Total pages in book: 184
Estimated words: 188108 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 941(@200wpm)___ 752(@250wpm)___ 627(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 188108 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 941(@200wpm)___ 752(@250wpm)___ 627(@300wpm)
“I think you’ll like it.”
“I think Rome wanted to read some books with me,” she said with another yawn.
“I’ll get him to come in here after I’ve finished doing your hair,” Salem promised.
She giggled at the cartoon.
Salem worked through her hair. He tugged on a piece. “Sorry.”
“S’okay,” she told him. “Didn’t hurt.”
Another yawn.
Another tug that didn’t really hurt.
Her eyes drooped but she tried to keep them open. She really did like this cartoon and she wanted to read another chapter with Roman.
“Nearly there, Little one,” Salem murmured. “Are you sure none of it is hurting?”
“No. I have a high pain tolerance.”
“Good to know,” he said.
It was?
She shrugged that off. There was a knock on the door and Salem called out before she could.
Roman stepped in, holding their latest book. She bounced up and down, feeling a renewed sense of energy as she clapped.
“Yay! Rome’s here!”
He looked startled.
Oh shit.
Had that been too much? She needed to chill. Roman wasn’t a Daddy Dom.
Or at least he hadn’t made a decision. There was a dominant side to him. However, she’d never tell someone what they should be.
“Stay still,” Salem said firmly, lightly slapping the side of her thigh.
Would that make Roman uncomfortable? She watched him closely, but all he did was swallow heavily, his gaze intent on her thigh.
“Have you come to read to me, Rome?” she asked, trying to rein in her Little.
She wasn’t fully in Little headspace. But she was definitely feeling a bit young with how thoroughly Salem was taking care of her.
“If you want me to,” he said, sounding a bit shy.
“Uh-huh.” She nodded enthusiastically.
Another light slap to her thigh. “What did I say about staying still?” Salem grumbled. But his touch was gentle as he tilted her head forward slightly so he could braid her hair.
“Oops, sorry,” she said. “I still want to read the book.”
“She’s tired,” Salem warned. “Even though she brightened up when you came in.”
She tensed slightly. Was he jealous? Upset?
Oh God.
What about Roman and Alexei? Would they be upset with what she and Salem had just done?
She hadn’t even thought about that. Why hadn’t she thought about that? What if they were upset? Was she a bad girlfriend? But how did that sort of thing work? They wouldn’t be together all of the time so sometimes there would be some one-on-one.
In fact, she didn’t think she was up to anything more than one-on-one at the moment.
But that didn’t mean that she shouldn’t have asked them first.
Did it?
She didn’t know what she was supposed to do!
“Hey, what’s wrong?” Salem asked.
“Wrong?” she managed to say through the panic clogging her throat.
“Yes. Why did you get all tense?” Salem asked.
“I just . . . um . . . I . . .” She glanced up at Roman and then away, feeling ashamed.
“What is it, Tamsyn?” Roman sat on the bed in front of her.
“I don’t want to tell you in case you’re upset with me.”
“Upset with you? Why would I be upset with you?”
“Tamsyn?” Salem prompted when she didn’t say anything.
Suddenly, Salem lifted her into his lap so she was sitting with her back against his front.
“Darling girl, I could never be upset with you,” Roman told her.
“But you don’t know what we did,” she whispered.
“So tell us.”
She glanced up at the voice coming from the doorway. Alexei leaned against the door jam. She couldn’t decipher the look on his face. He appeared closed off and cold, though.
“Well we, uh . . .” Shoot. Why couldn’t she just spit it out?
“I made Tamsyn come in the bath,” Salem said calmly. “With my fingers. And I think she’s now worried about how the two of you might react. Which is a failing on our part, because we should have made certain that she knew that any jealousy we might feel is on us. And that the three of us will work it out together so that she doesn’t even have to worry or feel stressed.”
Um. What?
She glanced up and looked around at Alexei and Roman. Alexei appeared less cold and more thoughtful now. Which she guessed was a good thing.
Roman was blushing and glancing down at his lap.
“Shouldn’t I be a part of any of those conversations?” she asked.
“Who said they would be conversations,” Alexei replied.
If they weren’t going to talk through their emotions and feelings, then what did they plan to do?
Actually, perhaps she was better off not knowing what they planned to do.
“Um. Right,” she replied.
Roman reached over and grasped hold of her hands. Shoot, she hadn’t even realized she’d been clenching them until he forced them to relax. Then he turned them over, clucking his tongue as he examined the red marks on the palms of her hands.
“You hurt yourself.”
“It doesn’t hurt,” she countered.
“Well, it looks like it does,” he replied. “And I don’t like it so you will stop.”