Anita lets out a long, shaky breath. “Oh, geez. Okay. I can breathe now. Holy shit. I guess they were listening to tonight’s program after all. And the phones are going mental right now.”
Slater walks back into the room, and the grin on his face is the smuggest, most satisfied expression I’ve ever seen him wear.
“You absolute legend,” Dylan says, staring at him with open admiration and a grin that matches Slater’s. “That was perfect.”
“Smooth as hell,” Jasper adds, shaking his head in appreciation. “Exactly the right amount of support without letting her completely off the hook.”
I’m grinning like an idiot. “You never cease to surprise me, man. I thought you were going to need more time to process.”
“I do need time,” Slater admits, settling back into his chair and picking up his abandoned whiskey. “But that doesn’t mean I’m going to let her face Reed alone. Or let her think we’ve completely given up on her.”
On the radio, Anita is back to her host voice, though it’s still a bit shaky and emotional. “Okay, listeners, I need your input here. What do you think? Should I take him up on that offer, or shouldn’t I? Am I crazy to even consider it after what I did?”
The first caller comes through immediately. “Oh my God, who was that man? That voice? I need to know everything. Is he single? Does he have a brother? Can I have his number?”
Anita laughs, and it’s the first genuine, unforced laugh we’ve heard from her all night. The sound wraps around my heart andsqueezes. “That’s classified information. And no, you definitely cannot have his number.”
“But seriously, though,” the caller continues, her tone shifting to earnest. “That was clearly someone who cares about you deeply, to extend a hand even after you hurt them. That’s rare. That kind of forgiveness, you don’t find that every day. Take it, girl. Don’t let pride or shame or fear stop you from accepting help when it’s genuinely offered.”
“You make a really good point,” Anita says thoughtfully.
“I don’t know the details of your situation, and I don’t need to,” says a male caller next. “But that voice? That man sounded like someone who’s willing to work through difficult things. Like someone who values you enough to look past mistakes and see the person underneath. Don’t waste that opportunity. Don’t let it slip away because you’re afraid or ashamed.”
“Thanks for calling in,” Anita says, her voice thick with emotion. “I appreciate that more than you know.”
We’re all grinning now, listening to caller after caller tell Anita to take the help, to reach out, to not let this opportunity slip away.
“I’m so fucking glad you did that,” Dylan says to Slater. “Otherwise, I might have ended up driving to her place tonight like some kind of stalker and camping outside her building to make sure she didn’t try to leave town.”
“Hey, that was my plan,” I protest, and everyone laughs, the tension that’s been choking the house all evening finally starting to ease.
“Great minds,” Jasper says, reaching over to clap me on the shoulder. “She might need to grovel a bit more, though,” he points out, but he’s grinning as he says it, clearly not actually upset about the prospect.
“Oh, definitely,” Slater agrees, and there’s a hint of amusement in his voice now, breaking through the earlier pain.“She’s going to have to work for it. Prove she’s serious about being honest going forward.”
“I can live with that,” Dylan says, flopping back in his chair with obvious relief. “As long as the end result is her in our pack. In our home. In our bed. In our lives.”
I sit back in my chair, still listening to Anita continue her show, taking more calls, her voice growing stronger and more hopeful with each one. And I can’t stop smiling at hearing her as if she were right next to me.
22
ANITA
The day has been absolute torture.
Every minute feels like an hour. Every hour feels like a lifetime. And I keep replaying yesterday over and over in my mind until I want to scream.
The confession. The tears. The way they all looked at me with varying degrees of hurt and confusion and disappointment.
And then last night. Slater calling in to my show. That voice. That offer of help.
If you want us to help… then you know where we live.
I’ve spent the entire day trying to come to terms with everything, with how much these men have made me feel, how deeply they’ve burrowed under my skin, and how desperately I want to run to their house right now and throw myself at their feet and beg for another chance.
But I’ve held myself back.
Because what if they only want to help with the Reed investigation? What if they can help me but still never want anything romantic again?
