Everyone’s pretty quiet on the flight, heads down, scrolling their socials… well, not Logan—he’s reading a fucking book because he’s an old man trapped in the body of a stupid-hot one. Niko’s jet touched down minutes ago, but the shift from sky to ground hasn’t translated into anything resembling stillness. It lingers instead in fragments. The blur of the runway lights, the weight of Chace’s presence beside us in the SUV, thequiet intensity of whatever he brought with him that he hasn’t fully said yet. Behind us, another vehicle follows at a controlled distance. I caught sight of Niko stepping in with Mac, Logan, and Sam before we pulled away from the strip.
Nothing about this return is casual.
Nothing about it is what my life used to be.
Too fucking serious.
The SUV slows as we approach home, and I feel the change before I fully take it in. The density of security, the way the space has been fortified.
Looks like ordering from DoorDash is going to be a no-go for a while… shit. What about my regular staff?
I can already picture Igor in gloves unclogging a toilet… brother would probably just stare at it, pull out his gun, and decide it’s going to self-clean.
The gates are already open, guards positioned with exact precision along the perimeter, their presence less about visibility and more about coverage. Cameras sweep over us as we pass through.
Once, I would have driven through these gates without thinking.
Once, this place was just mine.
Now, it’s something else entirely.
A fucking compound.
Was it really just months ago none of this existed?
A few months ago, I didn’t think like this, didn’t carry the weight of consequence in every decision, every step, every breath.
I lived in the moment. I took what I wanted when I wanted it, without calculating the fallout, without anticipating the cost.
There were no threats.
No enemies.
No reason to look over my shoulder.
Simpler times…but I wouldn’t change a fucking thing.My hand tightens slightly around Sera’s as the SUV comes to a stop.
I wouldn’t change it.
Not a single fucking part of it.
Not if it means I end up here…with her.
Because the truth is, everything changed long before the chaos, long before the danger, long before any of this turned into something I had to fight to hold onto.
It changed the night I saw her.
The night I stepped into that church without a reason I could explain…and found her instead.
Even now, I can still see it.
The way she stood there.
The way the world seemed to narrow, to align in a way it never had before.
As if something unseen had shifted into place.
As if I had been led there.
