Page 5 of Breakaway

Chewing on my lip, I debated. My bed was calling me, but I knew I wouldn’t sleep until I hugged them both and knew they were back with us.

“Airfield. They’ll need a ride, anyway.” Dax nodded, flicking the blinker on the rental car in the opposite direction of campus.

“We going to make Fletcher sweat? Pretend like we’re madder than we are?” Reed asked, leaning forward.

“I don’t know if I’ll have to pretend,” I grumbled.

Though we all knew it was a lie. Under the anger was the hurt he hadn’t told or trusted us sooner. I’d already forgiven him, knowing we’d been wrapped up in the Society most of that time. But it would take a while for the sting of his silence to wear off, for him to repair the pain he’d caused us. That would take time to heal.

The airfield was lit up, giving me hope they were close to landing. Climbing out of the car, the three of us stretched. My body groaned in protest from all the uncomfortable positions it had been put in during the last twenty-four hours, even if a few had been fun.

Dax climbed on top of the hood, motioning for me to follow suit. Hopping up on the warm surface, I snuggled into his arms and pulled Reed to stand between my legs. His hands clasped on my thighs as he leaned back into me, making a three-person train.

“In different circumstances, this would be nice,” I sighed. The night was quiet this far from the city, nothing but bugs and critters to be heard. The three of us sat like that for a while, quietly absorbing one another’s comfort as we waited.

“There!” Dax pointed to the sky, red lights blinking in the distance.

As they grew nearer, the plane became more visible. My heart pumped faster in my chest as butterflies exploded as the plane landed. Climbing onto Reed’s back, I directed him toward the gate, knowing if I walked, I’d end up climbing over the fence in desperation and then fall flat on my butt.

It felt like a lifetime as we waited for them to appear, and I’d begun to give up hope it was them.

“Watch it be some businessman and his mistress,” Dax snorted, flinching as I smacked him.

“We don’t need any bad juju, Dax. We’ve had our fill for today. Happy thoughts only.”

“Henley?” Reese’s voice filled the air, and I jumped down, taking off for the other exit that we hadn’t seen.

Crashing into my sibling, I held them close and breathed them in, relaxing now that they were back with me. After a few seconds of holding Reese, I pulled back and looked them over, ensuring nothing had happened to them.

“You okay?” I asked.

“Oh yeah. I had a blast. While Fletch was doing his boss stuff, I got to test out a bunch of new things. Their VR department is wicked, and I helped them develop some code for smaller players.”

The smile on their face was genuine, and my body sagged with relief. I released Reese, and they moved to hug Dax and Reed, leaving me with Fletcher. He’d stayed back, giving me the time to connect with my sibling first.

He hesitated as he neared, some fear flashing on his face despite our talk earlier where I reassured him I wasn’t angry. Surveying his face, I took in the dark circles, his slack jaw, and the trepidation in his eyes that maybe I hadn’t meant what I’d said earlier.

Faced with his pain, I couldn’t bring myself to draw it out and torture him. His omission hurt, but it hadn’t been in malice. If I tortured him for being scared, I wasn’t any better than Dakota, using emotion to manipulate people.

“I’m glad you’re back.” I stepped forward, wrapping my arms around him. Fletcher’s whole body sagged into my embrace, his hands cupping the back of my head. He placed a kiss on my hair as we held one another.

“I’m glad you don’t hate me.”

“I could never hate you, Fletch. I’m still a little hurt, but it will heal. We just have to promise one another to keep trying to be the best versions of ourselves in this relationship. We’ll make mistakes and hurt each other occasionally, but we can always move forward if we take the time to repair.”

“I promise, Baby Shaw. I love you so damn much.”

I smiled into his chest, loving how those words sounded each time he said them. “I love you, Fletch. Now, let’s go home. I’m exhausted.”

The guys slapped Fletch on the back in welcome, and I didn’t miss the way he flinched at Reed’s slap or the smirk Reed wore in response. Men.

Reese returned with us, opting to sleep in my bed since it was so late, and I was happy to have them near after the emotional day. Once I had them settled, the four of us gathered in Fletcher’s room.

“I don’t need all the details. It’s late, and I’m exhausted, but I don’t want to sleep until I hear something. How did you become the CEO? Your family doesn’t own HTC, do they?”

Fletcher shook his head, pulling me into his arms. Reed and Dax gathered close, and the four of us piled onto his mattress.

“No, my family has no connection to HTC. How I came to be involved is through Emila Haskins. Do you remember her?” he asked.

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