Page 37 of Filthy Liar

She hummed, her body melting against my chest as I got back to giving her back tickles, and she fell asleep on me before the guys joined us again.

We all agreed it was bed time, and I happily carried Raven into the bedroom. I didn’t want to wake her, but I needed her to get changed.

“I’ve got her,” Zavier murmured as he followed, knowing what I wanted. I was unsure on how she’d feel about me doing it, but she’d be fine with Zavier stripping her down and putting her in pajamas.

“Thanks,” I mumbled, giving them privacy as I headed to the bathroom to brush my teeth and get ready for bed myself, making sure to give them enough time before entering the bedroom again.

Ander had claimed one side of her and Zavier the other, but Zavier motioned for me to take his place as he shuffled back. “Saved your spot.”

This was why we were friends. He wasn’t threatened by me, and he understood my need to be close with her right now.

I stripped down to my boxers and climbed between them, leaving Reid to switch off the light as he finally joined us. As usual, Zavier fell asleep and ended up spooning me, but I didn’t mind.

We were all here together and we were safe, that was all I cared about.

CHAPTEREIGHT

RAVEN

Within days, we’d settled into a good routine. One of the guys would drop me off at Rory’s to help with the kids, Zavier had helped the Psychos out again with the bar on Saturday night, and Ander managed to meet with Rory again to try and form a proper plan on Sunday alongside the Thieves.

Logan and Reid even got to help the Devils with some painting they were doing over the weekend at Devil’s Dungeon, so we’d all made some money, which was fantastic.

Gregory had spent all three days at Rory’s with Frank too, other than the nights, and with a little bit of encouragement from Rory, he’d brought his siblings and niece along on Saturday to play.

It had been a full house, but the kids had loved it, and Gregory could just be a kid and relax while we watched the younger ones. Joseph was more than happy to race remote controlled cars with his six-year-old sister, Xena, while the twins Sia and Paul, who were three, colored and watched TV.

Nancy stuck to me like glue as I held baby Maggie, their niece, being a little unsure of the big house.

By the time I’d gone home on Sunday evening, Rory had convinced Gregory to spend the night with the kids, offering to track down their mother to let her know.

I had zero idea what their mom was like, but between the night shifts and the fact that Gregory hadn’t seen her for a week now, my hopes of her being sober or safe were wearing thin.

“You feel like doing something tonight?” Reid asked as he drove us home, drawing my attention.

“Like what?”

“The track. I’m itching to race. With the new security cameras set up, we should be safe there. We haven’t personally had much trouble for a while, so maybe?—”

“You’re not naive enough to think they’ve just given up, right?” I asked dryly, turning a little in my seat to look at him. “They’re just laying low now that they’ve pissed the Reapers off.”

“I still think Dante did it.”

“I hope not. I think it would kill Ander to know his brother turned on him. If you think the track is safe enough, then sure. It would be nice to get out together. I don’t know how Beckett will handle Ander being there though,” I sighed, making him wince.

“Yeah. I think our best bet is to stay close to him. Who knows what those two would do to each other if they’re left alone without supervision.”

“So we can’t sneak off to fuck in your car?” I teased, his mouth curving into a grin.

“I can make Lopez babysit them if we need to.”

Sunday nights were usually quiet unless someone threw down a challenge, and since one of the car clubs from Magnolia Falls had come down this weekend, there had been plenty.

I was pretty sure it had been constant races from Friday afternoon, right through until now.

“As long as you don’t make me squirt again,” I said seriously, pulling my phone from my pocket as it rang. I frowned when I saw it was Cruz, answering it.

“Don’t panic,” he said as a way of greeting, which obviously made me fucking panic. “But Logan and Lopez got run off the road.”

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