“That’s what I’m here for. I’ll get this read through and get your letter to you tomorrow, and we will work on getting your book baby out into the world. Have a good night, Odette.”
Alexa hung up the phone. There were more notifications, not just from Alexa, but all across social media, where I’d posted that I finished the story. There was also a message from Ryker saying how proud he was of me, but no missed phone calls or any other messages.
I looked up to see Jemma scrolling on her phone, and I snatched it out of her hand.
“Hey!” she exclaimed. “What was that for?”
“You submitted my book?”
“Yeah, I did.” She said matter-of-factly and grabbed her phone, swiping for new content. “You were freaking out, and I had no idea Alexa would start reading it away, but I’m glad she did; you look a lot better than the ghost standing in front of me twenty minutes ago.”
“I—” A sound came from outside, and I whipped my head around to the back door. It sounded like bushes were rustling, accompanied by a few banging sounds. “Wha?—”
“It’s Ryker and Beckett,” Jemma answered me before the question came out of my mouth.
“What? Why are they outside?”
Jemma put her phone down on the table and finally looked me in the eyes.
“I told you. Twenty minutes ago, you were having a breakdown about a book that you love and wrote with your whole heart. You were scared of what would happen if it didn’t go well and how you’d protect yourself, so I started the process for you.” Jemma finished off her tea and walked over to the sink to rinse it out. “I sent the manuscript to your publisher, saying that it was urgent and needed to be addressed quickly. Then, I made sure to set up your altar for protection with some tourmaline and amethyst laid out. I lit your cleansing bowl and messaged Ryker. I didn’t tell him much besides you were freaking out, you needed help, how to help you, and now we are here with two weird men outside, one of whom loves you more than the whole universe.”
“Jemma,” I had no idea what to say to her. This was all too much. “I hope you know how much I love you.”
“And I love you too, girl.” Jemma came over to me and leaned down, placing a kiss on the top of my head. “You have an army here for you; don’t forget that. This isn’t like before.”
I looked up to her.
“I hope you know you have an army, too.”
She rolled her eyes at me.
“You do know that when you start choosing pieces for this next gallery showing, I’ll be sneaking pieces I love back in when you decide they aren’t good enough.” I shot Jemma a look, and she squinted her eyes at me now, like I wouldn’t dare go behind her back and do that. “Try me.”
I blew her a kiss before getting up, cleaning out my tea mug, and looking out the window above my kitchen. You could barely see Ryker and Beckett outside, sneaking around the house in the moonlight.
“What did you tell Ryker to do?” I asked Jemma as she came up next to me, craning her head to look at where the boys were crouched down.
“I told Ryker you needed cinnamon sticks, peppercorn, and clove to surround the house. I told him to sprinkle it around and leave us be for the evening.”
“What the fuck are they doing, then?” I laughed and opened the window.
“Hey!” I yelled out, and both men turned around to look at where the sound came from. “What are you doing?”
“Making protection!” Ryker yelled back, enthusiasm radiating in his voice.
“Crouched in my bushes?” I questioned.
Ryker jogged over to the window, his head barely reaching the bottom of it. The ground was further away on this side of the house. He looked up at me with a huge grin on his face.
“Making cinnamon stick stars at each corner of the house to help.” He puffed his chest out, proud of what he was doing. “Jemma said you were worried about the book and needed help, so we are here to help, and Beckett is my captive; he’s doing most of the dirty work, cleaning the ground as I lay out the shape, but we are making it safe for you, my love.”
I looked down at this man, and my heart sped up.
“I love you,” I said to him, not breaking eye contact.
“I love you. Mwah!” He blew a kiss to me before starting to walk away. “We’ll be done soon.”
I closed the window and turned to Jemma, who had her hands in the air.
