Chapter 17
Chapter Seventeen
Charlotte
I’m hot, but that tends to happen when I sleep with Lucky. He’s like a little furnace, and he doesn’t know how to stay on his side of the bed.
I grunt, stretching in my sleep.
“Shh, you’re okay. I’m right here. Nothing and no one can hurt ya.” The lightly melodic tone of Malachy’s accent almost makes me smile, but my eyes are still closed.
I don’t think I was having a nightmare this time, or if I was, I can’t remember it.
My eyes pop open, and my face rests on Malachy’s chest.
Wow.
Okay, we got up close and personal while I slept. He’s muscular, but his skin is soft and warm against my cheek.
Huh.
I guess it was Malachy who was making me sweat this time. It’s a little alarming, since he wasn’t here when I fell asleep, but I’m also starting to trust him.
“You’re safe. Lukas is on your other side,” he murmurs, keeping his voice low.
I tilt my face up toward his, fighting the urge to ask him what he’s doing here. That might scare him off or make him think I’m not happy to have him snuggled up with me.
“You’re really warm,” I whisper. “Did everything go okay tonight? Did Cormac make it home too?”
“He’s here,” Malachy says as his hand smooths down my side. “Everything went off without a hitch. Grim won his fight. You don’t need to worry about anything. We’ve got everything under control. Just rest, little one. I’ll watch over you.”
Dammit.
He’s so comforting that I almost don’t know what to do with myself.
I should press for more information—this is my life, after all—but he’s so sturdy that every fiber of my being wants to give in to the urge to relax.
It would be nice to know that if something horrible happened, he and his brothers would handle it. I’m so tired of always having to stay vigilant. To be on alert for threats at all times.
It goes against everything my designation is known for, but I’ve had to adapt a lot over the last three years.
I think it would be okay to trust his word for now. It’s not like there’s anything I can do in the middle of the night, anyway.
Malachy’s chest rattles, and a ragged, underused purr vibrates out.
I gasp, moving my hand from his side, up to run over the sound. He has more hair than I thought I would be attracted to, but it works for him. It’s soft against my fingertips, and I bet his beard would be equally as relaxing to tease my fingers through.
“Thanks, Mal,” I say, keeping my voice low to avoid waking Lucky.
“Always, sweet girl,” he says. I don’t really love any nicknames with girl in it after Candy Girl, but it also feels completely different when Malachy says sweet girl. “Just relax. Nothing is going to get the two of you with me standing in the way.” He sounds so sure, and I ache to believe him.
I just happen to know firsthand how ruthless the Jacksonville Demons are. I wasn’t even with them for a year, and I turned into someone I didn’t recognize.
“I’m here and waiting whenever you’re ready to tell me what you’re running from…” He continues murmuring words of comfort and reassurance.
My eyes ache, and I clench them shut.
I’m not sure any of them would be so quick to want to protect me if they knew what I was capable of. I doubt Malachy would even want to be this close to me, so I keep my mouth firmly shut and breathe in his electric scent. Who knows how much longer I’ll even have access to it?
The next time I wake up, I’m hot and achy. My eyes burn, and it feels like the beginning of coming down with the flu. It takes three seconds of mentally debating whether Lucky got me sick again for me to realize I don’t remember taking my suppressants yesterday.
I was so caught up in the panic after waking up to find Lukas missing that I didn’t even pee before running downstairs.
Hell, I didn’t even bother with a bra. I spent plenty of time last night worrying what a weirdo I looked like.
Though, I’m sure any mother would have an equal reaction to waking up to find her child missing.
Jesus.
Did I even remember to grab my suppressants out of the bathroom in my apartment?
I roll over, preparing to toss myself off the side of the bed, but I roll onto Malachy’s stomach.
I think I fucked up big time. I’m going to have to ask him to go to my apartment to retrieve my suppressants.
By the time I make it out of the bathroom, the alpha in question sits up against the headboard.
“Where’s Lucky?” I ask, tilting my head.
“He woke up at the crack of dawn,” Malachy says, chuckling.
“Made it halfway to the bathroom before he looked at me and let me know his diaper was leaking. I got him settled in the bathroom, gave him a wet washcloth to clean up and came out to scavenge for some of his clothes. I found underwear, socks, and pants. So, I’ll be honest, he’s still in his pajama shirt, but he was dressed and wide awake. ”
“Okay,” I say, trying to make sense of what he’s saying with the pounding in my temples.
