I stuck my face up into the burning cold water that fell from the shower faucet. Shivering and crying, I tried to get myself under control. Tried to keep from shaking apart from the inside out. Raging against the cage I felt closing in around me never helped. Nothing did really. Not medication. Not meditation. Nothing. Just having to wait it out. I'd thrown out my Valium when we traveled to Italy. I didn't need customs looking too closely at me. And my prescription was way too old for me to legally have the drugs in my possession anymore. So here I was, hiding in my shower like the frightened little mouse Rafe had called me. I hung my head. Shoving the faucet handle all the way to the far side, I bit my lip to keep from screaming as the water changed from arctic temperatures to Saharan desert in the middle of the summer. I heard him walk into the room. The sound of the shower no match for his energy. Like a huge spring tornado, I had no idea how others didn't notice him. Su
Raising my head, I stared down at my woman. Something was off. I couldn't tell what it was...yet. But I would. But right now, we both needed to actually shower. Hoisting myself up off of the haven of her body, I drew her up with me. Pulling her into my arms, I carried her back into the bathroom. Hit the shower handle to give us some more warm water. Settling her on her feet, I guided her under the water. Watched as the water caressed her skin. Her complexion was the embodiment of strawberries and cream. And tasted just as sweet. Pumping a handful of shampoo into my palm, I set to washing her hair. I would never admit it, but I loved washing her long tresses. It was so soothing. The scent of the jasmine and vanilla shampoo, the feel of her hair between my fingers. The suds that made her silky smooth as they vanished under the pounding stream of water. She closed her eyes, tipped her head back. With her hands against my chest and her heart next to mine, I took care of her. Wh
My eyes widened as I watched the men all glare and snarl under their breath. Caught between conflicting emotions, I glanced up at Massi's face. Saw the slight smile that pulled at his delicious mouth. Everything inside me settled. As long as Massi wasn't mad at me. One of the girls snagged my arm, pulled me to the girls' side of the imaginary line. "Eden's ours, too. And from what we just learned, she's even better than Mas. So get ready to get spanked like bratty babies," Tali said, a smile in her voice. From over my shoulder, she shooed Massi to the other side of the room. "Go on. Get over there. We've got her and we'll protect her."While I wasn't quite sure what kind of protection she thought they could offer, I wasn't really willing to speak up to change her mind. Assuming I could work up the courage to actually use my voice when it felt like everyone was glaring at me. "YAY, EED!" Amara clapped from the sidelines with Momma. "Girls best!"Momma chuckled as she circle
I watched Eden as she tentatively joined in the female camaraderie that was the women of my family and extended family. I had no reservations about her joining their ranks. In fact, I hoped she would. Let some of their confidence and badassery rub off on her. This time, when her cheeks flushed, I could see the twinkle of joy in her eyes. Embarrassment wasn't even a shadow in her blue gaze. If she could stick it out, let them in, let herself out, they would be a great support network for her. None of us got through this life alone. As much as I wished I could. But if she fit in somewhere, I wanted it to be here. With me. With them. With us. Turo tapped my shoulder. Jerked his head over to the cabal we'd just created. "Get your head in the game, bro. We're going to need your help and extensive network to beat our girls."I just smiled. Nodded. Turning to Striker, I signed, "Who runs tech?"His eyes widened as he voiced my question to the group.Every single man in my famil
We walked out of the huge kitchen and wandered back through the halls towards the mission ops room. Why they all wanted to meet there was a reason I couldn't fully understand, but I was just happy to be involved. Talking to Nik at lunch had been nicer than I thought possible. Even if it had been just a simple conversation with another woman. Massi squeezed my hand, drawing my attention.I turned to look at him. "I proud you," he signed. My soul exploded into little animated hearts and sweetly singing birds like in the old school Disney movies. I leaned against him, rested my head on his shoulder. "I'm proud of me, too."My voice was so quiet, I could barely hear it. But he stopped me just outside the doors to mission ops. He lifted my chin. Pressed his lips to mine. When he pulled back, his entire face was glowing. He ran his nose up the length of mine. Pressed another kiss to my forehead. We stood in the quiet, sunlit hallway. How every single space of this main hou
Looking at the group of men who stood around in a small circle, someone could think we were an advertisement in a magazine. I wasn't sure what we were selling precisely, but I had a feeling we would sell it well. The fact that we were all standing around with thumbs up our assess on where and how to start the briefing for taking down South Point told me just how much we'd all come to rely on the women in our lives to help with the thinking part of things. Of course, we would probably never tell them this, but as we looked at each other, we certainly all knew it. Foster let out a disgruntled sigh. "For fuck's sake, we know how to do our damn jobs. It's not like they do everything for us. I was a damn good operative before getting out and joining Penn because he needed me."Penn snorted. "Then get the fuck on, man. Regale us with your greatness. Point us in the right direction. But screw it up and you don't get to talk again."Foster zipped his lips, glared at Penn, crossed his
As if all the warmth of the sun had been ripped away, the room plunged into the arctic. At least it felt that way. I rubbed my hands up and down my arms as I fought not to grab onto Massi's shirt. If someone needed to kill Rafe, I would do it. Spare this man-this family-the horror of killing one of their own. I could hold that weight. Put it where I put all the other deaths. Deep inside where it didn't bother me. Remorse wasn't something I felt, at least not in terms of killing. It was simply an action. Like buying some coffee or helping an elderly person across the street. But it would break Massi. Any of them. No. If Rafe needed killing, I would be the one to steal the life from his eyes. Turo grabbed handfuls of Rafe's shirt, jerked him up to his toes. "Did you not learn your lesson this morning? Are you aching for more attention and you think this is the appropriate way to get it?"Rafe spat in his oldest brother's face. "Fuck off, Turo. You don't know shit.""Then
Don't hurt her. Don't hurt her. Don't hurt her. It was a chant in my head. I was so fucking scared. And angry. And relieved. And disgusted. And...everything else. But at Rafe, not Eden. But right now, with everything riding me hard, my one thought was not to squeeze her too hard. Not to hold her too tightly. I wanted to crawl inside her skin, wrap myself around her spirit. Warm myself in the fires of her soul. Watching her approach Rafe had been one of the worst moments of my life. I'd known something was wrong with him. Something off about his behavior in the last month or two. But I never expected him to let it lash out at anyone. That Eden had stepped in and given him his punishment to save me that pain...I was speechless. Her arms lifted as she curled me into the sheltering embrace of her body. She murmured nonsense words against my neck. Rubbed circles over my back. "By whom?" Momma asked after Rafe stopped cursing Eden. I tuned back into the room around me. I ne