Page 23 of Cage
She smiles and pulls her knees up to her chest before she gives a single nod.
“Dinner is at six sharp every night. Everyone who is at home is required to show. I’d like it if you came as well.”
“Oh. Um.” She scratches her temple and looks around nervously. “Okay. Should I dress up? I didn’t bring anything nice, though.”
“Firefly,” I say softly, breaking her out of her panic. “Come however you’re comfortable. Half the time, Rowie is already in her pajamas at dinner. We will welcome you no matter what. Connecting with family is more important to us than what we’re wearing. You’re part of the family… while you’re here.”
Adding in that last part felt like swallowing acid, butIneed the reminder that Ember will only be here for a short amount of time. Once she’s gone, I’ll go back to my life doing regular missions, and she’ll go back to hers doing whatever she chooses.She’ll probably find some rich, sophisticated guy to marry and have kids with.
I wince at the thought. I don’t fucking like the idea of that. Not one goddamn bit. Especially since the asshole won’t appreciate her the way he should. He probably won’t care about making her orgasm. I already hate the guy. Fuck, maybe I should go on a killing spree and get rid of any asshole her father might see as a potential son-in-law.
“Cage?” Ember asks, her brows scrunched together.
Shaking my head, I push away all the bullshit running through my mind and offer her a forced smile. “Yep, sorry. I’ll see you in a bit.”
And then I get the fuck out of her room before I do or say something I’ll regret.
“You’re sure I look okay?”
If she asks me that one more damn time, I’m going to end up telling her in full fucking detail just howokayshe looks. When she met me downstairs in the entryway to head over to the main house, I nearly told her to turn around and change. I don’t want my brothers seeing her in those tight fucking leggings and loose crop top that shows off a sliver of her tummy. I thought about making her wear one of my hoodies that would surely reach her knees. Actually, that’s a good fucking idea.
“I’ll be right back.” I take the stairs two at a time and return with a sweatshirt in hand. “It’s chilly out. Put this on.”
“It’s huge.”
I bite back my smart-ass response about other things that are huge and shrug. “Put it on.”
She takes it from me and sniffs it, then hesitates. What the hell? It’s clean. Does she not want to wear it because it’s mine? Does she hate me that much?
Finally, she pulls it over her head. As soon as she does, my cock goes rigid. For fuck’s sake. I’m going to dress her in my clothes every goddamn day she’s here.
“Better. You’ll be warmer.” Because what’s important is that she’s warm. Not that her perfect body is hidden behind my clothes. It has nothing to do with that at all.
The main house is loud when we walk in. Someone is screaming at the TV, which is pretty typical whenever we watch sports. Rowie is curled up against Theo, sleeping with a pacifier in her mouth. It’s the strangest thing. She can sleep through us yelling, but not through a rainstorm.
Fuck. I probably should have warned Ember about Rowie being Little. I didn’t think about the things that make it glaringly obvious, like her using a pacifier. If Ember doesn’t know anything about the lifestyle, it might come as a shock to her.
I keep my eyes focused on Ember as her gaze lands on Rowie. No one else has noticed us yet so I get this moment to watch as a small smile pulls at the corners of her mouth. Then she sighs and glances up at me, her cheeks a soft pink hue.
“Hey,” Rylan greets, interrupting the moment. “Dinner’s almost done. Excited to have you here with us, Ember. I hope you like homemade pizza.”
Ember’s eyes light up as she bobs her head. “Sounds amazing. Do you need help?”
“Thanks, pipsqueak, but I got it.” Rylan starts to walk away but pauses and turns back toward me. “Love the sweatshirt, by the way. Sure you didn’t want to just make a sign?”
I glare at him while Ember looks between us trying to figure out what Rylan meant. Then he just strolls off to the kitchen, laughing like the asshole that he is.
“You glare at him a lot.”
Tilting my head down to look at Ember, I shrug. “He’s an asshole a lot.”
“Are you sure it’s just him?” a guy asks as he approaches.
Ember snorts, using the back of her hand to hide her laughter. Brat.
Theo smirks at me and then focuses his attention on her. “You must be Ember. I’m Theo.”
Polite as can be, she shakes his hand and smiles. It’s the kind of handshake a politician gives to people. Rigid. Forced, but with a smile. Why did she do that?