4. Audrey
AUDREY
“Over my fuckin’ dead body.”
I jump and spin around.
Bennett is standing in the doorway to my bedroom, looking between me and the destruction around us. His jaw is clenched, and there’s an angry look on his face that instantly puts me on edge.
I throw a hand up. “What? I’m sure you’ve got something to say, so say it.”
He walks toward me. “You’re coming home with us.”
I back away and hold my hands up. “I’m not going anywhere with you.”
I can’t. I know they don’t understand, but I can’t go from living under my father’s control to having Bennett and Knox making every decision for me.
Knox is somehow the calmer one right now. He steps closer, his voice soft. “Talk to us. Tell us what you’re thinking.”
I look around my destroyed bedroom. My clothes are ruined. My furniture is overturned. Someone went through every inch of the one place that was supposed to be mine.
I grip the straps of the backpack tighter. “I should never have gotten you two mixed up in this. I should have sent you an email or something with everything I knew instead of meeting with you.”
Bennett takes a breath like he’s trying to hold on to his patience. “Honey, listen. We’ve been adversaries of Victor Sterling for decades. This is not on you.”
“I know that.” I glance out the bedroom door into the living room, and the word TRAITOR stares back at me. I swallow hard. “But having me, his own flesh and blood, turn on him and join the other side has left him unhinged. I’ve never seen him this desperate.”
And that scares me more than I want either of them to know.
My father has always been ruthless, but he’s usually calculated about it. This feels different.
Bennett puts his hands on his hips. “What were they looking for?”
I hesitate. I’ve kept this secret for months. Even when I started helping the Kingstons, I didn’t tell them everything. I needed something of my own that I could use if my father refused to let Grant go.
I reach behind me and tap the backpack. “A thumb drive.”
Knox takes a step toward me. “What’s on the thumb drive?”
I look between the two men. I trust them. At least my gut tells me I should. That thought alone is terrifying because I haven’t trusted anyone outside my brother in a very long time.
I suck in a breath. “My father’s computer.”
Bennett’s mouth drops open. “What?”
I lift my chin. “I knew he needed to be taken down, and this is the way to do it. I thought I could get him to release my brother, but since he hasn’t, this is my fallback.”
Bennett stares at me like I’ve grown another head. “You have your dad’s computer contents on that thumb drive?”
“Yeah.” I shift the backpack higher on my shoulder. “I have everything. The buildings he burned, the politicians he threatened, the deals, the threats, the bribes. Everything.”
For the first time since I walked into this apartment, I feel like I have a little bit of control again. I may not be able to physically overpower my father, but I can destroy him. “I’m going to turn it over to the police.”
Knox immediately shakes his head. “Oh, honey. He’s got the police in his back pocket.”
My stomach drops because I know he’s probably right. “Fine. I’ll do something with it.” I look between them. “But what I won’t do is get you two even more involved.”
Bennett’s forehead creases. “Why?”
“Because.”
A soft smile pulls at his mouth. “That’s not an answer, pretty.”
My stomach flips at the name, which only frustrates me more. I cross my arms over my chest. “Because I don’t want the two of you hurt.”
There. I said it. Bennett’s expression changes. Before I can take the words back, he walks toward me and puts his fingers beneath my chin, lifting my face until I’m looking at him.
My breath catches. I hate how easily my body responds to this man.
His thumb brushes lightly along my skin. “Because you care about Knox and me.”
I should deny it. Instead, I look over at Knox and then back at Bennett. “Yeah. I mean, how could I not? You are the only two people that seem to care if I’m dead or alive right now.”
Something flashes across Bennett’s face, and his expression gets even more intense.
My heart starts pounding harder. This is exactly why living with them is a terrible idea. One of them touching me is bad enough. Having both of them around all the time would be impossible.
Bennett keeps his hand beneath my chin. “Right. Well, from what you know of us, do you really think we’re going to let you handle this alone?”
I look between the two men, and I don’t even have to think about it because I know the answer. From the first day I walked into Bennett’s office and asked for help, he has done everything in his power to keep me protected and safe. I shake my head. “No.”
His hand slides down my chin and wraps around my neck. “Come home with me… with us.”
As I stare into his dark brown eyes, I feel myself getting lost. I look over at Knox’s blue eyes, and I know I have a decision to make.
I can be stubborn and go to a shelter, and most likely my father and his men will find me within days.
Or I can go home with two men that I’m so attracted to I can barely think straight… but I’ll be safe.
As I stand here, it all starts to cave in on me.
The months of worrying about my brother and trying to stay two steps ahead of my dad.
Trying to find a job and pay for my apartment when no one wants to hire a Sterling because they don’t want the drama and trouble that comes with the name.
All of it just seems to come to a head in an instant, and I take a deep breath.
It feels like I can’t catch my breath, so I try to breathe in again.
Over and over, until the panic sets in. I’ve had panic attacks before but not since I walked off Sterling territory.
Now it seems that they’ve caught up to me.
Usually when this happens, I try to focus on my breathing and maybe throw some cold water in my face, but this time, Knox and Bennett are with me.
Their voices sound like they’re coming from a tunnel. Bennett stands in front of me, pulling me against his chest. Knox stands behind me, flush against my back. Both men are talking, and when I start to calm down, I can make out their words.
“We’re here, honey. We got you. Breathe,” Bennett says.
“In one, two, three. Out one, two, three. Good girl,” Knox says.
And they’re both caressing me until instead of the panic attack, I’m focusing on the feel of their touch.
Bennett’s touch is firm with one hand wrapped around the back of my neck while the other rubs slowly up and down my arm.
Knox’s touch is gentler, his palms moving over my shoulders and down my sides in slow strokes. I’m surrounded by them.
For the first time in what seems like forever, I don’t feel like I have to hold everything together on my own. My breathing finally starts to even out.
Bennett dips his head until his forehead rests against mine. “That’s it, pretty. We’ve got you.”
Knox’s hand slides down my arm, and his fingers wrap around mine. “You’re safe, Audrey.”
Safe. The word hits me harder than it should.
I close my eyes and let myself lean into both of them. Maybe going home with Bennett and Knox is a terrible idea. But right now, standing between them, it feels like the safest place I’ve ever been.