Chapter 41
Brody
I yank Trinity into a crouch, covering her body with mine.
Neither of us were hit. She’s gasping for breath, but otherwise, she doesn’t make a peep.
My muscles coil with tension. Seconds pass with no more shots ringing out. The thud of a body hitting cement nearby indicates that whoever took the hit has died.
I keep my hand on Trinity’s head, holding her in place, and chance a glance around.
Grigori’s nowhere in sight. I saw Trinity shoot him, but the fucker must’ve survived.
Andrei’s dead on the floor, crushed under a float trailer.
The last Russian merc—one of the men who’d been guarding the door—lies a few feet away from us, a hole blasted through where his right eye used to be.
My gaze flicks up to the open doorway. A familiar silhouette holsters a gun and prowls inside.
What the fuck?
I blink. Maybe I did die. If so, at least Trinity and I are together for eternity.
I check on Trinity, who’s staring at me with wide eyes. “It’s all right. He’s safe.” After kissing her cheek, I help us both to our feet and face my brother.
“Connor.” What the hell is he doing here?
Trinity glances between us with her eyebrows halfway up her forehead. Guess she’s just as surprised.
Cautiously, I approach. I should probably hug him. After all, he did just save our asses. However, I don’t recall us ever hugging, even as children.
I hold out my hand instead. That works, right? “Thanks.”
Connor accepts the handshake, chuckling under his breath as he studies Trinity. “So, you’re the Gallagher princess.”
She cocks her head and grabs my free hand. “And you’re the firstborn favorite.”
Connor clears his throat. “And the sharpshooter.”
Which is news to me. Sure, Declan taught us both to shoot, but I’ve never actually watched Connor work on a mission.
“Nice to meet you. And thanks.” Trinity smiles but doesn’t release my hand. Good, because I had no intention of letting her.
I peer past Connor’s shoulder toward the door. “Where’s Declan?”
“Oh, he doesn’t know I’m here.”
I gape. Wait, what? Connor, the golden boy, the pampered prince, and Declan’s heir…came to our aid without Declan knowing? “Why are you here, then?”
Connor shrugs. “I wanted to hang around New Orleans for a few extra days. Enjoy the holiday festivities. I happened to hear the commotion in this warehouse and knew you’d be involved. So I figured I’d swing around and save your ass if necessary.”
Confusion patters through my brain like rain. Then a weird, warm poker nudges at my chest, just below where my affection for Trinity lives.
Connor defied Declan’s will and stayed in Louisiana because he understood that I was planning to save Trinity. He wanted to help me.
I’ve always prided myself on reading a room, on understanding my environment and those in it. That skill has kept me alive for years.
Now, I realize that maybe I never actually got an accurate read on the people closest to me. Maeve and Connor have been on my side this whole time. The only person standing in the way of me finding a true family connection was…me.
I tighten my grip on Trinity’s hand. She’s regarding us both with pursed lips and soft eyes. Assessing. I really do love that brain of hers.
I shake my head and refocus on Connor. “But how’d you know where I was?”
A rare smile forms on my older brother’s face.
Weird.
“I planted a tracker on the drive before I took it out of the computer. I suspected you might do something stupid. Glad I did. A second later, and you two would’ve been toast.”
I pull the drive from my pocket. It’s just a simple chunk of rectangular plastic and metal. Yet, the piece holds the fate of Trinity’s family. It also just saved our lives.
“Look, full confession.” Connor’s eyes bounce from me to Trinity and back again. “I might have been a little curious about how you planned to handle all this.”
“So you just wanted to see if I’d screw it all up.” I punch his shoulder without any real weight. “Fuck you, man.”
He brushes my fist off. “Lucky I did, or you’d be dead. Don’t forget that important detail, little brother.”
Grunting, I run my fingers through my grimy hair. He’s right, of course, but I’m not about to admit that.
“Sorry I didn’t come sooner.”
“You got here just in time. That’s what matters.” I shake my head. “But what about Declan? He’s going to be pissed.”
Connor bends down to grab and examine the fallen Russian’s gun. “Don’t worry about Declan. You’re definitely dead to him, but I’ve got an idea that might help us all out in the long run.”
