Page 29

Twenty-Nine

Quinn

“I f I never have to pack again, I’ll be forever grateful,” I muttered as I tossed a duffle bag of clothes onto the guest bed at Mike’s apartment.

“It’s only for a little while,” he said gently, leaning against the doorframe with his arms folded over his chest. We both knew it was true, given that neither my apartment nor Roman’s was safe anymore; he was the last resort on such short notice.

But we also knew it wasn’t safe for long; whoever it was would find us here too.

That was why we didn’t go to my mom’s house.

I wanted to keep her safe, which meant that we needed to avoid her and Sonia at this point.

It was too dangerous to get them involved by staying with them.

“That was supposed to be true about Roman too. I was only supposed to stay there for a few nights, and almost two weeks later, we were still there. I just want to go back to my own apartment and go back to normal.”

“I know,” he sighed. “But unfortunately, that’s not an option right now. We have to keep you and Rosie safe.”

“Safe?” I snorted, tossing my phone on the bed.

“Do you really think that we’re going to be safe anywhere?

Whoever it is keeps finding us wherever we go, so I don’t see why we can’t just go back to my apartment and be comfortable.

I’m so tired,” I said, rubbing my eyes. “I don’t want to keep running and looking over my shoulder. ”

“The only way around that is to relocate you guys.”

“Like through witness protection?”

He shrugged.

“The department that my husband worked for and died on the job? The same department that you work for that seems to have a mole?”

“Technically, it wouldn’t need to go through us at all. US Marshals handle witness protection. I have a friend who I trust that I could ask for a favor.”

“Mike, you and I both know that neither of us can ask for any favors right now without someone getting wind of it. We don’t know who we can or can’t trust. There’s too much at stake right now to risk it.”

“So then you’re stuck with me for a while?”

“It looks that way,” I said with a soft laugh.

We stayed quiet for a few minutes before he pushed off the wall and ran a hand through his hair.

“I’m going to do everything I can to keep her safe, Quinn. I promise you that. No one is leaving you alone in the apartment again.”

“So we’re all just quitting our jobs and living here together?” My brows rose high on my head.

“It’s not forever. Whoever it is, is getting restless. They’re making more attempts. We just need to catch them and end this.”

I tried to smile, but it disappeared before it hit my lips.

Mike’s phone rang, pulling him into the hallway to answer it.

We were still waiting for an update on Saul—who had been seen at a food truck a few blocks away from the office when he was shot, which ruled him out from being the same person who broke into Roman’s apartment.

“Yeah, okay. I’m on my way.” Mike hung up and shoved his phone back into his pocket as he came back into the guest room.

“I need to go meet Max to discuss a few things. Roman is in the kitchen with Rosie. I’ll grab some groceries on my way back, but Mom is headed over with a few casseroles in the meantime. ”

“Okay,” I nodded. “Thank you.”

He smiled, then turned and left. I fell back on the bed and laid there for a few minutes, pretending that my life wasn’t currently one big dumpster fire.

An hour later, my mom had shown up with my sister Sonia and a week’s worth of meals to go in the freezer. On top of that, she had a pan of chicken enchiladas, beans, and rice that were hot and ready to eat. We sat down at the small table in Mike’s kitchen and ate dinner together as a family.

Once we were done, my mom took Rosie to give her a bath while I helped Roman clean up. Sonia was helping blow up the air mattress that they brought for Roman to sleep on. It was amazing how much help and support we had, though I hated the reason why we needed it.

“How are you holding up?” Roman asked, gently bumping my shoulder with his as I rinsed the plate and set it in the dishwasher.

“I’ve been better, and I’ve been worse,” I said with a shrug. “So, I guess I’m somewhere in between?”

Yesterday had been a long day dealing with multiple agencies over the shooting. While we didn’t have to worry about proof that someone had tried to break in and that I fired my gun in self-defense—it sucked that we didn’t have anyone in custody nor a suspect to go after.

“Have they heard anything about Saul?” I asked, looking up at him as he handed me another plate.

“Mike said that he was out of surgery but then took a turn for the worse and was rushed back into another one. I haven’t heard anything since then.”

“It’s so crazy,” I muttered.

I added the last few dishes to the dishwasher and then started it. My body was sore and tired as I leaned against the counter behind me.

“I just wish all of this was over already. Or better yet—I wish it wasn’t happening to begin with.”

“Me too. But we’ll keep both of you safe.” He took a deep breath and then sighed heavily. “I know that probably doesn’t mean much given what happened yesterday....” His head dropped as his hand shot through his short, dark hair.

“Hey,” I said gently, pulling his hand down. “That wasn’t your fault.”

He let his hand drop, our fingers entwining in the process. I turned toward him, pressing my chest into his as his hand snaked around my waist and pulled me tighter.

“I should have been there. I hate that I wasn’t.”

“You didn’t know.”

“We knew there was a threat—that’s all I needed to know. Instead, I was off looking for something and got distracted. I know better than to let myself lose focus.”

“What were you looking for?” My curiosity getting the best of me.

He let go of me for a brief moment as he walked over and grabbed his backpack from the hook by the door. A few minutes later, he came back and handed me a bag of gummy worms.

