Chapter 11
chapter
eleven
Juliette
The morning light spills through the thin hotel curtains in bands of gold and white, catching dust motes that hang in the air like tiny stars. The room smells faintly of coffee, but mostly of sex. The sheets are still warm where Cruz had been next to me. Everything about the bed is in disarray.
We made love so many times last night, and my body is deliciously sore because of it.
Cruz is by the window now, leaning one shoulder against the wall, phone in his hand. He’s quiet—has been since sunrise. The kind of quiet that feels full of thoughts he’s not ready to say out loud.
Outside, the world is already awake. A delivery truck rattles over the uneven pavement, and someone laughs on the sidewalk below. Life goes on, even when yours has just changed shape overnight.
I sit up, wrapping the sheet around me, not because I need to, but because it feels like armor. “You’re thinking too loud,” I say.
He glances over, a faint smile pulling at the corner of his mouth. “Didn’t realize thinking was a noise.”
“With you, it’s always a noise.”
He sets his phone down and comes to sit at the edge of the bed, elbows on his knees. “Your brother’s gonna lose his mind.”
“Probably,” I admit. “But he’ll get over it. He always does.”
He exhales, long and slow. “I don’t want this to make your life harder, Juliette.”
“It won’t.” I reach for his hand, threading my fingers through his. “It’ll make it ours. There’s a difference.”
He studies our joined hands for a long moment, thumb brushing absently over my knuckles. “You’re really sure about this?”
“About you? Yeah.”
He lifts his gaze, meets mine. “Then I guess that’s enough. I’ll slay any dragons that get in our way. Making you happy is the only thing that matters.” He leans forward and kisses my forehead. “As much as I’d like to crawl into that bed with you, we’ve got to go pick up the dogs.”
“Oh, right.” I chuckle. “That was kind of your point to this whole trip, even though I hijacked it.”
“It was the best hostile takeover ever.”
We pack quickly after that, since there’s not really much to gather. When we meet by the door, he reaches past me to hold it open, his arm brushing mine. The touch is simple, familiar, grounding.
“Ready?” he asks.
“As I’ll ever be.”
After picking up the dogs and ensuring they were settled in the back of the van, we did our best to make the return trip as fast as possible.
Cruz dropped me off so I could get my car, and then he headed straight out to the sanctuary.
Our relationship would resume later, after he got the dogs settled in their new place.
My phone pings in my pocket.
Aria: Jude knows about you and Cruz.
Well, shit. That didn’t take long.
Me: How’d he find out?
Sofia: He has some legit detective skills, as it turns out.
Aria: A combination of tracking your phone and remembering that’s where your man was headed.
Sofia: He’s already left the garage to head to the sanctuary.
Me: Shit! Why didn’t you lead with that? I gotta go.
By the time I get to the lot behind the dog sanctuary, I can hear my brother’s voice before I even see him. It’s the kind of low, sharp tone that makes the hair on my arms stand up—the same one he used to use when someone messed with me in high school.
“Jude!” I call, but he doesn’t turn.
He’s already crossing the gravel, jaw tight, shoulders squared, heading straight for Cruz, who’s standing near his van. Thankfully it looks like the other guys have unloaded the dogs, and Evan and Marley are dealing with their immediate needs.
My brother advances on Cruz.
Jude has always looked like he might be mean with tattoos and piercings, but the truth is, he’s always been a complete softie. Especially when it came to his sisters. And now his wife, Emory. But right now, his face is locked in an expression that gives me pause.
“Jude, stop!” I shout again, but he doesn’t.
Cruz doesn’t move, doesn’t even blink. He just stands there, calm in that maddening way he has, watching Jude close the distance between them.
“You think this is funny?” Jude snaps. “You think it’s cute, going after my kid sister like that?”
Cruz’s voice is low. “I don’t think any of this is funny.”
“She’s half your age!” Jude’s face is red now, sweat glinting on his temple.
“You bring your van into my shop, I fix your brakes, help you outfit it for your specific needs, and all the while you’re thinking about—” He cuts himself off, glancing at me like the words are poison.
“What? How to seduce my baby sister? What the hell’s wrong with you? ”
Cruz doesn’t flinch. “Nothing’s wrong with me.”
“Bullshit.”
The punch comes fast. A sharp crack echoes across the gravel. Cruz’s head jerks to the side, but he doesn’t hit back. He just wipes at his mouth with the back of his hand, checks for blood, and looks at Jude again.
“You done?” he asks quietly.
Jude shoves him, hard. “Not even close.”
This is when my reinforcements arrive. Both of my sisters and my sister-in-law. If anyone can make Jude see reason, it’s Emory.
But my brother hasn’t noticed their arrival. “Jude!” I rush forward, grabbing at his arm. “Stop! You’re not helping anything!”
He turns on me, eyes wild. “Stay out of it, Juliette!” He reaches to pull me behind him, the way he always has, the way big brothers do. “I’ll deal with you later.”
Except I’m not little anymore. I yank my arm back. “Don’t you dare treat me like I’m twelve!”
Cruz moves then—just one step forward, but the air shifts around him. His voice is steady, deep, and dangerous in that quiet way that makes everything stop.
“You can put your hands on me all you want,” he says, low and even.
“Blacken both of my eyes, bust my lip some more, break some ribs if you have to. But understand that you may not touch her like that. Or raise your voice to her. Do either of those things, and you and I are going to have serious problems.”
The world goes still. The only sound is the wind rattling through the oak trees and the distant barks of the dogs from the kennels.
Jude freezes, hand half-raised, his chest heaving. The weight of Cruz’s words hangs heavy in the air—no threat, just truth.
For a long second, they stare at each other. Then something in Jude’s expression falters. That’s when Emory approaches, puts herself between Jude and Cruz.
“Jude, baby, stop and think. Look at him.”
And he does, my brother looks at Cruz—really looks—and for the first time, he sees what I’ve known all along.
Cruz isn’t playing with me. He isn’t chasing something he can’t have. He’s standing here, taking punches he doesn’t deserve, because walking away would hurt me more.
Jude drops his hand. His voice comes out rough, low. “You really love her, don’t you?”
Cruz doesn’t hesitate. “Yeah. I do.”
My throat tightens.
Jude exhales, shoulders sagging as the fight drains out of him. He rubs at his jaw, shaking his head. “Christ, this town’s gonna have a hay day with that.”
“Let them,” I say.
He huffs a humorless laugh. “You just had to pick someone twice your age.”
I shake my head. “I picked the right one for me. The one who sees me and loves me for who I am. That’s all I ever wanted,” I reply.
Jude glances between us, and for a flicker of a moment, I see something almost like acceptance. Not approval. Not yet. But maybe the first hint of it.
He mutters, “Don’t make me regret not kicking your ass twice,” and stalks off toward his truck, gravel crunching under his boots. Emory is at his side, speaking low to him. She glances back at me, and I give her a wave and a smile.
I hear my sisters mumbling about missing all the good drama as they climb back in their car.
When the sound fades, Cruz lets out a slow breath and looks at me. The bruise is already blooming along his jaw, deep and angry.
“You okay?” I whisper.
He stretches his jaw. “I will be. Just need some ice.”
“You didn’t have to let him.”
“Yeah,” he says, lips curving just barely. “I did.”
I step closer, pressing my palm lightly against his chest, feeling his heart beat steadily beneath my hand. The tension that’s been stretching between us for weeks finally settles, quiet and certain.
“I love you too, you know.”