Seb sighs. “Yeah, you’re right. Thank you again for punching that bitch. I would have loved to see that.”
“I hope I broke her nose.” I’m not usually a violent person, but seeing what she was going to do with Seb, I saw red.
Seb chuckles. “I hope so, too.”
“E went a little crazy on her when he realized what was happening. He dragged her out of the closet Nick had thrown her into, and was yelling and shaking the shit out of her, asking questions.”
“Looks like I have two defenders of my honour then.” I can hear happiness in his voice.
We talk a little more about what movie we want to watch tonight and what food we’re gonna order, and then I let him go. I decideto take a quick nap, so I set my alarm on my phone and grab Jake’s pillow.
My laptop is back on my desk when I wake up, and I find Zander on the couch watching tv again. “You okay?” I ask, sitting beside him on the couch.
“Just fine, darling. Talking to Sarah helped. Thank you for letting me in on your call.”
“You’re welcome. We’re going to hang out at Alex’s house, order food, and watch a movie tonight. Are you okay with that?”
“Are you guys planning on going anywhere?” His brows draw down with concern. This incident will take time for all of us to recover from.
“Nope, we’re staying in. Straight there and back. Maybe you could give me my first driving lesson tomorrow?”
“I’d love to,” he smiles. “Do you want to learn to drive a stick or just an automatic?” We discuss the pros and cons, and I decide to learn both. He also wants me to learn to change a tire and check the oil. Both of which I’m happy to do. “Are you going to be a truck girl or a car girl? Maybe a Jeep girl?”
“I don’t know. Never really thought about it. Definitely not a lifted anything. I can’t get into E’s truck without help.”
Zander chuckles at that. “I suppose that would be a pain in the ass. Want to get a baking lesson in before you leave?” He wants to try muffins today and reminds me we need to stop by the police station.
The police station is painless and quick, and we spend the next few hours making muffins. Zander does pretty well. No flour incidents today. We make chocolate chip, lemon blueberry, and cinnamon cake. I box up some for the guys, and we leave the rest out for us to enjoy during the week.
Seb and Nick pick me up at 4:30pm, and Nick drives us straight to Alex’s house. The guard opens the gate for us when he sees the Jeep. Nick parks in front of thegarage, and we head upstairs. Alex is playing a video game with a headset on when we arrive, and E is cooking in the kitchen. “I brought dessert,” I tell them. “Where’s Bay?” I ask everyone.
“He’s running late,” Alex tells me, not taking his eyes off the tv screen.
“Do you need help?” I ask E.
“No thanks. I’m almost done,” he smiles, so I join the guys on the couch.
“E cooks when he gets stressed,” Seb whispers to me. Ah, that makes sense. The food will be much tastier and healthier than whatever we could buy at a restaurant, anyway.
I nod at that. “Did anyone check in with their friends to see if anyone saw anything last night?” I ask.
“We did. No luck, Sunshine. There was a commotion at one point where a guy stumbled into me drunk, but that’s the only info we have. No one knows who it was.”
“That’s frustrating. I can text Holly and Jaxon to see if they saw anything?”
“Can’t hurt,” Seb shrugs. I create a group chat with the two of them and ask if they saw anything last night after giving them a summary of what happened. The only info they have is that they saw Cara pretty drunk last night, but they weren’t around Seb at all. They didn’t see Ben either.
We gather at the table for dinner shortly after. E has created a feast for us, and it’s all delicious. He’s going to be an amazing chef one day. I eat too much and end up with a food baby. We all compliment him on the dishes he created, even Nick. I grab the muffins for everyone after we finish.
Bay shows up as we’re cleaning the kitchen. E has a plate in the oven keeping warm for him, so he devours his food as we work.
I tell the guys to choose a movie, so they settle on the new Indiana Jones. Seb has his arm wrapped around my shoulders, so I’m leaning on him with E on the other side.Nick is lying on the right lounger, with Alex and Bay on the left. It’s comfortable and relaxing after last night.
No nightmares greet me tonight.
Chapter 36
I call Sue when I wake up in the morning, then help Zander with breakfast. He gets a few text messages while we’re eating. “Something going on at work?” I ask.
