Page 15

Chapter fifteen

Raegan

An annoying, out-of-the-box ringtone interrupts my dreamless sleep.

There’s a huff, and then something slides under my neck and pulls me against heated skin.

The familiar smell of cinnamon body wash promises me I’m safe, and I keep my eyes closed to cling to sleep and a worry-free existence for a bit longer.

The phone keeps ringing, even as lips plant at the top of my head and his abdomen concaves with how deeply he breathes me in.

Aiden clears his throat.

“What is it?” he finally answers, his voice hushed and his head turned away from me.

Nosey as I am, I strain to listen.

It should be easy with how close I am to him, but he must keep his phone volume low because I can only catch a female voice and a word here or there that makes no sense out of context.

“Yes.” A pause. “A couple hours ago…No. Tell them tomorrow.” A frustrated sigh.

“No. No, it’s alright…I appreciate it. Tell them we’ll be there in an hour. That’s the soonest we can do. Yes. Give us ten minutes. ”

I crane my neck to look at him.

The back of his hand holding the phone is resting over his closed eyes.

As if he can sense my gaze on him, his eyes open.

“Did I wake you?” He lightly chuffs, then sets his phone on the nightstand.

“Never mind. I already know the answer.”

“Was that Cibrina?” I guess, my hand sliding up his smooth and firm chest to get more comfortable.

The last thing I remember is driving away from the woods at the cusp of dawn, curled in Jackson’s lap.

I assumed I’d be waking up to him this morning, considering where I’d been.

His bed is also the one I’ve slept in the past few nights.

Which means Aiden took it upon himself to put me in his bed this time.

I wouldn’t mind waking up in any of their beds, though I’m still holding out for my own.

It’s just the small issue of Aiden’s inability to share that has me wondering what the others thought about him stealing me away to his room while I’d been unconscious.

His long fingers trail along the back of my hand before dwarfing it in his.

“It was.”

“And?”

“You, me, and Dane need to go to the police station to give our statements.”

My nose crinkles in both confusion and displeasure.

“Statements about what? When did the police get involved?”

“When we arrived at the hospital with four severely injured victims. Cibrina held them off as long as she could, but if we don’t show in an hour, they’ll issue warrants for our arrest. ”

Fuck a duck.

As if we don’t have enough problems. The last thing we need are the cops sniffing around the Guild.

“What are we supposed to say? Hi, sorry! My psycho dad tried to kidnap two of us and kill me, but we made it out of there before he could. Don’t try to find and arrest him or he’ll probably kill you, too.”

The corner of Aiden’s lips tugs up in amusement, and I take that compliment and tuck it away in my memories for a rainy day.

Then his expression falls, and I can almost see the wheels turning through his focused stare at the ceiling.

“We’ll get the others up and discuss our cover story to make sure it all matches. I need to call Cassandra over as well since she’ll need to be present for her own interview. Cibrina is already on her way. She’ll be representing each of us as our attorney.”

“What else?”

“Reid. Him not showing up for the interview means he’ll be wanted by the police when he returns.” There’s conviction in his tone when he says Reid will be back.

Like he can imagine no other path than Reid returning once he’s gotten whatever he’s trying to accomplish done or he realizes he can’t continue without help.

“That aside, it’s going to make our story less convincing if one of the victims has gone missing.”

Wonderful.

“I’ll call Fabian to come in, too, just in case since he was in the hospital room with Reid.” He reaches for his phone again.

One of these days, when we’re not fighting GE or dealing with the cops, I’m going to hide his phone for a day.

I’ll tell Cibrina he’s unavailable, and I’m going to make sure he relaxes and has fun, whatever that looks like for him.

Maybe something involving a collar.

And me.

I curl over him, slipping my leg between his and running my hand up to smooth the crinkle between his brows.

His hand pauses over the phone.

“What are you doing?” he inquires in a smooth-as-melted chocolate voice when I slip my fingers through his soft bedhead.

He’s usually so put together.

Suit and tie. Hair styled back with some product.

A stern expression on his face that he wears like a mask he puts on for the day.

I’m seeing the man beneath that armor.

The mess of his hair.

The sleep still clinging to his voice.

The suit gone, revealing his athletic build that you wouldn’t expect of a businessman.

And tight muscular arms that could probably pop a man’s head off if he squeezed hard enough.

Even though he’s wearing boxers, his cock is erect and firm at my hip, pushing at the fabric to be free the more I touch him.

It reminds me that I’m only in a shirt and underwear, meaning it would be so easy to shift it aside…

He grabs my throat before I can act, bringing my face to his.

“Don’t tempt me,” he purrs.

