Wolfe rolled his eyes. “You’re always eating.”
“Yeah, like I said, an emotional stomach. When I’m mad, I eat. When I’m happy, I eat. When I’m sad, I eat.”
“When you breathe, you eat,” Caleb added.
“Exactly. So what’s your plan?” Aleki asked, sharing a look with Caleb. Wolfe’s plans were often brilliant. Mostly outrageous. And sometimes illegal.
“She’s coming with us because we’re going to steal her.”
12
Caleb raised his eyebrows in response to Wolfe’s suggestion. Steal her, huh? Hmm, now that did have possibilities.
“Steal her?” Aleki snapped. “We can’t steal her. That’s kidnapping.”
“We’re Escanaian citizens,” Wolfe pointed out. “It’s within our rights to steal our bride for the twenty-one days of our Marjarsom.”
Marjarsom allowed a stolen bride to get to know her harem better, and they worked on convincing her to truly marry them.
“But she’s not Escanaian,” Aleki protested.
Wolfe shrugged. “A mere technicality.”
“And we’re not in Escana,” Aleki added. “We’re in the US, where that’s considered kidnapping.”
“I didn’t say it was a perfect plan.”
“It’s not even a plan at all,” Aleki countered. “Caleb, talk some sense into him.”
Caleb frowned. “I like it.”
Aleki paused to gape at him. Even Wolfe looked up at him.
“What?” Aleki snapped. “You can’t possibly like it.”
“I do. We could take her back to Escana. She’d have to spend twenty-one days with us, during that time it’s up to us to convince her we’re meant to be together. At the end of that period, she can leave or not.”
“And if she has us arrested? If she tells the princes?” Aleki snapped.
“Bride stealing is a sacred tradition,” Wolfe reminded Aleki. “They won’t interfere.”
“They will if it creates an international scandal,” Aleki countered.
“If she didn’t have feelings for us, if she didn’t actually want to come with us, then I’d agree. But she’s holding back. She’s trying to protect us. And that’s unacceptable,” Caleb said. “She’s exhausted. And I think what she really wants is some help. She just doesn’t know how to ask. Or think she can ask. So we take the choice away from her.”
Aleki shook his head. “You’ve both gone mad.”
“I don’t think we have,” Caleb mused. “I am surprised you came up with the idea, Wolfe. What if she decides to stay with us? To be with all three of us? You know the rules.”
“She becomes our wife,” Wolfe said.
Aleki let out a deep breath. “Shit. And that’s what we all want? To share her? To have her as our wife, our Little? If she’s a Little, that is.”
“She is,” Caleb said confidently. “And it’s what I want.”
Aleki ran his hand over his face. “I’m not agreeing to the bride stealing. And I’m not convinced she’s a Little or will want to be with the three of us. But I also can’t leave her.”
They both looked to Wolfe. “I can’t trust her. I may never trust her. But the three of us will be able to keep closer watch on her. I don’t believe in love. But I don’t want her harmed. I want to possess her. That’s enough for me. I can’t do this halfway. She’s either ours or she’s not.”
“And if she’s not? You’d leave her like this?” Aleki asked.
Wolfe shot him a disgusted look. “Of course not, I’m not a monster.” He grimaced. “Well, I can be. If we’re not all in, I think we should give her some money and a plane ticket to somewhere she won’t be found.”
“And if we’re all in?” Caleb asked.
“Then she comes with us, whether she wants to or not,” Wolfe said. “And we make our intentions clear. She’s going to be ours. All three of ours. Our woman. Our lover. Our Little.”
The more Caleb thought about this, the more it felt right. “We don’t want to push too hard. If anyone needs some coddling, it’s Vivi. She needs tender care. Some gentleness and understanding. Some fun. A caretaker.” Aleki could give that.
“She also needs to know that there is someone who will listen to her. Lift her up when she needs it, support her, cheer her on. Who will be the bad guy when she can’t. Make the tough decisions when it’s too much for her. Lay down some boundaries that will be enforced with a firm but fair hand.” That was him.
It wasn’t that he couldn’t do all the things Aleki could and vice versa, it’s just they could play on their strengths.
Then he looked to Wolfe.
“And she needs to feel safe. To know, without a doubt that someone has her back. No matter what. Someone who will be her vengeance and her redemption. Who will fight her enemies when she can’t. A warrior.”
Wolfe eyed him calmly then gave a nod.
Twenty-one days to convince her that she could be theirs.
This could work.
By the time Ethan left, Vivi knew her face was bright red.
Caleb walked in, took one look at her face, and raised his eyebrow. “Everything okay?”
“Sure. Where are the others?”
“Wolfe’s preparing your dinner. Be warned, he was talking about the best way of preparing kale.”
“Kale? Eww. Why?” This was his way of punishing her. It had to be.
“Apparently it’s healthy for you.”
“Not if you vomit trying to eat it.”
His lips twitched. “Don’t think it will be that bad.”
“Easy for you to say, you’re not having to eat it.”
“I’ll eat it if you will,” he said easily.
“What? Really?”
“Yep. Not fair to make you eat something I’m not willing to. I could stand to eat healthier.”
Why? He looked perfect.
She didn’t say that out loud. Thank God.
“Where’s Aleki?” They all needed to talk. She had to tell them why she couldn’t go to Escana. At least part of it, anyway.
“He’s gone to get burritos.”
“Didn’t he just have pizza?”
“He didn’t eat any of it because some naughty little girl wandered off,” he said pointedly.
She blushed, looking down at her hands in her lap nervously. “I’m sorry for worrying you all. It’s just you were so insistent on me coming with you. And I can’t . . .”
“Are you going to tell us why you can’t?”
She nodded. “When the others are here. It’s something you all need to hear.”
“What did the doc have to say?”
Her cheeks felt hot. “Nothing much. He just wanted to make sure I was okay.”
“Really? Took him a long time just to ask you if you were okay.”
He’d also made sure she knew she had choices and rights. And options. She still couldn’t believe he’d offered her a place to stay. With him.