“Funny,” Garrett says. “If you think I could move, do you think I’d still be down here? And bring her home.” He tips his chin toward our house.
Isla looks up at me from beneath long lashes. “What happened, Kai? Why are you and Garrett even out here, waving your guns around? Was it my uncle?”
She’s soft in my arms as we walk back to her house, and I notice that her toenails are painted a bright pink color. There’s something soul-deep satisfying about being her protector. As a switch in a relationship with a Dom, it’s easy to default tosubmission in Garrett’s presence. But, tonight, he lets me, and with Isla, I can let the other side of myself out. “There was someone watching your house, according to Garrett. That’s all I know. Saw them run away over there. It wasn’t your uncle, wrong build.”
I tip my chin toward the tree line as I walk to her house.
She squirms in my arms, squinting. “Are they still out there? Garrett…he’s still on the street. We need to get him?—”
“I scared whoever that was off, for now. We’ve got a minute.”
“My heart’s racing.” She places her palm on her chest.
“Must be because I just swept you off your feet.” I wink at her to ease her discomfort.
She shakes her head ruefully. “As much as it’s lovely, I’m still worried about what just happened.”
I place her on her porch. “You’re coming to stay with us. Pack a bag for the night. I’m gonna help the big guy to his feet.”
“It’s fine. I’ll just make sure the doors are locked.”
I place my hand around the back of her neck, squeezing gently. “You’re coming to stay with us while we figure out whether this was just a one-time thing, not connected to anything else, or something more. You can walk, or I can carry you, but you are coming over.”
“I kissed Garrett,” she says.
“Even better. You come over and we can all kiss each other and pretend this mess didn’t happen tonight.” As much as I want to flirt with her some more, I look back over my shoulder to Garrett, who is trying to stand. “Just get your things together, Isla. Please. He won’t move until you’re with us, and he must be in agony.”
I leave her on the porch and jog over to Garrett, taking his good hand and the weight of him to help him to his feet. “Before Isla gets here, what the hell happened?”
Garrett’s breath shudders. “She brought dinner over. And when she left, I watched her walk across the street. That’s when I saw the guy along the side of her property. Tried to call her to warn her, but she left her phone in the bathroom.”
“The bathroom?” I ask.
It’s rare to see Garrett embarrassed, but I swear to God, he is. “You want to know?”
I kiss him, feeling the bead of sweat on his upper lip. “Yeah, I do.” Isla’s front door slams shut. “Tell me later, yeah?”
He nods and glances her way. “I like the way she kisses.”
I stroke his hair for a second while he catches his breath. “I mean, good kissers are a prerequisite of mine,” I say.
“Sweet talker. You think you can get me home without me doing any more damage to my body?”
“You think you can get your good arm around my shoulder?”
He tries and fails, leaving him gripping his rib cage. “Nope.”
I go behind him, put my arms under his. “Lean your weight on me.” We manage to take small steps, and I think about the courage and bravery of this man. It wouldn’t have occurred to him to sit and watch what happened from the bed, no matter how much it cost him to do what he did.
Isla skips up alongside me. She’s thrown a coat over her pajamas, is wearing sneakers, and is carrying a small backpack flung over one shoulder. I place my hand on her lower back to encourage her to walk ahead of us, so we can shield her.
It never occurred to me that I wasn’t complete. I knew there were things I wanted in life. A life with the club. The respect of my brothers. A home that always felt like a safe place. People I loved. Being monogamous for Garrett hadn’t felt like some big sacrifice.
I’d always felt utterly and completely whole.
Until this moment.
Guiding Garrett and Isla across the street. Protecting them both. Helping them both heal. It’s like there was a missing piece to my jigsaw puzzle and I never noticed it until now.
