The two immediately quiet down when they catch sight of me, though both of their bodies are still thrumming with unrestrained tension.
“Whatcha talking about?” I ask casually as I move to my drawers and grab my favorite pair of satin pajamas. I don’t need eyes in the back of my head to know that Avery and Desmond are exchanging a long glance, one electrically charged with resentment and anger.
“Just a little disagreement,” Des admits with feigned nonchalance. When I spin back towards them, both men have yet to move from their intense standoff. The air around them practically crackles with electricity as Avery’s sea-blue eyes hold Desmond’s swamp-hazel ones, a muted combination of woodsy brown and forest green.
“And that disagreement is?” I demand, placing my hands on my hips and dropping my pajamas.
Avery finally turns to me, a crooked smile lighting up his face. He really is a beautiful man, all sharp edges and jagged sides like a puzzle piece that doesn’t quite fit.
Snorting derisively, he takes a step closer and wraps me in his arms. “Just jealousy,” he murmurs as he brushes his lips against my cheek. “Your God of Combat needs to calm the fuck down.”
“Calm the fuck down?” Desmond rages, dark splotches of color appearing on his cheeks. It’s very, very rare to see my friendly, laughing god angry. Unease pricks at the skin of my spine as I watch him with bated breath. It doesn’t take long before he explodes. “This fucking asshole thinks he can just replace me. Who the fuck do you think you are? You’re nobody. I was Emily’s first friend and love. You were just an afterthought.”
“So are you saying that you weren’t able to please Emily by yourself?” Avery queries in faux innocence. He bats his eyelashes at a fuming Des. “And I should thank you for your ineptness?”
Desmond releases a ferocious snarl, one that isn’t quite human, and lunges towards Avery. I know that in a hand-to-hand fight, Desmond could take Avery, no problem. But if they’re allowed to use their powers?
“Enough!” I scream, throwing myself in between them. The punch Des was throwing stops mere centimeters from my face. Avery’s dark power coils around my ankles once, twice, three times, before releasing me with a hiss. Both men are panting heavily, eyes narrowed into slits.
“What the fuck, Em?!” Avery breaks the silence first, throwing his hands into the air. “That was stupid! You could’ve been hurt!”
“Maybe if you learned to control your fucking power,” Desmond hisses.
“I wasn’t the one with my fist inches from her face!”
“Enough!” I place one hand on either of their chests, feeling their hearts beat erratically beneath my palms. “I said, enough! Tell me what the fuck is going on?”
Out of all my men, Avery and Desmond are the two least likely to start an argument. Despite their brutal natures, they’re both easy-going men.
“Desmond’s fucking jealous!” Avery rages, lips curling away from his teeth. “Because he feels as if he’s been replaced as your best friend.”
My heart stutters before abruptly stopping, especially when Desmond doesn’t immediately contradict his claim. Instead, the God of Combat’s head drops almost sheepishly as he stares at his bare feet.
“Is that…is that true?”
In the Realm of the Gods, Des was my best friend. My first friend. He was the man I went to whenever I needed advice or just someone to talk to. And in this realm, Avery quickly filled that position with his charming smile and comforting presence.
“Des…” I drop my hand from Avery’s chest and turn to face Desmond completely. Avery wastes no time crowding into me from behind, the chiseled planes of his chest brushing against my back. I can feel his cock through his sweatpants, but I don’t focus on that. Not now.
“We weren’t just lovers, Em,” Desmond whispers despondently. He looks young just then. Young and vulnerable, like a forlorn child. I don’t like this expression on my fierce warrior’s face, not one fucking bit. “We were best friends. And now…”
“And now what?” I demand. “Desmond, we’re still best friends. Honestly, all of you assholes are my best friends. My relationship with Avery has nothing to do with my relationship with you. Yeah, I’ll be the first to admit that something changed between Avery and me during our time here. We became closer than ever before, and I feel as if I can trust him with anything.” As if my words were some sort of catalyst, Avery begins kissing my skin desperately. First my shoulder, where my shirt has fallen down, and then the curve of my neck. “But that doesn’t negate what I have with you. You’re my best friend as well, Dessy. Sometimes I need Avery’s calm, soothing presence, and sometimes I need your jubilant one. Sometimes I want to be assured everything’s okay, and other times I want to put pubic hair in Tate’s food.” I shrug calmly, but my lips can’t help but twitch when he breaks into laughter.
Because, yeah, we totally did that to Tate before.
And yes, Tate fucked the shit out of me in revenge.
“I need all of you guys,” I admit on an exhale. “Helio’s steadfast presence. Your joy. Avery’s calm-head—”
“He’s a fucking serial killer, Em,” Des reminds me dryly, and Avery’s lips pause where they’re nibbling on my earlobe.
“I take offense to that,” he murmurs before resuming his ministrations once more.
“Even today, when I got shot—”
“What the fuck?” Avery pulls away from my back as if my skin caught on fire. Desmond stares at me with wide eyes.
“You got shot at?” he demands.
I mayyyyy or may not have forgotten to mention that little snippet of information when we got home. I think Tate was pissed and embarrassed that he allowed someone to get the drop on us, especially a pesky human. And me? I knew my men would react like this.
“I’m fine,” I huff
