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Tosaythingsweretense for the rest of the drive would’ve been an understatement. A sense of unease had settled over us. The emotions hung thick in the air, and none of us knew where to start. We all had a lot to discuss, I knew I would need to tell them what happened that led to me leaving, but I couldn’t handle that right now. I felt as though I’d been in survival mode for the last six years—hell, most of my life—waiting for the next thing instead of truly appreciating and living life to its fullest. My body still thrummed with nervous energy as I attempted to reconcile how drastically my life had just changed.
I watched as the car sped along familiar roads leading out of the town of East Haven, past a few of the surrounding towns and into the neighboring one of Fallpond. This must have been one of the reasons they flew below the Barones’ radar, operating their gang just beyond the town’s limits. They had some connections here still but they saw it as too small, too poor to bother with for the most part.
We pulled into a long driveway, surrounded by wrought-iron fencing, and a line of five more cars followed in behind us before a large gate rolled closed, the clang of the metal reverberating through the car. I hadn’t even noticed the other cars on the drive here, my mind too preoccupied to even think to look behind us. I squinted out the windows, attempting to get a better view of the surroundings but the tinting on the windows made it almost impossible in the dark night. All I could make out were the glow of headlights.
The SUV rolled to a stop just outside what looked to be a separate garage. Six large doors lined the front of what looked larger than most mechanics’ shops. I glanced at Merrick, but he had his phone pressed to his ear, barking orders to the rest of their team from what I could make out. Deep exhaustion weighed on me, now that I was finally away from Tommaso my body needed a reset—to shut down and recuperate from being on high alert all the time. But that was wishful thinking. I hadn’t missed Merrick’s and Kellan’s furtive glances, the way they had almost asked a million questions on the drive but held themselves back.
Spade pushed the door open almost immediately and climbed out the back. He clearly had some sort of idea what the tension was about and had no wish to be part of it. I bit my tongue, holding back the annoyed grumble that begged to slip out. I just wanted to go to sleep, to let my mind and body rest and process everything in the morning. But judging by how Spade approached the other cars lining up behind us and directed them off toward the far side of the garage, I knew that wasn’t going to be happening anytime soon. Despite my need to know how they pulled tonight off, I didn’t want to deal with the questions I would get in return.
Kellan stepped out of the car next and waited near the door, silently reaching out a hand to help me down. I frowned down at my bare legs. Sure the hoodie was long on me, but it only reached about mid-thigh, plus I didn’t even have my shoes anymore after Spade had passed them to me and I tossed them out of the window too. I met Merrick’s gaze as I glanced up and grimaced at the brow he cocked in response. He didn’t even need to say anything—that look said it all. Either I got out now or he’d heave me over his shoulder, and with the length of this sweater I was not very keen on giving the rest of his guys a show.
I muttered unintelligibly under my breath, not even sure what I was saying at this point, and crouched over, holding the back of the sweater against me to keep from exposing my bare ass and pussy to Merrick. A shiver of desire went up my spine at that thought, and I almost let go of the thick grey material … almost.
I reached out with my other hand and Kellan grasped it, our eyes locking at the touch. We both stayed frozen for a moment, and I took in the minor differences in the feel of his palm against mine now. His skin felt rougher than it used to, calloused from the hardships he’d had to face along the way. I sucked in a sharp breath as his other arm wrapped under my legs, catching me off guard, and cradled me against his chest. I suppressed the urge to snuggle into him, the movement so instinctual, but there was so much still between us, so much left to discuss.
My breath caught in my throat as I looked up at the large Victorian-style house. It wasn’t dilapidated like I would have expected. No, the exterior looked pristine, as though it had been completely refinished.
“Where are we?” I whispered tentatively, not wanting the others to hear me as they gathered after climbing out of the other vehicles. I wasn’t sure why; they’d helped tonight too. But after living in a crime family, I learned you could never be too careful. What if one of them worked for the Barones? I pushed down that thought, since if they had, tonight would’ve never happened. There were so many important government officials and businesspeople there tonight that if Angelo had been able to stop it, he undoubtedly would’ve. Tonight made them look weak, something that could spell death if they didn’t take quick action. At least that was one good thing, they’d be so preoccupied with fighting off their rival gangs that they wouldn’t be able to come after us immediately. But they would come, that wasn’t a question. Because even if Tommaso was able to let go of his obsession, they would never just let me go, not now, not after they’d been shown up tonight. It would be a matter of pride to Angelo.
“It’s, uh—” Kellan murmured, glancing back at Merrick behind us, a silent conversation passing between them. “—It’s our house.”
I chewed at the corner of my lip and held back any more questions. There was obviously something they were hiding from me, and I’d rather not keep asking questions just to get vague answers. Merrick brushed ahead of us to open the bright red door. If it wasn’t for the thick iron fencing and gate, I would’ve thought this was a normal historical home as I looked inside the now open hallway. Kellan eased me out of his arms just past the doorway, my feet hitting the cool hardwood floor. My gaze swept around the quaint entryway. They’d kept it true to its original form rather than knocking down all the walls for an open floor plan. Glass-paneled double doors sat on either side, one leading into what looked like an office, a dark-stained wooden desk on one side of the room with a computer atop it and a fireplace decorating the opposite wall, while the other was a dining room. A long antique table spanned the room with velvet-upholstered dining chairs around it.
