“Because of them.” The words were filled with venom—they always were when he spoke about Nexus. “You said you would never have left. You said you wished we had gone together.”
Teddy closed his eyes. “Yes.”
“Who was it that made the decision? The person you mentioned in your letter.” Teddy looked up and Wren immediately knew, face darkening. “Kellan?”
“He always had his suspicions about us and what we were doing,” Teddy said. “He found out. He saw me kiss you. I could either accept my placement early, or he would be revealing it to Gwen.”
“I’m going to kill him,” Wren growled, teeth bared. The jaguar grumbled next to him.
Teddy reached forward to grab his hand to calm him, only realizing the second their skin touched and Wren released a quiet gasp that this wasn’t the past. Teddy shouldn’t be reaching for him and Wren shouldn’t be turning his hand up to meet his.
But they did. Their fingers slotting together like they’d never been apart. Wren’s skin felt like all of his dreams coming true at the same time. Like all of the ink from his journals had seeped out and shaped the Wren from his memories right in front of him.
He squeezed, running his thumb over the back of Wren’s hand, wanting to use it to pull him close. To wrap him in his arms and never let go again.
He wanted…
“Teddy!” Saint’s voice was a hushed shout as he burst through the door. “I ran the number plate on that vehicle and it belongs to—”
Teddy sprang backward, too trained.
“—Wren,” Saint finished, eyes as round as saucers. “And he’s…in your bed…”
Teddy rushed to his feet, the panic filling him so visceral that he felt physically sick. He stepped forward to block Wren from view. “He’s here for the case, that’s all. He’s here—Saint…”
Please don’t take him away,he wanted to beg on his knees.
“Woah,” Saint said, noticing his panic. “It’s cool. He’s here for the case, you said? That’s all I need to know. It’s just business.”
“Yes,” Teddy croaked, even though he knew Saint was placating him and didn’t believe any of it.
The facade was made of paper, but Teddy needed the screen of it to hide behind before his anxiety made him collapse.
Saint looked from Teddy to the space behind him, then back. “Let’s talk outside quickly,” he said.
“No,” Wren said immediately.
Teddy didn’t want to be out of sight of Wren either, but he looked over his shoulder at Wren. “I’ll be back in a second.”
He followed Saint from the room, allowing the door to close and stepping away from it, knowing Wren would no doubt be on the other side trying to listen in.
“You need to be much more careful,” Saint said in a low voice. “If it had been anyone else in this house…”
“I know.”
“Do you?”
Teddy let the depths of his soul show through his eyes. Lonely. Miserable. Pained. “Trust me, I know the consequences.”
Sympathy filled Saint’s face. “It can be worse than that, Damir. The things people say…”
“I know that too.”
“Okay then.” Saint sighed deeply and ran a hand over his face. “I suppose all those years of being the only functioning, upstanding member of our team had to end sometime.”
“Everyone has their baggage,” Teddy joked hoarsely, even though he didn’t have it in him to laugh. “I need him.”
It was as simple as that.
