“Good.” Marcus gives a decisive nod. “As I said, we’ll have to move fast if we want to keep bloodshed to a minimum on all sides. We’ve been making moves on Luca’s trade deals and suppliers, and we’ll need your help to secure those alliances. We’ll meet again soon to discuss details.”
Victoria flips down the designer sunglasses that are perched on her head. With her eyes hidden behind the dark lenses, she glances around the park. “I understand why you chose this as our meeting place today, but if we’re going to be in business together, we should find a more secure location. Someplace we can meet. Neutral territory, but not as open.”
“On it.” Theo grins. “I’ll find us an office downtown.”
We talk in low voices for a few more minutes, hashing out some of the details of how this new partnership will work. I mostly just listen, paying attention to everything I hear. I’ve had to pick up the ropes fast since being thrust violently into this world, and I know I’ve still got a lot to learn. Especially since I have a stake in this too now.
The meeting breaks up with a promise that we’ll meet again in a few days in whatever location Theo secures for us. In the meantime, we’ll keep working on taking over the open pockets that are left in Luca’s absence.
Victoria and Jaden peel off first, walking back the way they came. She leans on him a little, and he wraps an arm around her waist.
Caleb clears his throat, wincing a little as he shifts his weight. “I gotta go. Brenson says I’m still not supposed to be on my feet much.” He ducks his head, then looks up at me, biting his lip. “Thank you.”
“It wasn’t just my decision.” I shrug, deflecting his words a little. The truth is, there’s a good chance the men might’ve cut him out of the deal if he wasn’t my brother—that he would never have been included in the bargain in the first place. I know they’ve given him a second chance because of me, and I hope like fuck that he’ll prove himself worthy of it.
He bobs his head again, and I know he sees through my dismissal, but he doesn’t comment on it. Instead, he just nods to the guys before turning to leave. I watch him go, unable to stop myself from analyzing his gait a little, trying to gauge how much pain he’s in and how his healing is going.
You could’ve just asked him, I remind myself wryly.
Maybe one day, I will. Maybe I’ll be able to have a normal conversation with him at some point—one that isn’t fraught with dozens of conflicting feelings and memories.
When Caleb disappears from sight, I turn back to face my three men. All of them are watching me, of course, a lot more interested in my well-being than my brother’s.
I smile and step up to Marcus, who’s closest to me. Resting my hand on his chest, I press a kiss to his lips. “That went well.”
One of his muscled arms, snakes around my waist, securing me against him. “It did.”
I glance at the other two, my heart beating a little harder. “So we’re really doing this? Are you sure?” Catching Theo’s gaze, I frown. “You told me once that you didn’t even want to win the prize. That you didn’t want to be the one at the top.”
He shrugs, stepping closer to me. Marcus loosens his hold on me without letting go completely, and I turn in his arms to face Theo as Ryland moves in on my other side. I love the feeling of being surrounded by them like this, as if they could block out the entire world until nothing but the three of them existed.
“I didn’t want to win, not really,” Theo admits. Then he snorts a humorless laugh. “I didn’t even want to play. But sometime in the middle of the game, I realized what I was playing for.” He cups the side of my face, running his thumb over my cheek. “It was for this. For you. For us. And the best way to keep the people I care about safe is to watch out for them from the top.”
A storm cloud seems to pass through his bright blue-green eyes. A hint of anger resonates in his voice as he adds, “This will give me a chance to help my mom too. Luca didn’t give a shit about her or my uncle, or the bullshit my uncle tried to pull. But I do. And if we can pull the right strings, I’ll make sure he loses every-fucking-thing. His stake in my dad’s company. His own business. All of it.”
There’s grim satisfaction in his expression, and I lean forward to kiss him too. “I’ll be there to help you. Any way I can.”
“You already do, Rose.” He slides his fingers down the line of my jaw before dropping his hand.
Ryland is on my other side, and when he reaches up to catch my chin, I turn toward him, already knowing what he wants. My lips catch his as the scent of sandalwood infuses my soul, and I kiss him without hesitation.
I don’t care that we’re in public.
I don’t care that anyone could see me being held between these three men, kissing each of them deeply.
In fact, I hope they do.
I hope they see the kind of love that’s possible even in this fucked up world.
When Ryland and I break apart, Marcus shifts my hair over my shoulder, brushing his lips along the curve of my neck. Then he releases me, catching my hand in his.
“Come on, angel. Let’s go home.”
Epilogue
Five Years Later
“That’s good. Keep your arm up though. It’ll help you block a counterstrike.”
Ryland nods approvingly as he assesses my form. We’re in the massive home gym on the lower level of our house. When the men all sold their places so we could move in together, one of the first things Ryland did was set up the gym so we could continue on with our training sessions.
I never expected to like it so much, but fighting is fucking addictive. And although there are plenty of things I have to modify because of my missing limb, I’ve never felt held back by it. I’m a quick learner, and I’m used to adapting. And as Ryland once affectionately told me, I’m excellent at channeling my rage.
I took that as a high compliment.
Breathing hard, I shift my stance a little, making the adjustment he suggested. Then I whip my left hand out, catching his open palm with a solid punch. My other arm comes up to block as he swipes at me in retaliation, and he grins when I stop his left hook.
“Good.”
Something shifts in his hazel eyes, a hint of fire burning in their depths a split second before he moves again. This time, instead of going for a hit, he ducks low and grabs me around the waist, driving me backward and bringing me to the ground.
Instead of fighting it, I let it happen, feeding into the momentum of our bodies and throwing myself into the takedown. As soon as we hit the mats, I buck my hips and roll, switching our positions so I’m on top. My thighs squeeze tight around his waist as I wedge my forearm under his chin, my dark ponytail falling on one side of my face.
“Mommy, are you beating up daddy again?”
The sweet little voice from the doorway makes Ryland and me both look. Cassidy is standing with her hand resting on the doorframe, a smile on her face. She’s got dimples in her cheeks that come out when she grins like that, and it gets me every time.
“It was a draw,” Ryland says, amusement in his rumbling voice.
Cassidy takes in our position again, her brow furrowing skeptically. “It doesn’t look like it.”