Chapter 37
If I’d thought the rare occasions that I’d shared a bed with Pres, Dacre, and Sin at the same time had been a busy bed, it was even busier when Boston was added to the mix.
We’d taken over one of the spare rooms, Pres ordering the staff to bring a king single into the room to shove against the king bed that was already there in order to accommodate the five of us.
It was a lot, especially for Boston who was used to sleeping alone, but it wasn’t long before they were all breathing heavily.
After Boston and I had talked through my father’s attempt to come between us and solidified his place with us, the guys had been intent on celebrating.
One of Sinclair’s work colleagues had sent him over a case of eye-wateringly expensive whiskey to celebrate the acquisition of a particularly lucrative company earlier in the week.
My four guys had poured themselves hefty glasses and sat around telling stories about each other when they were kids.
Presley had opted for a small glass and swore to me he wouldn’t let it send him over the edge.
I’d been quietly happy to see Boston getting so involved in the conversation, even sharing a story about him and his mom when he was a child.
I laid awake listening to the sounds of the guys breathing through sleep. For the first time I can remember, my inability to sleep wasn’t because the weight of my problems was pressing down on me.
My sleeplessness was a quiet moment to recognize just how happy I was.
Boston showing up in Cape Canyon had started out as a nightmare, but had somehow morphed into a dream. Adding him to this crazy group dynamic hadn’t been easy, but it had definitely been worth it, and I couldn’t remember a time I felt this… peaceful.
Although Boston and I were the only relationship that could ever be public, the bonds I shared with each of my guys behind closed doors would never be broken. And the safety I felt in that was something I’d never experienced before.
These guys were my family. We protected each other.
And that was something I’d never had before.
I must have eventually drifted off, because I woke hours later to the sounds of alarms blaring. Squinting in the darkness, I removed several of the guys’ limbs that had been draped over my body as we slept and sat up.
What the hell was that?
“Sinclair,” I hissed in the dark, staring over at his sleeping form. “Sin?”
He didn’t stir at all.
Presley was in the bed to my left, and I gripped his shoulder, gently shaking him. He murmured something as he slept, but didn’t wake.
Boston was on my right, snoring steadily. “Boston, can you hear that?”
But he just kept on snoring.
Dacre had one toned arm thrown over his eyes, his breathing low and steady.
Abandoning my efforts to wake them, I wandered down the hallway towards the garage, the alarms growing louder. At least six of the cars in the garage were alarming at alternating intervals.
Jogging down the staircase as fast as my tired feet would take me, I pushed into the garage, expecting to find several of Byron’s front gate and security staff already there attempting to fix whatever the issue was.
Instead the garage was empty.
The only movement was the flashing hazard lights of the cars, all of them across the far side of the garage.
“What the hell…” I muttered, cutting between the vehicles to reach a bright yellow Maserati. I stared at the cars, my brow pinching. What could have set off six cars all in the same row?
A sense of uneasiness filled me, and I backed away towards the house, determined to wake Sinclair for help.
I turned around and the cold metal of a gun barrel pressed to the center of my forehead.
“Don’t move unless it’s to get in that car,” a male voice commanded.
The door to one of Sinclair’s expensive black SUVs was open to my right, and I glanced at the empty back seat.
Fear flooded my body in an instant and my legs almost gave out. Who the fuck was this guy? And how the hell had he gotten into Aston Manor?
“Did I fucking stutter? Get in the car, you stupid bitch.”
He pressed the gun to my forehead so hard it bit into my skin, his finger firm on the trigger.
I backed up until my ass hit the backseat, then I slid myself in. The man climbed in after me just as another guy appeared and hauled open the driver’s side door to get in behind the wheel.
The engine roared to life, matching the sound of my pulse pounding in my ears.
He pressed the garage opener attached to the sun visor and the door started to lift.
“We’re going for a little ride.”