I study Connor’s face. We have the same shaped eyes. He’s paler than I am, and I’m shorter and stockier, but the longer I stare, the more I see the resemblance.
Because he’s Declan’s biological son and I’m not, I think part of me always clumped him in with our father. The truth is, Connor’s nothing like him. Not in the ways that truly matter.
After everything, I still have a brother.
Though the words only form in my head, they clog my throat all the same.
“Connor, I don’t know what to—”
“Don’t get all sappy on me. We’ve got work to do. Trinity needs to get to New York, right?”
I nod as Connor exits the warehouse because I can’t argue with that.
“Brody?” Trinity squeezes my arm before I can follow him. “Will you give me the drive?”
With no hesitation, I pass the hard drive into Trinity’s palm. She inspects the object with a strange, furrow-browed expression.
“Trinity?”
The drive slips from her fingers and bounces twice on the cement floor.
Before I can bend down to grab, she lifts a booted food and stomps.
The drive cracks in two, but she doesn’t stop. She smashes it into as many pieces as she can, grunting with the effort.
I step back to let her live with the moment.
She’s releasing the past and the hold it’s had on her for nearly half her life. The glitter of tears in her eyes appears cathartic. She’s not crying from sadness, just releasing the pain of ghosts long gone.
When she’s satisfied with the damage, she stills, her chest heaving. Her fingers twitch at her sides, her hair wild around her face.
She’s beautiful.
Once I place my hand on her shoulder, she folds, curling her torso against my chest as I press my lips to her hair. “You okay?”
She sucks in air. “I think so. I…didn’t think I’d ever do that.”
I glance down at the remains of the drive on the floor. “Don’t you want to use that information? To find Angelica’s killers?”
She just surveys the damage for a moment, panting softly in the cooling evening air.
“No.” She shakes her head against my chest. “I think…Angelica would want me to move on. And now…I think I’m ready to do that.”
With my hand on her back, I hug her tighter.
I think she’s probably right, but my opinion doesn’t matter here.
Trinity’s given up the guilt, and as long as she’s happy, I’m happy.
We both sigh, the stress of the past several days falling away like the powdered sugar off a beignet.
When she looks up at me, I hook one hand behind her neck, burying my fingers in her feathery curls.
I kiss her, absorbing her hot breath, her lavender scent, her energy, her essence… and giving her mine.
We’re free of the past, of our chains. Free to move forward however we both choose.
Together.
Pulling away, I brush a wispy lock of hair from her face. “I’m never taking my eyes off you again, princess.”
She smiles so brightly that I think I may go blind, but losing my eyesight would be worth it. “You better not. I don’t ever want your gaze straying, Mister Gallagher.”
I loop my free arm around her waist and pin her hips to mine. “I hope you’re prepared for the consequences of those words, Trinity.”
She cups her soft hand over my cheek. “I love you, Brody Gallagher.”
Weightless. That’s the only way I can describe the strange bubbling in my chest. I’m floating—falling—the ground beneath my feet gone for good.
She’s the only thing anchoring me. My center of gravity. This woman is my universe, and I’ll go to the ends of the earth for whatever she needs.
New York, Austin, Los Angeles. Wherever she goes, I go.
A dog on a leash.
And I wouldn’t have it any other way. “I love you too.” I seize her lips in another kiss, pressing her back against the nearest float.
She groans and tunnels her fingers through my hair.
My hands trail over her sides, down to her hips. I went a single night without her, and that was too damn much.
Trinity breaks away from the kiss, her lips red and her eyes glittering. “Brody…I need you.”
I know she doesn’t just mean physically, though I’m more than happy to oblige in that capacity.
No, the heat of her gaze is less sexual and more primal. Possessive.
I’m hers, and she’s mine.
Our noses brush as I rest our foreheads together. “Not as much as I need you.” My hand slides up the back of her shirt, triggering her shiver and gasp.
Now if only—
“Would you two hurry the fuck up?” Connor’s voice bounces through the open doorway. “I’m starving.”
Trinity pulls back with a laugh, biting her bottom lip in the cutest way.
I’m tempted to tell Connor to piss off, but…
Trinity grabs my hand. “Let’s go.”
Where? Who knows? Or cares?
As long as we’re together, that’s all that matters.