She hesitated, her fingers fidgeting with the hem of her shirt—that nervous tic she had when she was trying to be honest without hurting anyone’s feelings. “Sometimes,” she admitted quietly. “I mean, don’t get me wrong, this place is beautiful, but...”
“But four walls are still four walls,” Dimitri finished for her, his thumb resuming those soothing circles against her hip.
Enzo’s easy charm slid into place like a well-worn pair of jeans. “Maybe you should go for another drive? Take that gorgeous new car for another spin and get out of the penthouse for a bit. Rolling down the windows and blasting some music always does the trick for me.”
The room stilled for a second—just long enough to notice. My fingers tightened around the neck of my beer, and I glanced toward Marco. Had he brought security with him when he’d left the safety of the penthouse with our Omega?
Dimitri lifted his beer to his lips, taking a slow, measured sip. To anyone else, it would look casual. But I caught the way his eyes flicked toward Enzo, just for a fraction of a second. A subtle shift in his weight, an almost imperceptible narrowing of his gaze.
D didn’t miss anything, and I wondered if his thoughts had wandered the same direction as mine.
I was pretty damn sure Enzo hadn’t been working security detail the day Marco took Kit out, and the reason I knew that was because he’d pulled an all-nighter on guard duty that evening. Had he heard about the drive from someone else? Or... was he watching Kit more closely than any of us realized?
Was it possible that he had athingfor her? Or was I totally off base?
“Oh.” Kit blinked, her eyes widening slightly. “I did take the Bugatti for a drive with Marco.” A second wave of pink stained her cheeks.
I noted it instantly, filing it away.
“It was really,reallyfun, but I can’t drive his car every day…”
“Why not?” ‘Zo shrugged. “Maybe it should be a daily habit if it helps combat that pent up feeling.”
“You can take Veronica out anytime, Angel,” Marco told her. “My only request is that you never go out alone. Not because I’m worried about the car, but because I’m worried aboutyou.”
“Rules to live by.” Enzo tipped his beer her way. “Never go anywhere alone. It’s not safe out there for an Omega, especially an unbonded one. If the guys are ever busy, you can always ask me to tag along as your personal security detail.”
Gio’s brow was furrowed, and Marco caught my eye across Kit’s head, his eyebrow raising in silent question. Huh. So, I definitely wasn’t the only one questioning his motives.
All of us seemed to catch something… but the question waswhat.
I exhaled slowly, pushing the thought aside. Maybe I was overthinking. Ever since getting shot, my gut had been off, a side effect of nearly dying, I guessed. I spent too much time in my own head, doubting things I normally wouldn’t second-guess.
The conversation morphed and continued around me, but Kit’s gaze locked on mine.
“You okay?” she whispered, looking up at me with those clear, empathetic blue eyes.
I gave her an easy smile. “Just tired, Butterfly.” It was a white lie, but a necessary one. Now wasn’t the time to delve into where my head had gone.
Her yawn couldn’t have been more perfectly timed. She covered her mouth as it stretched open, then closed with an adorable little tired sigh. “Same. I guess that’s what happens when you eat half a pizza and are warm and cozy with your pack.”
I chuckled. “See? A perfect evening.”
The movie droned on in the background, but no matter how much I tried to invest in the love story, I couldn’t focus on it. Kit stayed nestled between my brothers, her breathing gradually evening out, her eyes growing heavy. Dimitri watched her with soft eyes, the kind of tenderness he only ever showed her. Marco kept his hand on her ankle, that gentle, grounding touch he knew she needed. Giovanni had moved to sit closer, all of us like magnets, gradually drifting into her orbit.
All except Enzo, who remained at the edge of our little bubble, observing.
“Anyone want another beer?” my friend asked, pushing himself up from the couch.
“I can grab them,” Giovanni offered.
“Nah, I got it. You guys stay put. Kit looks comfortable.”
I watched as he disappeared into the kitchen. He knew our home like his own. Hell, he’d practically grown up with us. But that didn’t make him pack…
Right?
Kit’s breathing had deepened. Cradled up against Dimitri’s side, nestled in the crook of his arm with her legs over Marco’s lap, she’d finally let herself fall into a deep, contented sleep.