown eyes. Goddess, how I loved this man.
“If something hurts, tell me and I will stop,” he mumbled, kissing my belly.
“Fuck, Nick, if you stop, something will hurt you,” I said, panting hard.
He chuckled, looking up at me. “Don’t worry, baby. I am not stopping.”
He continued kissing down my body, and I moaned quietly. I missed this. I missed him.
We were both so focused on each other that I didn’t even know how long we had been in our room.
I was sitting on Nick’s lap with him inside me. We were both sweaty and panting hard. Nick was kissing and nibbling on my marking spot. I was covered in goosebumps, and I tightened around him instantly.
“Fuck,” he grunted.
I ran my hands through his hair. I was close again.
“Are you ready, baby?” he asked his voice deep.
It sent shivers down my spine. I felt his canines on my neck. I just nodded. I couldn’t speak right now.
“Mine,” he growled loudly before sinking his canines into my neck.
I’ve never felt anything like that. My vision blackened and sparks on my body intensified by a million. Everything around me was Nick. And I never wanted this feeling to end.
Nick and I both came out of our high together. He raised his head and looked up at me with so much love in his eyes that I teared up.
“Finally,” he mumbled, kissing me deeply.
He broke the kiss and leaned his forehead on mine, breathing hard. “I love you, baby.”
“I love you too,” I whispered and kissed him again.
