Now that our relationship is out in the open, now that CNZ apologized and the public collectively accepted that our relationship isn’t scandalous—I still can’t believe how long it took them to get here—we can finally just be us. After everythingwe did to change the public’s perception of us, we’re left wondering if it was even necessary.
Lex put it the best.
We were protecting ourselves from one kind of pain by condemning ourselves to another.
But now we’re free from both.
Our reality is much better.
Even if Lex did wish he was also in the playoffs.
He and the rest of the Demons worked hard to get there, but in the end, the teams that were ahead of them in their division didn’t falter.
I’ve gotten to know them, especially Lucy, Nessy, and Matty, the goalie, who I learned spent his first two seasons playing tandem with the Pirates’ star goalie, so he knows Vinny pretty well.
Nessy’s wife, Hannah, the official leader of the Demons’ WAGs as the captain’s wife, has taken me under her wing in a motherly move that honestly baffles me, but I’m not complaining.
Slowly but surely we’re both being brought into the family, as they call it, and it feels fucking incredible.
Lifeis incredible now that Lex is no longer part of the Turris, now that Dad’s out of the woods.
After the single meeting he attended, we never talked about it again. He didn’t ask questions or speak about any of it.
I think it’s because he truly has no desire for the kind of power we all hold, but also because he respects the promises he made—in writing, yes, but also to me.
He understands how bad it would be for us if the world found out, and if there’s one thing that defines Lex, it’s his protective instinct.
It’s why he flinches whenever a Dallas player slams his brother against the boards, and why he sits up in attention when Tuck’s phone starts vibrating on the coffee table with a call and our friend’s face transforms into a deep frown as he reads the caller ID.
“Hey, Johnny, what’s—she didwhat?” There’s a long beat of silence after his outburst, just as Lex mutes the game, and we can only watch as Tuck’s eyes go wide, then slowly close. A painful grimace moves over him as he reaches to press hard on the bridge of his nose. “Okay, I’m on my way. Put the boys in their room, I’ll call my sisters.”
“What is it?” I ask, dread pooling in my gut, and his words have my brain short-circuiting.
“Number five just fucking killed my father. That bitch straight up knifed him in the gut.” He’s looking around for his coat, already moving faster than I’ve ever seen him. “I gotta go. I need to get to my brothers.” I can’t blame him for only thinking about the two sweet boys. Even if I have no clue what actually happened, my heart is already breaking for them. “The fucking police are already there and I don’t want them to have to see or deal with any of it.”
“Hey, hey,” Lex stands and grabs Tuck’s shoulders. “We’ll go with you. It’s okay. We’ll take you.”
“Wes is here,” Tuck mumbles. Yeah, of course his bodyguard is here, but that doesn’t mean we’re not going. He’s alreadywalking out of the room, but we follow quickly. I grab our shoes while Lex gets our phones and wallets.
“Austin, Roman follow us,” I call out when I see them chatting with Wes in the smaller living room closer to the front door.
Both bodyguards stand immediately when they see us coming, and move fast without a question.
It’s not until we’re in the car and speeding toward the city that Tucker speaks again.
“This makes nofuckingsense. Why would she kill her cash cow? And at the penthouse, when Johnny’s getting back with the boys from the park? How did she think she could get away with this?”
I don’t know, but my instinct is telling me this is one of those situations where nothing will make sense until it does.
I never would’ve thought Amanda Barclay, number five, was capable of straight up murder, and yet... here we are.
Knowing Wes is probably as discreet as Austin and Roman are, I take out my phone and make sure my line is secure before pressing call.
“This is never good,” Harrison answers, and I can’t exactly blame him.
I have no fucking idea what actually happened, but Tuck mentioned the police—which of course there’s going to be police, there’s been a fucking murder—and if I know anything at all, it’s that Tuck’s probably going to need a lawyer, and since a Chair just died, he’s going to need the head of the Turris.
“Barclay’s penthouse,” I tell him simply. “Bring Baron.”
