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I nod instinctively, but I’m honestly not sure. Being with him feels perfect. The release we just shared? Mind-blowing. But reality is setting in again, and there’s no denying that Austin has the power to hurt all of us now that he has my money.
Logan’s eyebrows pull together in the middle, and I know he can tell that despite my nod, I’ve let my worries for what will come next intrude.
“Better now that I’m here with you,” I say quickly, meaning it. I rest my head against his shoulder and take a deep breath, shoving those worries aside for now. “Withallof you.”
“You don’t have to worry about being away from us again.” He leans back and uses a finger to tip my chin up until I’m looking into his eyes. I can feel the sense of relief washing over him. I can see it in the way he’s looking at me. “That isn’t going to happen. We’re all glad you’re back. We all want you here.”
There was a time when this conversation—in his room with just the two of us—would have been unthinkable. Knowing that Logan trusts me enough to share this kind of tender, intimate moment makes my heart do fluttery, floaty things that I don’t dare mention out loud. Not yet, anyway.
For now, it’s enough to know that he trusts me. That I trust him.
And that maybe he’s learning to trust himself too.
“I’m glad to be back.” I smile even though the endorphins are fading now and I’m more and more aware of each cut and bruise on my body with every second that ticks by. “I knew I’d be back. I wasn’t sure how, but I knew it would happen.”
Logan’s arms tighten around me, enough that my ribs hurt again. It’s the best possible kind of pain, though.
He doesn’t say anything, but I’m used to that with him now, and he doesn’t have to. The way he’s holding me is telling me everything I need to know.
“Thanks for taking such good care of me,” I say, smiling up at him when finally he releases me from that tight embrace.
He gives me a short, sharp nod. “Always.”
The silence stretches out between us for a few more seconds, and I know—Iknow—we both want to say more. But again, we don’t have to.
It’s still the closest I’ve come to sharing my feelings out loud.
My feelings about him. About Maddoc and Dante. About all four of us together.
Not yet, though. Accepting these feelings is still too new, and all of my emotions are still too raw. There will be a time and a place for that conversation, but it isn’t right now and it isn’t right here.
Instead, I push my luck given all the liberties Logan has already allowed me, and go up on my toes to press a soft, chaste kiss against the side of his mouth. Then I reach for the door and slip out of his room before either of us can say anything else.
This is how it has to be for now.
But for now, this is enough.
11
RILEY
I siton the side of the bathtub and watch it fill up with water. I’m sore all over, the aches and pain from my time in captivity slowly overtaking the relaxation and relief I found with Logan.
Hopefully, the bath will help. With my body, at least. My mind is worn out too.
It’s hard to believe that earlier this morning, I was still Austin’s captive.
It’s even harder to keep my thoughts from veering to the harsh, dark reality of what may be coming next.
We’re all alive, so that’s a plus. The way things had gone down when the men came to make the exchange, it’s all too easy to imagine it having gone a different way, but we’re still standing. Whatever Austin plans on doing with the money, at least Maddoc is still in charge, the Reapers have survived to fight another day, and we managed to get Chloe out before all hell breaks loose.
Knowing she’s going to be far away and relatively safe when the fighting breaks out means a lot.
Knowing my men allowed me to stay here, with them, where I belong, means even more.
I stand up and slide my thong down over my hips, letting my eyes flutter closed as I step into the mostly full tub and sucking in a sharp breath when the piping hot water laps at every cut, scrape, and bruise on my battered body.
I lower myself down, sinking as low as I can with my head still above water and letting the rush of sensation wash over me. The heat hurts like hell, but feels so unbelievably good at the same time, and slowly, one by one, my muscles start to relax.
