Merrick cursed, Reaux grunted in surprise, and as Violet turned her head to see what the commotion was, she found herself with an armful of distraught female. Tamsyn was sprawled over Reaux, crawling into Violet as though she’d been told the world was ending.
“Tamsyn—” Merrick began.
Violet shook her head quickly, grateful when Reaux picked the woman up and set her between them. Slender arms roped around her, squeezing hard enough to bruise, and Tamsyn’s head wedged under her chin. “It’s okay, Merrick. Let her grieve.”
“Why is she grieving?” This from Tabitha, who seemed genuinely perturbed by the prospect. “It isn’t like you’ve died and gone to the better place—abetter place,” she corrected when Grit whispered in her ear. “When people leave, they come back. They go here, there, and everywhere. Hell, I’ve been all over the world and still ended up back on home turf.”
“That’s because you’re made from Teflon, little tiger.” Grit kissed her hair, then gave her high blonde ponytail a tug. “Just remember Tamsyn’s circumstances. Things around here have been pretty calm for a little while. This is a huge upheaval for her when everything was just settling into normalcy.”
“So we’ll have visitation. What’s the big deal?”
Oh hell, Violet thought. Maybe a group gathering hadn’t been the best idea after all—so far, she’d reduced two Littles to tears, devastated Tamsyn, and raised Tabitha’s hackles.
Reaux chuckled. “We’re going to be in New Orleans, not prison.”
The temperamental blonde gave him a look so cold from those icy blue eyes, it was surprising the air didn’t freeze in a six-foot radius. “I haven’t determined if you’re worthy of her yet. I might be paying a visit for an entirely different reason, one much more pleasurable than you can imagine—”
“And that’s enough from you,” Grit said lightly, sliding his hand over her mouth quickly. “You’ll have to excuse her, Reaux. She’s been a lot faster to ignite recently, and her temper’s volatile on a good day.”
Obviously, Grit wasn’t ready to reveal their own pregnancy concerns yet, or perhaps his pint-sized assassin wasn’t prepared to accept the possibility. That was probably to be expected; Tabitha had been born and raised to be independent, killing people solo, relying on herself for everything. Divulging secrets and personal weaknesses weren’t in her genetic makeup—they sure as hell hadn’t been in her parents’ handbook.
Rocking Tamsyn slowly, Violet arched her brow in Tabitha’s direction, conveying her disappointment. All she got in return was a cold, unimpressed glare.
“Before we drown in doom and gloom,” Mack interjected cautiously, casting a wary glance around the table, “I think we should take a minute to realize the enormity of Violet’s decision. Liam?”
The Viking nodded in agreement. “Leaving Phoenix was one of the hardest things Sierra and I have ever done. When you step away from everything you know and love, especially if you’re not fully committed… it’s a unique feeling. Excitement and trepidation about what lies ahead; a burning, sickly pain at the thought of breaking away.”
Sierra sniffled and reached for her juice. After taking a sip, she gave Violet a watery smile. “We like going back to Avalon. Our family is there. It doesn’t feel like home anymore though, not really.”
“We’re lucky to have two families,” Liam stated solemnly. “New Orleans is what, a twenty-hour drive?”
“Three hour flight,” Elias added.
“There you go. See, anytime we want to visit you or you feel an unescapable desire to come back to this part of your family, one short flight and the gang’s all together again. Maybe we don’t like the idea of you being so far away, Vi, but three hours is nothing.”
Tamsyn cried harder into Violet’s throat, her back shuddering with sobs. The most awful part was she wasn’t making a sound; when someone cried this traumatically, they should be wailing, screaming, expressing their pain.
Merrick’s little mute was back, and he wasn’t going to be pleased.
Shit.
Violet stroked and petted, trying to calm her. “If you keep crying this hard, you’ll make yourself sick, sweetheart. Everything’s going to be okay, Tamsyn, I promise. New Orleans really isn’t that far.” She knew that, from Tamsyn’s perspective, a three-hour flight was akin to a trip to the moon; the woman had come down from the mountains she’d been raised in and, as yet, hadn’t even been to the city. “Goodbye isn’t forever, sweetheart. It’s just for now, and we’re not going for another couple weeks.”
Okay, maybe she should just not sayanything, because that only made Tamsyn cry twice as desperately.
“I’ll take her home, Vi.”
Reaux glanced at Merrick. “Would you mind if I talk to her first?”
All the muscles beneath the big guy’s shirt tensed; Violet knew Merrick’s feelings toward his sub ran deep—center of the earth kind of deep. He’d saved her, sacrificed for her, become a one-woman man for her. If he thought she was in danger from Reaux… well, her lover would end up with a broken face.
“Why?”
Nonchalantly, Reaux lifted his shoulder in a Gallic gesture. “I can’t stand to see a woman cry, not like this. This is… painful. I have a way with such things, yes? Give me a few minutes with her, if she’ll come. We’ll be just over there,” he added, gesturing to the far corner of the room where nobody was occupying the tables. “Always within sight.”
Hard green eyes pinned Violet in her seat. “He understands what’ll happen?”
She sighed and rested her chin on the trembling head beneath it, guilt swamping her. She’d caused this and wasn’t sure how to fix it. “As much as it galls me to admit he’s right, he does have a way with dealing with emotional distress.”
