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“I wish you’d told me about your brother,” Abe whispered. “About your childhood.”
He didn’t lift his head, but he closed his eyes. There was no missing the hurt in those soft words. “I just finally got you. Laying all that on your lap wouldn’t have been fair.”
Abe kissed his head again. “There is nothing unfair when it comes to you and me. Honesty is what I want from you. I want to know who you are, the good and the bad. And fuck, Dom, look what he did to you.”
Dom’s eyes popped open to stare at the strong hand that had come to rest on his thigh. “Well, at least I know the scars weren’t a deterrent before.”
“They never were and never will be. I just hate that he hurt you.” Abe’s hands balled into fists so tight, the knuckles popped. “I want to get him alone in a room. Make him regret he ever laid a hand on you.”
“I don’t want you anywhere near him.” Dom shut his eyes and tamped down a shudder. Just the thought of Abe being alone with his brother made his stomach churn. It wasn’t that he thought Abe couldn’t handle himself. It was that his brother was absolutely certifiable. There was no telling what James was capable of now.
“You said he’ll try to come after me.” There was a slow, pensive note to Abe’s tone that nearly made Dom smile. His man was not one to make rash decisions, and Dom was finding that he liked his slow and steady ways. They were certainly proving smarter than his “jump in with both feet and figure it out later” style. “And I’ve been thinking about that. I may have an idea.”
“Oh, yeah?” Dom lifted his head and opened his eyes. “What’s that?”
“Let it percolate a bit, then I’ll share. Let’s just go inside and have that chili we planned.”
“I want to shower first. Will you do it with me?”
Abe stared at him a few moments, the corner of his mouth going up. “Of course. I’ll be happy to wash the rest of the blood out of your hair. It makes me sick to see it there.” He ran a finger next to the fresh wound by his old scar. “I’m with Garrett. This infuriates me,” Abe said, mentioning the first words out of Garrett’s mouth when he met them at Ward Security. “Your brother is sick.”
“It’s why I ran.” Dom turned his head away from Abe and stared out the window at the neat row of townhomes. “I shouldn’t have left him out there to terrorize other people.”
Abe carefully grabbed Dom’s chin, forcing him to turn his head back to face him. There was no escaping those large brown eyes staring him down. “What were you going to do? Take out your own family?”
“I could have set it up so he was arrested.”
Abe frowned and gave a little shake of his head. “You did what you felt was right at the time. You were young and he is still your brother. Self-recrimination is a waste of time.”
Turning his head, Dom brushed a light kiss across Abe’s fingers. “When did you get so smart, Mr. Stephens?”
“Probably about the time I gave in to your constant seduction.”
A bark of laughter jumped from Dom’s lips. “Seduction? Really? Felt more like begging to me.”
“This old man was always flattered, Dom.”
Dom looked around. “What old man?” He smiled again but knew it didn’t hold a lot of humor. He felt icky and just wanted to be clean and feel Abe’s strong body against his.
Garrett stepped outside the house and came to help with the overnight bags and groceries. Rowe insisted they all have satchels ready with changes of clothes and toiletries in the office because they never knew when they’d end up on a job. Rowe had grabbed one for Abe from one of the bigger employees. They’d stopped for chili and sandwich makings on the way, so they were prepared for at least a few meals while they discussed what their next step would be.
Royce said the house still had dishes and furniture—he wasn’t attached to anything in it, which was sad. Dom loved his historical house because it came with deep roots—something he’d never had in his entire life. Of course, Royce was now moved into his boyfriend’s house, which was warm and full of eclectic art. Definitely what Royce needed. His friend talked about listing the townhouse as a vacation rental rather than selling it right away. That was assuming they didn’t manage to destroy it while using it as a safe house. Bullet holes and fire damage were great selling points.
They took the bags inside, and Garrett offered to put away the groceries so Dom could shower. He felt no shame in luring Abe to come with him. And when they finally stood in the beige-tiled stall, Dom realized that Abe’s big body was good for more than hot sex. He was strong and solid, and it felt so damn wonderful to rest against him. Dom wrapped his arms around Abe and laid his unhurt cheek on his shoulder. Hot water pounded against his right side, where their bodies were plastered together.
