Page 20 of Dripping Pearls

Braxton presses his lips to my shoulder again and then again. "Say it, lamb. Say it."

It takes a minute for my mind to register what they're pleading for, what they need so desperately. When it finally catches up, my whole soul aches that they don't already know. That they don't already realize.

"I love you both so much," I whisper fiercely, clinging to them. "So damn much."

They both fall still for a long moment as if marveling.

"Ah, lamb," Braxton whispers then. "Our hearts beat for you."

"We love you, Lola baby. We always will," Liam says, brushing tendrils of hair away from my face. "We won't ever let you go now."

"Good," I whisper, smiling through tears. "Because I won't let either of you go either. You belong to me now. You belong to each other now."

"Yeah?" Braxton asks, a smile in his voice as he runs his lips across the back of my neck. "I think I can live with that."

Chapter Seven

Liam

"Ohno,"Lolawhispers,her face paling when we pull up in front of her apartment complex early the next morning. "My dad is here."

"Fuck," I growl, turning my head to see Kieran Knight leaning against the wall beside her apartment, his arms crossed over his broad chest. Judging by the scowl on his face, he knows she didn't come home last night, and he's not thrilled about it.

Kieran Knight is…actually, I'm not sure what the fuck he is. Dangerous, I know that much. I've heard rumors about him, about the man he used to be. He hasn't been that man in a long time, but Lola's his baby girl. I'm guessing old habits die hard when your daughter's involved. He might decide to kill me and Brax on principle when he finds out we're both fucking his daughter.

"It'll be fine," I murmur, reaching out to soothe Lola. Whatever. He may threaten to kill us, but I doubt he'll follow through. Not if he loves her as much as I'm guessing he does. Because she may be his baby girl, but she's our whole world. He doesn't have to understand it to know that much is true. She's ours to protect now, ours to love. We may not be what he wanted for her, but we're who she chose. Hell itself couldn't drag us away. A former hitman pushing sixty certainly won't. Even if he is completely fucking terrifying.

He certainly doesn't look his age. His hair is shot through with gray, and his eyes have little lines around them, but he's big, brawny, like a cage fighter. There's something wild in his eyes, like the lions you see at the circus. As if they're just biding their time, waiting for the chance to strike.

"It'll be fine," she echoes, taking a deep breath. I'm not sure if she's trying to convince herself or me. I'm not sure if Brax has noticed him yet or not since he's following in the SUV. I'm guessing he probably has. Brax doesn't miss much, especially when it comes to Lola.

I pull her car into her designated spot and kill the engine.

Kieran's piercing gaze settles on me through the windshield.

Jesus, he's intense.

"He's harmless," Lola says.

I snort, not believing that for a second. The man used to kill people for money. A whole fucking lot of money, judging by the way they live. Nothing about that screams harmless.

Brax pulls in next to us.

"Come on," I murmur to Lola. "Let's go say hi."

She takes a deep breath and then nods.

"Wait for me," I murmur before she can climb out of the car.

"Okay."

I climb out, meeting Braxton on the sidewalk.

Kieran stalks toward us. We turn to face him, side by side.

"She was with the two of you last night," he says.

We don't deny it. We won't ever deny her.

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