When Tag snorted, Cade glared ferociously at him, envisioning how easy it would be to add poison to his coffee. A tempting idea he would revisit later.
After Tag dropped them off at Hamm's house, Cade led Tristan to the basement, and as soon as they were in sight, Natalie launched herself off the sofa and at her brother.
"Tris! Are you okay? I was so worried," she cried, wrapping her arms around Tristan's middle, while he pressed a cheek to her hair and hugged back.
"I'm fine, Nattie."
As tears pooled and spilled down Tristan's cheeks, a knot tightened in Cade's throat. Joy and relief swelled at the sight of the siblings together and safe at last, and all he could think was that he wanted them to be his — his responsibility, maybe even his family. The idea made him feel ridiculously pleased and terrified at once, and he coughed to mask the sudden emotion.
The two redheads held each other for a long moment, but when Natalie finally leaned away, her gaze slid down and locked onto the colorful marks on Tristan's neck.
"Tris? Are those... hickeys?"
Cade's breath caught, and he watched the fuchsia color creep over Tristan's face, betraying him more than any words could. When Tristan's gaze darted to his, Natalie's followed, and heat flooded Cade's face as his eyes pinged around the room, silently wishing a rock would magically appear so he could crawl under it. Thank god Tag wasn't here to razz him again.
"Ohhh," Natalie drawled out as her facial expressions morphed from wide-eyed surprise to frowning comprehension to flushed embarrassment.
Cade had not expected to feel so ashamed, called out by a sixteen-year-old for his inappropriate behavior, but Natalie's reaction had him vowing to keep any future marks where Tristan's clothes would cover them. He did not want to ever see that look on her face again.
"So, um," Tristan croaked, his voice sounding like a teenage boy in the throes of puberty, "How about you? You're not hurt or... anything?"
He scanned over her, looking for injuries, but Natalie assured him, "I'm okay. They didn't do anything to me because of the auction."
Tristan hugged her again. "That's good. I'm so glad you're here and safe. God, I was so scared."
"Yeah, me too."
"It's over now. We're okay."
Cade swallowed hard past the lingering tightness in his throat and stepped away to give them some privacy as the pair moved to the sofa. Hamm was on the phone, so he approached Annabeth, clicking away on her keyboard as usual. When he leaned against the table, she looked up at him and smiled.
"Hey. Everything good? You done having a nervous breakdown?"
Scoffing but knowing he couldn't deny it, he ignored the question. "I just wanted to thank you. For, you know, helping to find him... and everything," he fumbled.
"Of course. Just doing my job."
"Well, you're amazing at it," Cade began, then paused. The concept of expressing himself was unfamiliar and vaguely terrifying, but he forced the words out.
"I just... Without you, I... we might not have found him. I want you to know it means a lot... and I appreciate all you did."
Annabeth gave him a shit-eating grin. "Why, King. I do believe a certain someone has made you soft."
"Soft? Yeah, right," Cade huffed, again knowing she was completely right. "Okay, fine, maybe a little. But, Jesus Christ, don't tell Tag, or I'll have to kill him, and then Hamm will be pissed."
Annabeth laughed. "Sorry, Cade, but I'm sure Tag already knows, just like anyone else with eyes."
Ugh, was he really that transparent? Looking back, losing his shit and spiraling out of control when Tristan was missing was probably a fairly good indicator.
Fucking hell, Tag was about to become even more unbearable. Maybe Cade needed to move up the timeline on that poison.
"Anyway," Annabeth continued, "I'm happy to help. I'm glad we got the outcome we wanted. And Cade, I really hope things work out between you and Tristan."
"Yeah, I hope so too," he replied, desperately wanting it to be true.
But doubt still niggled at him. He wasn't entirely sure Tristan would still want him, and honestly, he wouldn't blame him if he didn't, not after seeing firsthand how dangerous and gory this life was, how cold and merciless Cade could be. But still, he had no regrets; he had done what needed to be done.
He had upheld the code and kept his promise.
