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“Better than anyone else could have,” Silas says, his arms folded tightly across his chest.
“Better than you?” She smirks, a small smile playing at the corner of her mouth. But there’s exhaustion there too, and she leans into Nova’s embrace.
Silas lifts his shoulders. “Probably.”
She smiles then, a low chuckle, and shakes her head slightly. “I don’t believe you, but I'm going to take the compliment anyway.” She shifts her gaze to me, pausing as if to communicate something. “So what happens now?”
I dip my head in understanding. “Evangeline and I came to an agreement on the way home.”
Nova arches a brow, but he doesn’t release his hold on her. “Oh yeah? What's that?”
I look from Nova to Silas, pausing to hold his gaze for a second. He’s the wild card in this situation. He’s the one I need to worry about when it comes to this development in our . . . whatever the fuck this relationship is called.
“She’s all-in.”
Predictably, Silas reacts. He narrows his eyes, a flicker of something unreadable passing through them before he schools his expression into neutrality. “What does that mean?”
“It’s not safe for her to be with us and not be with us. You know that as much as anyone." It's a subtle reminder of what happened when Hunter’s biological mom was in the picture, however fleeting it was. She didn’t want to be involved in the life, despite living in the clubhouse while she was pregnant, and it almost cost him everything.
He shifts his gaze to Evangeline, wary acceptance painted on his face. “What do you want to know?”
She sighs. “I honestly don’t know. I don't think I can take any more tonight, but maybe tomorrow you guys can explain to me who those guys were and why they were here. Help me understand what happened.”
Silas nods, his demeanor shifting slightly, though still rigid. “I can do that for you, Evie. I owe you that much, at least.”
“I just think . . . that more information is always good, ya know? I don’t want to be caught off-guard like that ever again.” Her teeth drag over her chapped bottom lip, her gaze roaming around the kitchen. Her brows sink low over her tired eyes.
“We’re with you twenty-four seven now, yeah? We won’t let anything happen to you.”
“And we’ll find him,” Silas assures her quietly.
The guy who abducted her and somehow knew about our tunnel system. I catch Silas’s eye, a silent request for a conversation. He blinks his agreement.
“I’ll make him pay for what he did,” Nova says, pulling her into him further.
“I know,” she mumbles, but she’s distracted. She looks up at Nova and nods her head, dipping her chin a few times absentmindedly. Like she’s stuck somewhere inside her head, not really paying attention. And I just fucking know whatever happened has left a mark on her that she hasn’t even begun to process yet.
“What is it, sugar?” It’s a quiet demand.
Her lips twist to the side and she moves out from underneath Nova’s arm and slides off the stool. She spins slowly, looking around the large kitchen and attached dining room. “There are little pieces of you three here. Even though it’s only been a few days. Nova’s sweatshirt hanging over the chair, your espresso maker on the counter, and Silas’s familiarity in my kitchen.” She faces us and pauses. “But I don’t see any sign of Hunter.”
She stares at Silas, questions and confusion written in every curve of her face.
“He’s not here right now,” Silas says, shoving his hands into his pockets.
She tilts her head to the side. “When will he be here?”
Silas shakes his head, his lips pinched into a firm line.
I don't know what sets her off, and I don't know if she even realizes it, but the air around her stills. There's a sharpness to her that wasn't there a week ago.
"You said Hunter was here. That he was waiting for me. Where is he, Silas?" Her voice is low and even. A carefully-laid trap.
But I meant what I said last month, if we’re going to make this work, really fucking work, then we can’t be stepping on each other’s toes all the fucking time. We don’t encroach on our time with her unless she asks for it. And that means we let each other sink when she lures them into tumultuous waters.
I know I sure as hell won’t be invited to the makeup portion of their rift when they work through their shit, so why the fuck would I wade into the deep end now.
Besides, I told Silas it was a bad idea not to tell her about Hunter right away. This woman stood between a literal fucking firing squad to protect him, if that’s not a bond, I don’t know what is.
