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His confession is tearing me apart and making me so damn happy at the same time. “I’m sorry, Red.” I try to cup his cheek, but he slaps my hand away.
“You’re sorry?” he mocks me. “Sorry isn’t fucking enough!” He tries to shove me back, but I’m bigger than him. “Sorry isn’t the damn truth.” He tries again. “Sorry isn’t I love you,” he growls in my face, grabbing the collar of my shirt.
“I do fucking love you!” I snarl and grab his hair, tilting his head back to take in his beautiful red locks, darker stubble, bright eyes, and kiss-swollen lips. He’s so fucking mine. Mine. My feisty Ramiel.
“I’m the one in love here. And I want to hurt you so much right now, so you’ll know a small fraction of the pain you gave me when you fucking lied to me!”
Red really knows how to pack a punch.
“I didn’t lie to you. And your love is damn reciprocated.” My forehead falls on his. Our breaths mix. His hands slide under my shirt, nails digging painfully into my skin.
He loves me.
“Omission is a form of lying.” Michael’s soft voice reminds me we are not alone.
“This again, babe?” Raph tells him.
“Did they just confess their love for each other?” Ollie asks.
A phone starts ringing. “Lori is calling.” Michael pushes the speaker button on his cell.
“Bones, is everybody listening? Because this is bonkers!”
“Yes,” Michael replies.
“The cock accountant talked like the proverbial canary bird—double-pun intended.” Lori giggles. “He admitted he created the shell charity for Magnum P.I.’s uncle to help some of his clients with money laundering and himself to evade taxes. When he died, the cousin took his place. He ordered the hits. I’m sorry, Magnum.”
“Me too.” Ollie’s words are followed by an agreeing grunt from Rague.
“Oh, we made the cock accountant cancel the hit on you,” Lori adds, but I barely register his voice.
Jasper really wants me dead. Dead.
Anger is slowly rising inside my gut again. He looked me in the eye, that fucking piece of shit murderous liar, straight in the eye and shook my hand. And then kept trying to kill me. Even put Ramiel in danger. And that fucking turns me ballistic. It makes me crave vengeance.
Thankfully, Jasper doesn’t know about the boys or where I live. My post-prison alienation and his exigency to have a scandal-free career kept my life hidden. Even Opal has only seen the triplets briefly once or twice.
“What’s happening?” Lori asks from Michael’s phone. “Bones, be my eyes!”
I start to lift my head, but Ramiel doesn’t let me. He pulls me down and gives me a deep, passionate kiss. Ending it with a bite. When he lets my lip go, I’m panting. “I love you, Hunter Bear. I got you.”
My heart skips a few beats as I read the wholehearted emotion in his face. And in that moment, I promise myself that I’ll never let anything happen to him again. I’ll protect him. And if I need to be his damn shadow, so be it.
“They were kissing,” Michael whispers, leaning toward his phone.
“Did Reacher just say he loves Magnum?” Lori’s voice is window-shattering high. “Are they doing it? Bollocks! Tell me. Details! Gabe, let go. It’s my phon—” His voice is cut off as the line dies.
“It says diary,” Raph suddenly says, pointing at the letter. “I found Loretta’s diary, and there’s new information,” he reads.
“Oh my God! It’s true. Loretta’s diary!” Ollie exclaims. “This is better than a soap opera.”
“D-I, the letters Malcom was writing with his blood were for diary.” Michael kisses his husband soundly on the lips.
“Malcom found and read her diary. She must have written in there that she killed the priest.” Ramiel snaps his fingers.
“And some new information. We need to find that diary!” Michael says.
“We’ll go to Malcom’s place and look for it,” Raph declares as he pulls his husband toward the door.
