Total pages in book: 194
Estimated words: 187754 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 939(@200wpm)___ 751(@250wpm)___ 626(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 187754 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 939(@200wpm)___ 751(@250wpm)___ 626(@300wpm)
“I’m a grown woman, Seth. I can decide when I eat, thank you.”
“Fuck that. If you’re not going to take care of yourself, I’ll damn well do it for you.”
“Oh, goody!” She smiles and claps her hands together before resting them on her cheek. “Now all of my problems are solved!”
My gaze narrows when I feel my patience drain. “All right. What the hell is your deal? You’ve been kind of a bitch all day.” I reach out and grab her chin in a possessive grip, yanking it toward me when she looks away. “Where did my Sunshine go? Hmm?”
Her pretty lips curl. “I’ve always been a bitch, Seth. You’re just now noticing?”
“You’ve never been mean without cause. What’s the matter, baby?”
Aurelia looks tormented, and then her gaze softens after a while, becoming less sharp and more vulnerable, even as her pout remains. “My stomach hurts.” She releases a whimper like she’s been holding it in and hiding the pain all day. “It’s been cramping all day.”
“Okay…” I nod my understanding. “Is that all?”
She shrugs. “I guess.”
I sit down next to her and rub my palms together to warm them up before slipping my hand under her shirt to rub her belly. I have no idea if it’s actually helping, but when Aurelia’s lashes flutter closed, I think that it might be. “How’s that?”
“Better,” she whispers back, resting her head on my shoulder.
Khalil appears and stands over us with two pills in one hand and a tin cup full of water in the other. When Aurelia lifts her head and tries to take them, he shakes his head. “Open.”
Dutifully, her lips part, and she sticks out her tongue. I sigh when my dick twitches in my sweats at the sight because I don’t think I’ll be getting any tonight.
Khalil places the aspirin on her tongue and then holds the cup to her lips for her to drink. If she’s cranky about being handled so delicately, she knows better than to complain. There will always be times when we’re rough with our girl, but we will never ever be careless.
When she drains the cup, Khalil sets it on the nightstand next to her dinner and takes a seat on her other side to join me in rubbing her stomach. Aurelia sighs and lays her head on Khalil’s shoulder this time, but I don’t mind. Thorin returns to the room, bearing a small mug with steam curling from the rim. When he offers this olive branch to Aurelia, I see that it’s tea. “I put a little honey inside. I didn’t know how you took it.”
Aurelia isn’t able to hide her surprise, and I swear the three of us exhale all at once when she curls her delicate fingers around the mug. “This is fine. Th-thank you.”
“You’re welcome.”
Thorin drops onto the floor while she sips her tea. He takes her ankle and peels off her sock to massage her bare foot. The paint on her toenails is chipped and nearly gone, but her feet look so soft and pretty even from here.
“Have we been demanding too much of you?” Khalil asks.
Aurelia whips her head his way. “What? No.”
“Will you tell us if we do?”
“Will you listen?” she tosses back.
Khalil struggles with an answer to that one because, let’s be honest, Aurelia needs a firm hand, and we’re not going to suddenly turn into less demanding assholes overnight. “We’ll try,” he promises.
Aurelia hums like she expected that non-answer and sets her tea aside. She pauses when she notices the plate of food, and then she picks it up after a moment of contemplation. “Baby, you made this?”
“Yup.”
Aurelia lifts the fajita and takes a tentative bite before glancing at me in surprise. “Oh, my God…”
“That bad?”
“Are you kidding me? You knew how to cook this whole time?” she yells.
“No.” I snort as she takes another bite. “I wanted to impress you.”
“Well, you succeeded.”
Khalil and Thorin release a collective sigh.
The three of us are content to watch Aurelia eat, and it’s how we pass the time with some mindless chatter in between until the plate is empty. I take it from her and we all stand.
“I think we should make fajitas a regular thing,” she announces as she stretches. “Fajita Fridays?”
I nod while staring at her tits. “Sounds good.”
Aurelia chews on her bottom lip as she peers up at me. “Will you show me how to make it?”
“Of course.”
“Good. Now beat it. I’m going to shower.”
Khalil slaps her ass as he passes, and then the three of us leave Thorin’s bedroom while Aurelia heads into his bathroom. Khalil disappears to get the tools to fix Thorin’s door while Thorin helps me clean up the kitchen. Afterward, we return to the living room with a couple of beers while we watch Khalil curse and struggle to fix the door.