In Death I Live by Lindsay Becs

ZORA

I wakebefore the sun is up. The room inside the cabin where we are all staying is still bathed in complete darkness, letting me know that I only slept for a couple of hours.

My three protectors are still tangled up in bed with me, the sounds of soft snores and light breathing filling the air as the wind rustles the trees outside.

My head is beginning to pound with the onslaught of a migraine wanting to surface. No doubt from the stress of earlier tonight. Slipping out as best as I can without waking anyone, I slide down the bed on my back until I hit the floor in a ridiculous crouch that has me chuckling to myself at how dumb I probably looked. But my boys need sleep as much as I do, and I don’t want to disturb them if I can help it.

“You okay?” River whispers as I stand and pull on the first pair of sweats I find on the floor.

“Yeah.” I smile, bending to peck his lips. “Just need some water and to take something for the headache that I woke with.”

“Let me go with you,” he says, moving to get out of bed.

“I’m okay. Promise.” I grin down at him, stopping him from getting up from where he is spooning with Cruz. “I’ll be right back.”

I pad my way to the kitchen for a bottle of water, drinking half of it down before I turn to head back upstairs. When I reach the top, I pause, looking at the closed door of the bedroom that Greyson’s in.

Quietly, I go to the door, hoping it’s unlocked, and I’m relieved when it is. Walking inside, I see the pain meds by his bed and reach for them to take one for my headache. Then, turning to look at him, I gasp, my hand covering my mouth when I see his beaten form.

My hand trembles and tears fill my eyes when I reach to swipe hair out of his swollen eyes. “I’m so sorry,” I whisper, knowing this is all my fault.

“Angel?” Greyson croaks, calling me the name that is usually reserved only for River.

“Shhh…” I soothe, placing a soft kiss on his head. “Go back to sleep.” Shifting in bed, he lets out a quiet groan of pain. “Open,” I tell him, placing two pain pills on his tongue and lifting the bottle of water to his lips.

“Lie with me,” he grunts, shifts again to move over to make room for me.

“Grey, stop moving. It’s okay. I’ll go back to the other bedroom. You need to rest.”

“Please?” His blue eyes plead with me not to leave. “I hate being away from you and everyone else tonight.”

Biting my lip to hold back my emotions, I nod. Dropping the sweats to the ground, I slide in next to him, being careful not to jostle the bed too much.

“I’m not going to break, Zo-Zo. I need your snuggles and your hot pussy to warm me up.”

“You are in no condition to have sex right now,” I chide.

“Who said anything about sex, naughty girl?” he rasps into my hair when I slide closer to him, and I feel his words go straight to my core. “My legs don’t hurt,” he says, pulling my leg over his with another grunt, the movement straining his hurt ribs.

“Okay, okay. I’ll snuggle in close,” I tell him so he’ll stop. Then I wrap my arm around his middle, careful not to be too harsh, and lay my head on his shoulder. “This alright?” I ask into his neck, leaving a kiss to the spot just under his ear, feeling him shiver.

“Perfect,” he murmurs just before falling back to sleep, the pain meds kicking in.

When I wake a little later, I hear deep voices whispering. “You think we should wake them up?”

“No, dipshit, they both need to sleep,” Dom says followed by a smack.

“Ouch, fucker!” Cruz whisper-yells at him.

“I’m going to go make coffee. I need a gallon after last night,” River says, ignoring both of them.

“I’ll start breakfast,” Cruz adds before I hear them leave.

I thought they’d all gone down to the kitchen, but a few minutes later, I feel a warm hand on my hip and soft lips press to my temple. Turning my head to look up at him, I give him a sleepy grin as my fingers wrap around the nape of his neck. Domonic’s lips twitch to return it, but he still holds back before kissing my lips.

When he pulls back, his eyes shift to Greyson, still sleeping next to me. “He do alright through the night?”

“I think so. I came in to check on him when I woke up. He didn’t want to be alone, and I couldn’t deny him after what he did for me.”

He kisses me again before standing up to leave. “We’re making breakfast, and I’m sure Swan is going to want to have a meet, but take your time getting up, okay?”

“Okay,” I reply before turning back to Grey and snuggling into his warmth.

* * *

“Canyou please stop glaring at her and just get on with it?” Dom snaps at Swan.

He paced around the kitchen while we all ate in silence before telling us to come into the living room to talk. But since we’ve sat down here, he hasn’t said a word. All he’s done is stare a hole into my head, where I’m assuming he wished Slater had shot me.

“Do not test me today,” he growls, piercing his son with his glare this time. Although, Dom looks completely unphased by it.

Cruz clears his throat, shifting on the couch where he’s sitting next to me. “We do need to get this moving along before more people start arriving.”

“You,” Swan says, hate dripping from the single word as he looks back at me again. “Since it’s your fault that Greyson was injured, you stay locked in this house with him until it’s time to leave tomorrow.”

“Bu—” I start to protest, but Dom’s hand on my thigh squeezes, warning me to stop. Closing my mouth, I clench my jaw so I don’t say anything more, instead, nodding in agreement.

“Yesterday’s fuck-up is not going to happen again. Shadows is desperate, and when people are desperate, they do stupid things. He might try to show up again today, or he might be wise—for once in his life—and stay away. There’s no way of knowing, but we need to be vigilant. Keep our heads straight and our eyes open. If he comes back, he does not leave here again. Am I clear?” He looks to all the boys, passing over me, and it only pisses me off more.

