11. Kiera
KIERA
I'm still in my damn robe.
The realization hits me as I stand in my living room surrounded by six men, all of them staring at me like I'm some fragile thing that might shatter.
I pull the robe tighter around myself, acutely aware of how exposed I am.
The fabric is thin, barely covering my thighs, and I'm not wearing anything underneath except panties and a tank top.
My brothers might not notice, but Emil does.
His dark eyes track the movement of my hands as I clutch the lapels together, and something hot and possessive flashes across his face.
I need everyone to leave. Now.
My apartment feels too small, too crowded.
The walls are closing in, and I can't breathe properly with all these bodies taking up space, sucking up oxygen.
I need quiet. I need to think. Someone just shot at me, for God's sake, and I can't even process what the hell happened because my living room has turned into some kind of testosterone-fueled convention.
Why would someone shoot at me? What the hell is going on?
"Everyone needs to leave," I say firmly, crossing my arms over my chest. The movement makes the robe gape slightly, and I see Emil's jaw tighten. "I appreciate the concern, but I'm fine. I just need some space."
No one moves.
Kevin, my oldest brother, exchanges a look with Jack.
Devin leans against the wall with his arms crossed, his gym-sculpted muscles bulging beneath his shirt.
Kaleb just shakes his head. Emil stands near the window, his broad shoulders blocking out the streetlight, looking like some kind of dark angel who's decided to take up residence in my life whether I want him to or not.
"Did you hear me?" I try again, my voice rising. "I said leave."
Still nothing. They might as well be statues.
"She's going home with me."
Emil's voice cuts through the silence like a blade. Deep, accented, absolutely certain. He doesn't ask. He doesn't suggest. He just states it like it's already decided, like I have no say in the matter whatsoever.
Something inside me snaps.
"Excuse me?" I whirl on him, my hands clenching into fists at my sides. "I'm going home with you? Are you out of your mind?"
He doesn't flinch, doesn't even blink, just watches me with those dark, unreadable eyes that make my stomach do stupid, fluttery things even when I'm furious with him.
"You put an engagement notice in the newspaper," I spit out, my voice shaking with anger.
"You didn't ask me. You didn't even tell me you were doing it.
You just went ahead and announced to the entire city that we're getting married, and now you're standing in my apartment telling me I'm going home with you like I'm some kind of possession you can just cart around wherever you want? "
"Yes," he says simply.
The audacity. The absolute fucking audacity of this man.
"What the hell is going on?" Kevin steps forward, his marketing executive voice taking on that authoritative tone he uses when he's trying to take charge. "Kiera, what engagement notice? What is he talking about?"
Jack's cop instincts have kicked in as he studies Emil. "Yeah, little sister. You want to explain what's happening here?"
I close my eyes and take a deep breath. Then another. It doesn't help. When I open them again, all six men are staring at me, waiting.
With a heavy sigh that comes from somewhere deep in my soul, I walk over to the couch and plop down. The robe rides up my thighs, and I yank it back down, ignoring the way Emil's gaze follows the movement.
"Fine," I mutter. "You want to know what's going on? I'll tell you what's going on."
I launch into the story, starting with the club. How I'd gone out with friends, trying to have a normal night. How Arnie had shown up, my ex-boyfriend who can't seem to understand that 'ex' means it's over. How he'd cornered me, gotten too close, made me feel trapped and scared.
"I panicked," I admit, my voice quieter now. "Arnie was right there, and he wouldn't leave me alone, and I just… I grabbed onto the nearest guy and told Arnie we were engaged."
"And that guy was him?" Jack jerks his chin toward Emil.
"That guy was him," I confirm.
Kevin's eyes narrow. "And then what happened?"
"Then Emil played along. He was very convincing.
" I shoot Emil a look. He's leaning against the wall now, arms crossed over his chest, and God help me, the man is built like sin.
Broad shoulders, thick arms, and a chest that looks like it could stop bullets.
Which, given tonight's events, might actually be a useful quality.
