Internal Audit
Sara
“Nine minutes.” Roger’s voice startles me awake.
“It might take longer than that,” Dante replies.
I open my eyes to find Roger standing just inside the door of Tom’s hospital room. My heart jumps in my chest. Mom! I straighten to see if my mother is here. When all I see is Roger, I relax back into Wyatt.
Roger is just as imposing today as he was when Mom first introduced him to me and Tom. He stays fit. His brown hair shaved in a military cut and his blue eyes piercing. But he’s also safety and comfort.
My chest aches.
I get up and walk into his arms, resting my head against his chest. His arms come around me, solid. As I release my breath, all the worry flows out of me because Roger and Mom are here. I don’t have to be strong anymore. A little shudder goes through me.
The guys have protected me and given me their strength, but Roger is different. He’s my father. One of his hands cups the back of my head.
“Why was Tom shot?” Roger’s voice is low and rumbles through his chest.
Natasha sighs. “It’s a long story.”
“Make it shorter.”
I smile, because even though I can’t see it, I’m familiar with the look Roger is giving everyone in this room.
“I accidentally took the mob on as a client.” Tom’s voice is solid. “Natasha is the boss’s daughter. We fell in love and eloped. The guy her father wanted her to marry didn’t like that.”
“Eloped.” Roger knows Mom isn’t going to like that. He eases me away from him to look at my face. “And you?”
I swallow. “Someone broke into the townhouse. I moved in with Wyatt, Finn, and Dante. I got kidnapped by the mob boss. But Finn got me out.”
Dante steps up behind me and puts his hand on my shoulder. “The rest can wait for Bitsy.”
Roger’s eyes soften as he searches mine. “You’re all right?”
Tears fill my eyes but I nod. “I’m all right.”
He shakes his head. I want to go back into his arms, but he’s no longer my only rock.
Dante pulls me back against him and I sink into him, letting his strength hold me up. Roger turns to open the door for Caitlyn and my mom.
“Sara!” Caitlyn sees me first and runs over and hugs my waist. “You should have come with us. I missed you.”
I breathe her in as I squeeze her. “I missed you too.”
Mom looks around the room. “Where’s the fourth musketeer?”
“Here.” Finn steps in behind her. Fortunately, Tom has a private room, but it’s becoming crowded with everyone in it. “And I brought a friend.”
Drew follows him in and closes the door. Finn moves over to stand with Dante and me.
“Drew Young.” Drew holds his hand out to Roger, who shakes it with a glance at me. Obviously, Mom told him I was dating Drew. My cheeks warm as I lean back into Dante for support. Who knows what else they’ve heard. The night I spent in a hotel with Drew?
Wyatt rises to stand next to us. Finn’s green eyes meet mine and he smirks.
I knew the day I’d have to tell my mom about all of them was closing in on me, but I really thought I’d have time to break it to her gently after all this craziness calmed down.
Now the weight of it sinks into my stomach, twisting it in knots.
Wyatt takes my hand and I squeeze it while Mom is being introduced to Drew.
Mom’s light green eyes find mine as she shakes Drew’s hand. Her gaze takes in the others standing close to me, but they’ve always been protective. Maybe we can wait until later to discuss my relationship. I swallow the lump in my throat.
Mom steps up to Tom’s bed and Natasha holds out her hand.
“I’m Natasha.”
Mom takes her hand with a speculative look. “A pleasure.”
Mom homes in on Tom and she takes a deep breath, like she’s getting ready to yell at him. “Shot?”
Tom nods. “In the shoulder. Everything is good though.”
“Good?” Mom’s eyebrow cocks up. She glances over at me and then back at Tom, and suddenly, we’re little kids about to get yelled at for breaking a dish we were arguing over.
Caitlyn walks over to Tom and takes his hand. “I’m sorry you’re in the hospital. I don’t like the way it smells here.”
“Thanks, bug. But the doctor made me better so I shouldn’t have to be here long.” Tom brushes her hair out of her face with a smile.
Mom looks down at Caitlyn and then up at Roger. He sighs and straightens from the wall.
“How about you and I go find something nice in the gift shop for Tom, Caitlyn?”
“I’ll pick out the best present.” She grins and hurries over to Roger to take his hand. “When we get home, I can give him the souvenirs I bought him.”
“That’s right.” Roger’s gaze flits to mine and Tom’s before he leaves. I wish he’d stay. With Caitlyn here, Mom would have to talk around the uncomfortable stuff instead of coming straight out and asking things I don’t want to talk to her about.
Mom walks over and sits in the chair with a sigh, crossing her legs. “I’m sure Roger got the highlights, but I expect a full report.”
Tom meets my eyes. I give him a little shake of my head because I’m so not starting on this one. He’s the one who made this mess. He can be the one to tell Mom all about how he royally fucked up.
