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Eli’s arm falls around my shoulder, and I lean into him, hating how things are between us but loving his comfort. I’ve missed this so much. “To be honest, I think we’re all still a little in shock. We suspected that maybe Kian had something to do with it, but when Charles was killed the same way, we figured we were looking in the wrong place.”
“But the file in his office with the Widows mark…”
“I know,” he murmurs. “That really threw me. It put the suspicion right back on Kian, but then he was killed, and I figured it was over.”
“You were wrong.”
“So fucking wrong.”
Kai and Sebastian look back at us and slowly make their way over. “Look,” Sebastian starts. “Nic is … he’s been going through some shit. Some really dark shit. The things that he has to see and do in his position; it would fucking kill you, O. He’s changing, and I think the power of being in control is really starting to mess with his head. He’s not the same guy you once knew, but he’s still Nic. The real him is still in there, we just have to find it, but you need to know that to him, the Widows will always come first. That’s just the way his father made him, but to me, you come first.” He looks nervously at Kai and Eli before glancing back at me. “If it comes down to it, babe, I’ll have your back. I didn’t sign up for a life with the Widows to become a full-time killer. I don’t want to spend the rest of my life behind bars. I joined for the brotherhood and for the protection the Widows could offer my family, and I’ll always stand by that.”
He presses his lips together, showing me that he’s done with his speech, and I get up from the little bench and instantly step into his arms. “You know I love you,” I tell him, snuggling into his wide chest and feeling a piece of my soul finally return to me.
“I love you too, Ocean. I hate all this bullshit between us right now.”
“Me too,” I murmur. “But I feel like we’re strong enough to see it through to the other side.”
“I fucking hope so.”
Kairo steps into my side and pulls me from Sebastian’s arm. “Come here,” he tells me, pulling me in and folding me into his warm embrace. “I’m Nic’s second. You know I can’t stand against him.”
“I know,” I whisper, and he presses his lips to my forehead.
“That doesn’t mean that I don’t love you, because I do. So fucking much. You’re my family. You always have been, and you always will be. No matter what comes of this bullshit. You’re my fucking girl, O.”
“Thanks, Kai. That means a lot to me.”
“You’ll never fully understand how fucking sorry I am that I let you get all mixed up in this shit. If I could change things and put it back to the way it used to be, I’d do it in a fucking heartbeat.”
I shake my head against his chest. “I wouldn’t,” I tell him. “If I didn’t have to go through all of this, I never would have found Colton, and I wouldn’t change that for the world.”
Eli stands behind me. “Things really are serious with this guy, huh?”
“A little more than serious,” I admit.
Eli nods. “Then go home to him. We have to go and have a club meeting and let Nic know what’s coming so we can prepare.”
I step out of Kai’s arm and give them all a smile that doesn’t hit my eyes. “Okay.”
Eli takes my hand and quickly pulls me in for a short-lived hug. “You know Nic,” he tells me. “Even during all of this, he’s still going to do everything in his power to protect you. You’re going to be okay.”
“I’m not too sure about that,” I tell him, taking a few steps toward the cars. “But I’ll figure out a way to be alright on my own.”
They all watch me, and as I start walking back toward the Audi, I feel their pained stares on my back as they follow me up. I get to the car and look down at my soaking sweatpants, realizing that I can’t morally get into Colton’s car like this. Carefully, I slip from the pants and toss them onto the floor space in the back.
“Here,” Eli says, leaning into the backseat of his beat-up old car and pulling out an old hoodie. “Take this.”
I give him a warm smile of thanks and take the hoodie from him before slipping it over my head and breathing it in. It smells just like him and reminds me of all the good times we’ve shared, and without a doubt, I know that I’ll be sleeping in this tonight and every night until the smell finally begins to fade.
