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“We’ll never allow anyone to hurt you, sweetheart,” I vow in a fierce voice. “Today was an unfortunate aberration, and a huge mistake on our part. We won’t miscalculate again.”
“Yes,” rumbles Burke in agreement. “And if anyone so much as touches a hair on your head, they won’t even able to regret it because they’ll be dead,” he finishes simply.
My brother’s words are true. I’ve never killed anyone, but after tonight, I’d be capable of that kind of violence. Frankly, Burke and I have never had anything worth killing for before, but now that Annabel is in our lives, no crime seems too extreme when it comes to her safety. After all, before we dealt with property: paintings, artwork, jewelry, and the like. They were inanimate objects worth millions, but now we have something much more valuable: Annabel. We may be professional thieves, but this woman is the one who has stolen our heart.
21
Burke
With sweat still dripping off our limbs, I can feel my whole body expand with all-consuming emotion. We’ve just told a woman we love her, and those are words we don’t say often. It’s been a long time we told anyone that we love them, if ever.
But miracles really do happen because somehow, Annabel feels the same way. She looks into my eyes with a sweet gaze, her mouth curling into the warmest, most loving smile I’ve ever seen. Unbidden, my lips quirk up in a return smile, and it feels strange, but right. Like trying on an item of clothing you haven’t seen for so long that you forgot you had it, but when you put it on, it fits like a glove.
She rolls onto her back to look into Bruce’s eyes too. Then I hear her gasp as she surveys our bodies in full. Previously, we’d been too busy to let her take a close-up look.
“Oh my God, you’re injured!” she exclaims, shocked, and then looks back at me. “And you, too!” It’s true that we’re both covered in cuts and bruises. “Stay here.” Annabel clambers gingerly over us and gets out of bed, walking into the en suite bathroom. I watch her lush body as she goes, her ass and thighs jiggling and the roundness of her tits peeking out from around her torso.
Bruce and I grin at each other as our woman rummages around in the bathroom.
“You do look like shit, Burke,” grins Bruce.
“So do you,” I retort back. “But it was worth it.”
“Yep,” he answers, nodding with satisfaction, “but at least that’s the last we’ll be seeing of those assholes.” Annabel comes back into the room carrying two steaming hot towels and a first aid kit.
“You two are going to sit still while I patch you up,” she announces, and her sudden bossiness is so adorable that I can’t help but smile. “And you’re going to tell me exactly what happened earlier.” But both Bruce and I are quiet as she dabs at our faces with the steaming hot towels. “Well?” she says sweetly with an edge to her voice.
“I’ll just start by telling you that it’s been taken care of,” I state before being interrupted.
“Those pieces of shit that came in, and tried to—,” but Bruce can’t even finish his sentence, he’s so furious.
“They’re gone,” I conclude for him. “You don’t have to worry about them anymore, sweetheart.”
She continues dabbing at her cuts and bruises, avoiding our eyes.
“But what happened?” she asks in a mild tone. “Where were you for so long while they were in here?” I’m on edge, but her complacent manner gives me peace. She’s asking out of curiosity, and nothing else. Despite everything that just happened, Annabel still trusts us unconditionally.
My brother heaves a big sigh.
“There was a mutiny,” explains Bruce, “staged by those five animals while the rest of the circle was out on an important raid. Obviously, it’s been coming for some time because they planned it a while ago. You were just the last straw.”
“Me?” she asks, looking at us swiftly. Burke shakes his head.
“Those assholes have always been a rough bunch. Not that the rest of us aren’t rough as well, but they waited until our allies were out on a raid. Then they staged a fistfight outside as a distraction before turning on us.”
At that, Annabel gasps and stops dabbing at our wounds for a moment.
“It took us by surprise,” I explain with a grimace. “We ran out there, and suddenly we were surrounded. It was five against two, and yeah, we’re big guys and they’re weaklings, but the element of surprise did it. We were knocked out, and that’s when they made a run for you.”
She gasps again.
“Did you finally come to, and realize what was going on?”
I sigh.
“Jim, that blonde guy, rescued us. He’d been injured during the fight as well, but he managed to revive himself, and then he undid the bonds they wrapped around our wrists and ankles. Motherfuckers,” I curse. “They don’t even know how to tie someone up tight, they’re so incompetent.”
