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“Okay. I don’t know why now I’m feeling all anxious and weird.”

“I know. You missed her. I did too. I feel really fucking guilty about it, but we have to find this guy,” I remind her, my hand on her back as I push her under the spray of water.

“I don’t know if el Tigre knows about Rachelle, but it would be a death sentence to try something around her,” Lili grumbles, following my train of thought perfectly.

“Yes, it would be. He’s shown that he thinks he’s invincible. He’s not, and everyone around him has paid that price,” I reply.

Twenty minutes later, we’re on the way to Cellie’s Mystic Shop, anxious to see Rachelle. I also want to see what this place is about.

“Before we go in, I should tell you something,” Liliana says. “Their business is called Broken Brothers Enterprise, while they dropped ‘broken’ from their speakeasy.”

“What are you trying to say?” I ask her, my pulse getting faster. I did a little flirting with Theo and have refused to wear a shirt to enjoy their drooling, but that’s about as far as I’m prepared to go.

I like keeping them off center.

“You know it was never their intention for you to go to prison,” Liliana says. “I already have to share Rachelle with them, don’t let me hold you back from figuring your shit out.”

“I don’t know if I want that,” I admit. “I only have emotional depth with you and Rachelle. Outside of that, I’m a grunting caveman.”

“So fuck it out,” she smirks. “I need to ask her about birth control. We haven’t really discussed it since you two had sex the first time.”

“I’ve been good and used condoms, but half the time I forget to,” I grumble. “I’m not against knocking either of you up. I do know it’ll mess with her medication though, and that’s not acceptable.”

“If I need to take her to the clinic, I will,” she promises as we get out of her car. Today, we brought her baby, the flashy vehicle that allowed me to find her and Rachelle to begin with.

We’re traveling together around town, it’s safe enough, though we won’t make a habit of it.

Crossing the parking lot, I think about the long road Liliana, Rachelle, and I have taken to get to this comfortable place where we trust each other. I want the guys to have to fend for themselves, but I also worry that they may fuck it up and trigger her.

I’m willing to bet Rachelle has triggers she doesn’t even realize she has.

Pushing open the door to the shop, I feel as if I’ve been transported to another dimension. I would never willingly come to this place if Rachelle wasn’t here. It’s not my type of thing. However, by how busy it is, I can see that it’s in the perfect location.

“Can I help you?” an older woman asks.

“Yes, I’m looking for Rachel. Is she busy?” I ask.

“She doesn’t work here,” she says coldly.

Blinking, I glance down at myself and ask myself why she’d say that. I’m wearing a long sleeved t-shirt, nice jeans, and boots. Yet, from the outside, I can admit that I have a very gruff and hard demeanor. I probably won’t ever lose it unfortunately.

“I think you may have misunderstood,” I say kindly as Lili stands next to me with a surprised expression. “Liliana and I are her partners. We just got home from a work trip and wanted to surprise her. You’re welcome to check with her. My name is Nacio.”

The woman disappears into the shop and Liliana looks up at me.

“I think we scared her,” she says. “I’m glad that Rachel has someone watching out for her. It makes me feel better about her working here.”

“Hey,” our girl says with a wide grin, walking out from the back to see us.

Not being above fucking with her boss who is watching us, I pull her into my arms. “Hey, little sister,” I growl, kissing her hard.

Her boss doesn’t know us, and it’s a perfectly harmless thing. Rachelle clings to me as I kiss her, practically melting into my arms.

“You really need to stop calling me that,” she says, her eyes hooded.

“Your boss told us you weren’t here,” I say with a shrug as Liliana steals her away to greet her. Rachelle’s cheeks are pink by the end of the kiss, leaving me grinning.

“I’m sorry,” her boss says, walking over. “I’m Brea. I also am fiercely protective of Rachel. I’ve missed having her back, and you two are a little scary.”

“Is it odd that I think that’s why I feel the safest with them?” Rachelle jokes. “There are very few people who could get past them.”

“That’s fair,” Brea accepts. “You have another client in twenty minutes, Rachel. Take a break.”

“Should we go outside to chat?” she asks.

“Show us the store,” Liliana says instead. She’s up to something. Lili wants the best for Rachelle and I. She’s been very adamant about it. I wonder if there’s cameras in the store that’ll alert the guys that we’re here.

“Okay,” Rachelle says, smiling as she begins to walk down an aisle. “Did you just get back?”

“We did. Dad hit a wall in his investigation,” I state cryptically, knowing she’ll understand as she glances back at me. “Lili and I didn’t want to stay away any longer.”

