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I search his face. Those calm blue eyes. The slight flush still coloring his cheeks.

"No," I admit.

"I'm not." His thumbs stroke my cheekbones. "Not even the slightest bit. This was incredible” He pauses. Searching for words. "I don't regret a single second of what just happened. Understand?"

“I’m so glad!"

He pulls me back down against his chest. Holds me there. "Now answer my question. Do you regret it?"

"No." I press my face against his shoulder. Breathe him in. "I don't. I should probably feel guilty or worried or something, but I don't. I just feel—" I pause. Try to find the right word. "Safe. I feel safe with you."

His arms tighten around me. "Good. That's all I want. For you to feel safe."

We're quiet for a while. Just lying there. His fingers trace patterns on my back. Nonsense shapes that feel comforting.

"What happens now?" I finally ask.

"What do you mean?"

"I mean—" I prop myself up on one elbow to look at him. "Tomorrow. Next week. I can't go back to the apartment. I don't know what I'm supposed to do."

"Who owns the apartment?" Gabriel asks. "You or him?"

"It's rented. Both our names are on the lease." I swallow hard. "We moved in together six months ago. Split everything fifty-fifty."

Gabriel is quiet for a moment. Thinking. His hand continues stroking my back.

"Then we'll convince him to drop it," he finally says.

I blink. "What?"

"The lease. We'll convince Cole to take his name off it and let you keep the apartment." He says it so calmly. Like it's the simplest thing in the world. "Me and my brothers can pay him a visit. Make it clear that leaving you alone and signing over his half of the lease is in his best interest."

"Gabriel…" My chest tightens. "I can't ask you to do that."

"You're not asking. I'm offering."

"But that would involve the club. The whole club." I shake my head. "That could cause so much trouble. For you. For them. I don't want…"

"Paige." He cups my face again. Makes me look at him. "I didn't want to involve them before because I wasn't sure how far this would go. Wasn't sure if you'd want help or if you'd run the first chance you got."

"And now?"

"Now we just had sex. Now we've talked about a future together. Now I know you're not running." His thumb strokes my cheekbone. "Which means eventually you're going to meet them. All of them. And once they know about you, once they see this—" He gestures between us. "You'll be part of this family whether you planned on it or not."

"Gabriel, I don't want to cause problems."

"You won't. This is what the club does. We protect our own. And you're mine now, which makes you theirs too." He's quiet for a moment. "They'll go to hell and back to protect you, Paige. That's what family means. That's what brotherhood means."

The certainty in his voice makes my throat tight. "You're sure?"

"Completely sure." He pulls me back down against his chest. "Tomorrow I'll talk to my President. Explain the situation. We'll go to your apartment, get your things, and have a conversation with Cole about why staying away from you is the smartest decision he'll ever make."

"And if he doesn't listen?"

"He'll listen." There's something dark in Gabriel's voice. Something that reminds me he's not just the gentle man who asked permission before touching me. He's also the man who knocked Cole unconscious in a parking lot without hesitation. "Trust me. He'll listen."

I want to argue. Want to insist I can handle this myself. Want to prove I'm not some damsel who needs an entire motorcycle club to fight her battles.