Chapter 26 #2
“You two, in the bed,” Cian calls while opening the passenger door and letting out a whistle that could wake the dead.
What the fuck?
A bear of a dog comes barreling out of the woods with its tongue hanging out the side of its mouth. It’s easily a hundred-pound beast, and it’s headed straight at us.
“What the hell is that?” I ask before lifting myself into the bed of the truck like some TV cowboy.
“That,” Cian grumbles, “is Elle’s impression of a good idea. She dropped him off about twenty minutes ago.”
“But what the hell is it?”
“Wrecks, come.” Cian whistles again, and the beast changes directions in midair, tumbling over giant paws in a somersault when it lands, only to get back up and charge the truck.
“Holy shit.” Brax jumps in the back with me, which is stupid, because we’re sitting ducks in here.
“Rex? You named that thing Rex? Like ‘king’?”
The dog leaps from ten feet away and slides into the passenger seat like he’s stealing home plate.
“W-R-E-C-K-S,” Cian spells. “Because the fecking thing has separation anxiety and wrecks the shite out of everything.”
“And why is he coming with us?”
“Because if you thought the hurricane caused some damage, it’ll be nothing to what he’ll do if we leave him here alone.”
“Why isn’t he sitting in the back?” Braxton asks. At least he’s as confused as I am.
“Wrecks won’t stay back there, and we’ll end up chasing him all over Happiness. Trust me, it’s better if he’s contained.”
“Nothing in this town ever makes sense,” I mutter.
Peering through the glass partition separating us from the cab of the truck, I find Wrecks gnawing on the dashboard.
“That something you want to happen in your prissmobile?”
I wince as Wrecks’s teeth sink into the dashboard a second time.
“Fuck no.”
“That’s what I thought. Now let’s go.”
Cian shifts the truck into gear and presses a little too heavily on the gas. Braxton and I are thrown to the tailgate and land with a thud in a pile of limbs.
“He did that on purpose,” Braxton mutters.
“Why the hell—”
“You wore a fecking suit to hang windows, Grey.” Cian chuckles darkly. “Are you even trying to fit in here?”
Disentangling myself from my brother, I cautiously make my way over to the wheel well and take a seat, then use both arms to hang on to the side of the truck.
“I don’t need to fit in.” My words are lost to the wind whipping around my face, but Brax hears them just fine.
“But don’t you want to?” he asks. “Don’t you want to be part of the family we’re creating here?” His voice is raised, but I’m not sure if he’s angry or just making sure he’s heard.
Do I want to? I want to be where he and Sage are, yes.
I want to be where Savvy is, even if it pisses me off in every way.
I want to see Braxton’s child grow up. I want to be there for Sage as he enters each new phase of life.
I even want to watch Madi become a mother because I happen to know she’ll be an excellent one.
But do I want all these other…complications that come with the newfound big, messy family?
A car horn interrupts my internal war. Braxton and I both glance up to find Moose behind the wheel of my SUV, fighting off Pops, who appears to be leaning over, attempting to beep the horn.
“He’s going to get them killed.”
“Pops must have really enjoyed his teen years.” Braxton chuckles.
“What?”
He waves toward Pops, who’s now sitting back in his own seat with his arms crossed over his chest. Is he…pouting? “That man is seventeen going on seventy-five.”
Cian slows to a stop at a four-way intersection, and Pops rolls down his window and raises his fingers in a peace sign. “Go get our girls.” He lowers his index finger so now he’s flashing the universal fuck you sign. “We’ll scare off the boogeyman.”
“Jesus,” I mutter. “Is this the best plan we’ve got?”
Cian steps on the gas again, causing Braxton and me to readjust our grips so we don’t topple over. We go straight, while Moose turns right to head to the inn.
“Any idea what the hell Riley would be doing here?” Braxton asks.
“There’s only one reason he’d be in Happiness—to fuck with Savvy.” And that option fills me with murderous aggression I don’t know how to control.
The truck hits a dirt road that slams my ass against the metal of the wheel well.
“Dammit, Cian. That’s going to hurt tomorrow,” Braxton says.
Dust swirls all around us. It gets into my nostrils and my ears, and my suit is instantly ruined.
Fucking small towns. This would never happen in LA.
And look how miserable you were there.
Cian takes a corner without slowing down, and my left leg is airborne in an attempt to stay upright. Across from me, Braxton is in a similar predicament.
