She stares at me a moment and then shrugs awkwardly. “I did what I could. I’m sorry I couldn’t get you out of there sooner. I didn’t know if I could trust your MC, and I had to be careful for my siblings.” She hesitates and then adds softly, “I was terrified that we’d lose you.”
“I like to think I’m harder to kill than that,” I reply lightly. I awkwardly move my hand to cup the side of her cheek. It pulls on my ribs and the stitches but I don’t care about any discomfort. “I’m alright, angel. I promise.”
I half expect her to pull away from me, put some distance between us, but instead she leans into my hold, her hand coming up to cover mine. There’s a small shift, something clicking, and I desperately want to kiss her, but I can’t at this angle. I’m not sure she’d accept it either.
I know that I want Avery to be mine. Not just because of the circumstances or some sense of repayment. She’s exactly the kind of woman I’ve always wanted for myself. Strong, funny, and smart. Once I’m out of this bed, I’ll have to get to work on that.
She finally lowers her hand and pulls away, but I see the look of uncertainty in her eyes. She’s feeling this pull too, and she doesn’t know how to handle it. Good thing I have enough experience for the both of us.
“Are you comfortable? Do you want me to set up the same way I had before so you can sleep on your side?” she asks me briskly. Her hand lands on my back again, like she can’t help herself. I resist the urge to curl into her touch or pull her down onto the bed with me. Which reminds me…
“I like sleeping on my belly,” I say as my eyes get heavy. “But you can do that if you want, angel. Why do I remember you being in my arms? Or was I dreaming?”
She’s quiet for a moment before she finally admits, “The only way you would stay calm was if you were holding onto me. Kept saying you needed to protect your angel.”
Huh. I wasn’t expecting that, but I’m not seeing a problem. “Maybe you should crawl back in here with me then,” I invite. “Make sure I don’t do something crazy again.” I’d like nothing better than to have her in here with me. Something tells me I’ll sleep better and we can keep building this connection we have.
She chuckles softly and brushes a hand over my hair. “You’re fine, big guy. Besides, I have a job to do, and I can’t do that if you’re trying to get me into bed with you, right? You go to sleep and I’ll be here when you wake up.”
“Thanks, angel.” I allow the pull of sleep to claim me, and move my head into her hand. She might be a bit of a devil, but she’s always going to be an angel to me.
CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO
SHADOW
Vlad made a very grave mistake
My phone buzzesin my pocket, and I pull it out to see a call from Quinn. I frown and quickly answer it. “What’s the matter, sunshine?” I ask.
“Shadow, it’s Peyton.”
“What happened?” I demand, getting to my feet, my mind swirling with worse case scenarios. “Is it the twins? Macy? Quinn?”
“They’re all fine,” she quickly assures me, “but we’re at the hospital with Macy. Someone took a shot at her at the park, and they missed, but barely. It hit a piece of the park equipment and a piece flew off and hit Macy in the side of the face. It only left a bruise and a gash, but Quinn is freaking out.”
“Someone shot at her?” I roar, fury blasting through me so fast that my vision goes red then black. “Someone shot at my daughter?”
“Shadow, calm the fuck down!” Peyton yells at me, getting through the rage burning through me.
Before I can reply, the phone is snatched from my hand and I snarl, fist already lashing out toward whoever dares, but Viper simply steps back and out of range as he puts the call on speaker. “Peyton, it’s Viper. What’s going on?”
“Yeah, I’m realizing now that I probably should have called you first,” Peyton sighs. She gives a quick rundown again, and I let out a low snarl, but manage to hold myself back from doing anything stupid. Bullet and Sniper flank me, a silent show of support, but also a warning that they’ll take me down if I go stupid. “Macy will be okay but she’s freaked out, and Quinn is about to have a nervous breakdown.”
“I’ll be on the next flight out,” I say sharply.
“No,” Peyton snaps back. “Shadow, this is exactly what they want you to do. You know that they’re hoping you’re going to come running and put yourself in their line of sight. I have a call out to a security company that I’ve worked with and they are going to send some people over to watch over us.”
“Fuck that! I’m not leaving my family to face this alone,” I snarl. “I’ll be there on the next flight.”
“Where are Eden, Archer, and Sadie, Peyton?” Viper asks tightly.
“They were all back at the house with Dad doing some kind of project around the house,” Peyton assures him. “Macy was bored and cranky so Quinn and Mom took her to the park. Look, Shadow, if you’re coming here, try to get the Lincolns to let you use their plane, okay? I’ll see if my security friends can grab you and bring you here. I don’t want anyone getting a clear shot at you.”
“I’ll be fine. Tell Quinn and Macy I’m on my way.” Then I look over at Bullet who already has his phone to his ear with a nod.
“Peyton, are you alright?” Viper asks.
“I’m fine, big guy,” she replies flippantly. “I was at work when I got the call and raced to the hospital. Macy is sedated while they clean her up because she was freaking out. Mom got them to hook Quinn up and check on the babies to be sure they’re fine from all the stress, and all looks good, but Quinn’s blood pressure is creeping higher than they would like. I need to get back in there.”
