For Your Pleasure

eighteen

"Oww!" My forehead aches and I collapse to the floor my eyes slowly opening and adjusting to the dark room, "Dammit!" I curse bringing my hand to my head, I feel a warm sticky fluid pooling at my bleach blonde hairline, "Mother fucker!"

"Josie?" I hear Sammy's voice call from across the room, I try looking around but blood drips down into my eyes. "Did you sleep walk again?" I feel his hands on my shoulders and I jump a little, still partly asleep. 

"Yeah," I allow him to help me up, "right into the corner of something." Hazel, Wishbone and Ky run over to me, I hear their tags jingle and I feel Ky jumping to lick my face. The dogs got here yesterday, the guys say we couldn't have brought them when we left but I'm just happy they're here now. I know Hazel is a dog but it feels even a little better not being the only girl in the hotel suite. 

"You're bleeding, shit," Sammy whispers showing me the blood on his hand from touching my head. 

"I'm fine," I lie through the aching pain, just wanting to get back to bed.

"No you're not, come here," I feel has hands wrap around my arms and he gently guides to the bathroom flipping on the dim light. My eyes adjust to the brightness and I begin to remember my dream. 

"Sammy?" I ask a little louder than a whisper. 

"Yeah?" He dabs my head with a damp washcloth and tries to be especially gentle, it's so weird. I feel like they think I'm this incredibly fragile piece of glass or something. For a group of men that want me in bed with them so badly, they touch me like I'd die if I tripped over my shoelace. 

"I missed out on a lot, didn't I?" as soon as I say this he hesitates to give me the answer he wants to share. 

"You mean like growing up and being a teenager and school?"

"I mean life," the words fall from my lips. I think it hurts to hear it just as much to say it, "living and experiencing."

"...I wouldn't say you missed out-"

"I lived in a building my whole life, Sammy. Just because I never went to school doesn't mean I'm stupid."

"I never said that!"

"Then don't treat me like I am," I ask of him. 

"17 years isn't your whole life, Josie. You have all of the time in the world to do whatever you want and live and experience things as much as you want."

"I can't ever have a relationship, or get married, have kids and a family. I've never had a family and never will."

He lifts my chin up with his thumb and forefinger so he can look into my eyes, "We're your family now." It's the most serious I've ever seen him and he holds me like this so he makes this point clear, and then he kisses me. Just a soft kiss, one that lasted long enough to have his tongue skim over my lips but not to go any further. I don't pull away, he does, I'm so tired I'm not sure if I kissed him back or not. He brings his hand around to the side of my face where I lean into him, resting my head on his hand and I feel his fingers move gently around on my scalp like a massage. "Don't tell Cameron," he says in a low purr. 

"Okay," the words lifts from my lips delicately and I feel my eyelids weigh down begging for sleep. He walks me back to my bed and I crawl next to Ky, when I look back up Sammy is already in the doorway and on his way back to his room. I wonder if he knows I'm falling asleep craving his lips on mine. 

~

I graze an acrylic nail against the bottom of my jawline arching my head back a bit giving the signal to Cameron and Nash who passes it along to the other guys to give me shake and cover to pick some pockets. He nods his chin up in the direction of my first mark and I respond with the signal for 'yes' which is a single and small nod of my head with direct eye contact to him then Nash.