“This is why seatbelts were invented,” I shout. We hit a bump in the road, and it tosses us to the center of the truck bed.
“Jesus, Cian. Cut the shit,” Braxton bellows, but there’s a smile on his face I don’t understand. Is he…enjoying himself?
For fuck’s sake. He’s gone hillbilly billionaire on me.
The truck stops with a lurch that has my lunch revisiting my throat. Cian’s out before my head has even stopped spinning, and the wildebeest of a dog follows him.
“Elle,” Cian shouts, drawing more than a few curious stares.
We’re parked behind a bunch of…shacks? I don’t even know what to call these stands that are set up all in a row.
Elle pokes her head out of one on the end, and Wrecks takes off in her direction with Cian shouting curses behind him.
“Stay. Sit. Heel,” Elle shouts, but Wrecks ignores them all.
Cian moves faster than I’ve ever seen him, and he tackles Wrecks right before he launches himself at Elle.
“How the hell is that safe?” I ask, running to help Cian.
“Don’t get me fecking started,” Cian grumbles while wrestling, physically wresting, with Wrecks until he finally gets ahold of the dog’s collar.
Elle stands in the doorway, laughing so hard she has tears falling down her face.
“This is funny?” I ask.
“You should see your faces,” she wheezes. “Wrecks would never hurt me, but Cian hasn’t figured that out yet.”
“Elle.” I stare at her in utter disbelief. “He was about to take you out. He would have flattened you like a pancake.”
She waves a dismissive hand my way. “What are y’all doing here?”
Savvy steps out next with baby Keela on her hip, and my chest collapses.
I want to capture the scene before me in oil paints and pictures.
She’s magnificent, and strong, and so damn perfect I can’t breathe.
“We’ve, ah…” Braxton steps forward, tugging on the back of his neck and staring at the ground. “We’ve got a problem at the inn.”
“What?” Savvy and Elle both gasp.
“Is Madi okay? The baby?” Sav is already making her way down the rickety stairs.
“They’re both fine.” Brax’s soothing tone does nothing to erase the worry lines from either of their faces. “But there’s a guest waiting to check in… Someone who shouldn’t be there.”
As if on auto-pilot, Savvy hands Keela off to Elle.
“Who?” With every step she takes toward us, I see her walls building around her limbs like a magical string tightening her armor.
“Riley,” I say, ensuring her focus is on me when she gets this news. I’m the one who will take her shock, her fear, her anger. I’m the one who will absorb it, control it, and spit it back out at anyone who tries to tear her down.
I don’t know when the change happened. When I went from lusting for her body to craving her connection, willingly burning the world to the ground for her, but there’s no denying that’s where I am.
I am her protector, her partner, hers.
Her steps falter, and the flash of fear in her eyes cuts me to my core, but she recovers faster than I’d like. I hate that she doesn’t allow herself time to come to terms with bad news—she just reacts and puts plans into motion.
She’s playing chess too…except she hasn’t realized that I will always protect my queen.
“Did he say what he wants?” Her voice is devoid of emotion, and I want to rip out Riley’s heart for turning her into this version of herself.
“No. We’re heading there now.”
Another flash of fear. “Madi’s there.” She picks up her pace as she heads for Cian’s truck.
“Moose, Clover, and Pops are with her,” Braxton says.
“And Sage is there with some of his teammates. Madi’s safe.”
Her gaze cuts to mine with harsh lines of anger and vulnerability.
“No one is safe around Riley, Patch.” She steps onto the bumper, then lifts one long leg over the tailgate.
“You’re not sitting back here.” I catch her by her other ankle before she can lift it over the edge.
She kicks me free. “Watch me.”
She doesn’t need a rescue—she needs a life raft.
With a heavy sigh, I haul myself over the tailgate and sit next to her. Braxton follows next, while Elle squishes in between Cian and Wrecks in the front.
“Hang on,” Cian calls over his shoulder. At least he gave Savvy a warning. She adjusts her grip on the edge.
“What do you think he wants?” Her voice is low, sad, despondent. I only hear her because I’ve pressed myself tightly into her side to hold her steady.
“I don’t know, sweetheart. But I can say for sure we’re not going to like whatever it is, but we’ll get through it together.”
I twine my fingers through hers, give them a gentle squeeze, and my chest warms instantly as I stare at our joined palms. This, us, together, is stronger than she knows, and I’ll do everything in my power to prove that to her.