Page 94

“No!” I roared. He lay unmoving, head lolled to the side—chest unmoving.

My mind and soul fractured, splintering into a million pieces that would never be whole again, and I knew without a doubt it would be the same for the other two I loved. We were a unit, a team.

A family.

Everything went black after that thought. Somewhere in the distance, a woman wailed, crying out with so much pain in her voice that she must be dying.

It took a moment to realize the sound was coming from me.

CHAPTER 43

KENJI

BROTHER-HUSBANDS…LIKE SISTER-WIVES BUT WITH DICKS

I stood at the table beside Caleb, watching the rise and fall of Niko’s and Scar’s chests. A white gauzy bandage was wrapped around Niko’s midsection, covering the wound that had been stitched closed. We’d found them lying in a heap and surrounded by a pool of blood just inside the burning warehouse. The sight nearly killed me when I thought they were both dead.

“We won’t live without you two,” Caleb yelled as he sank to his knees, cradling her limp body in his arms.

We had a few firefighters in our pocket, and they rushed over when we made the call for help. I watched in horror as they placed Niko on a backboard. Blood leeched from his body at an alarming rate.

My heart was pounding. Failing.

Death would be the sweeter option to the grief threatening to consume me. The weight of a reality in which she didn’t exist was crushing. Hopeless.

It hadn’t hurt this badly when my father beat me and told me I was worthless. That I knew I’d survive.

This? I didn’t.

“They’ll both live.”

The squat man’s announcement yanked me back to reality as he bagged his tools. The dark tones of Caleb’s room pushed the panic away. We had a doctor on our payroll for emergencies like this, but never had we needed to call him for something so serious. Caleb insisted they both be placed in his bed to be tended to, and he hadn’t left her side since he’d picked her up off the floor. Rowan was busy cleaning up the mess that had been left behind at the warehouse.

“She is suffering from smoke inhalation and appears to have some scrapes and bruises. I’m not sure those are related to the fire, though.” He looked over at where Niko lay, pushing his glasses up the bridge of his nose before turning back to Caleb and me.

“He also suffers from smoke inhalation on top of a gunshot wound to the chest. He’s lucky it missed his heart. I dug the shrapnel out and cleaned and stitched the wound. He’ll need to wear a sling for a bit, but otherwise, he will be okay.”

I let out the breath I’d seemed to be holding since Scar got the call that turned this night on its head.

“It’s a good thing you’re a universal donor, Mr. Kenji, or Mr. Niko would have been in a dire situation. Please make sure you take it easy. You gave a lot tonight,” he said as he scrunched his nose in concern.

The fact that he remembered we preferred not to go by our last names brought a smile to my face.

“I’ll make sure he takes it easy, Dr. Pont. I don’t need the health of another member of my family in jeopardy,” Caleb said, cutting me a look that made me snicker.

“Caleb? Kenji?” Scar called out, her voice barely above a whisper. I rushed to join Caleb at her side, where he’d been stroking her honeyed hair, careful not to jostle her or Niko.

“We’re here, baby,” I called out, gripping her free hand.

Her beautiful eyes roved over both of us. “You look like hell,” she said. The tension in the room broke, and I let out a laugh. Of course she’d wake up with all her sass intact.

“That will happen when the love of your life decides to fucking run into a burning building,” Caleb bit out, giving her a scowl.

She smiled at his bitching, reaching up to rub her thumb across the crease in his brow. She turned her head toward Niko, watching the steady rise and fall of his chest. The weight on her shoulders visibly lifted with every breath he took in.

Her attention swiveled back toward us, a sly grin on her lips. “How do you feel about a plural marriage? Because I think you would make great brother-husbands.”

Caleb let out a bark of laughter, pressing his lips to hers in a smile.