Page 116 of Ruthless Beasts

She laughed. "A choice. That's one way to describe it."

"I’d never say it was a good one," Adam supplied.

"To be fair, I was only teasing." I tried to save myself, hoping they knew it was only a joke. "I was just trying to manipulate her into spilling the beans. Did it work?"

"Absolutely not," she confirmed, and when she shook her head, a strand of hair fell into her eyes. I reached up, pushing it back. "Maybe you should try harder next time."

"Are you giving me permission to pester you?" I leaned over, moving close to her mouth before I whispered, "I can get it out of you."

She closed the distance, snagging my lip and biting it before pulling back. "I doubt you could persuade me."

"Is that a challenge, love?" My eyes burned into hers.

"Maybe."

"Umm, I do love a challenge," I groaned.

"Do you? Tell me more about your love for challenges." Her fingers danced up my thigh, and I'd admit that it was the barest of touches and I was rock hard. That was what she did to me, how my body reacted to hers. It was hard to believe now that Iused to be unsure. That I was afraid to commit myself to her, when now I couldn’t imagine my life without her in it. I couldn't imagine waking up each morning without her hair spilled on my pillow, or her leg tossed over my thigh. She fit perfectly with us, the missing piece to a scattered puzzle.

"How about I show you?" I offered.

"Not in the backseat," Adam barked.

"Later then," I promised.

"Later." She smiled wide, her eyes sparkling with mischief, and I wished I knew then that later was all we might have. That later, when her head was resting against my chest and her heartbeat in time with mine, I'd never feel more in love. And I wished that later, when her eyes drifted closed and she was lost in the pull of sleep, I hadn’t snuck from the bed and had stayed the whole night, protecting her with my embrace.

CHAPTER FORTY-ONE

MERCER

The call came in the middle of the night, right when I was ready to settle in and join the pile of bodies in our bed. It wasn't a call I was expecting, one I never thought to worry about, but still, it had my anxiety high with fear.

"Take Ace." Adam nodded, more so to himself, as if he was convincing himself it was a good idea.

"I could go by myself. It was electrical, nothing major."

"Nothing major except the complete destruction of her home and company," Adam pointed out. "We'll put her up at a place if she'd like, or she's welcome to a spare room. Our old one doesn't seem to get used these days."

How could it get used when all our waking moments were spent fawning over Bellamy? Needing to be close to her, savoring the love we clearly had been deprived of for so damn long.

"If you're sure having her here won't be a bother..."

"Hardly. Go wake Ace. You'll need him in case she needs some things moved. Take Max and Drew too. We'll get all she needs replaced tonight."

"If you're sure." I had already turned away.

"I'm always sure when it comes to family," Adam stated as I left.

Upstairs in our bedroom, Ace and Bellamy were sprawled out. She looked so peaceful sleeping against his chest that I hated to disturb the image. The image of my family just enjoying each other was all I ever wanted from here on out. It was what we deserved. We'd lived a hard life, partly because of our own choices, but I learned this morning, while I was gutting a man for trespassing on our loading docks, that I didn't enjoy this anymore. I didn't enjoy the kill like I once had.

In fact, maybe it was a phase, but I somehow felt that if I didn't kill a single man again and just stayed in the little bubble my family created, I'd somehow be content and happy. I'm a sucker for a happy ending, I guess, because deep down I felt like this girl was mine. Our happy ending.

My hand hovered over Ace, hating to wake him, but knowing I'd need the help. It would be fine in the end, and he'd be right back here as Bellamy's personal pillow before she even batted those beautiful eyes of hers. Still, I didn't want to break the peace, not yet.

He jumped when my hand landed against his skin. His body tensed before relaxing when he saw me. "You good?"

His groggy voice was coated with worry. It had been there since the night I got shot. "Mimi's bakery went up in flames. She got out of the apartment, but it's toast."

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