Four

Chapter Four

Rue

THE ATMOSPHERE BETWEEN the three men was strange.

I was fully aware my presence was contributing to the strained

environment. I wasn’t used to this kind of situation. Normally, I’d have been grabbed by now, thrown into a bedroom, or simply bent over the couch. I’d squeeze my eyes shut while whoever I’d been given to

penetrated me however the hell they wanted—my pussy or ass or mouth— and fucked me rough and raw. There was never any emotion involved. No tenderness or hint of being taken care of. Often, they’d either laugh when they’d finished, or they’d act disgusted, as though I was the one who’d just used them.

One thing I wasn’t normally offered was a bath and clean clothes.

Self-conscious, I stood from the couch. The door to the main bathroom led directly off the living area. I felt all of them watching me, but there was nothing I could do about it. The Capellos had given me to these men,

whether they wanted me or not. They were free to do whatever they wanted with me.

Keeping my head down, I went into the bathroom, as they’d instructed. The bathroom was modern, with clean lines and only a handful of toiletries, which were all set out in a straight line, facing forward. I assumed they each had adjoining bathrooms to their bedrooms and what had been provided here was purely for guests. There were no fruity scented body washes, or bubble baths, but with three men living here, that was hardly surprising. I’d seen no trace of anything feminine so far, and from the glances and subtle touches the three of them exchanged, I thought I understood why. But if that was the case, then what was I supposed to do here? I didn’t know. All I

could think was to try to fulfil my role, the same as always.

I bent over the tub and ran the water. I was ashamed at how filthy I was.

My skin was streaked with dirt, and my hair was in rats’ tails. The men must have noticed, and my cheeks heated with shame.

I lifted my dress and pulled it over my head and dropped it onto the floor beside me. I considered if I should put it in the wash basket, but even if it was laundered, I didn’t ever want to have it back again. It wasn’t as though it was something I’d chosen to wear. It was what the last man had put me in. The removal of the dress left me naked apart from the scrap of material of my panties. I rolled them down my thighs and stepped out as well.

Through the gap in the open doorway, I caught the three men still

standing behind the kitchen counter, all watching me, their eyes wide. I wasn’t sure why they seemed so shocked. They were the ones who’d told me to go and take a bath. I was only doing what they’d said.

My body reacted to the three sets of eyes on me, my nipples tightening, a tingling rush flowing between my thighs. I’d been conditioned to react like this to men. It was all I knew.

“Hey,” said the blond, Ryan. “You can shut the bathroom door.”

Oh.

So that’s why they were looking so shocked. They’d expected me to take a bath with the door closed.

My face burned. “I’m sorry,” I called back to them. “I didn’t know. I’m not normally allowed to shut doors myself.” Men usually expected to be

able to watch, or if they wanted a door shut, they’d do it themselves, and most likely lock it at the same time. I wouldn’t be allowed to bathe with a door shut, and certainly not locked from my side. They would assume I was doing something bad—trying to escape, or even searching for a sharp blade so I could escape my life altogether. But the truth was that I didn’t want to die—quite the opposite. I wanted to live a real life, a free life, though I

couldn’t see that ever happening.

Kodee walked around the kitchen island and marched across the

apartment floor. With me still standing, rooted to the spot in confusion,

embarrassment, and indecision, he gave me a tight smile and then reached out and pulled the bathroom door closed, shutting off my view of the other men, and their view of me.

I’d messed up. I’d done something wrong again, though I wasn’t totally sure why the sight of a little naked skin bothered them.

Sucking in a shaky breath, I turned back to the bath. The water was

almost halfway up the side of the tub now. Steam rose from the surface. I looked back to the line of toiletries and reached out to run my fingers across

the writing scrawled across each bottle. One would be a body wash, another a shampoo, and I assumed one of the others would be a conditioner, should the men use it. The only way I’d know which was which was by tipping a little out into my palm and checking the texture. The body wash and

shampoo were easily muddled up, though I wasn’t sure it made much of a difference anyway, but I could tell which was a conditioner by its

creaminess.

I lifted my leg over the side of the tub and dipped my toes into the

water. The temperature was just right, and I submerged my foot fully then stepped right in. I lowered my naked body into the water and sat back. I tried to relax, but this whole setup was too weird to allow me to clear my mind. Even the closed door made me nervous. I hadn’t locked it, and I didn’t think I’d been locked in, either. I didn’t like not knowing what was expected of me.

I was hugely conscious of the other men on the other side of the door. What did they think of me? They must wonder what the hell they’d gotten themselves landed with.

