Page 5

“The only fingerprints we found are from the postman and a couple of people working at the post office,” Rami states.

“They were all clean. The stamp has no trace of DNA,” Hunter adds. “The letter as well, and also the underwear.”

“No joy, then.” Lori looks my way. “ Are those panties yours?” He points at the lacy underwear inside the plastic bag.

Uri’s body tenses while his fingers tighten on my side. Words get stuck inside my throat, so I shake my head, wiggling slightly on my chair.

“That would’ve implied that this shithead broke into and entered Sari’s place to steal his underwear.” Raph lets out an incredulous sniff.

“Rami installed Serena as a security alarm in all our houses. It’s impossible for anybody to get past her undetected,” Ollie declares.

“Unless that someone is Uri’s biological brother. He did get inside his property. Could the stalker be him?” Gabe’s monotone voice doesn’t take away the seriousness of his question.

“It’s not him,” Uri hisses. His fist on the table flexes, turning his knuckles white. Is he defending him? He looks angry.

“Whoever it is, we will stop him. You can never be alone, Sari. Someone always has to be with you.” I nod as Rami’s arm wraps protectively around my shoulder for a moment until Uri unceremoniously shoves it off, pulling me tightly against him.

A shiver rolls down my spine, and he tucks me even more closely to him, probably misreading the trembling of my body.

I’m a little creeped out by this stalker who seems obsessed with me, but it’s Uri’s nearness that caused my body’s uncontrollable reaction.

“How do you know it wasn’t your biological brother sending me the package?” I ask Uri.

I slowly turn in his hold, and he allows it, his large palm sliding against my waist as I face him.

He’s so good-looking. Those full, masculine lips so close.

A soft rumbling comes from him; I feel the vibration against my chest more than hear it.

Without giving it thought and feeling strangely bolder than usual, I lift my hand and place it on his heart over his shirt as I tilt my head up to look into his eyes.

The depth of those light ginger pools… My breath gets stuck inside my lungs once again.

“I know it wasn’t him,” he whispers without clarifying further. Because he doesn’t feel the need to. The sting makes me lower my gaze, reminding me once again why I created some distance between us.

There is no missing the slight vibration under my fingers as he growls once again.

“I’ll give this prick free neutering as soon as he shows his face. I’ll run his balls over with my car. It might not kill him, but I bet it would hurt like hell. Especially since I’m willing to throw it in reverse and do it a second time.” Lori pauses. “Or ten more times. Whatever it takes.”

“Nobody wants to see you behind a wheel ever again,” Gabe states, making his fiancée push his head all the way back to glare up at him. Gabe answers with a peck on his nose. I’m still getting accustomed to seeing this affectionate side of him.

The waitress comes, bringing plates filled with pie. After a couple of teasing comments aimed at the newcomers, she leaves, and Gabe and Lori finally sit at the table between Uri and Michael, who is still sitting on Raph’s lap.

Ollie pushes a slice of chestnut pie toward me. I give him a forced smile. I’m about to slide the plate my way when Uri grabs it.

“Hey! It was for Sari,” Ollie complains.

Uri shrugs, putting a fork of chestnut pie in his mouth, as Rami says, “Sari doesn’t like chestnuts, right?”

I nod hesitantly.

“Oh!” Ollie’s eyes widen as he understands Uri’s action.

“He likes them, but they give him indigestion,” Uri clarifies, setting what looks like a slice of apple pie in front of me. He knows me so well, knows I can’t say no when offered something, so he took the choice off my hands. I would’ve ended up in bed with a stomachache if he hadn’t intervened.

My heart speeds up at his attentiveness.

It usually beats faster when he’s near me, and then gradually calms down when he leaves.

It feels like it’s constantly waiting for him, waiting to swell, to overflow with desperate, hopeless want.

A seemingly never-ending agony. To which I decided to put an end to, I remind myself.

A self-derisive snort leaves my lips as I put a hand over my mouth to avoid spraying apple pie all over the table. I grab my glass and down it to wash away the crumbles.

“How many did you drink?” Uri asks me.

“Three or four.” When I see his gaze darkening, like he would to scold a kid, I clip, “It’s juice!”

