Savage Queen (The Dark Elite #3) - Eva Ashwood Page 0,37
my mother looming over me like a dark cloud. Not with worry for the men weighing heavy on my heart.
“Are you okay?” Lucas asks, tone softening. He sits down next to me, plucking the book from my hand before wrapping an arm around my shoulders.
I let him pull me back against the soft cushions of the couch, leaning into his embrace as I rest a hand on his stomach.
“Honestly, Lucas? I’m not really sure how I feel. I don’t know if I’m sad or pissed or upset or frustrated. Sometimes I feel okay, and other times I feel like screaming at the top of my lungs and tearing my hair out.”
He makes a noise in his throat. “We all feel like that sometimes. You just have to keep pushing on. One minute at a time, and if you can’t do that—one second at a time.”
I know what he means. I’m thankful for his advice. I’m just not sure how to apply it. I’m not sure if I can even try to apply it.
Sensing my mood, he changes the topic, craning his neck a little to meet my gaze. “Hey. Zaid and I are going out soon to get some groceries. You want to come with us? We’ll have a few guys come along and stake out the outside of the store so you’ll be safe. Not that Camilla will likely try anything, but I’d rather be sure we’ve got backup.”
I perk up a little at the suggestion. Now that I’m no longer a prisoner—though I haven’t been one for a long time now, in their eyes—they’ve been more open about letting me go places with them. Never alone, never by myself. But that’s not because they don’t trust me; it’s because they don’t trust anyone else.
I still haven’t decided how I feel about being a highly prized bargaining piece between two rival mafia groups, but I’ve chosen not to think about it.
“Yeah. A distraction might be good.” I smile at him and push up from the couch to stand, already feeling a bit better. “Let me just go get dressed.”
He cocks an eyebrow. “You are dressed.”
“I mean in something besides this.” I gesture to the soft house pants and tank top I’m wearing. They’re barely a step up from pajamas.
“I think you look great,” he insists, his eyes heating as his gaze drops to my chest, taking in the way my nipples press against the fabric of my top.
My pussy clenches in response, and I consider suggesting we scrap the grocery run altogether and find some other way to distract ourselves. But I really do want to get out of the house. I’ve been going a little stir-crazy, and I know I’ll feel better if I do.
“You really want me to leave the house like this?” I ask, turning toward him just enough that my breast grazes against his arm.
The friction makes my nipple peak even more, Lucas moves like lightning, reaching up to palm my breast as he wraps his other arm tighter around me, pulling me closer. He drops his head to kiss me at the same time he catches my nipple between two fingers and pinches it hard.
I whimper into his mouth, and he swallows my startled, plaintive noise with a chuckle.
“All right, princess. Go get dressed.” He gives me one more kiss, then releases me, swatting me on the ass as I stand up. “Meet us back downstairs when you’re ready.”
Another car pulls into the grocery store parking lot just a second after ours does, and as Lucas, Zaid, and I emerge from our car, Lucas gives the driver of the other one a quick nod. It must be the security detail he mentioned. On the one hand, it seems excessive for a trip to the grocery store. But on the other, I can’t help feeling grateful they’re here.
Grateful that these men care enough about my safety to go above and beyond to protect me.
The three of us walk inside the large grocery store together, leaving the security detail outside to keep an eye on things.
Since my abduction, it’s taken me a while to get used to leaving the house again. To go out in public without feeling like everyone is staring at me. Even now, I find myself looking over my shoulder every once in a while, although Zaid gently reminds me that those furtive glances make me look more suspicious than just acting normal.