Siren in Bloom

Chapter Eleven

Wolf rolled over, well aware that his brother had left minutes before. Wolf had been awake for over an hour, the early days of ranch life and military life ingrained on his body’s rhythms. He’d lain in bed, listening to the sounds of Shelley’s breathing. He’d felt at peace. He stretched, feeling better than he had in months.

Everything was falling into place.

He didn’t think for a minute that Leo wouldn’t pull back and do his dumb-shit, this-is-only-for-sex routine, but Wolf knew better. Leo could fight it all he wanted, but six months from now, Wolf and Shelley would still be right here in this condo and Leo wouldn’t know exactly what had hit him. Sometime after that, he would find his ass standing in front of a group of their friends putting his own collar around Shelley’s neck and a ring on her finger. And sometime after that, he would wonder just where the hell those kids had come from.

Yeah, his brother would wake up and find himself settled down and happy. Wolf was going to make sure of it.

Shelley sighed against him. When Leo had left the bed, she’d turned, cuddling up to him.

His cock got hard in an instant. He felt a grin split his face. He’d fucked her twice the night before, but he was so ready for more. He couldn’t get enough of her. He’d dreamed about her as he slept, as though he hadn’t wanted to leave her side even in his own brain. He reached over and grabbed a condom, rolling it over his dick. He palmed some lube and greased up his cock, anticipation making him focus.

He loved morning fucking. He loved waking up in a warm, sleepy haze and rolling onto his sub’s soft body. He hadn’t had a steady girl in a long time and never one he cared about the way he did Shelley.

He had her legs spread and her pussy penetrated before she could open her eyes.

He stroked into her. Despite last night’s exercise, she was still so tight he had to be careful with her. But he believed in starting as he meant to go. She was his. He would protect her with his life, coddle her, indulge her whenever he could. He would be her champion and her worshipper, but she was his. She would be his to fuck and love any way he wanted. He would wake her up with his cock and put her to sleep the same way, with his dick deep inside her pussy.

She sighed, and her lips curved as she started to wake up.

“Good morning,” she said, those gorgeous kick-him-in-the-gut brown eyes fluttering open. God, Julian had been a smart man. He’d insisted on a month of contact between the two of them without any exchange of pictures or in-person meetings. If Wolf had seen her, he would have been all over her curvy ass without ever having said a word. She was even more beautiful because he really knew her. He’d spent a month getting to know her hopes and fears and fantasies.

He leaned down and kissed her, never letting up on the slow drag of his cock. He loved her lips. They were plump and soft. “Morning, sweetheart. I think Leo’s making coffee.”

Her eyes darkened, but she let her hands drift up around his shoulders, and her legs gripped his waist. “It’s okay. I know it was just a night.”

And she had such little faith. Wolf pumped into her, enjoying the penetration. Last night had been a whirlwind of lust, but this morning was a slow, languid dance. She didn’t need the lube now. Her pussy had slicked up nicely. She was so fucking responsive. He cuddled his chest to hers. He loved the feel of her nipples poking up at him.

“He’ll walk through those doors in a few minutes, and he’ll start bitching at me because we’re all going to be late to this breakfast thing. And then he’ll bitch about me being on top of you. Really, sweetheart, his bitching is the way he shows affection.” Wolf twisted his hips, satisfied with the way Shelley’s mouth came open and she gasped. Yeah. That was her sweet spot. That was the spot that got her motor running and fast. He felt her nails start to bite into his shoulders. He liked the fact that his little cat had some claws on her. He didn’t mind the marks.

He intended to leave a few marks of his own.

“Goddamn it, Wolf,” his brother said from the doorway. Sure enough, Wolf could smell coffee. “Do you know how sore she must be? We weren’t easy on her last night. Did you even wake her up before you started fucking her?”

The light came back in Shelley’s eyes, making them sparkle with mirth. “He didn’t, Leo. I woke up like this. But I can handle it. Oh, oh, oh.”

Wolf winked down as she started to come. He felt the little muscles of her pussy milking his cock, and he gave over. He would love to fuck her for another couple of hours, but they really would be late for Julian’s little meeting. He picked up the pace, grinding down on her clit as he felt his balls draw up.

