Chapter 23
Ronan quietly walked into his bedroom to find Giada tucked into bed wearing one of his teeshirts, and she’d obviously been cleaned up — Tempest, no doubt.
A lamp was on across the room from the bed, and she was snuggled against one of the pillows, breathing calm, regular breaths.
He sat on the side of the bed beside her trying to get a feel for anything she might be feeling, but there was no fear, no pain.
Relieved he reached out and stroked her face gently.
“I’m here, honey. I found the boys. They were still tucked away where you hid them, perfectly safe.
They brought their pillows and their new toys with them and can’t wait to see you.
I couldn’t wait to see you. I was so scared, Giada.
I was afraid you’d be hurt before I got there.
And then when I saw that fucker holding you by the hair, beating you.
I couldn’t stop myself. I launched myself at him.
It’s my fault he threw you to the ground.
It’s my fault you hit your head. I’m so sorry.
I should have handled it differently, but I just, I lost it when you were threatened. ”
He paused for a second to try to focus himself. He was having a hard time regulating his emotions at the idea that he might have actually lost her if he’d been two seconds later, and the kids, too, for that matter.
“I’m just glad you’re okay. Tempest healed you, and so did Bam. Tempest and Brandt brought you back here while I searched for Leo and Matteo. Tempest sensed them somewhere near your house so she knew they were safe — I just had to find them. You found a great hiding place. You did good.”
He paused to breathe and compose himself again.
“See, here’s the thing. I want you here.
I want Leo and Matteo here. I can hear them talking to my dad out in the living room.
They want to be here. So, I’m really hoping you want to be here, too, now that you know you don’t have to hide anymore.
And you don’t have to hide. They’re gone.
The men your husband sent after you, and even your husband.
They’re all gone. They’re dead, Giada. I’d like to say I got the privilege of removing your husband from the face of the Earth, but I was busy at the shelter.
Tempest took care of that, and from what I understand, it was terrifying, so I do take some solace in that.
But regardless, they no longer draw breath.
No one will ever come after you again. You can rest easy every night.
You can send the boys to school if you want to, or home school them here if you need time to adjust to letting them out of your sight.
Whatever you want is fine, I just hope you’ll want to be here with me.
But maybe I shouldn’t have said that. It’s selfish of me to assume that you’d want to be here now that you get the chance to live freely. ”
He paused and looked down at his hands before looking up at her again.
“Ultimately, I love you. I want you to be happy. Even if it’s not with me.
And honestly, as long as you’re happy and they’re happy, I’d find a way to be okay with that.
Either way, just know you don’t have to worry anymore, and you’re free. And safe.”
He sat there watching her sleep for a few minutes longer before he leaned over and kissed her forehead.
“The boys want to see you so I’m going to let them come in for a little while, okay?
Don’t worry, you’re all cleaned up and there’s no indication that anything happened.
I just told them that you fell and hit your head.
I didn’t think they needed to know what actually happened.
Leo, though, he’s a smart one. He knows exactly why you hid them away and who was trying to hurt you.
But still, I told him you fell while you were trying to lead the bad guys away from their hiding spot. ”
He stood and looked down at her, sleeping peacefully in his bed. “Take your time. There’s no rush. Take all the time you need to heal,” he whispered, then quietly left the room.
About ten minutes later he was back with both boys, having given them time to finish their cereal. He slowly opened the door and let them get a look at their mother. Leo looked up at him. “Can I go lay by her?”
“Of course,” Ronan said. “So can you, Matteo.”
They both hurried across the room and climbed up on the bed. Leo situated himself beside her with his head on her shoulder. “We’re here, Momma!”
“Momma, I’m here, too,” Matteo said, leaning his head on her stomach. “I want to stay here for always. Can we stay here for always? And when your headache goes away and you wake up, can Ronan be our daddy? We like him.”
“Yeah, we do,” Leo said.
“Guys, that’s Momma’s decision, okay? Let’s give her some time to rest and decide what she wants,” Ronan said.
Both boys nodded, and Leo yawned. “I’m gonna take a nap, Momma,” he said, snuggling in closer beside her but moving his head to the pillow beside hers.
“Me, too, but I’m gonna lay on my wolf pillow,” Matteo said. He squirmed around until he managed to have his back pressed against her hip and his head on the wolf pillow he’d remembered to grab before running into the bedroom.
“Where’s mine?” Leo asked.
“I’ll go get it,” Ronan said. He was right back with the pillow in his hand, and gave it to Leo.
“Thank you,” Leo said, as he yawned again.
“You guys get some sleep. I’m going to leave the door cracked a bit and I’ll leave the lamp on for you. I’ll be in the living room if you need me.”
“Okay,” Leo said, as Matteo let out a soft little snore. “He’s already asleep.”
Ronan laughed softly. “He sure is.” Ronan watched as Leo got himself comfortable and let out a deep, satisfied sigh. It was crazy how quickly kids relaxed when they realized they were safe and loved. It was an instinct they had.
He went back into the living room and flopped down on the sofa.
“Now what?” Brandt asked.
“Now we wait until she wakes up and just make sure they have all they need,” Ronan said.
“Well, I’m going home to get your mother. We’ll be back to help out any way we can,” Maverik said.
“Give us a ride?” Brandt asked. “I don’t want Tempest to have to walk, or mist us anywhere. She’s not recovered yet.”
