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“They would need this information and probably a vial or two of Addie’s blood.” When my men hissed, stiffening around me, Doc held his hands up placatingly. “Just to study. I won’t even give them her name. For all they know, she’s long dead.” He turned his gaze towards me, eyes beseeching. “Addie, I trust them.”
And he did. That much was clear to see in his eyes. The sincerity in his tone.
But did I trusthim?
I rifled through everything I knew about Doc. He had hurt me, yes, but he also came for me when he didn’t have to. He was hard around the edges, jagged and crippled with a pain I understood all too well, but he was family now. Looking into his grey eyes, I knew he had our best interests at heart. He honestly believed these people, these friends of his, could make a difference in the world. I needed to do something I had never done before: put my faith in him.
Before I had even consciously come up with a decision, I found myself nodding. Fallon gritted his teeth, but he allowed me to make my own decision. After all, it wasmyblood. And if my blood could be made into a cure? If it could be turned into a vaccination in the long run? Who was I to say no?
Definitely not someone I wanted to look at in the mirror.
“Then it’s decided,” Fallon said succinctly, clapping his hands together. The resounding noise echoed in the room. “We head to the address Doc was given. Give them the clipboard and a vial of blood. Live a damn long life.”
“Settle down,” I added wistfully. At my words, Davis and Jared exchanged a long, potent look. It was Jared who spoke, clearing his throat and leaning even closer. His hands steepled together on his lap.
“We were talking…” Another exchange of looks, expressions indecipherable. “What about paradise?”
“We don’t even know if it exists,” Ryder pointed out.
“He’s right,” Ronan added. The two were leaning against one another...almost as if they needed the comfort. The reminder that they were both alive. I knew the brothers were close, but it had never been more noticeable than it did then. I could definitely see the similarities in their sculpted bodies and dark hair, though Ronan was a shade lighter than his half-brother. Feeling my eyes on them, they turned as one and winked.
I wouldnotmind being the meat in that sandwich.
Jared cut off whatever he was saying and stared at me, brows furrowed. Ryder and Ronan broke into laughter, the mundane sound slicing through the remaining tension.
“Did I say that out loud?” I asked, wincing. Some things never changed.
“Of course, Sweetheart,” Asher said, reaching behind to pat my knee.
“Anyway,” Fallon steered the conversation back on track. “We don’t need this alleged paradise that may or may not exist. We could easily find a gated, abandoned house near the address Doc was given from his friends. Settle down. Start a life.”
I was surprised to hear those words leaving my gruff fiancé’s mouth. He wasn’t the sentimental type by any means. Before me, I doubted he loved or cared about any female enough to start a life with her. Even his ex had been there merely for convenience and to appease his family.
“I agree with Fallon,” Doc said tiredly. He moved to perch on the arm of the couch, beside Tommy. “Settle down. Forget this paradise. We can make our own.”
“Our own paradise,” I whispered, and the idea sounded so damn appealing I was afraid my heart would stop. The organ was practicallybursting, love emanating from it like fireworks. It lit up the darkness and chased away the shadows until it was the only thing I could feel. Could see. Could breathe.
Jared and Davis hesitated once more, but a strident voice interrupted whatever they were going to say. “We stay with them.”
Tonya reentered the room. Her eyes were red-rimmed, but her expression was fierce. Determined. She looked as if she could take on a hundred Ragers by herself and still emerge victorious. She was the type of woman I admired, one I yearned to be. She exuded power and confidence as she stormed to the center of the room, keen eyes fixed on her husband and brother.
“We stay with them,” she repeated, voice terse.
“Ton…” Jared trailed off at her expression.
“We’re a family now, and we’ll stay together. Paradise isn’t a place. Not really. It’sus. It’s the people we care about, and the people who care for us. We have that here. Why would we throw that away?”
Her words made my eyes burn with tears.
Paradise.
Glancing from face to face, I realized she was right. Paradise wasn’t a location, wasn’t a full tray of food and a warm bed. It wasn’t a roof protecting us from the storms or a fence keeping away the Ragers.
It was the family we made, the family we found.
Tonya, Davis, and Jared, all nodding with soft smiles on their faces.
Doc who was surveying the clipboard, the first sign of life entering his eyes.
Nik and Tom, my brothers in more ways than blood.
Declan, Calax, Fallon, Ryder, Ronan, Tamson, and Asher. The men who found me when I was at my lowest. The men who put me back together again. The men who loved me unconditionally even when I was a little shit.
Thatwas paradise.