“Besides the fact that Cibrina will be here in five minutes, and we have yet to wake the others, we also have an audience.”

An audience?

His eyes slant to my right, and I follow them to find Jackson lying on his back on the floor, both arms behind his head as a makeshift pillow.

Jack’s lips curve to a wicked smile.

“Don’t mind me.”

Ah.

That explains how he’d taken me from Jackson.

As long as he could stay in the room, too.

I really need to get my own room.

Aiden is entirely unamused at the suggestion.

“Get dressed,” he orders, releasing me to roll off him.

He grabs his phone and walks into the bathroom to get ready himself.

Tilting my head, I peer down to Jackson with a teasing smirk.

“He wouldn’t let you in the bed?”

Jackson chuckles and sits upright.

“Not yet.” Then he’s on his feet in one effortless motion, touching his forehead against mine and threading his fingers into the hair at my nape.

“Morning, little one.”

My heart does a little pitter-patter.

My voice is soft and breathy when I reply, “Morning.”

His smirk stretches to a smile, dimple piercing his left cheek as he pulls back.

“I’ll go wake the others,” he says before leaving the room and closing the door.

Seeking out my bag of clothes in the corner of the room, I hurriedly change and tie my hair back, then leave the room.

By the time I’m out, Dane’s already in the kitchen at the stove working on eggs.

He glances up, and a boyish smile—that makes my heart throb and chest ache—lights up his face.

“Hey,” he greets softly.

“Hey. ”

He holds an arm out expectantly.

Butterflies scatter in my chest and my cheeks flame.

What the hell is this feeling?

I take my time getting there, hoping I’ll pin a name to whatever unfamiliar emotion is flooding my system in a rush of heat and jittering nerves, but I am still clueless by the time his arm falls over my shoulders.

He tucks me into his side, holding me there as his other hand guides the spatula to test the crisping edges of his eggs.

They sizzle in the pan, and steam rises with the smell of cooking butter.

“How’d you sleep?”

I blow out a breath, mostly in an attempt to expel the nerves from my body but also to express my frustration with the lack of sleep.

“Great…until the wake-up call.”

He snorts.

“No kidding. After this shit show interrogation, I’d say we’ve earned ourselves an afternoon of a movie marathon and a nap.”

“Have you finished building that virus Aiden wants?”

“Yeah. I’m working on the first two potential Board member research now. Think the cops will let me bring my laptop in the room while I wait?”

Now it’s my turn to snort.

“Even if they did, I wouldn’t. They’ll probably spy on what you’re doing and then ask even more questions.”

“Mmm. Yeah. Guess I’ll have to wait until we get back.” He flips the eggs, giving them a few seconds to cook on that side before he lifts the pan and slides them onto a plate.

“Do you want bacon or sausage with your breakfast sandwich? ”

My mouth waters at the offer.

“Is it greedy to want both?”

“You can have whatever the fuck you want, babe. Just tell me, and I’ll make it for you.”

Babe.

It’s like a shot of pleasure strikes me in the chest, swelling and rolling through me in a wave of heat and throwing my heart out of rhythm.

“Um…” I start, too distracted by that one word to remember what I’m supposed to be telling him anymore.

Dane cracks an egg on the counter and splits it one-handed over the pan for the next round of eggs.

Eggs. Sandwiches. Bacon and sausage.

Right.

“I want both. With cheese.”

“Done. Go sit at the table, and I’ll bring it to you when it’s ready.” He kisses my head and releases me to do as he instructed.

I’m still too dumbfounded by that entire interaction to think twice about it.

I move on autopilot, my brain still glitching and rebooting, until I find myself in Jackson’s chair at an empty table.

“Ahhhhrrrrnngh!” Kellan’s raucous voice followed by a yawn echo in the living area seconds before him.

“I need at least eight hours of sleep to look as beautiful as I do. Two is shit to work with.” He shoots me a sharp grin.

Jackson trails behind him, hands in his kangaroo pocket and hood up.

He leaves the Loft, and I give Kellan a questioning look as he leans against the back of the couch with arms folded.

“To let the others in.” He lifts his arm and the sleeve of tattoos there.

“No one comes in or out of here without the key. ”

That’s right.

I’d seen one of them raising their arms or wrists in the elevator each time we’d reached the Loft floor but had been too distracted to realize why.

“Shouldn’t I have a key?”

“You going somewhere without one of us?” he drawls with a cocky smirk.

Frowning, I cross my arms and lean back in my chair.

“You don’t have to worry about me running after GE on my own anymore. But yeah. I’d like the freedom to come and go alone if I wanted to. I’m done feeling like a prisoner.”

“I’ll arrange an appointment for your tattoo,” Aiden calmly states as he emerges from the hallway.

