under the spray and, when he comes up, he shakes his head like a dog. “The effects of a scene don’t end when the scene does.”
I cross my arms over my chest, and then feel foolish for doing even that much while we’re all standing naked in this enclosed space. “I’m fine.”
Gaeton gives me a long look. “The truth, Isabelle.”
Damn him. I lift my chin and try not to notice how my body shakes. “I am scared and uncertain and feel entirely unmoored. I’m also pissed as hell that you pulled that stunt in the bedroom with each other to punish me.”
“Better,” Beast murmurs. He steps back, pulling me with him. “Why don’t you go change the sheets and I’ll finish up here?”
Gaeton nods and he trails his fingers along my stomach as he passes us out of the shower, leaving sparks in his wake. We listen to him walk out of the bathroom and then Beast moves me a bit away from him. “Let’s get you cleaned up.”
“I can do it myself.”
He shoots me a look that stops me from reaching for the soap. “If I want you to do it yourself, I’ll tell you to do it yourself. Now stand still.”
I obey. Partly because I promised to. Partly because something in me that’s been buried deep responds to the snap in his voice. It wants me to fall to my knees and wait for his next command. I shove it away. This arrangement is required for their agreement to return to the territory. That’s it. Yes, I crave rough sex and, yes, I’m weirdly turned on by Beast’s harsh words and carelessness with me, but that doesn’t mean I want to submit to either of these men outside the bedroom.
Right now, we are outside the bedroom.
“You’re doing it again.” He doesn’t lift his voice as he soaps down my body. “Already contemplating breaking the pact?”
Yes, but I will never say as much. Instead I change the subject. “I don’t understand this. Shouldn’t you be telling me to sleep at the foot of the bed, covered in come and weeping openly?”
At that, he looks at me and raises his brows. “Someone’s been reading some interesting fiction.”
Guilty. I flush even as I try to fight down the embarrassment. “That’s not an answer.”
He moves to my hair, soaping it up with intense thoroughness that has me fighting not to close my eyes. “Yes, it is. There are relationships where that sort of thing might be the norm, and that’s those people’s business as long as they’re both consenting. That is not how I operate, and it’s sure as fuck not how Gaeton does, either.” He guides me back beneath the water and rinses my hair and body.
I’m still stewing on that by the time he’s towed me out of the shower and dried me off. I finally snatch the towel from his hands and glare. “How the hell would I know how you operate, Beast? You didn’t operate like this when we were together.”
He doesn’t have the grace to look apologetic. “You’re a smart woman, and quick on your feet. Figure it out.”
If we didn’t need him so much, I might strangle him. I truly might. I start to wrap the towel around my body, but stop when he shakes his head. “What now?”
“While you’re in this apartment, you’re naked unless one of us explicitly orders otherwise.”
I thought my capacity for shock was filled. Unfortunately, that’s not the case. “You can’t be serious.” They implied it in the car, but I thought they were bluffing.
“I am.” He tugs the towel out of my hands, and I let it go. As much as I might fantasize about pushing Beast out a window right now, the truth is that I could never dream to overpower either of these men. The thought both thrills me and fills me with dread.
I hate to admit it, but I am in over my head.
It’s a fight not to cover myself with my hands. They’ve already seen every bit of me. Clutching at modesty now would be silly and serve no purpose but to further humiliate me. Part of me wants to do it anyways.
Instead, I follow Beast back into the room to find that Gaeton has changed the sheets as requested. He’s tucking them in with a military precision and glances up as we walk through the door. His gaze travels from me to Beast and back again, and he seems to come to some conclusion. “We