Total pages in book: 75
Estimated words: 71444 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 357(@200wpm)___ 286(@250wpm)___ 238(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 71444 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 357(@200wpm)___ 286(@250wpm)___ 238(@300wpm)
The men exchange glances, a silent conversation passing between them. Kinkaid is the first to break the silence, his deep voice rumbling through the room.
“Understood,” he says simply, his eyes finally settling on me. There’s something unreadable in his penetrating gaze, like he’s trying to decide what to make of me.
Grady’s expression softens just slightly. He has a small bag, which he hands to me. “Keep things... peaceful.” He doesn’t wait for me to respond; he just turns on his heel and walks out, leaving me alone with three strangers.
The door slams shut behind him, the sound echoing in the empty halls. My heart is racing, my palms sweaty, as I stand there, staring at the men in front of me. They watch me, too, each in their own way: Kinkaid, with quiet intensity; Hyde, the second man, with that unsettling smirk; and Rock, the third, with his guarded but not unfriendly gaze.
“Lory, right?” Kinkaid’s voice is softer but just as deep and sure.
I nod, unable to find my voice.
Kinkaid steps closer, his presence even more imposing up close as he looms over me.
I swallow hard, forcing myself to speak. “Yeah. I’m Lory.”
He holds out a huge hand, which I stare at for too long before offering my own. “Kinkaid. It’s good to meet you.”
Hyde chuckles from his spot by the door, and the sound sends a shiver down my spine. “Oh, sweetheart,” he drawls, “it’s more than good to meet you.”
Rock shoots Hyde a warning look, and Hyde shrugs, leaning back against the wall with that same unsettling grin. Rock then turns his attention to me, his voice surprisingly gentle for a man his size. “You don’t have to look at us like that. We’re not here to hurt you.” He says it so sincerely I want to believe him.
I should be relieved, but in a place like this, surrounded by men like them, I find it very hard to believe.
I’ve dealt with men like this before—my mom’s boyfriends, who hurt me and tried to do unspeakable things to me and my sister when we were too young to defend ourselves. They were the worst of the worst. But I’m grown now, stronger, and more prepared for whatever comes my way—whatever will come next.
They’re good-looking men, but not in a way that feels safe. There’s a brutal edge to each of them, like they’ve been chiseled by hardship and violence. Even so, if I met any of them in a bar and they’d said the right things, maybe I would have gone home with them and done things for free that I’m now getting paid to do. I’ve always been drawn to the kind of rawness they exude, like they trust no one and can flip under the slightest of pressure. With bodies like weapons that carry the scars of battle, and energy that vibrates the air around them, they’re all I know.
Maybe, if I’m nice to them, they’ll make it easier for me to take.
Maybe.
This is my reality for the next month.
5
ROCK
LIGHT IN THE DARK
Lory stares at me with her too-wide dark eyes, and I don't know what to do with myself. What I said is true. We're not here to hurt her. Well, not on purpose. But what we are here to do is likely to hurt some. She's tiny. A little waif of the thing with a waist I could span with my hands and curvy hips that make my mouth water. Her dress is tight and leaves nothing to the imagination. All it would take is one pull, and it would tear right off her.
I swallow thickly, hating where my mind has gone within a few seconds of laying my eyes on her.
All of us have been so amped about this moment. Now we're here, alone with a woman for the first time in more years than I want to count, I don't know what to do with myself. Kinkaid looks a second away from breaking his cool, and Hyde's practically manic. We need a distraction.
“Where's your stuff?” I ask her.
“I came straight from the auction,” she explains. “The warden took my phone and said I wouldn't need many clothes.” The color that rushes to her face speaks volumes. She's no hardened woman used to these situations. If I had to guess, this girl has had boyfriends, but she's never fucked a stranger. Probably never been with one man like us, let alone three. The warden was keen to repay his debt to us, but maybe he should have taken longer to figure out the right kind of woman. Kinkaid has his wits about him, but Hyde is an unexploded bomb at the best of times and at the worst... Well, little Lory better pray she doesn't experience his worst.
“What's in the bag?” Hyde asks.
Lory adjusts her grip and peers in. “A toothbrush and a towel. And some…” She pauses, biting her lips. “Condoms.”