I reach for my keys and twist the doorknob by instinct, frowning when I notice that it’s unlocked.
That’s strange.
Jace and Cole are usually good with our security. Our job demands it. I mean, Cole is a damn hacker for Christ’s sake. That’s one of the reasons my father wanted to bring him into The Order. He slips through firewalls and networks like a damn ghost, and can create, maintain, and wipe digital traces of all kinds. His skills are next level, which is why unease crawls across my skin at the thought of them not being guarded. When I notice the alarm system isn't on, dread immediately sits heavily in the pit of my stomach.
Could our work have followed them home?
It isn't unlikely to think that someone could seek some sort of revenge for whatever it is we took from them, and it doesn’t sit right with me that my guys could have been blindsided.
Cautiously, I step inside, pushing the door open as quietly as possible, just in case I walk into the biggest clusterfuck imaginable.
The smile dies on my face when light, feminine laughter filters down the hallway.What?
I set the bags down on the counter, my mind running through every recent conversation searching for some mention that we’d be having company, but we don’t do company. Ever.
So who the fuck is in our house?
I stalk toward whatever the hell is going on in the living room, my pulse climbing with every muted step, and when I see the reason for everyone’s fucking happiness, there’s no holding back the anger rushing through my veins.
Bailey’s legs are draped over Colton’s lap, controller in hand and game on the screen, but all I see is red. Jace is on the floor in front of them, leaning back against Cole’s knees, laughing at something she says. All three of them look so damn comfortable, and it only makes my stomach twist.
“Care to explain why Bailey fucking Asher is in our house?” I seethe, watching them fumble—big time.
Colton jolts like he’s been slapped, causing Bailey to drop her controller on the floor. Jace freezes halfway to standing, guilt written across every line of his face, and the succubus in question just blinks, not understanding that she’s made the biggest fucking mistake by being here. They know better than to let this happen. They know the fucking consequences.
“Baby, we need to talk,” Jace says, and Colton shifts to stand at his side. They’re standing there like I’m anuntamed fucking animal who’s escaped from my cage, and I think that pisses me off the most.
“Be so fucking for real with me right now,” I say, and Jace scrubs a hand over his face. Clearly, they aren’t fucking thinking. I spin on my heels and walk down the hallway, storming into our kitchen where my discarded shopping waits.
Bailey is in our house, after everything we had discussed. We’ve been turning ourselves inside out since Fright Night, and for what…? They couldn’t hack it, so they invited her over?
Why put her at risk like that?
I ignore the two broody bodies standing on either side of me and start unpacking the groceries from the bags on the counter.
“Roman, we need to talk.” It’s Jace who speaks first, reaching out to gently place a hand on my forearm.
“You don’t say?” I mutter, pausing to look him straight in the eyes, hoping they see just how pissed off I am.
“We would never have gone out of our way to have her here, and you know it,” Cole says, his voice calmer than I feel.
“I don’t know, you looked pretty fucking cozy together.”
“Keith did this.” I pause at Jace’s mention of my father, because whenever he’s involved in something,shit always hits the fucking fan. “He spoke to Whitman, and apparently, boarding is at full capacity?—”
“Bullshit!” I interrupt, seething over the fact that Keith and Whitman are talking about our girl in the first place. That detail alone is enough to put me on edge. Whitman may be the dean, but he’s also one of the Elders, and the fact that Bailey is on his radar is alarming. If they want her here, that’s a damn good indication that she shouldn’t be.
Now I know why he’s been trying to call me all fucking day.
“So, what, you just let her in? Do you not see how dangerous that is?” I say through clenched teeth, standing back to look at both my guys. Their harrowed expressions only fuck with something inside my chest, and the anger and tension begin to fade almost immediately. A deep, heavy wave of concern for what this could all mean floods the space between us.
Do the Elders know about Fright Night?
“She is safer here with us, baby. We won’t let anyone hurt her,” Cole says, and then he and Jace move, closing the space between us until the heat rolling off their bodies burns through the cold presence of dread creeping up my spine.
“If they know?—”
“They don’t know. Nobody knows. I’ve torn through every link to that warehouse, including herphone. She’s safe, Ro,” Colton says, his words hanging like a heavy weight while my brain plays catch-up.