“Decide where you want them to put it and make sure it’s somewhere you can easily get to for scanning it.” He drapes his suit jacket over the back of his chair, then draws it back and sits.

The tension between my shoulders recedes in a rush of relief.

I slide my fingers along the curve of my shirt’s neckline, tugging it enough to reveal the top of one breast. A small smirk creeps onto my face when I open my mouth.

“Ri—”

“Somewhere on your arm or wrist will do,” Aiden immediately cuts in.

“Though, I’d strongly advise you keep it somewhere between your forearm and wrist in case you’re wearing long sleeves or a jacket.” His dark gaze pins mine.

“You wouldn’t want to be forced to strip an article of clothing off just to gain entry each time.”

I mean, it would be funny the first few times.

But long term, he has a point.

Dane sets a plate in front of me and another before Aiden.

The smell is mouthwatering.

“Thanks,” I murmur as he strides back to the kitchen.

He smiles at me over his shoulder and nods, then gets to work on assembling the next sandwich.

I dig in, groaning a little at how delicious it tastes.

Dane’s expression is hopeful and nervous when he places a mug of coffee down for me next.

“Is it good?”

Nodding emphatically, I manage around a mouthful, “So good.”

His smile widens.

The door to the Loft opens, and a line of people enter, followed by Jack.

“Good morning, everyone. I’m so sorry for the timing. I tried to hold him off—” Aiden raises his hand, and Cibrina stops.

“There’s no need to apologize, Cibrina. Have any of you eaten?” He indicates the counter where Dane’s already prepared breakfast sandwiches for everyone.

Cassandra’s looking around the Loft like this is her first time here; a small, selfish part of me is pleased to see that.

Fabian rushes to the counter, tossing the rest of whatever else he’d been eating in his mouth at once to free his hands and reach for a sandwich.

He releases an unrestrained moan after a single bite.

“Marry me,” he directs to Dane, who scoffs.

“I’m taken. Besides, you’re not my type.”

Fabian shrugs.

“My type is whoever can cook the best.”

“Odd priority,” Dane mutters, taking a sandwich for himself and standing by my side.

Jack grabs one and then leans against the sliding glass doors to the balcony behind me while Cassandra and Cibrina each take a sandwich and sit in the remaining two seats.

“Now that we’re all here, let’s discuss what we are—or, more importantly, are not —going to say to the detective,” Aiden begins.

“Are we going to talk about how illegal this is?” Kellan speaks up.

Cibrina nods. “Technically, yes. It would be against the law for them to issue warrants for our arrest. Going to the station to answer questions when no report has been filed is our choice. Ordinarily, I would advise against going to avoid possible self-incrimination. However, with this particular detective…” She glances at Aiden.

“It would be in our best interest to comply enough that he drops it. Avoiding him seems to have only made his curiosity in us grow,” he adds.

“Can we file a complaint against him for threatening us?” Dane demands.

“We could,” Cibrina responds.

“But, at most, he may receive a few days’ suspension, and then his ire would be aimed at us, making matters worse.”

Dane curses under his breath.

“Which brings us back to how we’re going to answer his questions. Dane and Raegan, you’ll both have been drunk and fallen down the stairs to sustain your injuries. And you won’t remember anything from that night,” Aiden says.

“What about my bullet graze?” Dane asks.

“Something that you fell on caused that wound, but seeing as you don’t remember the night and only Raegan was with you at the time, you’re unsure what it was.” Aiden looks to the rest of the room.

“He’s going to try to get the victims to mention a name or some possible offender he can go after. We aren’t going to give him one. And this was a private party, unaffiliated with the Guild.”

Aiden and Cibrina continue their coaching as uneasiness swirls in my gut.

If this detective already has it out for us, I have a bad feeling he’s not going to be satisfied after these interviews.

I only hope we leave him with enough of a dead end that he drops it.

“Is that all you have to say?” The detective grinds out, his temper clearly frazzling.

“You don’t remember anything?”

I shrug one shoulder, relaxing back in my seat with arms folded over my chest. “I’m not sure what you’re looking for, Officer. It was a hell of a party that went too far. I’m sorry if that’s not the answer you want, but there’s nothing more to it.”

His frown lines deepen, his bushy dark brows drawing in.

“It’s Detective Unger.”

“Huh?”

“Not officer. Detective,” he corrects me.

Scoffing, I focus my gaze on the corner of the table in the interview room to keep my eyes from rolling.

This guy definitely has a superiority complex.

“Sure,” I reply instead, doing my damnedest to be on my best behavior like I’d promised Aiden.

