Page 114 of With A Little Luck
I mumble a quickthanksand help Quincy from the vehicle before grabbing the most important bags and following her inside.
If I thought things would calm down once we were safely inside Ridge’s house, I was wrong.
There are entirely too many new faces, but I do my best to keep up. It’s not easy, though.
My hands shake from leftover adrenaline, and my head is a mess.
Omen is the white-haired beta who is in a pack with Leo, Shaw, and Valor. Their omega is Saylor.
The woman with long dark brown hair is Briar, and she belongs to Keir and Easton.
Omen looks dangerous. I have no trouble believing he’s an assassin or whatever Ridge and these guys do for a living, but Saylor seems sweet. That’s my assumption after knowing them for two minutes, anyway.
“It’s very nice to meet you, but I smell like pee, and Ridge was just shot…” Quincy’s voice shakes, and she frowns like she can’t believe she just said that. “I need a shower. Can we have a do-over meeting when I’m not so out of it?”
“We really could have planned the timing better,” Briar says, linking her hands and resting them against her chest. “I’m so sorry. Please, go shower and nest or whatever you need to do to relax.”
“We have gifts and party trays if you think you could eat,” Saylor says, shoving her long golden-brown hair over her shoulder. “Sorry. Never mind. Pretend like we’re not here.”
My head feels like it’s about to explode.
They clearly know Ridge and possibly Trigg, but why are they here in the first place?
Omen might be who Ridge mentioned would guard us until he and Trigg get back, but these chicks don’t seem trained at all. And that’s not me being a judgmental dick. I had a female alpha on my security team for two years when I was in the pros, and she was one of the best bodyguards I ever worked with. These two don’t have that energy, though.
“It probably looks like we’re celebrating Ridge being shot,” Omen says in a thick Irish accent. “We’re not. All of this was planned for this evening, but our timetable moved up under the circumstances.”
“It was planned for tonight,” Saylor says, nodding dramatically. “Briar and I wanted to introduce ourselves, and it’s rude to come without gifts. But then Easton told us to set up forthe party and take pictures, just in case any of you guys need an alibi.”
That’s either scary or impressive that Ridge’s boss thought to set up an alibi with everything else going on.
“It was going to be a surprise mini-baby shower, but the vibes are ruined now,” Briar says, smiling tightly. “Go shower off the blood and change. We’ll be here if you’re up for company or just ignore us if not.”
It’s time I take charge and get Quincy upstairs so she can have some breathing room.
“Thanks,” I say, hiking Quincy’s bag higher on my shoulder before scooping up the one I dropped at my feet.
Fuck.
I’m so out of it, I don’t even remember dropping it.
Quincy leans into my chest, and we head for the stairs.
Chapter Thirty-Five
Quincy
Hartley helps me shower. Watching Ridge’s blood spiral down the drain sends me into something like a panic attack, but not really. It’s much less frantic than the last panic attack I experienced, and more like a state of numbness that doesn’t make any sense considering the circumstances.
I continue crying silently as Hartley helps me into my underclothes, followed quickly by leggings and one of my dresses.
“You’re killing me here, beautiful,” he murmurs, brushing his thumb under my eye to catch one of my tears. “Ridge is tough. If they were really worried, they would have taken him to a hospital.”
I nod and grab his hand as he moves to caress my jaw.
“Thank you. I’m sorry. I don’t know what I would do without you.” I bite my cheek to keep anything else from escaping while my brain-to-mouth filter is broken.
“Don’t thank me. I’m here for you always, Quincy.” He kisses my forehead and steps over to the bed to get dressed.
