“I’m not sure you and I have had the chance to speak about much yet, Ryder included, considering you only got back late last night. And as for Dom, I know he’s been looking for his Omega because Rye and I have been helping where we could. I’m with Ryder, how the three of us each found you is an incredible feat, which only reaffirms how perfect you are for us.”
She goes to answer but she looks at me instead. “I walked in here and I knew it was you.”
“Me?”
Shaking her head, her gaze drops away. I’m beginning to realize that her looking away isn’t defiance, nor is it true submission. It’s a learned response—something taught.
She must realise it because her eyebrows draw together before she pulls her shoulders back. Her lips curl upwardsinto a teasing smile. “If you tried to take that awful scratchy brown blanket away from me, I would probably claw your eyes out.”
Instantly I know what blanket she’s talking about because I nearly didn’t use it to wrap her up in it. I nearly took it for myself as a reminder of her mouthwatering scent.
“Does that mean I’m going to lose my favourite jacket?” I ask, somehow keeping a straight face.
“Probably,” she confirms with a small shrug. “I’m a mess. I’m all over the place.”
Hendrix stands, scoops her off her chair, and then sits with her in his lap. He shuffles around so she can see Ryder on the screen before he reaches for my suit jacket and drapes it over her.
“Simona, before we marvel at our meeting, I’d really like to hear why you were meeting Dominic this morning.”
Chapter
Twenty-Three
SIMONA
Hendrix’s warmth seeps into my bones, his scent mixing with Dominic’s so beautifully that together they make my head spin.
This is where I want to stay, in this beautiful place where we discover little things about each other. Some of what we learn will only confirm what we feel—how perfect they are—other things will surprise us.
But of course, Brody has to ruin this too.
I can feel the trepidation in Hendrix’s body. The way Dominic leans back in his chair, his brown eyes searching mine, makes it obvious he wants answers. When I look at Ryder, he’s waiting as well.
Pulling up Dominic’s jacket so his paper and ink scent becomes more pronounced than Hendrix’s, I lean into the comfort and safety it makes me feel, closing my eyes so I don’t have to watch Ryder’s beautiful eyes darken by the burden of what I bring.
“Brody was…”
I forbid you.
My throat constricts and stops me from speaking. It’s so real, so visceral, it’s as if he is in the room with us, his hand squeezing around my throat again. Remembering his touch makes my stomach twist, and I struggle.
I hate that I am so weak I can’t just tell them everything.
I hate how I seem to constantly cry.
I hate who he has made me become.
I wasn’t lying before; I really am a mess. I’m tired. I’m exhausted from running but I can’t see a way out.
“Simona.”
I forbid you.
My eyes burst open; Dominic is right in front of me smelling like forever and looking like a man on a warpath. His fierce gaze doesn’t scare me, but it does wrap around me encouragingly.
“Right now, let’s focus on me being your lawyer. Lucky for you, I am a very good lawyer. If it is easier for you, Ryder and Hen will go, and I promise, neither will be angry or upset if that’s what you’d like them to do.”
I sink back against Hendrix, grabbing one of his arms and putting it over my shoulder like a seatbelt. An answer in itself.
