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We stayed up until three in the morning looking for evidence. A feeling of hopelessness had settled inside of me, even though I tried hard to fight it. I had taken a ton of photographs of the inside of Ryzen’s apartment. Something, anything, had to be a lead… the beginning of a trail. I just hoped it was good enough.
*****
Day 35
Valik kept his word and didn’t hover around us, although he was texting pretty regularly to check that we were OK. I knew he was just doing his job, so I couldn’t hold it against him.
Cian said he was having a family dinner at our apartment and wanted Juliet and I to come. Every time he said “our” apartment, a jolt of happiness spun through me. When this was all over, and I was free from the chains of the FBI, maybe we would actually have a shot. Maybe with Ryzen gone, the FBI not meddling, maybe, just maybe, we could start a life together.
I held onto that thought as we got ready to walk the four blocks over to the building. I told Valik that we were going out to the movies and dinner and not to bother us, and surprisingly, he didn’t put up a fight this time.
When we walked inside the apartment, Juliet whistled, nodding her head. “Very nice, you guys.”
My cheeks heated as Cian walked over and tugged me to him. “I missed you,” he murmured. His lips grazed mine and what started out as a kiss hello quickly turned into me gripping his shirt in my hands while he squeezed my ass.
“Get a room, you two.” Eros chuckled and popped the cork from a wine bottle.
I pulled back, breathless, and Cian chuckled. “I think I’m ready for dessert first.” His eyes pierced mine, and I sighed. I didn’t know how he did that. Just one kiss, a few little words, and I was beyond flustered.
“Nova, Juliet!” Thora squeaked from behind Cian. “Come on, let me show you what we’re making.” She grabbed our hands and dragged us to the kitchen.
Orin pulled a huge pot from the oven, and we all let out a collective moan as the heavenly smell of pot roast enveloped the kitchen. “I made mashed potatoes and baby carrots too. They are to die for. The trick is to put a little bit of brown sugar on them while they’re roasting,” Orin said in one breath, and we all stared at him. He was usually the quiet, grumpy one, but apparently not when he was cooking.
“Smells great, can’t wait to eat.” I chuckled as Cian wrapped his arms around me from behind.
“I can’t wait to eatyoulater,” he whispered in my ear, and I bit my bottom lip.
“OK, OK.” Thora held up her hands. “You guys are adorable and everything, but I do not want to see my brother getting fresh with his girlfriend right before dinner.” The whole room laughed, and my cheeks warmed.
Girlfriend. My smile stretched from ear to ear as Cian pulled out my chair and I sat down. Orin and Eros brought the food to the table, and we were all salivating by the time he served each of us.
“Wow, Orin. If you ever decide to give up chasing bounties, then I think you have a future in cooking.” I chuckled.
“How did you become a bounty hunter anyways?” Juliet asked and shoved a huge piece of roast in her mouth.
He leaned forward and put his elbows on his table. “Well, it’s not as glamorous as you might think. We”—he nodded at Eros—“used to get ourselves into a bit of trouble back in the day. Nothing crazy, but then I met Ralph, my mentor, and he gave me a job, and as it turns out, I’m good at catching the bad guys. We can’t all be a real estate genius like Cian over here.”
“I’m hardly a genius.” Cian laughed, his eyes never leaving mine. “Just made some smart moves after all that shit went down. Connected with the right investors, the right developers, was smart with my choices. And that’s it.”
I elbowed him in the side. “Oh, yeah, sounds so easy.”
Juliet took a bite of a baby carrot and moaned. Eros put some of his carrots on her plate and leaned closer to her. “Here, eat up, girl. I could listen to you all night.” He winked.
“Oh, stop, you big flirt.” She rolled her eyes, but I could tell she liked the attention. I couldn’t blame her.
“Hey, what do you expect? I am named after the god of love.” He chuckled.
I didn’t know why it had never clicked before. Eros. Thora. Orin. “Wait,” I said. “So Thora, is that supposed to be reminiscent of Thor?” I raised my eyebrow.
Thora beamed and nodded. “Our mom was obsessed with mythology and anything mystical. Always talking about gods and goddesses, crystals and harmony. She’s the reason I am the way I am, I suppose.” Her voice trailed off, a hint of sadness in it, and the room got quiet for a moment.
Cian held up his glass of wine. “To Naomi, for giving me the best sister and brothers I could ask for.” We all held up our glasses. “And to that hillbilly hospital down in Texas that typed Orin on the birth certificate instead of Odin.”
Orin glared at Cian and lowered his glass, while the rest of us broke out in uncontrollable laughter.
We spent the next few hours like that, sitting at the table telling stories and laughing. It felt good to be around people who were caring and gave their love so easily to each other. Eros was too excited to know how “two hotties,” as he liked to call us, had started a “sex store,” to which we both rolled our eyes and huffed out, “Sexual wellness store!” They got a kick out of our design disasters, and Juliet loved to tell the story of me demonstrating to the manufacturer how their little adjustment to the anal beads ruined the whole product. Not demonstrating on myself, but on a doll, I explained when everyone’s mouths hung open.
Every time I looked up, Cian’s eyes were on me, a smile spread across his gorgeous face. His eyes were lit up with happiness, and I thought my heart might burst out of my chest. He was always touching me—a hand rubbing my back, a soft caress to my cheek, a kiss to the forehead, whispering “I love you” into my ear. It was one of the greatest nights that I had had in a while.