Lucky doesn’t wear diapers anymore. He only wears Pull-Ups when he sleeps, but I guess maybe Malachy doesn’t know the difference.
Mal holds out his arms, and I feel a little like Lucky as I dash across the room, climbing onto his outstretched form. My face comes to rest against his chest, and if I’m not seriously careful, I’m going to break my own heart when it’s time for us to leave.
“Anyway, the lad was hungry.” Malachy rests his hands on my lower back, and I’m obsessed with the way his arms cradle my sides. “Initially, I planned to take him to Cormac, but I forgot he was up as late as I was. Fortunately, Patrick popped out of his bedroom before I could knock.”
“You pawned my kid off on your asshole brother?” I ask, unsure if I should laugh or be concerned.
“I had a late night myself, and I needed another hour or two of sleep. Not to mention, the thought of climbing back into bed next to you was too appealing to resist.” He chuckles.
“Ahh, ya know. I’ll agree, Patrick is a right dick at times, but he’s also loyal to a fault to those he cares about.
I assure you, he’s more than capable of feeding Lukas and keeping an eye on him until Miriam gets in. ”
“It’s still not their responsibility.”
“I’m sure you’ve heard the saying it takes a village.” He rubs circles over my lower back. “The end of the world won’t come if you give yourself a little grace. Being a parent isn’t easy, if you have support. I can’t imagine how difficult it must be trying to manage everything on your own.”
My heart thumps against my ribs as his words hit me right in the chest. I’m not an overly emotional person by nature, and it makes me wonder if the walls I’ve put up to keep myself safe are finally crumbling.
When something hurts, I build a little box around it and bury it deep enough that I can pretend it doesn’t exist. If I don’t think about it, the pain can’t eat me alive. It’s highly effective, even if I’m a therapist’s dream because my issues alone could fund their retirement.
My face pops off Malachy’s chest as another thought strikes. “I forgot my suppressants. I normally take them twice a day, but I missed yesterday entirely and the night before.”
Malachy’s head tilts, and he pulls a hand off my back to bring it to my cheek. “You are warm. I thought it was from being under the covers. Are you feeling all right?”
I shake my head. “Not really. I woke up achy, and my head is pounding. I really need those pills. Without them…”
“You could go into heat?”
I nod. “Exactly.”
“Feck,” he says, shaking his head. “I need to speak to Patrick. We discussed not going near your apartment in case anyone is watching.”
My stomach tightens, and I try not to sound accusatory as I say, “Wait, I thought you said you handled those guys.”
“We did,” he says quickly. “But you never know who is watching…the cops, the feds, some other third party that we don’t know to look out for. Let me speak to Pat, and we’ll make a plan.”
“I appreciate it.” I don’t know what comes over me, but I bring my hand to his jaw. His beard is soft and also slightly crunchy. It’s weird, but I love it.
Malachy leans closer, and the air between us feels almost electrically charged.
My heart pounds, and I lick my lips.
He’s going to kiss me…
It’s surprising to realize I wouldn’t turn away.
He stretches forward, and I wait for his lips to press against mine. Only, he kisses my forehead, and my stomach drops.
I completely misread that situation, and I don’t know how I feel about that.
Malachy makes a detour to his room to change clothes because, apparently, Miriam doesn’t like it when they come downstairs half-dressed.
I take the opportunity to change into daytime clothes, but somehow, I’m faster than he is.
I get antsy waiting and convince myself I can find my way on my own. I once again take the back stairs to the kitchen, even though I was trying to find the main stairs this time.
The leftover smells of breakfast hit my nose as I cross through the kitchen. I’m sure it was delicious, but I’m always overly sensitive without the suppressants deadening my sense of smell to almost nonexistent.
Coming around the corner into the living room, I stop dead in my tracks.
“And here we have Cormac,” Patrick says, pointing at his phone that he holds up for Lucky.
My kid looks quite comfy as he sits on his lap in the opulent living room.
“God, I thought he looked goofy after he got the braces, but check out those glasses. I should print this one and frame it to keep in my office.”
“That’s Cormac?” Lucky asks, squinting. “He’s little like me!”
“He was.” Patrick laughs. “And here we have me. Luckily, I’ve been devastatingly handsome since birth. It kinda defies logic that I never had a gangly phase, but the universe loves me.”
“She’s pretty,” Lucky says, pointing at someone on Patrick’s phone.