“You can take my truck,” Ronan said.
“Nah, I’ll take ‘em,” Maverik said.
“Either way, as long as we get there. Eli will be up and pestering Hellen soon, so I want to be home when he decides he’s waited too long to figure out what’s going on,” Brandt said.
“That boy is just like you when you were little,” Maverik said. “Can’t slip a damn thing past him.”
Brandt grinned. “Smart like his Momma,” Brandt said.
“And don’t you forget it,” Tempest said. She laid her head on Brandt’s shoulder after he pulled her to her feet in preparation of leaving. “I’m going to need to sleep this off. Hellacious headache,” she said.
“I got you. Me and Eli will hold down the fort.”
Tempest lifted her head enough to kiss his jaw.
“Bam, you ready?” Maverik asked.
“I’m ready. I’m sure Everly is wondering what’s happening. It’s almost five in the morning!”
“She knows you were on rotation with me last night,” Maverik said.
“Yeah, but I usually text her all night. I haven’t texted her since about ten.”
“Oh, one thing I noticed,” Ronan said, looking at Tempest, “when I was carrying the boys to the truck, a couple of people in the homes peeked suspiciously out of their windows.”
“It’s okay. I sent them a suggestion that the noises they were hearing were probably some wildlife moving through the area and they should stay inside until daylight. They were probably just looking for the wildlife,” Tempest said.
“She’s good,” Brandt said.
“That she is,” Maverik said. He looked at Ronan as he moved toward the front door. “We’ll be right back, boy.”
“Thank you, Dad. Thank all of you. I’ll be forever grateful.”
“It’s just what we do,” Brandt said, winking at Ronan.
“And by the way, you’ve got a beautiful family, Ronan,” Tempest said.
“I hope.”
“There’s no hope about it. I know.”
“You didn’t…” he asked, fluttering his fingers in the air.
“Nope. But I know what they’re all feeling. Just let it happen. It’s all good,” Tempest said.
Bam got up and walked over to where Ronan was slouching on the sofa. He leaned over and hugged him. “I like your family, and I’m glad I could be a part of helping.”
“Me, too, Uncle Bam. I don’t know what I’d have done without you.”
Bam grinned. “And you and your girl are both so golden. She’s a human and she’s almost as gold as you!”
“I like that,” Ronan said, wearing a wide grin.
“I’ll see you later,” Bam said and headed out to the truck.
“Call if you need us,” Brandt said as he ushered Tempest out to the truck.
“Be right back,” Maverik said again, before closing the door behind himself and heading out to take everybody to where they needed to be.
~~~
Ronan fell asleep on the sofa, but an hour later was up and on his feet before he fully knew what had awakened him. His Wolf focused their attention on the front door as it eased open.
“Ronan?” Valerie said softly, peering into the semi-dark living room.
“Hey, Momma. Come on in,” Ronan said, sitting back down and running his hands through his hair and down his face.
Valerie stepped inside with Maverik on her heels. “Everybody resting?” she asked.
“Yeah. They really need it,” Ronan said.
“You need it,” Maverik said.
“I’m sure I do. I told the boys I’d be in here if they need me, so I’m just going to doze on the sofa so they’ll know where to find me when they wake up.”
“Sorry it took us so long to make it back. I made Dad drive me to the shelter so I could go through her place and find a few things for the kids and for Giada.”
Ronan’s brows came down over his eyes, his usual expression for being puzzled. “Like what?”
“Like clothes, like shoes and socks, underwear for all three of them, and anything that looked personal. I also brought a robe, and some slippers for Giada.”
“Thank you, Mom. I just gave her those for Valentine’s Day,” Ronan said, smiling as he looked at the top of the robe sticking out of the bag his mother carried.
“Aren’t you a sweetheart,” she said, smiling lovingly at her youngest child. “Where do you want these things?”
Ronan stood up. “Think I’ll put them in the bedroom so she can find them when she wakes up.
” He took the bag from his mother and spent a few minutes separating and folding the clothing in each, leaving the shoes in the bottom of the bag before he went down the hall to his bedroom and laying out Giada’s robe and slippers on a cushioned bench along one bedroom wall.
He placed her other few changes of clothes in one of the drawers in his dresser, and a pair of loafers beside his own shoes, then he went into one of the other bedrooms and laid the boys’ clothes on the foot of the bed.
He set the kid’s sneakers on the floor beside the bed, then went back into the living room.
He flopped down on one end of the sectional before grabbing the channel selector and flipping through a few channels before deciding on something mindless and lighthearted.
He tossed the channel selector to the coffee table and reached for a throw pillow, rolling it around his forearm before resting his head on it.
“Baby, the sun’s coming up. Why don’t you try to nap a little at least. We’re here and if the kids get up we’ll make sure they’re fed and occupied until you and/or Giada wakes up.”
“They’re probably gonna sleep in. They went through some traumatizing shit last night,” Maverik said.
“That’s what I’m thinking,” Ronan said. “I’m just going to doze a little. Help yourself to whatever you want.”
“We got it. This ain’t our first rodeo. It’s just our first one with you and yours,” Maverik said.
Ronan nodded and yawned as he let his eyes slowly drift closed, safe in the knowledge that those he loved were safe under his roof, and his parents were here to offer support.