Page 53

The statement hangs in the air. No one elaborates. No one needs to. Jaxon is smart enough to understand what Xavier isn’t saying. Xavier takes a slow breath before continuing.

“I spent most of my life alone, Jaxon.” The room grows quieter somehow. “A lot like you.”

I glance over at Jaxon. His eyes are fixed on Xavier, completely locked in. Like he can’t help hearing pieces of himself in the story.

“I convinced myself I didn’t deserve love. No matter how much I wanted it.” Xavier’s gaze softens. “That it was easier that way.”

Declan’s arm tightens around his waist. Neither of them seems to notice. Or maybe they’re simply used to touching each other that much.

“Then I found this family.” His eyes move around the room. Taking in every person sitting there. “And everything changed.” The conviction in his voice is impossible to miss. “I’m not alone anymore. And neither are you.”

The words hit their target. I feel Jaxon stiffen beside me. Feel the way his fingers tighten around mine. Like part of him wants to believe Xavier, and another part is terrified to. Because believing him means accepting something Jaxon has spent his entire life denying himself. The possibility that he doesn’t have to survive on his own anymore.

“Ollie is actually my baby brother.” Colton picks up the conversation without hesitation. His hand moves absently through Ollie’s curls. The toddler immediately leans into the touch.

“My parents joined a cult when I was sixteen.” The room remains silent. Not because we haven’t heard it before. But because some stories deserve silence. “The whole reason they joined was to traffic me.”

Jaxon’s eyes widen. His hand now has a small tremor in it. I rub my thumb across his knuckles to try to comfort him.

“When that plan fell through, they had Ollie so they could try again.” Colton’s voice never wavers, it only hardens. “So I took him and ran. The cult was in the business of selling children.” The words hit the room like a physical thing. “And they came after us.”

Before the silence can settle, Ronan closes his laptop. Without a word, he crosses the room and sits beside Colton. One arm wraps around his shoulders, the other settles across his chest. Then he presses a kiss to the top of Colton’s head. Colton immediately relaxes into him.

As if sensing he might be missing out on something, Ollie abandons his spot in Colton’s lap and climbs directly onto Ronan. He settles against his chest without a second thought. Ronan doesn’t even pause. One arm shifts automatically to support him.

Jaxon’s eyes are fixed on the three of them. The family they’d built out of tragedy. The safety they’d fought for. The love they’d managed to find anyway.

“Together, they didn’t just save us.” Colton’s fingers trail over Ronan’s hand. “They dismantled the cult. Rescued the kids.” The words land heavily. “My parents and the people running it won’t ever hurt another child.”

For the first time since he started speaking, Colton smiles. It’s small, barely there. Reserved entirely for the man beside him. “He was my darkness so I could be his light.”

Ronan’s expression immediately turns sour. “I should have protected you more.”

“I hate when you say that. You gave me everything I needed.” Colton’s smile widens. The arm around Colton’s shoulders tightens. Colton leans into him slightly. “Ronan made sure my parents paid for what they did.”

Jaxon’s watching Ronan and Colton the same way he watched Xavier and Declan. Like he’s trying to understand something. Trying to solve a puzzle.

And for the first time since this conversation started, I think Jaxon is beginning to understand what Xavier has been trying to tell him. None of us came out of this world unscathed. We just stopped carrying it alone.

Chapter 30

Jaxon

To say I’m stunned would be an understatement. When I first met Colton and Ronan, they looked like the picture of a happy family. They seem comfortable and secure. Sure, Ronan is intimidating as hell. Stoic, even.

The kind of man who looks like he could make someone disappear and then go home and have dinner afterward. But the way he softens around Colton and Ollie is impossible to miss. It changes him completely. The sharp edges dull. His expression relaxes. And every now and then, when he thinks no one is looking, he’ll glance at one of them with so much affection it almost hurts to witness.

I thought they’d always been like this. Thought maybe some people were just lucky enough to find happiness and hold onto it. Now I know that happiness was fought for.

The same is true for Xavier and Declan. Every story I’ve heard tonight has been filled with pain. Yet somehow none of them are defined by it. They survived it. And more importantly, they didn’t survive it alone.

My chest aches as I look around the room, at the easy touches, the quiet smiles. The way they lean toward one another without even thinking about it. Like they know, without question, that someone will be there to catch them if they fall.

I don’t know what that feels like. Not really. But for the first time in my life, I think I understand why people fight so hard to keep it.

“We aren’t the only ones, Jaxon.” Xavier’s voice pulls me from my thoughts. When I look at him, there’s something in his expression I don’t quite expect. Pride. Not for himself, but for the people sitting around this room. “They do the same thing for complete strangers.”

My brow furrows. “What?”