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“Thank you,” I said, pulling her in for a hug. “Thank you for everything.”

“Of course, I’m sorry I wasn’t there sooner,” she sighed.

“It’s ok, I would have punched him if you were there or not, plus only one of us needed to go to jail,” I said, as we pulled away. “Vincent might never have forgiven me if I had let you get arrested.”

“He should know I could get myself into jail. I don’t need anyone’s help,” she chuckled.

“I’m going to get changed and then call an Uber,” I chuckled.

“We can drive you and please, take the lounge set, it looks good on you,” she said. “Easton, we gotta take Vally home.”

I shook my head as I walked to get my things, and I was totally going to keep this lounge set. Once I grabbed my things, they drove me to my apartment—thankfully no reporters were in sight—they insisted on walking me up to my apartment.

I opened the door realizing the light was on and I hadn’t left it like that, making me freeze in the doorway. My apartment wasdestroyed, things were turned over, books were on the floor and all my cabinets in my kitchen were open. I wanted to burst out in tears. Could anything else go wrong?

“Hold up, we?—”

I walked into my apartment like an idiot, most of my equipment was here, and I needed to see if everything else was still here. Footsteps came out of my room and there stood Hunter and Ro with bags in their hands.

“What happened? Thank god you’re ok.” Ro stepped towards me and I instantly stepped back, my mind getting the better of me.

“We came here to check on you earlier and you weren’t here. We found the apartment like this,” Hunter said, holding his hands up. “We wanted to come back and clean up before you had to see the mess.”

I looked between them, not knowing what to think when I couldn’t take it anymore. I rushed to them, so fucking tired of being strong. I needed them even if this might be the last time we were together.

33

Romeo

Isaw Valencia and the ache in my chest eased but once I saw her injuries I was livid. Someone fucking touched her and I saw red. Taking a deep breath, I was relieved she was ok. When she stepped away from us, my heart broke. She looked like she was on the brink of breaking.

Hunter explained why we were here, but all I wanted to do was pull her into my arms, console her, and then fucking hurt whoever had done this to her, starting with whoever had ratted her out.

Her lip trembled as she rushed to us, and I caught her as she fell. A gut-wrenching sob escaped her. I wrapped my arms around her side as Hunter wrapped his arms around her other side. She cried big sobs and each time, it broke me, making my eyes tear up too. Hunter looked just as emotional, but underneath I saw the shimmer of violence.

Looking towards the door, Noemi and Easton were holding each other. Easton pointed at the door and I mouthed, ‘Thank you’, to them. Noemi came over, kissed Valencia on the head, and told her if she needed anything, to give her a call.

“Will you answer?” Hunter growled.

“She needed time and I didn’t want to lie.” Easton shrugged.

“We were worried,” I said, before Hunter said something stupid.

“I left it up to her,” he said. “She said she would call you whenshewas ready.”

“I felt so overwhelmed, and I didn’t know what you were going to say and that stressed me out and what if you?—”

“Hey… Hey…” Hunter pulled back, holding her face in his hands. “I get it.”

“I just?—”

“It’s ok,” Hunter said, pressing his forehead to hers. “We just didn’t know what happened and since you didn’t come home we didn’t know what to think.”

Noemi and Easton waved goodbye and they left quietly. Valencia sobbed again, and I hated how broken she sounded.

“It’s not safe here,” I said, eyeing the door.

Now that she was here with us, I wasn’t going to let her out of my sight.

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