“You did more than that, and you know it.” Lifting one of her hands, I bring it to my lips, placing a kiss on her knuckles. “You’ve been my anchor for a long time, Lo.”
“As you are mine.” Stretching up, she kisses my mouth. “And I’m excited for you. Your happiness means the world to me. Same for Caz, Galen, and Saint.”
“You’re truly okay with this?”
She nods vigorously, her smile expanding. “So much, yes. I tried to respect your privacy, but I sneaked a few glimpses, and the two of you fucking was like my every fantasy come to life.” She nips at my jawline. “So. Fucking. Hot.” My answering smile is so wide it threatens to split my face in two. “I tried to persuade Saint and Galen to hop aboard the D-train, but they shut that shit down pretty fast.”
I throw back my head, laughing. “Yeah, no. That will never happen.” I love the Lennox cousins, but I’m not attracted to them sexually or romantically. Not in the way I am drawn to Lo and Caz.
“Come on. Let’s go put Caz out of his misery.” She tugs on my arm, and a last-minute bout of nerves attacks me.
“I hope I haven’t fucked it up before it’s even begun. He was so hurt.”
“Just be honest with him. Caz loves you, and he’s probably as scared as you are for a lot of the same reasons.”
“I never want to hurt him.”
“I know, babe.” She laces her fingers in mine. “Let’s go tell him.”
We walk downstairs, but the place is empty. Galen and Saint have made themselves scarce, so I figure they have relocated to the workout barn to give us space to work through this. Ascending the stairs on the other side of the barn, we find Caz lying on his side on his bed, staring off into space.
I clear my throat. “Caz. Can we talk?”
Slowly, he turns his head in our direction, examining my face carefully. He nods, hauling himself into a seated position with his back against the headrest. He’s wearing clean black boxer briefs that cling to his shapely hips, mold against his cock, and hug his muscular thighs, leaving little to the imagination. Carved abs that look painted on, chiseled shoulders, and rippling biceps complete the tempting package, and I’ve never been more attracted to any guy in my life.
Lo crawls up the bed beside him, leaning her head on his shoulder, while I perch on the side of the bed in front of him. “I’m sorry for pushing you away. I got all up in my head, and I freaked.”
Pain tightens his features. “Do you regret it? Did I…hurt you?” He chokes out the words, and I hate he’s been beating himself up over something that’s entirely my fault.
“No.” I slide my hand in his. “Not at all. It was everything I had hoped for and more. That’s the problem.”
His brow puckers, but he doesn’t pull his hand away. “I’m not following.”
Lo lifts her head from his shoulder, rubbing his arm as she smiles encouragingly at me.
Nerves prickle my skin, but I open myself up, exposing my vulnerability, because I owe him at least that much. “I’m scared, man. Of feeling too much. Of fucking everything up. Of hurting you. Of getting my heart broken.” The words rush out in quick succession, but at least I got them out.
“Theo.” He sits forward, palming one side of my face. “You think I don’t feel those things too?”
“You do?” I’m surprised because nothing seems to faze Caz. He owns who he is, and he’s fearlessly brave.
“I do, because this is you.” He grips the back of my neck, staring into my eyes. “I want you as more than just a friend. I love you as more than just a friend. But I don’t want to fuck things up either, because I can’t lose you.”
Lo swipes at the tears pooling in her eyes as I lean forward, pressing my forehead to Caz’s. “We can be scared together,” I whisper over his mouth, peering into his warm, honest brown eyes. “And I love you too,” I add before my lips meld against his.
CHAPTER 42
HARLOW
“CAN I TALK to you both?” Theo asks Saint and Galen the following morning as we eat breakfast at the table.
Saint squirms on his seat. “If this is about last night, you don’t need to say anything.”
“We’re cool with it,” Galen adds. “As long as you’ve worked your shit out.”
“You’re seriously okay with it?” Theo asks, color blooming in his cheeks.
Caz is grinning ear from ear, contributing nothing to the conversation, spooning cereal into his mouth while he watches it going down.
“Yup.” Saint slurps coffee from a mug.
“It’s not like it was a big secret,” Galen adds, stuffing the last piece of toast into his mouth. “We could tell you were hot for each other.” The words are muffled over his chewing, but the sentiment is clear.
Caz stands, rounding the table and clamping his hand down on Theo’s shoulder. “They’re cool with PDAs and live porn reenactments too. In case you were wondering.”
Theo’s cheeks get redder while Saint spits coffee all over the table.
“You’re such a shit-stirrer,” Galen says, licking his bowl clean. “Pun intended.” He waggles his brows, his mouth stretched into the biggest grin.
“Okay.” Saint stands abruptly, throwing his hands up. “Enough. We’re cool for you to do your thing. End of story.”
And just like that, our leader has spoken, ending the conversation, much to Theo’s obvious relief.
_______________
WE LEAVE SCHOOL early on Wednesday to attend the meeting Diesel has set up with the various interested parties. Not gonna lie, I’m on edge for a whole heap of reasons, but if we can do this—if we can work together—it means Sinner’s end is close, and that’s all that matters.
Galen blares the music as Saint drives my Lexus to the secret meeting. Following the coordinates Diesel sent us, Saint drives into an industrial park on the outskirts of the bustling town of Grenlow, coming to a halt in front of a small hardware store.
Saint’s lips pull into a snarl as he parks beside Diesel’s Land Rover, and I smother a smile. The back door opens abruptly, and Diesel leans inside, arms stretched overhead as he holds onto the door frame. “A few things before we go inside,” he says without bothering with formalities. His eyes drop to the necklace on my chest. “You’re wearing it, good. Only activate it once we are in the room. They have mad security here, and I don’t want it to trigger any system.”
“You don’t trust these guys,” Saint says, spinning around in the driver’s seat.
“I trust few people and definitely not a group of this size. Many of these men are unknowns, so tread carefully.” His somber gaze roams between us.
“What else do we need to know?” I ask.
“Don’t mention the recording we have of Sinner and the board instructing you to kill the commissioner.”
“Because you don’t trust everyone or it’s something else?” Theo asks, leaning forward on his elbows.
“We need to be cautious, and until this goes down, I don’t know if we can trust anyone with that intel.”
“We keep it to ourselves. Got it,” Galen says.