Page 121 of Cohesion

Sebastian pressed harder, a vague metallic taste mingling with salt from the tears that Quinn couldn’t control.

He’s alive. He’s okay.

“Hey,” Sebastian said softly, thumbing the tears from Quinn’s cheeks. “I’m not worth crying over.”

Quinn scowled. “Like hell you aren’t, youidiot. If we hadn’t—we almost didn’t—I thought you were—you are the most infuriating man I have ever met!” He tugged Sebastian back in for a short kiss that somehow conveyed how much he loved Sebastian and how frustrated he was with him. It felt so unbelievably good to feel both of those things in tandem, just the way it was supposed to be. “There’s too much left, Seb. You don’t get to duck out early before we’ve had a chance to fix everything we broke. I deserve better than that.Youdeserve better than that. And so do they.”

“Seb, where is Spencer?” Jericho asked, palm grazing Sebastian’s arm before pressing against his wrist. Checking his pulse?

“He’s—another room. The last time I saw him he was okay. Well, he was alive.”

Hunter squeezed Jericho’s shoulder and then headed through the door that the two men had been guarding; they were now being detained against the wall by Cain, who looked like he didn’t even need an excuse to shoot.

Six appeared out of nowhere and followed Hunter, red glinting on Bianca. Quinn wasn’t going to ask. The less he knew, the better.

Will sank to his knees and pressed his forehead against Sebastian’s knee. “Hey, stranger. Let’s not do this again, okay?”

“Solid plan,” Sebastian said with a quiet laugh.

Peyton hovered at his shoulder, like he was unsure how close he could get. “Can you stand?” he asked.

“Help me?” Sebastian held out a hand. As soon as he was on his feet, Peyton gathered him into his arms. Quinn inspected his face while it rested on Peyton’s shoulder. There was barely an inch of it that wasn’t bruised in some way. His nose wasn’t broken, and the piercing was bleeding but not torn, at least. The split lip wasn’t as bad as it could be and was almost an exact replica of the one Jericho was healing from—courtesy of Riley, apparently.

Jericho shifted the fabric on Sebastian’s shoulder, gently prodding. “Who, specifically, did this to you?” he asked dangerously.

Sebastian looked over his shoulder at the dead man from where they’d come in. “I think you got him already.”

“That was Peyton,” Will offered.

Jericho’s eyes flattened. “Lucky for him.”

“Shouldn’t have shot your load so early,” Cain said, grinning at them. “All the best things happen when you have good stamina.”

“Don’t underestimate the pleasure found in a quick encounter,” Jericho replied.

Hunter and Six emerged, Spencer supported between them. He looked worse off than Sebastian, head hanging forward and his feet dragging. There was no way he could have stood on his own. He needed medical attention in a way that Quinn could only be grateful Sebastian didn’t.

Quinn held tighter to Sebastian, needing to be closer. If he could burrow into his skin, he would. Soak in his smell, and his warmth.

They all tensed at movement on the stairs. Weapons raised and pointed at the door.

The two men who came through the door were similar to those Cain had facing the wall with Mulhall. They reeked of smarm and pretentiousness.

Quinn’s familiarity with the third man wasn’t a pleasantry.

Xavier Alicent. Quinn had experienced more than one run-in with him, and the NSWPD always came off looking the worse for wear. They all knew who he was, what he did, and how many illegal pots he had his hand in, but they could never prove it.

Quinn grit his teeth at the confidence and arrogance that oozed off Xavier like a physical presence as he walked in. The perfectly styled hair, sunglasses hooked in his collar, only one button of the suit jacket done up, and shined dress shoes made him look like a Grade-A asshole businessman. On point.

Quinn had a sudden urge to step in front of all of them. What was he doing here? They didn’t have time for this. It was way past time to leave already.

Xavier’s shrewd brown eyes took in the room. “I apologise for my tardiness,” he said in a smooth voice. “I had a prior engagement that demanded my attention first.”

Jericho lowered his gun, though he stayed directly in front of Sebastian. “You’re not welcome here.”

Will followed Jericho’s lead and relaxed against Sebastian. Peyton and Quinn didn’t. Quinn kept a hand on Sebastian. They hadn’t just found him only to lose him again.

“What the fuck are you doing here?” Six asked angrily, changing the grip on his sword.

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