“Mixed with alcohol,” Raph adds.

Oh! “Really? That’s why I feel so nice and…loose.” I giggle, enjoying how relaxed my muscles are feeling.

“Keep drinking then,” Hunter suggests. His dark eyes are looking at me teasingly while his hand is scratching the short stubble covering his cheeks.

I feel Uri stiffening near me, but I ignore him and smile at Rami as he fills my glass again. My phone beeping stops me from enjoying my drink. I grab it out of my coat and see a text from Trent.

“Who is it?” Uri asks, always the curious one. Ready to protect me from everyone and everything.

“A colleague.” He’s actually Michael’s colleague, a professor at the same university.

And technically we went out on a couple of dates.

We also kissed and jerked each other off.

It was going okay until Meg ended up at the hospital, and I got sucked up by…

everything. We lost contact after a few weeks of not seeing each other.

Then he moved to another city. The fact that I didn’t miss him much spoke volumes. Why is he texting me now?

“Which colleague?” Uri insists.

“None of your business,” I reply firmly, while reading the message. Trent heard about the lecture I’ll give at his university in a couple of weeks about medical treatment studies , new therapies and approaches, and wants to meet up.

I reply with a quick text and then pocket my phone again.

I glance at Uri, noticing how the corner of his mouth has dropped by half an inch, which tells me he’s upset.

“Everything about you is my business.” His gravelly tone confirms what I already know.

How many times have I wished those words were uttered in a romantic, possessive way and not in a brotherly protective one? How irritatingly disappointing.

“Well, since you keep things from me, I’ll do just the same.”

“No, you won’t.” His voice deepens. Some of the people at the table frown. He must notice too, but his tone doesn’t soften. “I won’t let you.”

His forceful statement annoys me even further.

“You have a biological brother, Uri. You’ve been looking for him for years, and you never told me or anybody else here about it!

” My voice rises the more I speak. Reminding myself I’m in a public place, I add in a lower tone, “I think it’s only fair that I keep a few things to myself. ”

“Angel is right. Your bro is a probable maniac, and you didn’t warn us about him.” Lori’s acrimonious words and the look of agreement from the rest of the bros make me wince. I didn’t mean to start an argument.

“This is a private conversation,” Uri hisses.

“It bloody isn’t.” My pleading eyes meet Lori’s, and he adds reluctantly. “But okay. We are not here.” He crosses his fingers over his mouth for a moment in a silent gesture.

“Fuck off, Gremlin!”

Bez’s threatening snarl makes my hair stand. “Careful, Uriel.”

“Tell your fiancé to mind his own fucking business.” Uri doesn’t seem to care about Bez’s wrath. On the contrary, when we were young, he actually tried multiple times to anger Gabe so that his alter, Bez, would come out to defend him. He found Gabe’s multiplicity fascinating.

“You really think he’ll listen?” Gabe utters in his usual flat tone.

“Make him,” Uri responds.

“The fiancé is right bloody here and can hear everything you daft pricks are saying,” Lori barks.

“Go talk somewhere private if you don’t want people to interfere,” Raph states coldly before landing a kiss on Michael’s head. Uri almost bears his teeth at his brother before pulling me up by the arm and dragging me toward the exit.

I reluctantly let him have his way, only because I don’t want to cause another fight. Lately, Uri is more belligerent, easily irked by anything.

“I’ll use you as a swizzle stick if you talk to me like that again.” Lori’s threat makes Uri halt.

I quickly plaster my body against his back and place my hand over his mouth to prevent him from insulting Lori while pushing him forward.

It’s not easy since he’s bigger than me, but he resumes walking as he covers my hand with his.

I have to grab the front of his shirt as my feet hit the back of his, making me stumble.

We finally get out. Uri stops under the awning of the closed shop next door and then spins around until we are facing each other.

His hand is still on mine over his mouth.

The other flattens on the wall near my head.

His long dreads brush his wide shoulders, and his gorgeous hazel-gold eyes seem to sparkle as I almost drown into their depths.

The number of ways to describe him is overflowing my brain. My protector. My best friend. My safe place. My first crush. My earliest morning thought and last nightly dream.