“Yeah. Because it looked like you were handling it just fine before we showed up to save your ass.”
The pink and silver of her power is skimming over her skin, growing brighter the angrier she gets.
“Saved my ass? Did you not see me shock the shit out of him? Did you not see that I had it under control? I didn’t want to hurt him. He’s under some kind of spell, just like you guys were. He was trying to warn me.”
“Cole, man, back off,” I say, laying a hand on his shoulder. “We should take this discussion somewhere else.”
I can feel Fate studying me as Cole’s eyes meet mine, and I’m sure he can see just how close I am to losing it.
With my own emotions spiraling out of control, the emotions from Fate and my brothers filtering through my senses, and all of the chaos in the room around me, I’m getting close to my limit. I need to get out of here.
With one last look at the woman that’s going to be the death of me - for real this time - I let all of my emotions free. I want her to understand. Her gorgeous gray eyes go wide, and her pouty lips open slightly. The urge to grab her by the back of the neck, push her to her knees, and have her help me release the tension building inside is almost too much to restrain. But now is not the time or the place. And there’s the fact that we really need to talk first.
“I’ll see you guys back at the Gateway,” I say as I touch the mark on my wrist and pray I make it to my room before I pass out.
Knox disappears in a wisp of black smoke, and I can breathe again. The enormity of what he was experiencing was overwhelming, and the fact that I was at least partially to blame makes me feel like complete shit.
My eyes meet Mack’s. There’s understanding there despite the lingering anger, a hint of forgiveness, and relief. Yet that doesn’t make me feel any better. When I look at the twins, their faces are stoic as they stare back at me. They’re still, quiet, and that’s honestly more terrifying than if they were raging at me. I’m so used to my twins’ naughty banter that the silence is powerful enough to damn near suck the air out of the room. Turning, I’m caught in Cole’s glare. That’s nothing unusual, but what he’s feeling tells me it goes far deeper than being furious with me. Besides all of the anger and worry, there’s a common denominator between my guys: hurt. I can deal with their fury. The hurt, well, it twists me up inside.
“I really am sorry, but if I had told you what I was planning, you never would have let me come. I needed to do this.”
“Was it worth it?” Cole asks, his tone deceptively soft.
“Cole, I…”
“You know what? Save it.”
“But let me explain…”
“Oh, you’re going to explain alright. But right now we need to get out of here, and I need to check on Knox.”
“Is he okay?” I ask, concern for my snarky empath overriding everything else.
Macklin jumps into the conversation. “He’s close to an overload. When that happens, he’s usually out cold for days.”
“Fuck! What are we waiting for then?” I look at my friend. “Reggie, if there are spirits still lingering at the Gateway, can you let them know I apologize for the unforeseen delay and I’ll hold court again as soon as I can to make up for it?”
“You got it, boss.” In a blink, she’s gone.
“Are we ready?” I ask quietly.
They don’t respond to me. Instead, Cole shares a glance with Mack before he and the twins simply vanish. Mack stares at me with an inscrutable look on his face, making me suddenly feel self-conscious, which is ridiculous.
“Mack?” I whisper cautiously.
He simply shakes his head. “Come on, echo. Let’s get you home.”
He grabs my hand with his own ghostly one, which still surprises me. I didn’t know they could go ghost. Another thing they didn’t tell me? My gaze drops to that simple connection then back up at my sexy nerd, holding his intense stare with my own as our bodies begin to dematerialize and reappear outside our rooms in the Gateway. My other three guys are waiting for us there, in deep discussion...until they see us. They all straighten, another shared look passing between them.
So the bastards have learned nothing. Great.
Cole starts to head toward Knox’s room.
“Cole?”
He turns to look back at me.
“Let me check on Knox?”
He doesn’t say anything at first. Just contemplates me with that damn scowl on his face. With a single nod, he walks away without a word. Fucking hell. He’s going to make me grovel, isn’t he?
The twins stalk over. Thad leans down and pulls my chin up with one of his large fingers, forcing me to meet his eyes.
“We’ve got your back. Always, woman. But don’t ever leave us again.” His lips meet mine roughly, but he’s gone so quickly I have no chance to deepen the kiss.
Levi steps into me before I can recover and drops a sweet kiss to my forehead. “You can make it up to us later, sweets.” His eyes locking onto mine before he steps back with a small smirk. “Though that might have to wait until you can sit without flinching.”
What the fuck does that mean?
My two blond giants follow after Cole.
“Go check on our empath. He needs you,” Mack says as he wraps his big arms around me and I bury my face into his chest.
Taking a deep breath, I inhale his scent, like rain and the freshness that follows a storm, shoring up my defenses for what’s to come.
“Good luck.” With that, he follows after his brothers.
What the hell? It’s like everyone knows something I don’t. I eye the door down the hall that I know belongs to Knox. I haven’t been inside any of their rooms yet, so I honestly don’t know what to expect when I finally force my feet to move in that direction. Taking a deep breath, I knock softly.
No answer.
“Knox, it’s me. Can I come in?”
Nothing.
I start to worry that I’m too late. That he’s already passed out and I’m going to find him laid out on the floor or slumped over in a chair. What if he’s hurt? I don’t hesitate. Quickly opening the door, I walk into the darkened room. There’s a soft light coming from the back corner that barely reaches the doorway from what I’m assuming is the bathroom as there aren’t any windows in the Gateway. Making my way inside, I wait for my eyes to adjust. They flare wide when they catch a glimpse of him.
He’s standing in front of a huge wall of photos, much like the one in the main chamber, a glass of what is probably whiskey in his large hand. His large bed is directly behind him, perfectly made and untouched. But that isn’t what has my full attention. It’s the fact that he’s shirtless, his jeans unbuttoned slightly, with his feet bare.
“Knox?”
He doesn’t acknowledge me, but I see him straighten slightly as he raises the glass to his lips, downing the remaining contents.
“Are you okay?” I ask softly. I shouldn’t feel uncertain, but this is uncharted territory. “I told Cole I’d check on you.”
“You should probably go,” he murmurs, his voice low and deep which sends a shiver down my spine, along with a hefty dose of pain since he apparently doesn’t want me here.