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I don’t put up a fight as they fit themselves around me like puzzle pieces clicking into place. And that’s how I fall asleep, cocooned in their warmth, letting it slowly melt away the ice I’ve encased myself in since the day I left them.
CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE
Slade
It’s been two weeks since we got here. Two weeks of building bridges that we so stupidly set on fire. Two weeks and not a single person has come by to visit until today.
“So, who is this guy?” I ask, holding my coffee mug tight enough to crack.
Astrid looks up from the melon she’s chopping to glare at me from across the kitchen island. “He’s my friend.”
“If he’s such a good friend, why hasn’t he come to visit you? How come he didn’t know you were missing when you were at Apex?” I fire back, knowing if I’m not careful, I’ll undo all the hard work Jagger and I have put in since we’ve been here.
Astrid is stubborn as the day is long, but we’ve been wearing her down slowly. I find that even someone like me can have the patience of a saint if the prize at the end is worth it. Of course, there have been hiccups along the way, and I know today is going to be trying for all of us.
“He used to be a detective.”
My body goes solid as Jagger enters the room, sweat dripping down his body as he grabs a bottle of water from the fridge. “What’s wrong? Why do you look like you’re constipated?” He stares at me before looking at Astrid.
“It seems Slade doesn’t approve of my friends.”
“I didn’t say that. I said he couldn’t be much of a friend if he hasn’t been here for you.”
Jagger’s eyes narrow. “He?”
Astrid throws a piece of melon at him. “I cannot handle it when you’re both acting like crazy possessive cavemen.”
Jagger walks around the island and pins her against it, wisely taking the knife from her hand and laying it down. He wraps his hand around the back of her neck and slams his mouth down over hers.
My dick goes rock hard in a nanosecond.
I have no interest in Jagger sexually, not even a passing curiosity. But watching him take control of our girl gets me every fucking time.
“You have no idea how possessive we can be, baby girl. We’ve been holding back so we don’t freak you out,” he admits, pulling back so he can look down at her.
“Were you always this insane?”
He winks at her before stealing a piece of melon and popping it in his mouth.
“You can pretend you don’t like it all you want, Astrid. But we both know if I peeled those tiny little shorts over your ass, pulled your panties to the side, and slid my fingers through your slit, I’d find you wet. Admit it, you like how possessive we are with you,” I growl, my dick begging for relief.
She mumbles something to herself I can’t hear, but I don’t miss the blush spreading across her chest and face.
“His name is James Allan. He used to be a detective,” she says, quietly resuming her chopping.
My eyes snap up. “He was a part of the investigating team surrounding the shooting.”
She flinches, but Jagger wraps his arms around her from behind, tugging her back into his chest. The knife clatters to the counter as she grips his forearms, her eyes on mine. So many shadows in those pretty haunted eyes.
“I think it’s time we talked. I know we still have a long way to go to earn your trust back, but this isn’t about that. This is about us having the tools to help you exorcise some of those ghosts, princess.”
She blinks slowly, her teeth sinking into her lip. She huffs and pulls free from Jagger and heads over to the window seat, which offers a perfect view of the landscape outside.
“What does it even matter if you don’t believe me anyway? You won’t be the first. Sure as hell won’t be the last.” She wraps her arms around herself as I look at Jagger, and we both go to her.
We did this. Seeing her like this, trying to protect herself from us, guts me. But that’s the penance we’ll pay until the day she reaches for us instead of hiding.
“Tell us everything, Astrid. We’re not going anywhere. Not without you,” Jagger promises as we sit on either side of her, offering her our support.
