Page 8 of Coco and the Misfits (The Candyverse #4)

COCO

“I t’s them, right there.” I point at the bar where the girls are gathered. “My friends.”

He nods. “Do they have a car?”

“We came on foot. We don’t live far.”

“I’d very much like to drive you home,” he says firmly. “If you’d allow me.”

Right then, June turns and sees me and her eyes grow wide. “Coco. There you are. We’ve been looking for you.”

I open my mouth to tell her what happened, but nothing comes out. The shaking is getting worse.

Atticus steps closer and slides a strong arm around me. “Two men tried to take her out of the bar by force. She’s shaken.”

“Oh my God, Coco! Are you okay?” June jumps to her feet. “How did that happen?”

“Are we calling the police?” Gigi blinks, slowly climbing off her barstool. “Do you need a doctor?”

God, what a way to end the night.

“I’m fine,” I whisper. “And I just want to go home.”

It’s a mantra by now, my only tether. I’m spiraling. Nothing like this has ever happened to me. I felt safe in the crowd. Safe here. I’m not sure I’ll ever feel safe again. The roaring in my ears? It’s the sound of my safe little world crumbling.

“I’ll find those bastards on the cameras and make sure they never step foot in here again,” Atticus says, his voice like steel, and I wonder if I spoke my fears out loud.

“But you can’t accuse them unless you have proof,” I say slowly, “and there is no proof.”

I can’t breathe properly. A weight is crushing my chest. His gaze on me is heavy and knowing, seeing right through me.

“Will you girls be okay if I take her home?” he asks.

“I’m going with you,” June says.

“We’re all coming with,” Gigi says, a glint in her eye. “No offense, but we don’t really know you to trust you with Coco.”

“No offense taken,” Atticus says.

It feels weird, not being in charge. I’m used to leading this merry band of thieves. But the shock still has me in its grip. Letting this massive alpha take over feels natural.

Isn’t it?

I want him to take over and keep me safe tonight.

* * *

Atticus has a sleek black Jeep—I know, generic, but I’m not good with brands, especially not tonight—and we all pile up inside.

It almost feels like a high school excursion, only I feel terribly cold and am grateful for June’s arms around me. She’s practically pulled me into her lap and the other girls are pressed to either side of us. We’re a pile of puppies inside this alpha’s expensive car.

I hate feeling so vulnerable.

But I’m the luckiest girl alive to have such caring friends. Everything will be all right, everything will be okay. I find myself whispering the words under my breath, very much a sign that everything doesn’t feel all right now, but it’s okay.

I trust in time. Always have. If I’m patient, good things will come to me. My heat, revealing me as an omega. Nice people. A nice pack.

I cling to June and sink into the repetition. An old habit for when fear grips me.

You see, as a child, I suffered from bad nightmares. My parents were concerned. Took me to a therapist. Took me to classes and sleep specialists.

I was always lost in my dreams. Lost in landscapes that felt familiar but rundown and broken, with people that I know and yet foreign and alien. That feeling of displacement and estrangement, of alienation and loneliness was always present.

Thinking back, it may have been a reflection of the conflict in me, the clash between what everyone expected me to be and what I wanted to be. What I knew I was.

My nightmares these days are few and in-between, but I have a feeling tonight they will be back to haunt me.

* * *

Atticus parks on the street and opens the door for us. Gigi grumbles as she steps out and goes around the car to extract the still very drunk Ruby.

“I’ll take her home,” she says. “She needs to walk this off.”

“Will you be all right?” Atticus asks her as he reaches for me. “Or shall I drive you?”

I like that. I like that he is concerned about all of us.

“We live around the corner,” Gigi says with a smile. “Thank you, though.”

“I live in the same building as her,” June says, relinquishing her hold on me so that Atticus can pull me out of his car. “Two stories up.”

She sounds kind of... tense? I can’t focus, not with his strong hands dragging me up to my feet and slamming me against his side.

“That means I’m coming up with you,” she goes on, scrambling out of the car, “and I’ll take care of her. You can go now, thank you.”

“I’m accompanying you both up,” he says. “That’s the deal.”

“Coco,” June starts. “Do we know?—?”

“Let’s go,” I say. Maybe I should be afraid after having been dragged away by those two guys, afraid of being around such a big, powerful man. I get June’s concern, I think. What if Atticus takes advantage of us?

Of me?

But for some reason, I trust him, and not only because he’s the owner of the Alpha Bet bar. Rich, powerful people can be assholes, too, but he exudes an aura of protectiveness and old-time gallantry.