Blessed relief. His cum poured out. One day he wouldn’t wear the condom, but it wasn’t time yet. He pumped his cum out, wishing he was shooting it into her womb.

He collapsed on top of her, thoroughly satisfied with how his morning was going. He breathed in her scent. She smelled like sex. It was good. He nuzzled her neck, kissing and showing his deep affection.

His brother’s voice broke through his happy lethargy. “Seriously, Wolf, you have like twenty minutes before we’re supposed to be there.”

Wolf groaned. They were back to his preteen years when Leo would wake him long before he needed to be at school. “I only need like two minutes. I can get dressed fast.”

And then he could spend the other eighteen minutes in bed with his sub. It was a good plan.

But just like he had been when they were kids, Leo was relentless. “And Shelley? Have you thought about what she needs? The subs are having a breakfast gathering as well. Do you think she’s going to be happy walking into her breakfast without having taken a shower?”

“Oh, god,” Shelley said, pushing at Wolf. “I’m supposed to be at Dani’s this morning. I’m going to be late. I have to wash my hair. Do I even have any clothes?”

“Ben and Chase dropped off your bag late last night,” Leo explained. “I put it in the guest bathroom where your shower should already be nice and hot.”

Shelley looked up at Leo with an expectant look on her face.

“No panties, Shelley,” Leo said with a frown. “Ben and Chase know the drill.”

She huffed and tried to sit up. “Panties are perfectly nice. I don’t know what you guys have against them.”

Wolf gave up. He rolled off her, and she was out of bed in a shot, clutching her sheet and running for the bathroom. Wolf grabbed the coffee Leo was holding and shot his brother a look. “Spoilsport.”

There was a high shriek. Wolf started, but Leo held a hand out. “I think she just figured out Logan is here. He was in the kitchen when I left him.”

Wolf hoped Logan hadn’t gotten an eyeful. “We’re a busy little household, aren’t we?”

“That was supposed to be for Shelley,” Leo pointed out, staring at the mug in Wolf’s hands.

Wolf shrugged, taking a long sip. “I’ll share.”

A tight look came over Leo’s face. Here it came. The denial. “Yes, Wolf, I can tell you’re all about the sharing. What the hell was last night about?”

Wolf often envied his brother’s brilliant mind. This was not one of those times. Leo couldn’t just let it happen. He had to question everything. “It was about her. She’d been through a lot, and she needed something special.”

“Don’t you try to tell me it was all about sex. I know you, Wolf. You care about her.”

Damn straight he did. He was in love with her. He’d fallen for her over their weeks of conversation, and being close to her physically had done nothing but made that bond stronger. “She’s mine, Leo. I’m trying to give her what she needs.”

Leo looked back at the open door, gesturing outward. “Don’t you fucking think for one minute that you can just share her with your friends because you think she needs it.”

Ah, there was that jealousy he’d been waiting for. Leo could lie to himself, but Wolf saw right through him. “She only wants you, man. I wouldn’t have done that with anyone else. If you walk away from her, then we’ll be exclusive. I threatened to use someone else because I wanted you to get off your ass.”

There was a long pause as Leo considered him. “I don’t like being manipulated, Wolf.”

“And I don’t like being ignored. I guess we can’t always get what we want.” Wolf sat up, looking for his clothes. It was time to retreat, or he was going to get pissed off and that wouldn’t help his cause. They needed to concentrate on Shelley, not have a family therapy session.

The room was quiet for a moment. Wolf grabbed his jeans and pulled them on. He really did need a shower. He’d had sex a bunch of times and killed two dudes. Some serious grooming was needed.

“I didn’t intend to ignore you,” Leo said, his shoulders deflating. He sat down on the bed, his eyes straying to where Shelley had lain. “Damn it, Wolf, I guess time just got away from me. You’re seeing something that isn’t there.”

Wolf doubted it. His brother had been out of touch for a long time. But if Leo didn’t want to go into it, he was fine. “No problem. What am I supposed to wear to this thing?”

