Chapter 26 - Cayden
"Careful," I said as Riley sat on the island. Her arm was in a sling now, and she had two stitches in her head where she smacked it onto the ground. Brad had stabbed her, which healed up, but she was going to be sore for a few days.\He hadn't done any serious damage. She also had a concussion from how hard she smacked her head onto the floor. Riley had more damage than I did.
"I am," she said, sliding into her chair. April was already sitting and looking at Riley, worried.
"Do you need anything? A pain med?" April asked.
Riley shook her head. It was late, and we all just wanted to rest after the afternoon. After the fight, I called the police. April went with Riley down to the hospital to get checked out while I helped give the report.
They ended up calling Ayden, who arrived within ten minutes. He was concerned about everything and made sure that we were all okay. The rest of the guys arrived not soon after, taking in the bloody mess that was left.
I looked past April and Riley towards Ayden, who was still talking with an officer. Miles and Lucas stood at the other edge of the island, watching as Brad's body was pulled onto a gurney.
"Okay, so my question is, how did he find you?" Miles looked at April, asking. She stood with a blanket wrapped around herself now, rubbing her eyes. "We didn't even know he was here, and we'd been looking. Did he follow you or what?"
I wanted an answer to that as well. Riley said he was back home, so how did he end up here with April?
April shook her head. "I honestly have no idea how he caught me off guard like he did. Maybe because I wasn't really paying attention. It was so early in the morning."
"Wasn't your flight coming in later?" I asked, remembering she said it was in the afternoon.
She nodded. "I was supposed to land at around noon, but the flight got canceled, and they had an opening for an earlier one. I wasn't going to take it, but there were no other flights, so I did. I knew that you guys were going to grab me from the airport, but I knew your address, so I could just take a cab. I was getting into the cab, and he was right behind me. He practically shoved me in there and told me that if I didn't do what he wanted, he was going to hurt Riley. I don't know if he was here or if he took the flight with me. He came out of nowhere."
Riley reached over, taking April's hand. April squeezed her hand back. "I wanted to throat punch him, and I should have. We wouldn't be here then. I just tensed up."
"It's not your fault, April. He was insane."
"Well, I poked the bear a little," she admitted, shaking her head. "I did tell everyone about what happened with Riley, which they frowned upon a lot, especially his business workers."
This was the part I wasn't entirely sure about. "How did you manage that? And how did you get them to even care?"
April smiled. "A lot of his coworkers have children, and I just asked them if they wanted to make deals with a man who chokes women. I asked them to imagine it was their daughter, and the rest was done. Word got around quickly. No one wanted to do business with him."
Well, that explained why he wanted Riley back so badly. April fucked him out of everything with that. I had to give it to her. It was smart.
"You didn't have to do that," Riley said, "Karma was going to come to him. You didn't have to risk your life like that."
"Karma did come. It was me." April said with a smile. "And I'd do it again. I warned him not to fuck with you, and he didn't listen. He deserved what he got."
Thomas snorted at this. "Someone is pretty confident in herself."
April threw a glare at him. "You have no idea."
They stared at each other for a moment before Thomas pushed off the island. "Well, I think we can all say we are happy that you are all safe."
"Agreed," Ayden said, walking over to us. “Everything is in order, minus the clean-up. Do you need help with that? I know some good cleaners."
I shook my head. It was already getting late, and I knew they all needed to get home. "No, we can handle the mess in the morning. You guys should all head home before your wives start showing up with the kids. They don't need to see this."
"I don't know, Michelle would have a blast with this," Miles said with a chuckle in his voice. "The kid enjoys things like this."
"Yeah, well, I don't need Poppy to see this, so if we're good, I'll head home." Ayden grabbed his jacket and put it on.
"Thank you guys for all coming," I said as the rest of them turned for the jackets. I thanked them all, and once it was silent, the three of us sighed.
I looked at the living room and the mess that it was. The couches were ripped to shit, and there was some damage done to my fireplace. I would need to make some calls in the morning. But this was all for the morning we needed sleep. April looked like she was seconds from passing out, and Riley looked like she was in pain.
