“She was engaged.”
“For two damn seconds,” he retorts. “Are you going to tell me what you called for or are we just going to keep commiserating about being homewreckers?”
Needing to get him off the line before we start arguing about whether or not homewrecker is the right term for us, I give him the rundown on the Marsh situation and ask him to put me in touch with the guy he used to work security with so I can make sure Selene’s parents, siblings and their families are protected. Men like Marsh and Aubrey tend to thrive in your blind spots, and I’m determined to make sure we don’t have any. I’ve already gotten Dean to agree to keep an eye on Isis and Imani from a distance, so if Hunter comes through for me on this, we’ll be well on our way to safeguarding all our vulnerabilities.
“It’ll be quicker if I call him,” Hunter says. “Russ will make sure they’re straight.”
My brother’s confidence in his friend and former supervisor’s willingness to help is all I need. I breathe a sigh of relief, knowing Selene’s family will be safe, then steel myself to a final set of requests, one I know Hunter will buck against.
“Does he have enough men to cover you, Riley and Rae? I’d also need someone on Beck’s mother-in-law, Erin.”
“Of course, we can make sure Erin is good, but I’ve got Riley and Rae.”
“Hunter.”
“Cal.”
“I just want you safe.”
“And I will be. You make sure you are.”
The office door opens, and Beck and Monique appear moments later. I sigh, knowing I don’t have time to push Hunter further on this.
“I’ve gotta go. Take care of yourself,” I order, heart twisting in on itself at the thought of anything happening to him or his family because of me. “I love you.”
“I love you too, bro. I’ll text you when everyone is in place.”
“I trust you to come through. Make sure you tell Russ I owe him one.”
“You owe him more than one,” Hunter quips before he hangs up.
Everyone’s eyes are on me as I push to my feet. I meet each of their gazes, projecting confidence and strength even as the weight of the world starts to press down on my shoulders. I’m worried for everyone. For Selene, for Beck, for Monique, for me. For our families that are too far away to hold close. That fear has a vice grip on my throat, but still, I hold my head high, refusing to let them see.
How hard the hold makes it for me to pull air into my lungs.
How my knees are buckling under the weight.
Howfuckingafraid I am of failing.
“Are we ready to go?”
23
SELENE
Thankful is the last thing I should be feeling towards Leland Marsh and whoever broke him out of federal prison, but when I wake up in a bed that’s something beyond a standard king with Cal’s warmth pressed to my back and my head on Beck’s chest, that’s the only emotion that makes sense in the moment.
Which isn’t to say that I want to be here in this big house that belonged to a paranoid man with more money than sense and a panic room larger than the house I grew up in because I don’t. I don’t want to be running. I don’t want to be hiding. I don’t want to be looking over my shoulder and jumping up out of my sleep every time I hear a branch brush a window or see the motion sensor lights pop on because a baby deer is grazing on one of the berry bushes at the edge of the yard where the landscaping turns into acres of sprawling woods that butt up against the Potomac river.
I don’t want any of those things, but I do want to be with Cal and Beck. I want the comfort of their bodies on either side of mine. I want the weight of their arms over my hip and around my stomach. I want Beck’s soft snores and one of Cal’s longlegs peeking out from underneath the cover because he got too warm. I want the kisses on my bare shoulders in the middle of the night, and someone putting my bonnet back on my head when it slips off again.
But most of all, I want the constant reassurance their presence provides. The persistent reminder that bleeds through my subconscious when I’m sleeping, telling me that I am not alone.
It’s been so long since I’ve had that, since I’ve found myself between them and didn’t have to rush to end the moment, compiling lies as I fixed my clothes and prepared my heart for another indefinite amount of time where I would be without them. So long, in fact, that I had to stop myself from jumping out of bed in a panic, afraid I’d fallen asleep somewhere I shouldn’t have. I came to my senses as soon as I stared up at the white curtains of the canopy bed, settling back into the mattress and marveling at the fact that I woke up before both of my men.
Five minutes have passed with them still deep in their slumbers and me reveling in the novelty of this experience. I’m content to just lie here, but Cal tightens his grip on me, pulling me back into his chest. My ass brushes against the swell of a generous erection, and my core clenches, a sudden and desperate hunger rushing through me at the feel of it through the thin fabric of my nightie. Unsure if he’s awake, I tentatively roll my hips into him and bite my lip when I’m instantly met with a thrust.
“Good morning, pet.”
