Raylan arched a single brow at Zach. “She’s my family too, isn’t she?” His tone was almost accusatory. “That’s what you’ve always said.”
I curled my lips between my teeth and bit down to keep my face from giving anything away. I wasn’t sure how that made me feel. What Zach had technically always said was that Raylan was like a second brother to me.
Zach must have come to the same conclusion because the confusion gave way to understanding, and he nodded. He moved over to Raylan and patted him on the shoulder. “You’re a good friend, man.”
I was officially finished. “I love you guys, but I’m going to bed. Be sure to lock the door behind you.”
Sleep had proven impossible. I lay in bed, curled up on my side and staring off into the darkness as the minutes ticked by. I heard the muffled sounds of my family leaving, and a few minutes later, the door to my bedroom opened. With my back to the door, I couldn’t see who’d just come in, but I didn’t need to. I felt him every time he entered a room.
I didn’t utter a word as the dark, quiet room filled only with the sounds of Raylan’s boots thumping on the floor as he took them off and the rustle of discarded clothes. The bedspread was lifted, and a second later, his strong, warm body curled up behind me. His arm wrapped around my waist, pulling me back so he could tangle his legs with mine and spoon me.
My whole body shivered when he brushed his lips against my bare shoulder, his voice came out as a gruff whisper as he said, “Don’t know what I’d do if anything ever happened to you.”
I was so screwed, because, when he said things like that, he made it impossible not to love him.
Chapter Thirty
Lennix
There was no defending myself; I was a terrible friend. And as I pulled the door open to Muffin Top and spotted my best friend, I was hit with a wave of guilt that made me feel like an even bigger asshole than I already had been. Not only had I been blowing her and the rest of my friends off for the past two months to spend all my free time with Raylan, but also lying to them and making one pathetic excuse after another. It had been two days since the whole drama with my supposed stalker—drama that had already made its way through the entire town grapevine—and this was the first time I’d seen anybody other than Raylan or my family members.
That first day I’d stayed home, taking the opportunity to do a whole lot of nothing in my ratty sweatpants and oversized T-shirt. I’d gone into the bar the following day, but after all the questions and worry coming from my staff, the curious stares from customers, and annoying whisperers any time I passed by, I’d decided I was better off locked up in my office, putting my avoidance skills to full use.
Today I’d decided it was time to get back to normal. And my first order of business was meeting my bestie for coffee and hoping she forgave me for being the world’s worst friend.
I took a step inside, but before the door could close behind me, it was yanked back open on a cool breeze, the six-foot-plus pain in my ass stepping in behind me. I guess it had been too much to hope he’d disappeared somewhere between here and the parking lot.
After putting up a valiant fight for the past two days, I’d lost in the battle against having an Alpha Omega bodyguard. Raylan had all but moved himself into my place to “keep me safe.” My family was under the impression that he was currently crashing on my couch, which couldn’t have been further from the truth. The past two days, he’d glued himself to me like a barnacle, but, like me, he had a job and responsibilities, so, much to his displeasure, he wasn’t able to stay attached to my hip twenty-four/seven. Along with the rest of my family. I’d finally gotten tired of the arguing and the worry etched into their faces, and agreed to letting one of the guys from Alpha Omega tail me whenever Raylan, Dad, or Zach weren’t available and I wasn’t within the confines of my house.
On top of that, I’d also caved on having a security system installed on my home. I simply couldn’t stand the panic in my parents’ eyes anymore, and anything I could do to put them at ease was worth more than my pride.
I rolled my eyes in annoyance at the guy’s mountainous presence—seriously, did Alpha Omega only hire giants—and started in Holly’s direction without looking back. Out of sight, out of mind, and all that shit. She spotted me and pushed out of her chair instantly, wrapping me in a tight hug as soon as I was within reach. Closing my eyes, I squeezed her back, letting the warmth of her embrace wrap around me.
“Oh my God, I’ve been so worried about you.”
The guilt grew even deeper. “I’m so sorry.” I pulled back, reaching out and taking her hands in mine. “But I promise, there’s nothing to worry about. It was just a few slashed tires and some notes. People are making a bigger deal out of this than they need to,” I finished, glowering toward my babysitter, who’d parked himself at the counter. He was sipping a cup of coffee and scanning the café with all the subtlety of a tire iron to the face.
Holly caught my scowl and followed my line of sight, her brow furrowing. “Is that one of Rhodes’s guys?” she asked.
“Yup. That would be today’s babysitter. He’s not much of a conversationalist, but he’s really good at impersonating a human statue.”
Holly snorted with laughter, and we both took a seat at the small bistro table she’d secured by the window. “So what’s going on? Tell me everything. I feel like I haven’t talked to you in forever, so don’t leave out a single detail.”
A pang of shame stabbed through my chest. It wasn’t only that I’d been blowing her off. It was that I was lying to her as well. I was keeping this huge secret from her that involved her own brother. I knew I could trust her with the truth, that she’d keep our secret. Hell, she might even be happy for us. But I couldn’t do it. Not because I worried how she’d react, but because of my own stupid, stubborn pride. I didn’t know how I would survive it if I told her about Raylan and me, only for the other shoe to drop and my heart to be broken. It wasn’t as if the pain would hurt any less if other people knew. If or when that day came, I’d be crushed to smithereens no matter what. No matter how many people knew the truth.
Pushing those unhappy thoughts to the back of my head, I dove into telling her about my life and everything that had happened over the past two months, minus the fact I was banging her brother six ways to Sunday.
Despite my assurance that this whole stalker thing had been blown out of proportion, once I finished telling her about the start of the notes and flowers, and how the last one differed, she didn’t look the slightest bit relieved.
“I’m glad your family’s looking out for you, Lenni. And I’m glad you’ve got Raylan at your back too. He won’t let anything happen to you.”
My grin was small and forced, but from the look on her face, she couldn’t tell. Thank God for small miracles. I wasn’t worried about Raylan letting anything bad hurt me. No one and nothing had the power to do that more than he did. I was so completely and totally in love with him, there was no turning back at this point. And I knew he felt the same about me. Iknewit. I prayed he’d able to get out of his own head and let me love him the way he deserved. Loudly and with my whole heart.
“That’s enough about me,” I said with a flutter of my hands. “I want to know about you.” I propped my elbow on the table between us and rested my chin in my palm, repeating her earlier words back to her. “Tell me everything and don’t leave out a single detail.”
We talked for the next hour over the best coffee and pastries in the world. At one point she took a call from Gypsy, informing her of a mandatory family dinner, but that was the only interruption. It felt good to catch up with my friend, and when we finally parted ways I made a promise to myself that I wasn’t ever going to neglect my friendships again.
Raylan