“I missed you too,” she says. I can see shadows in her eyes, and I frown. “Nothing happened before you start stomping around like a caveman, big brother.”

Unable to help myself, I snicker at her. “Oh yeah, I missed my brat,” I say. “Are you still cramping?”

Rachelle looks at me blankly for a second before her eyes widen in understanding. “You saw the boxes in the bathroom,” she says, nodding. “I’m done with my period. The guys were very supportive throughout it and even skipped work when I felt really awful.”

“They skipped work?” Liliana asks, shocked.

“We can be good humans occasionally,” Jared says, appearing from around the corner. Jesus, it’s like just talking about them makes them show up. Brea either told him we were here or there are cameras in the shop. “I also take excellent care of my wife.”

“You’re really milking that, huh?” I ask, annoyed.

“Oh yeah,” Rachelle says, amused. “Just as much as you enjoyed calling me ‘little sister’ earlier.”

“You can’t do that, Ignacio,” Jared groans.

“I’m pretty sure Brea would cut someone for Rachel,” I say, easily bouncing between her names. “Are you worried about your employees?”

“No, at least not her,” Jared grumbles. “Do you want to see the club or are you going to be an asshole?”

“I can be both,” I state smugly. “I have a couple more minutes before she has a reading.”

“Are you done with this job for good?” he asks.

“Nope,” I grunt, making a face. “The guy is in the wind. We’ll have to smoke him out somehow. His little operation took a huge hit, though. I’ll explain the rest later.”

“Maybe drinks once the club closes?” Jared suggests almost hopefully.

Liliana stomps on my foot with a tight smile and I wince in pain. Fuck, I bet that wouldn’t have hurt as much if it had been anyone else, but she seems to know where the weak spots in my boot are. Ouch.

“Yeah, that works,” I say, my voice strangled.

“I managed to get ahead of my school stuff this week so I’ll have some extra time to hang out,” Rachelle says hopefully.

I don’t really care what comes up with my father, I am taking Rachelle up on this.

“I am in,” I rumble, my voice low and raspy. I haven’t slept much and it’s showing. Liliana still managed to go to her classes and torture people. I think that shows how little she’s slept as well. “Whatever you want to do, querida .”

Rachelle gives me a brilliant smile that I soak up but also makes me feel like a dick. I couldn’t help leaving her, but it’s clear she missed us like crazy.

“I’d be jealous but tomorrow is Sunday,” Liliana says with an evil grin. “Can we sleep in and then have pancakes for breakfast?”

Rachelle chuckles as she nods. Jared stares at her as if she’s grown two heads and watches her leave once she’s called back to work.

“Are you fucking kidding me?” he hisses. “Calvin, the guys, and I have been bending over backward to get her to eat, and she’s excited to have pancakes with you?”

“Don’t be a jealous husband. It’s not a good look for you,” Liliana says with a smirk. “Rachelle is a good girl and eats for me.”

The comment is a double entendre that makes Jared swallow hard.

“Liliana is her safe place,” I explain, deciding to give him some slack.

I shouldn’t have to protect him from my girlfriend’s sharp tongue, but here we are.

“I doubt Rachel would be the same if it was just me. Her anxiety is lower around Lili, because they were best friends first. There’s less pressure for them. ”

“If I make it, there’s an even higher chance there won’t be an issue,” Lili adds. “Her stomach is very sensitive. She can’t handle much spice, but it has to have flavor.”

“Calvin has been pulling his damn hair out,” Jared grumbles. “Let’s leave Rachel to work.”

“She looked okay though,” Liliana says, following Jared to a wide mirror that looks like a dead end. He pushes a button before pulling the mirror to the side to reveal that it’s actually a door. That’s pretty cool.

Walking through it before Jared closes it up again, he nods.

“She had a rough period and really missed you,” he says. “It was hard to help her at times because she wouldn’t tell me anything.”

“Her vagina was trying to kill her by uterine shedding,” Liliana says sarcastically.

We’re in some kind of lounge. This isn’t the best place for a conversation like this, but Lili is keen to have it out with Jared.

Frankly, she’s not wrong. “She’s shy about her body.

It would have been really difficult for her to talk about. ”

“But how do we help if she won’t fucking talk to us,” Jared growls in frustration.

“Instead, we had to drag it all out of her. Once we did, it was fine. Theo, Elijah, and I fixed things so we could be home with her for the three days that her period was the heaviest. We had an electric blanket, movies in bed, and smoothies or tea because food was not happening.”

“Oh, pain is another thing entirely,” Lili sighs. “I won’t eat much outside of chocolate during my period and I’ll sleep a lot.”