He swallows and Natasha takes his hand. My guys are all around me and I’m sure none of these details have escaped my mom. Like Dante’s hand on my hip. Me leaning back into Dante with my hand in Wyatt’s. The diamond on Natasha’s left ring finger and the platinum band on Tom’s.
I’m tempted to pull away from the guys, but I need their support right now. It’s all going to come out. It’s going to be more real now.
She doesn’t say anything but waits for one of us to start talking.
Tom breaks first. He tells her about bringing the mob into his company. Meeting Natasha. Falling in love. How she was promised to another. “I couldn’t let her marry him, and when she told me she’s pregnant—”
“Pregnant?” Mom’s attention shifts to Natasha.
Natasha smiles and puts her hand over her abdomen. “Yes. We’re expecting.”
Mom’s eyes soften but then turn back to Tom. “This isn’t explaining how you ended up shot in the hospital.”
Tom blows out a breath. “We took off. Eloped and hid, trying to figure out a way to make sure no one could separate us. We were also building a case for the Feds against her father.”
Mom nods thoughtfully.
He goes on to tell her about talking to the Feds, hiding from Peter.
Conveniently leaving out all of us staying at the house.
I guess that’s my part to fill in. How we were trying to reach out to Alexander, again leaving out that Drew was the one trying to contact him.
And how he and I were walking down the street when shots were fired.
Mom stays quiet when he finishes his story. I’m holding my breath because I know I’m next. And I don’t really know how to explain everything that’s happened to me.
Tom meets my eyes. “I left Sara a note, knowing she might be in danger. Told her the guys would protect her. I knew she wouldn’t want to have their help, but I hoped she’d at least go to them. I should have told them what I was involved with.”
Mom’s lips press together as she waits for more information.
“She stayed at the townhouse until someone broke in and ransacked her and my rooms, probably looking for the files I took with me.” Tom pauses.
“Then she finally moved in with the guys, but apparently, Peter Sokolov was waiting for an opportunity. He took Sara and held her captive while Wyatt and Drew came to find me, and Dante and Finn worked to get her free.”
Mom glances over at me to make sure I’m in one piece.
“It was more like a vacation in a locked room.” I shrug, trying to play it off as if the kidnapping doesn’t still bother me.
Mom arches an eyebrow like she doesn’t believe me, but will get to the bottom of that later.
Tom clears his throat to get Mom’s attention back. “Once Sara was safe and we knew the Feds had taken Peter in, we came back to town. We moved into the house Drew’s parents were selling.”
“We?” Mom’s looking for clarification, and suddenly, I don’t know how to explain to her how I’m in love with four men and they all love me. I’m not sure if she’ll believe we can have a future like this. My stomach is in knots.
“Sara is in a relationship with Dante, Wyatt, Finn, and Drew.” Tom doesn’t mince words or ease her into it. But I don’t think I would have done much better.
Mom’s eyes widen as she shifts to face us. I could seriously use a bucket right now. My nausea at facing this at last is that strong. I locate the trash can just in case.
“It’s not like you didn’t know we’ve loved Sara forever.” Dante squeezes my hip. “We just came to terms with all of us loving her and how it will work for us.”
Mom doesn’t clutch her pearls, which she isn’t wearing, but normally when she’s aghast at something, her hand will move to her throat anyway.
I can’t tell from her expression what she’s thinking.
She always wanted me to find a guy, preferably one she wouldn’t be embarrassed by, who could escort me to all the events and she could brag about to her friends.
I’m not embarrassed by any of my guys. And she shouldn’t be either. If any one of them had dated me, she would have approved, but asking her to approve of me dating all four of them seems like a hard ask.
Mom finally releases her breath and shakes her head. Her gaze bounces between me and Tom. “You two always marched to your own beat. Just like your father.”
What does that mean? Is that it? Or just what she finds acceptable to talk about when it’s both of us and our significant others? Mom’s always been mindful about an audience. Which means as soon as she can get us on our own, she’s going to pounce. My hands feel cold.
“When do you get to leave the hospital?” Mom asks Tom.
“Tomorrow at the earliest.” Tom glances at me and then the guys. “We’re still in the thick of it though. We have to find a way to make Alexander back off and release the woman he’s holding hostage.”
“Is the townhouse safe?” she asks with a raised eyebrow.
“With Roger there?” Dante says. “Probably. But you might want to stay in a hotel until we have everything under control.”
“And when will that be?” Mom hasn’t raised her voice or said much yet. I know she’s holding back, maybe for Natasha and Drew, who are strangers to her. She never held back in front of Tom’s friends because most of the time they were just as in trouble with her as Tom was.
“We have two days left.” Wyatt runs a hand over his hair. “Why don’t you and Roger come stay with us? There are plenty of bedrooms at the house.”
My eyes widen. That’s a horrible idea. What is Wyatt thinking?
“I’ll talk it over with Roger, but that will give me time to talk with you and get to know Natasha better.” Mom’s gaze takes in everyone and then settles on me.
My heart tumbles over itself. This isn’t going to be fun.