Page 62 of Unravel You

Matt’s instincts never failed him. If he thought his girlfriend was in trouble, she probably was.

“Yeah, man.” I nodded. “Thanks for staying for the party. If you need a ride, let me know.”

“I actually do. I sent my Gulfstream back in case my guys needed it.” He rubbed the back of his neck. “And one more favor?”

“Shoot.” I’d do anything for these guys.

“Can Rebecca stay? I promise I’ll be back for her.”

Tyler scoffed. “She’s not your responsibility, and you know that. I got this.”

“All I know right now, Tyler, is that I don’t have time to figure out who’s to blame for the shitshow in Venezuela. Rebecca can wait here safely. Ela can’t. I have to leave tonight. Are you sure you got this?”

“You can’t keep doing this. Trying to save every lost kitten you find.” Tyler exchanged a look with me.

“Ela is not a lost kitten. She’s more than that.” Matt stuffed his hands in his pockets. “As for Rebecca, she’s in this mess because of us.”

“Okay, Tyler, I think that’s enough.” I stepped in again the way Dad used to do when we all got into an argument for stupid things like who’s turn it was to take out the trash. But this wasn’t about trash at all. A woman’s life was on the line. Correction—two women’s lives were on the line.

“I’m sorry. Go see Ela.” Tyler let out a breath. “Wesley and I will handle this.”

“Thanks.” Matt hugged Tyler and then me. “Now to tell Mom that I’m taking off.” He did his marine salute and strode back inside the house.

What kind of mess had my brothers gotten into while on their last mission? Was Rebecca the reason both Wesley and Matt had been honorably discharged from the corps? Of course, leave it to Valentina to be the one to find Rebecca and decide to bring her home. No way their meeting had been a coincidence. I had to find Valentina and let her know Rebecca wasn’t the family friend she’d claimed to be.

She had to be careful. Someone who lied so easily couldn’t be trusted. I turned to leave, then stopped. Wasn’t that what I’d been doing for the last twelve hours? I lied to Valentina about Alex and the real reason why I’d canceled Max’s trip to Atlanta. I lied to her about my plans to eventually move here. I lied to her about Bridget’s crazy visit in Tucson.

What the fuck was I doing? She was right. I couldn’t keep doing this to her—hiding the truth to keep her safe and happy—especially when the thing that pissed her off the most was when I lied to her by omission. She was a grown woman, more than capable of taking care of herself. In turn, I was a big idiot for not listening to her.

“Where are you going?” Tyler asked with real worry in his eyes. “Let me be the one to talk to Rebecca. She knows me better than she knows you. She’ll be less likely to run away again if I’m the one who offers her a place to stay.”

Who was guilty of trying to save every lost kitten they found? Matt and Tyler weren’t that different when it came to women in distress, though from where I stood, Rebecca was more than able to handle herself.

“Run away? What the hell, Tyler?”

He glanced over his shoulder. We were still alone, but what was the deal with all this acting so guilty?

“She went to visit Matt in New Orleans. She asked him for help, but apparently Matt was in the middle of something else with Ela, his new girlfriend. I only met her briefly, but she’s a magnet for trouble. You know, Matt’s type. Anyway, Rebecca took off before he could ask why she wasn’t where I left her in New York.”

“Jesus Christ, you guys didn’t do anything illegal, did you?”

“Um, I bent the rules a bit. As for Wesley and Matt, you’d have to ask them.” Tyler met my gaze.

If I didn’t know any better, I’d think he was ready to beg me on Rebecca’s behalf. “I was going to see Valentina. I’d been an asshole to her for the past few weeks.” Honestly, I didn’t know how she hadn’t left me yet. “I need to warn her about Alex. I should’ve told her I saw him at the pub the minute I came home.”

“Lying to a woman never ends well, man. I can tell you that.”

“I see that now.” I pinched my nose, not at all looking forward to my conversation with Valentina. With any luck, the conversation would end up in the woods again with my mouth on her pretty pussy. At least, we had that to look forward to.

“And Rebecca?”

“She can stay. But, Tyler, tell me this Venezuela mission didn’t follow you home. Our family is here. Whatever or whoever Rebecca is running from, you can’t dump this on our heads.”

“I can honestly say the Venezuela mission didn’t followmehome.” He stretched out his arms as though he’d given up trying to understand this thing between Rebecca, Wesley, and Matt.

“Fuck. Keep an eye on her. I’m going to go find Valentina before anyone else shows up and I end up on the proverbial couch for a month or the rest of my life.” I rubbed my face, suddenly feeling drained. This night couldn’t end soon enough.

“You got it. That’s what I’m here for. To bail out these assholes’ asses every time they get into trouble.” He chuckled at his own joke, and that made me laugh.

---