Page 8 of Gathered Sparkle

My voice is a little too tight, a little too strained. The truth is, the idea of being alone right now sucks, but it’s better than getting them into deeper shit. Sylus glances at me, then puts the call on speaker.

“He picked you up there tonight, Little Thief. He knows where you live,” Koen reminds me.

“That’s why he wouldn’t go there, right?” I glance down, my fingers twisting in the hem of my shirt. “He’d think I’m not dumb enough to go back.”

Ezra scoffs. “And yet, here you are.”

“Ez, for fuck’s sake—” Sylus starts, but I reach out, placing my hand on his arm, cutting him off before he can cuss any further.

“Nicholas let me go.” I look up, meeting his gaze. “He saw what I did and told me to leave. I don’t think he’ll come after me.”

He wouldn’t tell me to go, only to hunt me down.

Right?

“He asked if you guys sent me, though,” I admit, the fear creeping back in. “I didn’t say anything, but he seems to suspect. So maybe you guys and your place are more in danger than I am.”

“Don’t worry about that,” Koen says with a reassuring note. “We have some safety measures in place.”

Sylus’s fingers brush against mine. “Even more reason to bring her back home.”

“That would only confirm what he’s suspecting and drag us into even more shit,” Ezra counters.

Sylus’s eyes flash. “I don’t give a fuck—”

“I agree.” I tighten my grip on Sylus’s arm as I cut in. “I want to go to my place.”

Running back to the twins after this would absolutely confirm Nicholas’s suspicions. But he already thinks I’m their cousin and assistant. So, would it even matter?

Ugh. I can’t think.

“Guys.” Koen lets out a sigh that crackles over the speaker. “Can we meet up and talk this through after?”

The exhaustion in his voice pulls at me.

Ezra hesitates, then lets out a sigh of his own. “Fine. She’s right. Take her home, Sy. It’s better if we know when someone comes looking rather than running blind.”

“I don’t like it.” Sylus frowns, his thumb still brushing along my cheek. “I need my equipment. It wasn’t a full minute, so Icouldn’t get in, but I bet it was long enough forsomething. I want to see what, and I need my gear to do that, and I can’t bring that to her place.”

“It’s fine. You don’t have to stay with me.” The tremble in my voice is too obvious, and I see Sylus’s eyes soften as the protective edge in them grows sharper.

“I’ll stay with her.” Koen decides. “Take her home, and we’ll meet you there. I’ll stay.”

“And I’ll stay outside, parked down the street to watch for anyone. I’ll keep an ear on the police scanner in case anything comes in.”Ezra sighs again, sounding almost resigned.

“That okay, baby?” Sylus’s thumb brushes along my bottom lip. “If you don’t want me to leave, I’ll stay.”

“You have to check the ducky,” I whisper, although I don’t want him to leave me.

Well, if I hadn’t known it before. I know it now.

I’m fucking gone for this guy.

The realization feels like a comfort and a curse. I’ve tried so damn hard to keep my walls up, to keep my distance. But Sylus, with his silver eyes, his persistence, and his stupid, sweet words, slipped right through the cracks. And now, here I am, wanting him close, needing his reassurance.

He smiles as if he knows what I’m thinking and kisses me again. Soft, sweet. “I don’t have to do anything but take care of you. The rest are details.”

“If Koen will be there… it’s okay.”

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