The Capello brothers had a reason for secreting me here. They knew Joe Nettie would track me down and have me killed, and the fact I was here made me think the Capellos didn’t think they’d be able to keep me alive themselves. Perhaps they didn’t trust someone working for them? How the hell was I supposed to know? I was just some little whore who’d been in the wrong place at the wrong time. I had no idea how these guys were involved in the whole thing, but it seemed the Capellos thought no one would come looking for me here.

Of course, once I did what the Capello brothers wanted, I had no idea what would happen to me. I’d most likely end up dead.

My eyes had been slipping shut, drowsy at the warm water and steamy air, but now they shot open. I couldn’t allow myself to relax. I needed to

stay alert.

I selected one of the bottles, which I thought to be a body wash, and tipped a dollop out into my palm. The scent was distinctly male—

cedarwood and black pepper. Fresh. I soaped down my body, running my hands over and under my small breasts and then down and across my

stomach and to the small patch of dark curls between my thighs.

A knock came at the door, and I froze, yanking my hand out from between my thighs. So, this was where it was going to start. I had misread

them after all.

The deep voice of the one they’d called Kodee. “I brought you something to wear.”

The door opened a crack, and a bundle of material was pushed through the gap. It landed on the bathroom floor, and the door was pulled shut again. I waited a moment, my breath held, wondering if one of the men would follow, and they’d do exactly what I expected men to do.

But footsteps faded as Kodee walked away, and I was left alone once more.

With my body clean, I set about washing my hair, rinsing it out in the tub, and using a tortoiseshell comb I found to work out the knots. When that was done, I rose from the tub, wrapped myself in a towel, and stepped out.

I turned my attention to the clothes I’d been brought. I picked up a blue shirt, the material expensive. Without thinking, I lifted it to my nose and inhaled. The scent was masculine and clean, and somehow comforting. I looked down to the boxer shorts—the tight, white type with the thick

waistband rather than the baggy ones—and thought against sniffing them as well. While I was sure they were clean, I didn’t want to come across as a

complete weirdo. I ducked down to pull on the shorts, and then slipped my hand into one armhole of the shirt, and then the other. It was far too big, the hem ending mid-thigh, the body of the shirt swamping my small frame. But strangely, I felt comforted by it, like the shirt had just wrapped me in a cozy hug, if I could even remember what it felt like to be hugged by someone.

My hair was still damp, but I couldn’t do anything about that. A wet spot had appeared on the back of the shirt.

Cautiously, I opened the bathroom door and peered out into the

apartment. Two of the men, Kodee and Ryan, looked up as I stepped out. I assumed the third man, Dillon, had gone out to buy me some clothes, as they’d discussed.

The corner of Kodee’s lips twitched. “Better?” “Yes, thank you. And thank you for the shirt.”

His gaze dropped down my body, to my bare legs, and back up again.

Ryan caught the look, and his gaze narrowed in a scowl. Out of all the men, it seemed he was the one who wanted me here the least. Did he worry that I was going to encroach on his territory? I didn’t know how to make him feel better about that.

“You’re welcome. Dillon’s gone out to get you some other clothes, so you won’t have to hang around in my stuff for the next few days, or however long you’re here.”

So, this was Kodee’s shirt I was wearing, and his scent I’d inhaled. “Thank you. That’s kind. I... I wasn’t expecting that.”

“Wasn’t expecting what?”

“For you to be kind to me. People normally... aren’t.”

My words clearly troubled him. That hadn’t been my intention. I didn’t want him to feel sorry for me. My life was my life, and there was nothing he or anyone else could do about that.

“Is... is there anything I can do for you?” I asked. He frowned. “Do for me?”

“Yes. Like give you pleasure as thanks for your kindness.”

“No.” His frown deepened. “No, not at all. It’s not like that.”

My cheeks burned. Sex was my role in life. I didn’t know how to be anything else. But everything I said or did around these men seemed to come out wrong. “Okay.”

“Do you know why you’re here?” he asked.

“Yes, but it’s probably best I don’t tell you. I don’t want to get anyone else in trouble.”

He pressed his full lips together and nodded. “Good point.” He got to his feet. “My bedroom is through this way. Make yourself comfortable. I don’t know what you normally like to do with your time, but if you like to read, then please help yourself.”

He gestured toward the wide expanse of bookshelves that took up much of the living room wall.

“Are they all yours?” I asked, taking in the multiple spines covering every inch of the wall.

“Pretty much. But it’s not hoarding if it’s books, right?” He threw me a wink that I knew was supposed to make me feel more comfortable, but instead made me want to vanish into the floor.

“I’m not much of a reader,” I muttered, glancing away again.