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“You’d do that for me?”

“I’ll do anything for you. Even drag your stubborn ass back home where it belongs. Now tip your head back so I can rinse the conditioner out.”

She does as I ask, and I make quick work of rinsing it clean, mostly because my cock is rock hard and I don’t trust it to behave itself. I grab my shower gel and show it to her. “If you’re sick of lilacs, you can use this as long as you don’t mind smelling like me.”

“I don’t mind. I like how you smell. It always makes me feel calm.”

“Then help yourself to it anytime. I like the idea of you smelling like me. You can borrow my scent until you find one of your own.”

“Why are you so good to me, Kieren? I’m not sure I deserve it.”

My cock throbs when she says my name. “Who the fuck gets to decide what you deserve but you and me?”

“A whole club, actually.”

I huff out a laugh. I dare those motherfuckers to say something. I’ve been on edge the whole time she’s been gone. The only way I can think of getting rid of it is by fucking or fighting it away. As she’s not ready for the first, the second will have to do.

“Whatever we face, we face it together.”

She smiles. It’s small but genuine. “Together.”

* * *

She’s lying in bed with my T-shirt on, her hands tucked under her jaw, fast asleep. The movie we started watching plays in the background, but I’d rather watch her sleep. Maybe that makes me a creeper. I don’t fucking care. After knowing what it’s like to live without her, I’m more than happy to spend my days in a perpetual state of exhaustion if it means I get to watch her sleep beside me.

The sound of my chirping cell phone has me silently cursing. I reach over and grab it so it doesn’t disturb her, and see a message from G.

I’ve got something. You have a minute?

I check the time. Just turned eleven.

Any chance you can come to me? I don’t want Lil to wake up alone.

I watch the dots as he replies.

Be there in five.

I carefully ease out of bed and pull a pair of sweats over my boxers. Lucy lifts her head and watches me from her spot beside the bed.

“Lucy, guard,” I order her. She’ll protect Lil in my absence. It might seem overkill, but I’m not taking anything for granted. This motherfucker has already proven he’s resourceful.

I head downstairs quietly and make my way into the kitchen. I pull a couple of beers from the fridge and pop the caps off, leaving one on the island, and take a swig of the other. A few minutes later, I hear a soft tap at the door. I walk over and open it, letting G inside.

“Hey, Powers. How is she?” he asks quietly as I close the door behind him.

“I told her about Capone. She figured out something was wrong, and I couldn’t lie to her about it, not when it was only going to be a matter of time before the truth came out.”

“I get it. It would be worse if you lied to her. She’s not dumb. The second she walked into the saloon, she’d have known something was wrong.”

I run my hand through my hair and lead him to the kitchen, where he takes a seat at the counter and slides his laptop bag from his shoulder.

“This beer for me?”

“Figured you might need one.”

He nods and takes a deep pull. “Amity is shooting an ad for a new athletic clothing company, so she’s been working on location a lot. And while she’s been occupied, I’ve done nothing but dig into James. At this point, I’m surviving on about three hours of sleep a night.”

“Shit, man, you can’t go on like that. I know you feel like it’s on you to figure all this out, but you’re no good to us if you work yourself into an early grave. Not to mention, tired eyes and brains make mistakes.”