We climb the stairs, his arm once more around me, and June follows like a sulking shadow. When we reach my door, she moves to stand in front of us.

“Now I’ll take over,” she says. “I’ll stay with Coco.”

He doesn’t remove his arm from around me, though, only nods at me. “That’s up to Coco to decide.”

I look up into his deep-set eyes and I know I want him here with me. “Would you stay?”

“Yes.” No hesitation. “I’d feel much better watching over you, knowing you’re safe.”

“What? Are you guys serious? Coco, are you okay staying with him?” June demands.

I turn to glare at her. “It’s my decision.”

“But after what happened...?”

“He defended me. He saved me. He was there for me when I was in danger.”

Her face falls and I realize what I’ve implied. “I see. I’ll leave you two alone, then.”

“June...”

“We had no idea anything was wrong,” she says miserably. “It’s never happened before. You like dancing alone, and we were looking for you?—”

“I know.” I grab her arm. “Honey, I know. It’s none of your fault.”

Her mouth twists. “Okay. Okay, it’s just that I feel so bad. You were almost kidnapped and I had no idea.”

“June. Babe.” I grab both her arms. “Stop it. No guilt, please. I’m fine. See?”

She gives a jerky nod.

“I’m only saying, I trust him. If he wouldn’t mind staying tonight...”

“I would like that very much,” he says in his deep voice and something in me relaxes at the thought of not spending the night alone.

He’s so confident, so self-assured. “I only want to stay and make sure she’s okay and locks up.

Those guys probably have no idea who she is and where she lives, but I’d feel better being here. ”

June nods again. “Fine, then. You know where to find me if you need me.”

She flounces to the stairs and I sigh. I feel like I’m failing her but I can’t deal with that tonight. I don’t have the energy.

It’s been a hard night for her, but an even harder one for me. I hope she can see that, come tomorrow. See that I need Atticus here with me.

“Keys,” he says softly and I blink, realizing I’ve been standing still for a long while.

I fish inside my purse, locating the key, but when I try to insert it into the lock, I fail. My hand is still shaking too badly.

“Here,” he says, “let me,” and pries it out of my hand. Quickly, he opens and ushers me inside.

He gazes down at me from his considerable height, something shifting in his green gaze. It’s not pity or condescension. None of that, or I wouldn’t have been able to stand it. No, it looks like something... tender.

Which is exactly what I need.

When he opens his arms, I walk into them without hesitation. When he leads me to my bedroom and sits me on the bed, I let him take off my sandals and lift my feet onto the mattress. Every gesture is careful, spartan. Light. No pressure, no weight behind it, and yet exactly what I need right now.

Bruises I hadn’t noticed before make themselves known as I settle against my mound of soft pillows. My stack of romance books on the white nightstand is comforting.

“Shall I make you a tea?” he asks, standing up, and I blink at the gruff alpha offering such a thing. “Or some hot milk?”

“I’m good, thanks.” Then sudden panic grips me and I jump to my feet, rushing to throw on the bolt. “Where is the key? Do you still have it? I need to lock the door.”

“Here,” he says, showing me the key. “Relax. I’ll lock up properly.”

I nod, but don’t move, watching as he inserts the key and locks in a few sparse motions. “Thanks.”

“I should have started with this,” he says with an apologetic little shrug. “But first I wanted to settle you on your bed.”

“Thank you for… for everything.”

His faint smile is warm. “My pleasure.” He leads the way back into the bedroom, checks my window. “Why don’t you get ready for bed? I’ll take the sofa.”

That would mean he’d be in another room. Not close enough.

The panic returns. “No. Please, stay here.” I reach for him. “Lie down with me.”

His handsome face is earnest. “You’re feeling vulnerable tonight. I don’t want you to think I’d take advantage of that.”

“I know.” Don’t ask me how I know, but I believe him. He’d never take advantage of someone in a weak spot.

After another long look, he nods. “Whatever you need.”

With him so close, I’d normally be thinking sexy thoughts, but tonight I’m not. Only his arms around me, his heartbeat near me, like when he carried me inside the bar. There’s never any question of taking off our clothes.

Simply kicking off his shoes and shrugging off his jacket, he settles beside me on the bed, his back to the headboard, and opens his arms for me again.

My eyes burn. He’s kind. He should be at his bar, running his business, and instead he’s here, making sure I’m comfortable.

I settle my head against his chest, his hand stroking my hair, and I close my eyes.

It almost feels perfect. Almost smells like the future.

But nothing is ever that easy.