Page 72 of How To Catch A Killer … And Date His Best Friend

“Like I can’t fucking breathe without her.”

“Damn,” he sighs. “Hate to break it to you, Hunter, but you’re just as fucked as I am. You’re in love.”

“Shit.”

My head falls back against the headrest as I stare out at the compound, watching the guards make their rounds.

“What the hell are we supposed to do?” he asks. “Because I have to be real with you. There’s nothing I wouldn’t do for you. I’ve had your back since the first day of kindergarten, and that’s never going to change. You’re like a brother to me, and I would give my fucking life for you, but Lyra . . . I can’t give her up.”

“I would never ask you to,” I tell him. “I see how much she means to you . . . and I’m not about to ask you to walk away, but I’m too fucking selfish. I’m not giving her up, not even for you.”

He sighs. “The way I see it, we have two options. Either we battle it out the old fashioned way—”

“A duel?”

“No, you fucking idiot. Rock, paper, scissors.”

I shake my head and roll my eyes. “Or?”

“Or we wait it out until one of us inevitably fucks up so bad that she forces us out.”

I let out a breath and fix him with a hard stare. “How badly would we have to fuck up? You blew up her home, and she’s still sound asleep on your couch. I don’t think there’s anything either of us could do that would have her walking away. I think she’s all in.”

He meets my stare. “And when she figures out I’m a killer just like you?”

“I don’t know, man. But the longer you keep it from her, the messier it’s going to get,” I tell him. “If you’re really in this, you have to trust her to know exactly who you are. Lay it all out and start this with a clean slate. Besides, considering how easily she accepted me, something tells me you’ll breeze through.”

Maddox laughs to himself. “Alright, so for now, we keep on keeping on. All three of us. Together.”

I glance at my best friend. “I always knew you and I were gonna be a package deal right until the end, but I never considered this would be the path it was going to take.”

He shakes his head. “Neither did I, man. Neither did I,” he says. “I know I joke a lot, but I draw the line at sucking your cock. If Lyra wants some sword crossing shit to go down, I’m gonna need at least a few shots first. And I ain’t bottoming for you. I’ve seen the size of that thing, and it ain’t going anywhere near my ass.”

I let out a sigh and shift my gaze out the window before reaching for my weapons and double-checking they’re ready to go. “Come on,” I tell him. “Time to go.”

We step out into the night and with our weapons securely strapped across our bodies, I glance at my best friend over the top of my Challenger. “Ready for this?”

He nods, all talk of bottoming completely forgotten. “Fucking born ready.”

I wouldn’t expect anything less, and with that, we take off toward the compound, a gun resting securely in the palm of my hand.

I launch over the ten-foot fencing, scaling it like an animal before coming down on the other side. My feet hit the uncut grass with a soft thud, just seconds before Maddox comes down beside me, a single, sharp puff of air expelling from his lungs.

I don’t doubt that we’ve already been clocked by Antonio’s security team, but that doesn’t faze me as we hit the ground running, pushing ourselves to a sprint, hoping we can cut clear across the compound before the world slams down around us.

The compound is too quiet.

The patrol route that should be circling the eastern perimeter is gone, and one of the security lights has shifted position since our last sweep. Most people wouldn’t notice, but we do, which means we’re exactly where we want to be.

“Four coming from the front,” Maddox murmurs beside me.

I don’t break my stride as the adrenaline floods my body. “Three behind.”

We continue across the open ground toward the warehouse like two idiots with a death wish when the guards finally emerge from the darkness, closing in with weapons drawn.

Someone’s shouting orders, and I have to smile. “Nothing quite like a welcoming committee to start a hit off right.”

Maddox chuffs as though impressed by my rare show of humor. “Damn straight.”