“We got it,” Domonic answers for all of them.

“Are you sure this time? Because yesterday you said the same and then he got the upper hand, hurt one of ours and left with his heart still beating,” he rambles, getting louder with each word he says, spit flying from his mouth as his face turns red.

Dom’s hand tightens again on my leg. Placing mine on top of his, I try to calm him down before he snaps again. “I said, we fucking got it,” he says tersely, his anger palpable.

The two men stare at each other for a long beat before Swan finally relents. “Good.” He walks away, and the air in the room instantly thins as the tension leaves with him. Although that doesn’t stop the sizzle of anger that’s still crackling around the boys, especially Dom.

“Gah! I fucking hate him,” Domonic says, laying his head back on the couch. It surprises me for some reason, even though you can tell there’s no love lost between the father and son.

“Angel, you going to be okay here with Greyson?” River asks, and I soften at his thoughtfulness.

“We’ll be fine. Besides, I promised him a blowie tonight if he stayed in bed and rested today,” I chuckle.

“As much as he might need or want that, you might want to wait. Although I hate the motherfucker, Swan isn’t wrong. We all—you included—need to stay alert today,” Dom says, still not lifting his head from the back of the couch.

Swiftly, I lift a leg over his lap to straddle him. Cupping his face in my hands, I lean down and run my tongue over the stubble on his jaw. “You need to relax,” I tell him with a smirk when I press my lips to his.

“Tomorrow,” he practically growls. “Tomorrow we can all relax together when this weekend is over. Until we’re back at the compound, we all need to keep our pants on.”

Reaching between us, I squeeze his hardening cock in my hand. “We can relax and still keep our pants on,” I tease, making Dom groan, throaty and deep as he grips my hips to stop them from moving like I want them to.

I hear a chuckle from beside us. “Baby girl, quit torturing our fearless leader,” Cruz snickers.

Sitting back, I look at him with a pout. “Fine.”

“You are ridiculous,” he laughs at me.

I lift a shoulder. “You still like me.”

“That’s the problem,” Domonic says.

Leaning down, I peck his lips. “Okay, I’ll behave,” I tell him, climbing off his lap. Turning to head upstairs to check on Grey, I catch River’s eye. He gives me a wink and a smirk after I stop to kiss him on my way.

“They all get kisses but I don’t? What the hell?” Cruz yells after me.

“You called me ridiculous. Maybe you should think before name-calling,” I taunt as I reach the bottom step.

I’m not even halfway up when Cruz’s arm bands around my waist, pulling me back against him. “You’re mean, Zora Jacobs. But I’m kind of addicted to it. To you.”

Biting my lip, I turn to look at him over my shoulder. “I’m kind of addicted to you too.” He kisses me, and I feel his warmth flood every part of my body.

When he pulls away, he smacks my ass. “Go. Lock yourself in with Grey for the day. I’ll bring you food before I head out, okay?”

“Yes, sir,” I flirt, and I see his eyes flare with lust. “Ohhh, someone likes that. Noted.”

Stopping outside Greyson’s door, my flirty, smiley façade falls. Letting my head rest against the door, I take a second to ground myself before I walk inside. These boys have done everything for me. And if they need me to flirt and give them dirty promises to help keep them calm, I’ll do it.

It’s strange that in such a short amount of time I’ve grown to care so much for each of them. I think it’s even safe to say I’d lay down my life for them just as much as they would for me. We all need one another, whether we actually admit that out loud or not.

Pushing open the door, I smile when I see Greyson sitting up in bed with a lopsided grin shooting my way. “What’s that look for?” I ask him, closing the door behind me and turning the lock.

“Dom just texted me to let me know that I’m not allowed to accept anything more than a kiss from you until we’re back at the compound tomorrow.”

Pursing my lips, I roll my eyes. “He’s such a buzzkill.”

“He’s probably not wrong though,” he says, reaching for my hand to pull me down next to him in bed.

“That makes it so much more annoying,” I grumble, making him chuckle and then wince from the movement hurting his ribs.

“You need anything before I get comfy in here with you?”

“Nope. I just took some meds. I’m good for a while.”

Toeing off my black checked slip-on Vans and pulling off my pants, I pull my sweatshirt off next, leaving me in nothing but a pair of boy short underwear and a tight cropped tank.

“Fuck… Why are you so hot and damn sexy no matter what you wear?” Grey asks as his eyes burn over my body. “And why do you never wear anything we bought together?” he adds with his head tilted to the side, reminding me of River.

“It’s all so fancy,” I admit shyly, climbing in under the covers with him. “I’m good with my torn jeans and sweatshirt.”

“And this top.” He bites into his lip. “I don’t know what the fuck you call this, but you should always wear nothing but this exact thing around the compound at all times.”

I giggle, and my cheeks heat at his dirty compliment. “Shut up,” I tell him, pressing my lips to his so he doesn’t say anything more like that.

Snuggling into his side, he turns on a movie on Netflix from his laptop. His fingers slide through my hair, toying with the strands as we watch, and I wish these little moments in these perfect bubbles didn’t ever have to end.