open and the room empty, I started to wonder what was going on.
Downstairs, I found Trent in the kitchen, brewing himself a coffee. At the sound of my feet, he simply reached up for another cup, handed me the first one, and set the Keurig to make another. I wasn't too proud to take it, either, and then I turned to lean my ass against the counter by the sink.
"Ian's not here."
He grunted, proving he'd figured that out already. "Or Seth, or Lane."
"They're all at Elena's?" Because that wasn't a grouping I'd normally expect.
Trent just walked over to the fridge to pull out the cream, adding some to his cup while the machine still brewed. "Yeah, if I had to guess, although I'm hoping nothing went wrong."
I took a sip, feeling the warmth wake my mind up even before the caffeine hit. "What could've gone wrong? Lane was supposed to bite her. Not like he can miss, right?"
"If she pulls away?" Trent guessed. "I mean, a puncture compared to the scar on Seth's leg? And just imagine what Lane would do if he tore a hunk out of Elena."
"Or Ian, when he found out."
"Or Seth," Trent added, "because that guy's really into her."
Yep, I took another sip, watching the guy who some joked should've been my twin over the rim. "I'm pretty into her as well," I mentioned, trying to make sure that sounded casual.
"I'm stupid for her," Trent told me. "But that's the problem, Pax. Every time I get around her, I feel like an idiot. But the other night?"
"When she just let go between us?" I asked.
He nodded slowly. "Even Karen tried to play us against each other. I feel like Elena goes the other way. She gets that we work best as a team, and she's into it. Not just as a kink, but all of it."
"But you've spent the night alone with her too," I pointed out.
"Yeah, and slept," he assured me. "Talked a little too. I feel comfortable around her, but I'm into threesomes. Not ashamed of it, either. You telling me you've been jumping in her bed more than I know?"
"No," I admitted. "If anything, I've been holding back because I didn't want to scare her off. I really like her, Trent."
"She's willing to date both of us," he reminded me. "Not one at a time, but both of us, in public, regardless of what anyone else thinks."
"She didn't mind the pack seeing us all together either," I pointed out. "All five of us, man."
"I know," he agreed, pausing to take a large gulp of his coffee. "And now she's going to turn. She's going to get sick, feel like shit, and probably be scared. Seth will know that, but Ian and Lane?"
"They won't get it," I realized. "We were the ones who nursed Seth through it."
Trent murmured in agreement. "So we'll take care of Elena. Personally, I don't care if she's gross, puking, or even shitting herself. We'll take care of her, right?"
"You love her?" I asked.
He shrugged. "Getting there."
"Yeah, me too. Weird, though, because I didn't expect it. I figured she was cute. She'd be a nice, sweet lay. Better than nothing, right? But mostly, I was on board because I've never seen Lane look like that."
"Oh, I think she's hot," Trent assured me. "Figured we'd teach her about a little kink, but yeah. I agreed because of Lane too. I just didn't expect to like her this much."
"She is easy to like." I tilted my cup, draining it even though it was still too hot to gulp. "I want to go over and make sure everything's ok. Coming?"
Trent grunted at me, letting me know my timing was bad, then took another gulp. "Yeah, I'll go. Just give me a second, because I'm useless without coffee."
"I'll find shoes," I told him, meaning both of ours.
By the time I had them, he'd finished his coffee, so we both headed out the back, around the yard, and then onto Elena's porch. Gabby was with Olivia last night, so it wasn't that shocking to find her house quiet when I opened the back door. Still, I had to be sure, so with Trent following behind me, I cracked open her bedroom door - and then stopped in my tracks.
Trent moved beside me to see, then shoved a hand over his mouth and turned away before his amusement could wake the sleeping group. Elena was in the middle - which wasn't surprising. Ian had claimed the