Page 67 of Stag

I felt Stag gently untwisting my fingers, lacing his own through my hand and holding it in both of his. His quiet strength was exactly what I needed right now.

“Yes, please ask him to lock her out of whatever he can of mine. I can give him my pass-”

“In the words of Grease, or Ice… ‘please’. I think that means they’re a pair of self-congratulating assholes, who think they’re unstoppable.”

His grin was infectious, setting off a light giggle from me, something that seemed impossible just a few moments ago. I could see why they all respected him. He was like a father figure to them, to anyone they cared about.

“Thank you, Micro. Thank you all. Can I make you some coffee, or I could-”

Stag’s fingers landed on my lips and I turned to glare at him.

“I’ll get them drinks. You don’t wait on them, they’re nobody important.”

Wow. Even I was frustrated at his words this time. I know he didn’t mean it that way, but after their efforts to help me, it wasn’t right of him to say it.

“They’re your family, and they just rushed here to my aid over a fucking email, Stag! I’ll get drinks on and you’ll sit your damn ass down.”

I caught smirks and what looked like respect on their faces as I started walking to the kitchen, but I spun on my heel to look at the men amassed in the hallway.

“I don’t know how anyone takes their drinks, so I’m going to pour coffee, and set it out with milk and sugar. You can do the rest yourselves.”

A few nods, and a grudging look of approval on Stag’s face sent me into the kitchen, clearly not where he felt I belonged, but I needed to do something for them after they’d all risked god knows what to rush here to my aid. I had no idea that’s how they would behave if they thought I was in danger. I barely knew these men, but they’d dropped everything for me. To protect me.

“Oh!” I jumped as Stag slid my phone in front of me. There was a message on it, but thankfully not from Marissa. From someone I exchanged numbers with before she went away.

Glory: Is everything okay? Henley says some of the guys rushed to the house for you.

“Oh wow, it’s Glory checking in on me too.”

Stag grinned when I lifted my head to look at him.

“He’s probably got cameras on the door and stuff. Who knows. People care about you, Claudia, so don’t underestimate how much this family will back you up.”

I pressed the button on the coffeepot, because with this many people I wasn’t making individual ones with the fancy machine.

“And that makes me wonder why you said that in there. They are important, Stag. To me, and to you. I know you didn’t mean it, but… I’d have been hurt to have been on the receiving end of those words. You should apologise.”

He grimaced, cupping my cheek gently. “I’d never say something like that to you, but I already apologised before I followed you. They’re used to my banter, but I’m trying. Now, I think after I rushed here to save your sexy ass, I at least deserve a kiss, don’t I?”

He offered me a cheeky grin and leaned closer, giving me the option of whether I closed the distance. Naturally I did, because his presence made me want to always be kissing those perfect lips, even if it meant I silenced his main method of communication, or maybe also because it did.

Chapter Twenty-Seven

That fucking bitch was getting out of hand. Sure, Claudia tried toning it down; ‘it’s just an email’, but it wasn’t just an email. It was a whole buttload of fucking emails, on top of about forty text messages and voice messages on the phone she’d tried using to track my woman. Grease had the phone and all tracking was disabled, but he was monitoring the extent of the behaviour, cataloguing it for us. Apparently that’d help with a stalking case against her. Her own fucking twin sister.

I was in the living room with Micro and Harley, and the others had headed off. Claudia was in the kitchen, making herself some lunch, and we had Grease on speaker. The one upside of her not being able to hear was us being able to speak freely right now.

“She’s fucking obsessed, Pres. I’d recommend her sister takes action to take out an order against her. Jay says there are a few ways she can go with this, and they all mean at least we can get the bitch arrested if she escalates.”

That’s what I hate about this fucking country’s justice system. Where’s the protection before something fucking escalates, right?

“So we just have to wait until the bitch assaults her or something?”

Micro rested a hand on my shoulder, while ignoring my words to continue the conversation.

“What about turning the tables on her? It’d be better to know where she is at all times, so we can double the protection detail.”

Harley lifted a hand before Grease could reply.