Yet, even now, as I tried to hold onto a fragile clarity, I was still left strung tight. His quiet dominance was soothing in one moment, but in the next, it felt like too much. The weight of everything pressed down on me again, like it always did when I allowed myself to trulyfeelthe space I was in with them. The presence of their bodies. The scent of them—fresh, masculine, burning-hot, and unyielding.
“Are you going to help me sleep?” I asked before I could stop myself, and even as the words left my mouth, I was surprised by the vulnerability that bled into my voice.
Roan’s eyes softened, but his jaw remained taut. “That was the bet,” he answered, his voice just as even, just as controlled as ever. But then he added, “Do you want to take a bath first? Eat something?” He raised a brow, clearly offering the decision to me.
I blinked, caught off-guard.He’s giving me control.
No one had ever done that before—not like this. Not with so muchcarewoven into the offer. I could see the surprise flicker in both Jay and Rhett’s eyes. Neither of them had expected this from Roan—RoanWhittaker, the man who always had a plan, who was always the rock.
But he was handing it over to me. All of it. I could feel the weight of it.What does that mean?
Part of me wanted to give in. Wanted to let him take care of everything, to fall into the quiet, open strength he was offering me. But I didn’t—couldn’t—give in that easily. My thoughts were a tangled mess.
“Maybe… sleep first?” I said slowly, testing the waters. “I don’t know that I can really eat, and I’ve showered so much already… maybe a bath later?”
Roan’s face softened further, the sharp lines of control in his expression melting away. He nodded, just once, as if it was already decided.
“Sleep it is,” he said, his voice gentle but firm. “Let’s get you into bed.”
As he moved toward me with that purposeful grace that always had a way of putting everyone else on pause, I felt myself pull back. Not in fear, but in uncertainty. The flood of everything swirling inside me made it hard to know what wasrightanymore.
Rising, I forced deeper breaths. My legs felt weak, and for the first time, I didn’t want to be alone. Not with the heat still coursing through my veins, not when the temptation to give in to everything was this strong.
I paused in the doorway that separated the main room from the bedroom.
I wasn’t sure what to say—what I should say—but in the end, the question slipped out of me, unexpected, almost reckless. “Will you stay?” My voice was soft, fragile in the air between us, but I didn’t care anymore.
I knew the consequences of what I was asking. The consequences of needing them so badly. Of wanting them too much.
But I still asked. “I know if you stay… it might mean you’re trapped here with me.”
Roan’s gaze never wavered. His hand settled on my back, the blanket and the tank top I wore, keeping his skin from touching mine. Everything about him remained steady and calm, but his eyes? They were sharp, full of something that made me feel seen, understood. His voice rumbled low in the room. “I’m staying.”
Then Jay spoke up, his voice carrying a seriousness that cut through the earlier tension. “We all are.”
Rhett, too, didn’t hesitate. “Yeah. I’m not leaving.”
They didn’t even flinch at the thought of being stuck here with me. It was something—something that shouldn’t have been this simple, yetwas.
I didn’t have to make the decision for them. They had already made it for me. For a fleeting moment, that sensation of relief flooded me all over again.
They were staying. They were here. For me.
I couldn’t explain why that felt so monumental, but I didn’t need to. All I knew was that for the first time in…forever, I wasn’t alone.
Maybe, just maybe, I could stop pretending I could do it all myself.
Roan’s hand slid to my shoulder as he gently coaxed me into the room, his presence grounding me. Rhett and Jay remained in place, just outside the door, but I could feel them. Even without looking, I knew they were there.
It was a strange sort of peace, surrounded by all of them—my strength, my security, mymonsters.
I stepped into the room, feeling the weight of everything shift again, but this time… in a way I couldn’t explain. Or maybe I didn’t have to.
I wasn’t sure of the future. But I was sure of this moment.
I wasn’t alone.
Not anymore.