"So, I'm guessing I won't be sleeping on the couch," April said, returning my attention to her. "Not that I was going to because clearly, you two have something to tell me." She wiggled her finger between Riley and me.
Riley looked pale for a second before she looked at me. April tilted her head, leaning back in her chair and raising a single eyebrow. "I mean, it's hard to ignore the disgustingly romantic scene earlier where you practically tongue fucked my friend." April waved a hand. "And the fact that this entire place smells like you two fucked in every corner of the house. Seriously, is that all you guys did while I was gone? Had a fuck fest?"
Riley blushed a deep breath and stammered over her words.
I quickly spoke. "We were going to tell you. But we were waiting until you got back. And before you ask, this isn't just a fling. April, I really care about Riley, and Riley cares about me. This is something serious, and we want you to know that. And we only did it a couple of times. It isn't like we were banging like rabbits the second you left."
April snorted, leaning forward, and smiled. "I'm not mad. I'm happy for you two, though I would like to know how long you've been hiding it. Have you guys been seeing each other secretly for years and never told me?"
"God no," Riley said, shaking her head. "This is all new. It only started up a few weeks ago."
April frowned. "And the mate part? How long did you two know that? There is no way you guys didn't realize that long ago."
We fell silent for a moment before I answered. "I've known that for years, but we never spoke about it. It was one of the reasons that I left. Mom and Dad were pushing me to start things up with Riley."
April shook her head. "That sounds about right. They weren't exactly loving me divorcing my husband."
Riley's eyes widened. "You did? You went through with it?"
April nodded. "Yeah, I pushed it to happen faster than he wanted. He was begging me to stay, and I was screaming for him to sign the fucking papers. It was a magical time that continued when I went to our folk's house to stay, and they were asking me why I couldn't just make things work."
April squeezed Riley's hand.
"Are you okay? We can talk about it."
April nodded her head. "Yeah, I'm actually extremely relieved and feel like a big weight has been lifted from me."
"What all happened?" I asked, wanting more details. I wanted to know what was going on, but April shook her head.
"It's just what happens sometimes. But I don't want to talk about that. I want to know what happened between you two." April waved her finger between us.
I looked at Riley, who blushed once more. "You're sure you're okay with this?"
"I mean, I'm shocked, but I'm happy. My brother is a decent guy, and you deserve that."
I scowled at her. "Really? Decent? That's the only compliment you can give me."
She glared at me. "You're still a jackass that left me and her alone in a pack with a toxic mentality."
"I told you I did it for a good reason."
She nodded. "You did, but you still left and therefore are still a jackass."
I rolled my eyes and shook my head. "God, it's so good to have you back in my house. I love arguing."
Riley laughed, and it was music to my ears.
Riley started to explain everything that happened when April left. She went over how she spent Christmas and how we spent New Year's with everyone at the fire station. She talked about running in the woods and how she loved her job.
Riley kept out our sex fests, which was probably a good idea. If she knew that I ate Riley out where she was sitting, she would likely throw up all over the place.
Once Riley was done, April looked at me. "Why didn't you tell me Mom and Dad were pressuring you to get with Riley? I could have said something."
I frowned. "Because you were young too. You both were young, and I didn't want either of you to know about it. Besides, it's my job to protect you, not the other way around."
April crossed her arms. "But, I could have helped."
"How? There was nothing you could have done to change that."
She didn't have an answer, and we both knew it was wishful thinking. While leaving wasn't the best answer, it was a solution to a problem.
"It sucked, but everything worked out in the end so that we can move past it all."
April nodded. "I suppose." She looked around the apartment. "And you're sure you're okay with me being here? I don't want to intrude. Not like I have many options."
"Of course. We have the space."
She raised an eyebrow. "Is that because Riley will stay in your room, and I'll take the guest room?"
Riley snorted. "Would you like me to sleep in the spare bedroom with you?"
April scrunched her nose. "No. But if I hear you guys fucking through the walls, I will scream."
Riley and I laughed. It felt good to get everything out and talk about it. Riley hugged April, and as I watched them, I knew it was all going to be okay. We still had things to figure out, but that was okay.