“Let’s go upstairs,” Kellan said, just as I took a step forward, my curiosity getting the better of me. He looked back at the group with Spade before joining me in the foyer. Merrick closed the door behind us, shutting out the pale starlight that had illuminated the small entryway. Kellan flicked on a light beside him, and the faint hum of electricity flickered on from a chandelier just above us. I immediately scooted out of the way, dashing up a few of the polished-wood stairs in order to not stand under it for longer than I had to, the memory of the one in the hall crashing around me still fresh in my mind.
I continued to climb the long staircase since I’d already leapt up and didn’t want to just stand there. Especially not when they obviously didn’t want me on the lower level. Their shoes echoed on the wood behind me, and I clutched the smooth varnished railing. Kellan moved to my side, his arm resting on my back, and I instantly knew it was to direct me rather than comfort me. My mind wandered to what they might want to keep hidden from me, but I pushed those thoughts aside, not needing another thing to worry about, not with the weight of the long overdue conversation looming over me. We’d spent six years apart, of course there were things they couldn’t trust me with, not when they were running a gang this large that could stand against the Barones … and they weren’t entirely sure if I could be trusted at all.
Frustration tensed my muscles, but I understood it. They never would’ve gotten to where they were today if they weren’t careful. A hallway stretched along the top of the stairs leading in two different directions with white wooden doors lining each side. There had to be at least five in each direction as Kellan led me toward the right. He swung the first door open and gestured me inside, but I hesitated for a moment, sweeping my gaze around the room to make sure it was clear before I stepped in. My own hesitation proved I had my own reservations. It all seemed too good to be true. Everything in my life had gone so wrong for so long, it was hard to trust, and I had to believe this wasn’t all a dream.
The space looked as though it was a small living room, with two couches and a large tv propped on the wall. Kellan’s drawings decorated the walls, along with a few photos of cars, but it remained largely plain, lacking in décor, even something as simple as side tables. The sofa caught my attention, something snagging in my memory as I stared at it. The brown leather looked more worn than it had been in my memory, speaking to its recent use.
“You took the couches from the firehouse?” I asked in disbelief, glancing back at the two of them huddled just in the doorway, their bulky frames looking strange in the small space. Kellan stepped forward after a moment and rubbed the back of his neck, his eyes darting around the room and looking at everything but me. Merrick stepped forward too and closed the door behind him, shifting his weight from foot to foot.
A burst of laughter bubbled up at the image of these two men so nervous before me, while less than an hour before they were threatening to blow an entire building to the ground.
“It’s not like anyone was using it,” Merrick muttered, refusing to meet my eyes. A wry smile split my lips at that, and I knew then that even though we had six years of baggage to unload, we would be okay. These two men, one gentle, one gruff, were both lethal in their own ways. But that’s what I loved about them, every facet of them, just as they loved my soft side mixed with the wild danger-loving side. The devil reunited with her demons once again.
I slumped back on the brown leather couch like I’d done so many times before, leaning back into the plush cushions. My eyes slipped closed as I relished in the moment I never thought would come again and felt the sofa dipping on either side of me, the two of them taking their positions as though the past six years had been a distant memory and no time had passed between us. But as I opened my eyes and saw their guarded looks, I was reminded of how much had happened, not only to me but to them too. We’d all gone through our own trials to get back to this moment here together, and it would be a disservice not to acknowledge that. They had to know what I went through just as much as I needed to know about them.
“I guess we have a lot to talk about,” I gauged, sucking in a deep breath and steeling myself for the conversation I never wanted to have. I knew what would happen though if I told them everything. “Can you tell me first?” I asked, needing to hear their stories before I delved into my own. I had to hear the truth, without the guilt and regret that would undoubtedly come when I told them why I’d left first.
They both looked over me at each other, checking in before they said anything. My lips quirked to the side at the instinctual glance, making the distance seem even greater between us. We all used to be on that level, able to read each other’s thoughts without a word passing between us. But now I was an outsider looking in.
“Giana,” Merrick sighed, scrubbing a hand over his face.
“Please?” I whispered, letting some of the sorrow I kept buried deep down seep into my tone. I had to focus on something else, anything else. That breakdown in the car was still fresh in my mind, and I knew I would crumble if I had to speak now.
Kellan pulled in a deep breath on my other side, and Merrick’s shoulders slumped slightly, his head dipping in agreement.
“Well, after you uh … left,” Kellan hedged, his hand rubbing the back of his neck as he grimaced. “We really didn’t know what to do. We both sort of fell in with the gangs more, gaining a reputation and a name for ourselves.”
I pursed my lips, not wanting to interrupt them, but I hated that they’d gone down that road, putting aside their aspirations and dreams, at least for some time.
“I continued working at the shop, but after a while they let me go because of the guys I was bringing in there,” Merrick explained. “With the money I was getting from there and with my fights, I had enough to open up my own chop shop, and things sort of escalated from there.”
“I found a tattoo shop a few towns over that was willing to take me on, but it was harder then because of our affiliation with the gangs,” Kellan added. “So I ended up distancing myself from that life.”
“The Demon Riders didn’t like that, though. Kellan had become one of their best enforcers so they ended up sending me to rough him up,” Merrick said with a derisive snort.