The corners of my lips turned up as I held it, realizing that this was what he and Mike had been talking about yesterday when I overheard them. I didn’t eat a lot of sweets, but gummy worms were my weakness, and the ones in the red bag were my favorite.

“They were out at the market that I went to, so I went to a few other places before I finally found them,” he explained.

I held them to my chest and looked up at him, trying to blink away the tears.

“You didn’t have to do that.”

“I wanted to. I mean, it was originally Mike’s idea to get them, but I was the one who had asked him what your favorite snack was.”

I wrapped my arms around his neck, careful not to scratch him with the bag. My eyes fluttered closed as my lips brushed against his before they parted, and his tongue swiped against mine.

“You’re so sweet,” I whispered between kisses.

He pulled away and slowly trailed his lips down the side of my neck. “I wanted to do something nice for you.” His teeth gently nipped my skin. “You’ve had so much going on and needed a treat.”

“I had a nice treat the other night,” I giggled playfully as I scratched my nails up his back under his shirt. “But this is great too.”

“Are you saying that sex with me is comparable to gummy worms?” He pulled back and raised a dark brow at me.

“Well,” I laughed. “Both are pretty satisfying.”

“But has a candy ever made you come before?” he whispered by my ear, the coarse hair on his chin teasing my skin.

“Hmmm,” I teased, playfully tapping my finger to my chin. “I’m not going to answer—”

“What the fuck is this?” Mike’s voice boomed from the front door before it slammed shut behind him.

I immediately jumped back, putting enough space between us to douse the flame that was starting to build between my legs.

“It’s not what it looks like,” I lied quietly, lowering my head to avoid his heated gaze.

I wasn’t afraid of much, but that didn’t mean that I wanted to see my brother’s disappointment etched on his face.

I could still hear Rosie laughing from the bathroom with my mom, so I knew she wasn’t headed out here yet.

“It is what it looks like,” Roman confirmed, digging his fingers into my hip and pulling me toward him protectively.

“Is it?” Mike questioned, standing in front of us with his feet spread shoulder-width apart and arms crossed. “Because it looks like you’re fucking my sister.”

“Mike!” I covered my mouth with my hand, not sure if I was more embarrassed that my older brother knew that I was doing his best friend or if it was hearing the words come out of his mouth.

“Like I said,” Roman said with a shrug.

“I warned you,” Mike bit out, taking a few steps toward us.

“Yeah. And?” Roman quipped, stepping in front of me and putting a hand behind him to keep me in place. “What are you going to do, Mike? Try to kick my ass because I fell for your sister and we acted on impulse like two very consensual adults?”

“Oh, I’m gonna do more than try to kick your ass.”

“Let’s see what you’ve got.”

I watched as they stood chest to chest, both of them fuming so hot that I was surprised I didn’t see smoke coming out of their ears.

“That’s enough,” I hissed, pushing in between them. “We have enough going on right now; we don’t need to add this to the mix.”

“I was just going to say the same thing,” Mike replied while looking over at me and keeping his eyes on Roman.

“Seems like a bad time to start a new relationship , given everything else that’s going on.

And I know that my best friend wouldn’t be using my sister as a fuck buddy—so obviously, there’s a relationship that you guys haven’t told anyone about. ”

I could feel the heavy breath from Roman behind me and knew that he was trying to stay calm.

“You don’t know shit—”

“I will handle this,” I said, lifting my hand to stop him.

I waited for Mike to stop glaring at Roman and look at me before I spoke.

“Mike, I love that you’re still my protective big brother after all of these years, but this isn’t something that you need to be concerned with.”

“But—”

“Nope. You do NOT get a say in any of this. I am a grown woman and know exactly what I’m getting myself into with Roman.

You don’t need to step in and protect me when you know damn well that he’s a good guy.

If he’s good enough to be your best friend all of these years, then I don’t see why you wouldn’t think that he was good enough for me.

Wouldn’t you want someone like him for your sister? Someone that you know and trust?”

I tilted my head and studied him, pinning him with a look. “Or do I not deserve that?”

He pulled his head back and scowled.

“You know you deserve more than that, Quinn. You deserve more than anyone could ever give you.”

“So then, are you saying that Roman isn’t good enough for me?”

He looked from me to his best friend, his face softening some.

“I didn’t say that.”

I released a frustrated breath and forced my shoulders down.

“Well, that’s what you’re insinuating, and it’s just as rude to him as it is to me. I know that you love both of us and care about our happiness, but you need to step back and realize that this is none of your business. Whatever happens between Roman and me is for us to handle—not you.”

“I don’t want to be caught in the middle if things go south between you guys.”

“Then don’t. No one is forcing you to be in that position.

Before this, Roman and I saw each other at random holidays—it’s not like we were constantly around each other.

I’d like to believe that someday things will return to a somewhat normal state, and God forbid—if something did happen and we couldn’t be around each other—we’re adults who can act civil and move on with our lives.

It’s a shame you don’t trust us enough to let us try this and see what happens.

It could be something really wonderful.” I stepped back and leaned into Roman’s side as he wrapped an arm around me.

Mike looked between us, watching the way we held each other.

“So,” he said with his jaw still clenched. “This is happening?”

We both nodded.

“Fine,” he sighed. “But absolutely no sex under my roof.”

He turned and walked out of the room, muttering something under his breath as he worked his tie free from his neck.