“So, you gonna tell us what’s going on with Franc?”
Leo immediately tenses against me and while her reaction gets to me because I know what a douche Lucky’s brother is, I can’t help but be curious about what the fuck happened last night.
She fell asleep pretty quickly after he left, we all did to be honest, but Leo crashed fast after we tried reassuring her that none of us are going anywhere, and it raised a bit of a red flag. It’s kind of cute how much she wants us around, I just don’t want her to be afraid that’s going to change at the drop of a dime. Especially because of some shit Luck’s brother has to say.
Because it won’t.
“Nothing,” Leonor says, her heart starting to beat hard enough I can feel it against my side.
I don’t want her having a panic attack though, so I lift her hand from my chest and kiss her palm. “Ok, princess. I’ll leave it alone for now.”
“I’m sorry,” she whispers, her breath warm as it shakily fans over my skin. “I, I just?—"
“It’s fine.”For now. “You’ll tell us when and if you’re ready.”
Francesco is a royal bastard, I know this probably better than most because as soon as I went from Lucky’s best friend to his boyfriend, that weasel lost his cool on an entirely different level. And that wasafterdecades of him still being a dickhead to me because I supported Luck’s dreams of starting a band, making it big, and living his truth every step of the way. But Leo was straight upterrifiedlast night.
She was so fucking scared of him, she was seconds away from a monster panic attack, and I can’t wrap my head aroundwhy.
Yeah, she said Francknows things, most likely about Leo’s past, her childhood, and the trauma we all figured she had from growing up in foster care but so what? It’s not that I don’t care about what Leonor has been through, I do so goddamn much, but we’ve all been through some shit before we were a band, and none of it actually holds any weight over our relationships now, how we look at each other, or the incredible music we make.
Not to mention, whatever the hell Leo is still hiding, it contributed to how fucking amazing she is as an adult. So to think any of us would view her differently or want to leave her because of some secret is ridiculous. If anything, it’ll bring us all closer together and our girl won’t have to worry about us going anywhere for a long fucking time.
“Pete?”
“Yeah, princess?” I turn Leo’s hand over in mine, running my thumb gently across the tattoos on the back of it, looking over the ones down her fingers. “What’s on your mind?”
Leo blows out a breath and shakes her head against me. “Never mind, it’s stupid.”
Vulnerable Leonor is a rarity, and I find this side of her rather endearing, I always have. Even if it makes me want to paddle her ass for still fighting it after well over a decade.
“Leo…”
“I, well, I was going to ask if… have you and Lucky…” she trails off and that small smile I’m sporting grows.
I knowexactlywhat this woman wants to know.
“We haven’t,” I say as I pull her hand down to kiss each fingertip. “We’ve loved you too long to consider being with another woman. You’re the only one for us, princess.” The way Leonor all but goes limp at my side, sighing in what I can only interpret as relief, it has me chuckling. “You really thought we’d be with justanyonewhen all we’ve ever wanted was you?”
“I don’t know,” she giggles, a little embarrassed. “I wasn’t sure if you’d always been polyamorous, or if I was an exception. I didn’t even know you were together until last night.”
Good point. “Lucky and I made shit official a week before the anniversary show and in the entire time we’ve been together, it’s only been us.”
“I get that. I mean, Iampretty great…”
I bark out a laugh and place her hand back over my heart.This woman.“You’re a gigantic pain in the ass, Leonor, but we’re into that. The rest of them are gluttons for punishment.” I pause and wait for Leo to look up at me, which she does with a small tilt of her head. “I like doling it out and you, my smart mouthed bratty princess, are someone I’ve wanted topunishfor years.”
Leo bites her lip with a smile as those cobalt blue eyes shine, her cheeks going a touch pink before her flush creeps down her neck.
Fuck, she’s so beautiful.
I really never thought we’d get here.
Between her disappearance and the fact that I was always a lot more subtle with my feelings, it didn’t seem like this would happen. And laying here now, holding Leo in my arms while she looks up at me with more emotions than I think I’ve ever seenon her face staring back at me… this almost feels too good to be true.
Do we still have to be guarded? Absolutely. Leonor was a ticking time bombbeforeshit happened and now that’s even more intense, which means all of this could change at any second. So keeping our guard up, even a little, is important because another loss will be devastating. Honestly, I think I’m the only one of us who feels like this, so I’m going to have to protect all four of us. Which is something else that plays into things for me.
“Pete?”