"Too convincing, apparently, because he went and put an announcement in the newspaper without asking me first."
"You claimed me publicly," Emil says, his voice low and dangerous. "In front of witnesses."
"It was a lie," I protest. "A desperate, spur-of-the-moment lie to get Arnie to back off. Any fool would have known that." He raises an eyebrow at me, but other than that, he doesn't show any response to my basically calling him a fool.
"It became truth the moment you spoke it."
"That's not how it works!"
Kevin holds up his hands. "Okay, everyone, just calm down. Kiera, you can't actually be considering marrying this guy. You don't even know him."
"I'm not considering it," I snap. "That's what I've been trying to tell him."
Emil's jaw tightens, the muscle there flexing in a way that shouldn't be attractive but absolutely is.
Damn him. Even when I'm furious, even when he's being the most infuriating man I've ever met, my body still reacts to him.
The dark intensity in his eyes makes me feel like I'm the only person in the room, even surrounded by my brothers.
Still, the man says nothing. He just looks at me with a smug expression that says he thinks I'm just throwing a tantrum and I'll come to my senses. What an egotistical jerk. He's so full of himself, I'm surprised he doesn't burst at the seams.
"Moving on," Jack says firmly, though his cop stare has intensified on Emil.
"This is insane," I say, standing up. The robe falls open slightly, and I catch Emil's gaze dropping to the exposed skin of my chest before snapping back up to my face. Heat floods through me, unwanted and inconvenient. "All of this is completely insane."
"Kiera," Kevin starts, but I cut him off.
"No. I'm done. I'm going to bed." I point at the door. "All of you can see yourselves out. Or stay here and argue all night. I don't care anymore. I just want to sleep."
I march toward my bedroom, my bare feet slapping against the hardwood floor. Behind me, voices rise in protest, but I ignore them. I'm done, so completely done with this entire nightmare of a night.
In my bedroom, I strip off the robe and pull on my favorite pajamas, soft cotton pants, and a worn T-shirt. The familiar clothes feel like armor, like I'm reclaiming some small piece of normalcy in a world that's gone completely off the rails.
I crawl into bed and pull the covers up to my chin, but sleep doesn't come.
My mind won't shut off. It keeps replaying everything. The gunshot. The way Emil had moved, fast and lethal, pushing me down and covering my body with his. The solid weight of him, all muscle and heat. The way his hand had felt on the back of my neck, protective and possessive at the same time.
And before that, at the club. The way he'd looked at me when I'd grabbed his arm. The way he'd played along without hesitation, sliding into the role of my fiancé like he'd been born for it.
Who is he, really? What kind of man puts an engagement announcement in the newspaper for a woman he barely knows?
From the living room, I can hear voices. They're still arguing. The idiotic men haven't left. Of course they haven't. Because why would anything about tonight be simple or straightforward?
I press my hands over my ears, but it doesn't help. Kevin's voice rises, then Emil's, deeper and more controlled. Jack says something I can't make out. Devin and Kaleb chime in.
They're arguing about me and what decisions I should make.
I grab a pillow and shove it over my head, pressing it down hard enough to muffle the sounds. The darkness behind my eyelids is a relief. The weight of the pillow is comforting.
Slowly, finally, exhaustion wins out over the racing thoughts and the distant argument. My body relaxes into the mattress. My breathing evens out, and I fall asleep.
When I wake up, sunlight is streaming through my bedroom window.
And all four of my brothers are standing around my bed.
I jolt upright, my heart hammering. "What the hell?"
Jack steps forward. He looks tired, like he hasn't slept. None of them look like they've slept. "Emil and Luca are stationed outside."
"Stationed?" I repeat stupidly, still half-asleep and completely confused.
"Outside your apartment," Kevin clarifies. "They've been there all night."
I blink at them, trying to process this information. "Why?"
Jack's expression is serious, more serious than I've ever seen it. He sits down on the edge of my bed, and the mattress dips under his weight.
"We need to talk," he says quietly. "You need to understand who Emil really is."