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“We can figure out another way to get answers.”
Dom’s hair glimmers in the sunlight like spun gold. It’s the strangest thing to notice right then and there, yet it’s all I can focus on. He looks like an angel dropped onto this earth to fight for us petty humans—ethereal, deadly, and brimming with a savage lethality. It’s a warm type of beauty that reminds me of the sun. Heat seeps through my skin from his touch with every second that passes.
Dom’s attempting to speak to me—I see his lips moving and feel him shake my shoulders desperately—but I can’t seem to hear a single word he says.
Is this what shock feels like?
Dark spots dance across my vision, and my knees buckle a second before my legs give out entirely. Dominic catches me before I hit the ground.
The next thing I know, I’m in his arms, my head on his shoulder, and he’s carrying me back to the dorm. The repetitive rocking motion of his body, along with the rapid thumping of his heart beneath my ear, lulls me into a deep, restful slumber.
I don’t wake up for two days.
31
ELLIE
“Why did you want to meet?”
I sit opposite Raymond in the spacious lobby of his hotel. A little more construction has gone underway since I was last here, but it’s nowhere near complete. It's more of a carcass of a building than anything substantial, with visible wires, cans of paint, and loose plaster.
Dom sits on one side of me, while Landon reclines on the other. Zane is leaning against the far wall, indolently sharpening one of his knives, while Beckett sits beside a stone-faced Ryker on a second couch. Frodo is currently on my lap, curled into a tight ball, his breathing even and adorable snores emanating from his tiny body.
Sometimes, I wonder what it might be like to be a dog—oblivious to the horrors plaguing this world and able to sleep and play all day long.
But alas, life has never been that easy for me, and I can’t imagine it changing anytime soon.
No one was more surprised than me when Raymond called and demanded that the five of us come to the hotel for an impromptu meeting. Landon refused at first, claiming it was too risky, but Raymond insisted.
Some things can’t be discussed over the phone.
So once again, we all drove to my self-defense class, but instead of training with Lilly, we filed into an SUV with Raymond’s right-hand man, Teak.
Now, we’re here, sitting on the hotel’s couches and sipping tea from tiny cups, as if this is just a casual meetup and not something that could potentially be life-threatening for us all.
If The Divine One or one of his cronies followed us here…
Raymond must’ve been on the same wavelength as me, even before we arrived, because he increased security.
Teak—a mountain of a man with rich brown skin, shoulder-length black hair, and hard, obsidian eyes—stands directly behind Raymond, holding a machine gun. Three more guards, who introduced themselves as Ashley, Larry, and Joel, protect every other doorway.
“You know we shouldn’t meet often,” Landon growls, his hand tightening on my kneecap. Agitated tension causes the muscles in his shoulders to ripple and creates deep lines around the scowl on his face. “And certainly not all five of us. What if someone had followed us from school? What if they spotted you or Ryker?”
Raymond’s eyes turn slitted with irritation. “I’m not an idiot, boy. And you better stop treating me like one, or else we’re going to have problems.”
Dom attempts to play peacemaker, as always, lifting his hands up in a pacifying manner. “Everyone, take a breath.” He casts a pointed look at Landon, but Landon’s scowl merely deepens.
Honestly, I’m surprised that out of all my guys, Landon’s the one who’s closest to losing his shit. He’s normally immaculately calm and collected—he has to be, in order to lead the other four. But the last few weeks have been taking their toll on him. I can see shadows underneath his eyes where before there were none. Lines of fatigue mar his face, and the stubble on his chin has grown into what could almost be considered a beard.
I place my hand over his—still resting on top of my knee—and give it a squeeze. Warmth migrates from where we connect and floods my system, engulfing me in a heat wave only one of my guys can create. Goose bumps ripple across my skin, and if Raymond weren’t in the room, I would lean in even closer, taking solace in the embrace of one of the men I love.
Landon seems to be finding just as much comfort in my presence as I do in his. His shoulders sag, as if some of the tension lining them blew away like flaky ash in a storm.
“What was so important you needed to talk to us ASAP?” Landon asks, his tone one of polite disinterest. I know it’s only an act to hide his true emotions—the ones fizzing just beneath the surface, like a soda can that has been shaken one too many times. Any second now, it’ll explode, drenching everyone.
Raymond rubs at his denim-clad thighs. “It appears as if we’ve all been keeping secrets from each other.” He sweeps his gaze over everyone else in the room to encompass them in that statement before settling on me. “This arrangement won’t work with secrets between us.”
My breath hitches, and a strange bubbling sensation erupts in my chest.