“Your hospital record says you’d broken several ribs and had some pretty severe bruising,” he muses, flipping open the file he’d slapped down on the table when he first entered the room.

I cast a short glance at Cibrina sitting next to me and see her mouth turn down while staring at the file that I’m pretty sure he had no right to obtain.

Fantastic.

“Good for you,” I reply, sarcasm drowning my words.

“You can read.”

Cibrina places her hand on my arm, and I force myself to take a deep breath.

Right. This is almost over.

I need to keep my head.

Detective Unger’s lips twitch to an almost smile from my response.

“And it was Aiden Adams who signed you in. What’s his relation to you?”

Heat flares in my chest. I drop my hands to my lap, fisting them beneath the table.

“He’s my…boyfriend,” I finish lamely.

That word doesn’t feel right.

That little word isn’t enough to encompass what we have, what me and the others have between us.

But it’s none of this guy’s business what word would fit us best, so I leave him with that.

“Ah, your boyfriend,” he drags out slowly, then closes the file and laces his hands together over it.

“The way I see it, Miss LaRoux, you’re innocent. Maybe even a victim. Now, I don’t know if this was some sort of domestic or company-based harassment or what…but I’m here to let you know that you can trust me. If you’re covering for someone, you don’t need to do that. We can bring them in and hold them, so you have nothing to fear from intimidation or repercussions if you were to give me a name.”

Anger rushes through my veins, boiling my blood as I clench my teeth.

This asshole is trying to get me to point a finger at Aiden.

My gift burns in my gut, aching to slip free at the threat to Aiden.

Leaning forward, I lower my voice when I answer him.

“You wanna know how I see it?” His brows knit, and I know I have his attention.

“I see a pathetic, wannabe detective grasping at straws, trying to make something out of nothing in the hopes someone will notice him. I think if you were a real detective, you’d have actual bad guys to catch, but instead, you’re here harassing us because you have nothing better to do. Get a life because I have nothing more to say to you.”

The detective smiles, then mirrors my position on the opposite side of the table.

“One thing you should know about me is that I have great instincts. Some might even call it a gift .” My stomach drops.

“Thank you for your time today, Miss LaRoux. I have what I need for now, and I’ll let you know when I have further questions.” He stands, taking the file with him.

“Don’t leave town.”

He exits the room, the soft click of the door behind him striking me with a bolt of fear.

Cibrina sighs. When I look at her to speak, she shakes her head.

Another officer opens the door for us, leading us back to the entrance of the police station where the others are waiting.

I’d been the last one, so we walk outside to the two parked cars before anyone says a word.

“How did everyone do?” Aiden asks Cibrina, who’d been present with each of us.

I’m half expecting her to look at me after the shitshow that was my interview, but she doesn’t.

“We’ve given him nothing further to investigate with this incident.” Aiden nods, but she continues, “But he’s not going to drop it from what I can tell. He seems to already have an interest in us, so since he doesn’t have an angle from using the victims’ statements, I have no doubt he’ll be searching for another one.”

“What other angle could he possibly have?” Dane questions, his arms crossed and one foot up against the tire of Kellan’s car.

“The Guild, for one,” Cibrina responds.

“He may look deeper into the company, and Aiden as the one who runs it. That and he made a comment about having a natural gift with his instincts. It could be a coincidence, but…”

Dane swears and hits a fist against Kell’s car.

“Watch it,” Kellan growls.

Cassandra chews on her lip but stays quiet while Fabian tosses peanuts into his mouth and looks unperturbed.

“The cops aren’t a problem. It’s just him,” Jackson comments.

Aiden turns to him. “Did you hear something?”

Jack nods once.

“His superior. Demanded to know what we were all doing there.” He cocks his head.

“I can make him and all of this disappear,” he offers chillingly, and Cassandra shivers next to me.

“Not yet,” Aiden commands, and I frown.

I know it’s probably not the right thing to do, but I agree with Jackson.

We have enough problems right now to add this guy to it, especially with that gift remark.

Does he have a gift himself, or was he insinuating he knows about people with gifts?

“We’ll have someone keep an eye on him for now to make sure he doesn’t get too close. If he does, then we’ll address him. Until then, we keep our focus on GE. ”

I reach behind me to pinch Jackson’s hoodie, which draws him immediately to press into my back without a word.

I’ve barely had him back from watching Thorne.

Is he going to be off stalking this guy now?

Aiden catches the movement, his eyes then finding mine.

“Others can watch the detective. Thorne was a special case.” He looks to the rest of the group.

“Hopefully, this is the last we hear of this detective, but tell Cibrina or me immediately if he tries to reach out to you directly.”

Somehow, I doubt we’ve heard the last word from Detective Unger.