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“We haven’t turned it over. We’re looking into some pages that were”—he cocks an eyebrow at me—“torn out, and we’re verifying the rest of the claims. It falls to the O’Reilly empire to investigate because they handle government officials and to the Cabrinis to consult with their data mining resources. Both chairs are already apprised of the contents.”
A relieved sigh billows out of me. He took it, but they handled it with my concerns in mind. Wells and Ivy both know. And they protected my family. For me.
“Oh,” I chirp, recalling the one humorous incident away from him now that I feel a bit lighter. “Richard Long?”
He belts out a ring of laughter that echoes off the rafters. “How the hell—”
“Colehorn,” I explain.
“He told you that?” He’s still chuckling, his forehead dropping to the wall beside my head. “Fucking asshole.”
A smile bursts across my cheeks—his laughter is the most invigorating sound in existence. “He gave me a sheet with all your aliases, and that was on it.”
He lifts off the wall, playing with my hair as he launches his story. “A few years back, I was bragging about how invincible the guys and I were because we get shit done so much faster than them. No one can touch us. Well, Cole insisted that he could catch us doing anything—that we only get away with shit because it’s mutually beneficial, so no one bothers us. I heard a challenge, so, without warning, I wreaked havoc on him. Messing with his finances. All his sordid side deals. I—or Dick Long, rather—invested his funds in a nasty-ass strip club and sent him the deed as a Christmas gift, made him a top ambassador of this direct-selling sex toys company, complete with an explicit website. I actually turned a profit for him. Spent over a year having a hell of a good time as Dick Long until I revealed the truth.”
I bury my face in my hands to compose myself. “I had to smother a cackle when I read the name. I knew there’d be a good story to accompany it. He played the coldhearted asshole role well, but the subtlest hint of amusement twitched on his lips when I laughed at the name.”
“That was for me. He is an asshole, but he didn’t need to put that name on there. It was an act of mercy—giving you hope that there were holes in his evidence. Don’t mention that to KORT. Balzano can be a real dick.”
The mention of KORT jolts me back to the daunting matter at hand. “Speaking of that, I don’t understand what I’m doing here. What do they want?”
Before Liam can answer, Ty and Gage come bounding around the corner. Ty sprints full speed ahead for me, scooping me off the ground with a spin.
“Lettie,” he huffs, holding me against his chest, hand cupping the back of my head. “Fuck, I’ve hated every minute of the last two weeks.”
“Me too, Ty,” I say, loving this unexpected reunion. “You have no idea.”
“Mind your hands, Reynolds,” Liam barks from behind us.
“My hand is on her fucking hair,” Ty snipes with a disbelieving chuckle.
“Yeah,” Liam bites back, “that’s my fucking honeysuckle hair. Keep your goddamn mitts off it.”
They certainly know how to ease anxiety.
I can’t help laughing, which only worsens as Gage grinds out, “Fucking pussies,” and sidles up next to Ty, kissing my honeysuckle hair. “Missed you, angel.”
“Missed you too, Big Guy. You left without saying goodbye.” I tried not to let that bother me. In the grand scheme of things, it wasn’t something to fret about. But last night, when a deluge of tears flooded my pillow, I wondered why he’d walked out my door without a word.
“I just couldn’t.” It’s all he offers, but somehow, it means more than an extensive explanation would, especially since his tone is thick with emotion, matching his heavy amber eyes.
Liam grunts and peels me away, like I’m a ragdoll. “You two can hug her later. I’ve missed her too much to let go for another second. And she’s walking into that chapel on my arm.”
I’ve seen them behave this way with Ivy, but it’s less my comfort zone—them tossing me around and fawning over me. Although I can’t deny the warmth ballooning inside my lungs that these men I love so much care enough for me to argue about who gets to hug me.
I burrow my face into Liam’s neck, exhaling all the devastation I’ve harbored these past weeks even though it’s clearly not over. Ivy tried to explain this to me last summer, and I couldn’t understand it. I’d never seen anyone love as hard as the five of them. But as remarkable as it was to witness, there’s a whole new level of astonishment, experiencing it. I can survive anything with them by my side.
“I love you,” I whisper against Liam’s skin.
He pecks my temple and sets me on the floor in front of the wooden double doors. “That’s good, baby. Hold on to that and the assurance that I love you more than anything in this life.”
His declaration sounds more like a cautionary warning than a sweet nothing, but he’s threading our fingers and towing me inside the sanctuary before I can ponder it.
“Here we go,” Ty whispers, and it assaults my eardrums like a blaring siren because everything else is still and silent.
Our shoes clack on the floor with an unnerving creak volleyed back, like the weathered wooden planks are rebuking us for entering. Suddenly, my fear of enraged saints returns. I’m not often spooked. But it’s as though I can feel their fingers reaching for me.
Death is in the air. I can sense it.
