People had the nerve to call women devious.
I was lying in a den of vipers.
“Still awake?” Nick whispered, tightening his arm around me.
I hummed softly. Rowan and Alec were asleep, their breathing slow and even—but they were heavier sleepers than Nick. He was always alert. Always listening. It made him a light sleeper.
“You don’t need to worry about your dad or Eric.”
The words jolted me fully awake.
I almost spoke—but Eric’s vile voice echoed in my head, and instead I rested my hand against Nick’s chest. I was past caring about James Constantine and the endless mess he dragged to my door. Whatever power he once had over me had burned itself out.
I slid my hand up to the warmth of Nick’s neck, inhaled his familiar scent, and closed my eyes.
I guessed I was part of the vipers now.
Chapter 45
Rowan
The skin was still faintly raised, flushed pink beneath the ink. Our initials sat in cursive just below her hairline, nestled at the nape of her neck—intimate, deliberate. Permanent.
I nearly shoved Alec aside when he crowded in too close.
“Why don’t you get a magnifying glass?” I said dryly as he pulled out his phone and started taking photos.
The R curved outward in clean, confident semicircles. The A looped seamlessly into it—no hard breaks, no sharp angles. Then the N swept back around, enclosing us both, completing the shape. The final flourish drew everything inward, forming a subtle oval that framed the initials without distracting from them.
It was balanced yet intentional, unmistakably ours.
I’d found her.
Alec had accepted her.
Nick had followed—eventually.
That was why the order mattered.
Well—technically Nick had found her first. But I’d acted before either of them had time to hesitate.
Alec stepped back at last, still staring at his phone, reverent in his own way.
I rested my hand on Ella’s shoulder, then glanced at Nick. He’d kept the design subtle and respectful, which spoke volumes. I gave him a brief nod before I spoke.
“I think we should go out and celebrate,” I said, squeezing Ella’s shoulder once before letting go.“Take a little road trip. A few days on the coast.”
Nick scowled—right up until his eyes landed on Ella.
I grinned. There was no chance he’d take the bike when he could be in the car with her.
???
I stretched my arms above my head, watching Alec and Nick usher Ella toward the service station. She wore a short-sleeved summer dress that trailed behind her, bright enough to rival the sun itself. There was a brief tug-of-war as they each tried to pull her to their side, but it ended the way it always did—both their arms wrapped around her as they reached the doors.
It felt good to be away from work, to exist somewhere warm and ordinary. Nick carried a gun tucked beneath his waistband, another rested in the car. We rarely took trips like this, but now that we had Ella, I could see them becoming routine. Necessary, even.
I locked the SUV and followed at an unhurried pace, watching people clock the trio as they passed—curious glances, quick double-takes. The ebb and flow of bodies slowed me, leaving me momentarily behind as Alec and Nick escorted Ella toward the ladies’bathroom. I’d expected Nick to wait outside.
