Just then, the door opened and my attention moved to the dynamic duo walking in. Both men’s eyebrows raised in question at the group as they made their way toward us. When they got close enough to read the room which consisted of pissed-off men and also saw my face, they joined the rabid dog movement and growled as the others had.
“We were waiting for you guys to get here. Gemma has something to talk to us about,” Braxton said, addressing the newcomers.
“Looks that way.” Lyric’s eyes assessed my reaction. He may not have been on the police force anymore, but you couldn’t take the cop out of him.
All the guys were the same way with their backgrounds. They were smart, tough, and badass. That seemed to be exactly what I needed at the moment, even if I didn’t like to admit it.
“Shall we get this party started?” I asked, heading down the hall toward the conference room without a backward glance.
Heavy footsteps followed behind me and my heart hammered in my chest. I knew this wasn’t going to be fun and I’d been right. When it was all over I felt like I just wanted another nap. Good thing it was Monday and I only had one class later in the afternoon that I didn’t plan on attending. I just had to get through the year and then I was done with school. That was one thing to be happy about.
When I wandered out to the front of the building after the meeting, the guys once again on my heels, I glanced up to see that Patience had in fact already learned a thing or two.
Looked like I was in for another round of concerned, slightly angry friends fawning all over me just as the guys had.
As I walked up to the best and nosiest group of friends a girl could have, I found my inner sass that had seemed to be missing lately, but apparently decided to make itself known again.
“Well, well, well, what do we have here, an intervention?”
The ladies didn’t look deterred. When I glanced at Patience the poor girl had a sheepish worried look on her face.
“Don’t sweat it, sweetie, I’d have done what you did. You did well.”
She didn’t look so sure but she smiled and seemed to relax a bit.
“Damn straight she did,” Alley, the queen of all smartasses, said.
I could handle the banter, but when Jurnee walked up and threw her arms around me with tears in her eyes, that was almost my undoing.
“I’m okay,” I whispered as she squeezed me tight.
“Babe,” her husband, Braxton, said in a concerned tone from beside us. The man loved his wife immensely and seeing her cry and so worried probably killed him.
And that made me feel even guiltier.
“Honey, Gemma will be okay. We have plans in place to make sure that happens.”
Jurnee leaned back and looked at my face, brushing my cheek softly in a motherly gesture.
Out of the corner of my eye, I saw all the guys standing close to Braxton. This group was intense, nurturing, loyal, and sometimes a little overwhelming.
I wouldn’t trade them for anything.
“What stuff is in place?” Jurnee asked, looking at her man.
“Well for starters she is moving to a safer place, but I’ll let her tell you guys all about it. The guys and I have classes and meetings in a few minutes.” Braxton approached Jurnee and gave her a soft kiss then told his wife goodbye.
When the other men followed suit with their women, I couldn’t keep my eyes from straying toward Bodie who was watching me closely. My cheeks heated and I knew my face was a blush color. I quickly looked away and over to Capri and Patience who didn’t have men in their lives like me.
They both wore soft, wistful expressions.
I knew how they felt. Our friends had seriously good looking, alpha, amazing men. They were damn lucky.
“Gemma, remember, don’t go home until one of us gets done and follows you,” Braxton said, grabbing my attention. “Got it?”
My hand went to my forehead and I gave him a salute as I rolled my eyes at the same time. “Yes, Sir.”
The ladies snickered and the men chuckled.
