Page 57 of Their Wicked Secrets: Untouched, Vol 5 of 6

“On the fucking phone.” Caden runs his hand through his hair. “We can’t be stupid about this.”

Eli straightens. “If it had been you, you would have gone. Any of us would have, because it’s Harper.”

Her little inhale alerts me.

I glance at Harper on the chair next to MacKenzie. She’s pale. Fuck. Crossing the room, I pull her up and wrap my arms around her. MacKenzie looks uncomfortable. Good.

“This isn’t about you, princess,” I say softly.

“It certainly sounds like it’s about me.” Her hands touch my sides, and she rests her head against my chest.

“It’s about playing this smart,” Eli says. “We can’t be sure we aren’t being listened to every minute of the day.” Eli steps forward to put a hand on Harper’s back. He meets my eyes. “We need to figure out how to communicate shit without revealing everything to our enemies.”

“I’m on Eli’s side. I would have gone.” Jack sits next to Nico on the bed. Caden and he did a sweep of Nico’s room, and then we put all our phones in a guest bedroom. Better safe than sorry.

“Do you even know what day it is?” Caden asks sarcastically. “When was the last time you slept?”

Black smudges line the underside of Jack’s blue eyes. He’s burning out. I get it, and if I could help more, I would.

“Do you guys want me to leave?” MacKenzie clears her throat. “Because while it’s fascinating to watch the infighting, Harper wasn’t in any danger. I was taking her to her mom. We were discreet, and I had backup to make sure no one followed us. Trust me, our mothers are bad asses.”

Harper chuckles slightly at that, and I draw back to tip her chin up. Her eyes are happier than I’ve seen them in a while. Her mom is coming back, and that’s taken a weight off her. I brush my thumb across her cheek.

“She’s not wrong. Our moms are bad asses.” Harper’s fingers press into my sides. Her dark eyes search mine.

If I could connect us so we never had to be apart, I would. But that’s not how the real world works. I need to make sure we’re all still standing when this shit is over with. All of us. My gaze strays to MacKenzie. Including the people Harper cares the most about.

I lift my gaze to Eli’s. “No more stupid shit. You called me out for doing the same thing. We stay together. We’re more solid together.”

“Jack needs to sleep more.” Harper turns to look at him and leans back against me. “You aren’t doing any of us good if you don’t get sleep.”

Jack smirks. “Plenty of time to sleep later, sweetheart.”

“She’s right.” I wrap my arm across her stomach. Jack’s gaze collides with mine, and he winces. “You can’t keep going like this. You were crap at practice, and you’ll end up making sloppy mistakes. Possibly getting hurt. On the field or off. Make a fucking schedule and stick to it. Need us to look over shit, tell us. We’re good for it.”

“I can help some.” MacKenzie raises her hand, and we all look at her. She straightens instead of cowering. “I mean, I’m not a tech genius like Jack, but I’m decent with a computer. Show me what to do, and I can figure out anything.”

Harper looks at Jack. “You might not trust her, but I do. I’m sure you’ve all dug into her background. Did you find any red flags?”

Jack shakes his head. “We need more eyes, and if it means I can increase my sleep from three hours a night to five, why not?”

I rest my chin on Harper’s head and try to figure out how to get out of dinner tonight.

“Sidney.” As if he’s reading my thoughts, Eli lifts his gaze to mine. He knows what I’m going to have to do.

Whatever it takes to get it through her brain that nothing she does will win me. I was never hers. I’ll never be hers. There’s nothing she can do to get between me and Harper. Harper sighs against me.

Her hand covers mine. “Do you want me to come with you?”

After practice, Jack, Caden, and I discussed this. “No, princess. It’s better if you’re far away from this. I don’t want to risk her focusing her attention on you. Especially in front of my father.”

“I’ll take you to my place, little nympho.” Caden brushes his knuckles against her jaw. “Jack will come with, and we’ll watch the cameras like it’s a movie. I’ll even make you popcorn.”

Harper sighs.

“That leaves me as backup?” Eli arches an eyebrow.

“Yeah.” I run a hand through my hair. “I can’t trust her not to find a way past everything. Penny seems to be on my side, but I’d rather be safe than sorry. If Sidney’s goal is to make it look like we’re still together, then she’ll make her move tonight.”