Leo’s fists clenched. “Don’t change the subject. Wolf, you’re my brother. I love you. I know I don’t always show it, but I do. I just…I know what you want, and I don’t think I can do it.”

“Because of me?” Wolf asked. If his brother really had that big a problem with him, then this couldn’t work, and he would need to rethink his whole plan to live here.

Leo shook his head. “No. It’s a lot of things, but mostly it’s because of her. I don’t think I would be good for her in the long run. I can’t do what you’re doing. I can’t just open up and offer her everything on a silver platter.”

Wolf knew that. He wasn’t an idiot. “Then just join us for the fun stuff until Shelley doesn’t need it anymore. But you need to understand that I am serious about her. She’s not going anywhere.”

“See, you just met her yesterday. How can you possibly say that?” Leo threw his hands up as he asked the question.

Logan had asked him the same question on the long drive from Bliss. “I’ve been talking to her for over a month, but I won’t lie. I knew I was serious about two conversations in. I can’t help it. I follow my instincts. My instincts tell me she’s the one.”

Leo’s fists clenched. “I envy you that, brother. I’ve known her for years, wanted her for years, but I couldn’t act on it and now I won’t. I can’t have the relationship you want. Hell, I’m not even sure I could have a relationship with her. I think Janine is right. I prefer to deal with patients. I don’t want the responsibility of a relationship. I tried it with her, and I was terrible. I guess I have more of our dad in us than I would like to think.”

“Is that what this is about? You think you’re going to bug out like our dad? That’s dumb, Leo. You never walked out on one thing in your life.” Leo had stepped up at a young age.

“I walked out on you.”

Wolf felt his eyes roll. He had no idea his brother had been carrying around this much guilt. “You didn’t walk out. You were eighteen. You joined the Navy.”

Leo’s eyes narrowed. “You really think I didn’t want out of that cabin, Wolf? You think it was all self-sacrifice so I could help out with money? I could have gotten a job and stayed in Del Norte. But no, I had to get as far from Colorado as I could. I wasn’t being selfless, brother.”

“I’m not stupid. Damn, man, I wanted out, too. It was hard. We were dirt poor, and Ma was overworked. You sent every bit of cash you could back. Me and Ma were fine. It’s normal that you would want out, Leo. You basically had to raise me. You were a kid and you had to raise me. It’s normal that you would want some freedom, but you’ve had years now, and it’s time to think about the future. Are you telling me you don’t want a family?”

Leo’s face closed off, and his eyes seemed to focus on something far away. “What if I don’t? What if I’m living exactly the life I want to live?”

Wolf didn’t believe him for a second, but now wasn’t the time to fight. He was just starting to understand what Leo’s real problem was, and he wasn’t going to push him now. “Then you won’t mind helping me with Shelley. I’m offering you the best of both worlds. I’ll take responsibility for her. You can just have fun.”

“Why?” Leo seemed to have a need to harp on that one question.

Wolf wasn’t sure how many times he would have to answer it. “Because I think she needs this. She talked about a man she cared about. She never mentioned his name, but I think it was you. I know it wasn’t her husband. One of two things is going to happen. You’ll either come around or she’ll screw you out of her system and we can move on.”

That was as plainly as he could put it.

Leo shook his head. “It won’t work.”

It had to work. Wolf was betting everything on the fact that this was going to work. “Then you will have lost nothing. Now, tell me what I should wear to this thing.”

Leo sighed. “It’s casual. Well, Julian will show up in a suit, but I swear he would wear one to hike through a swamp. The rest of the Doms usually wear jeans and T-shirts. It’s freaking Saturday after all.”

Good. Wolf could do jeans.

Leo started out the door and then turned back. “But, brother, we’re going to have to find you some clothes if all you brought is that one bag. You can have Shelley take you to the mall or I will.”

Wolf kind of wanted to barf at the whole idea of shopping. There had been plenty of shitty things about the Navy, but one of the good things had been the fact that he didn’t have to shop. His clothes had been provided for him. Uniforms. He liked uniforms.

Leo had a little shit-eating grin on his face. “A good black T-shirt with jeans or slacks. Consider that your uniform.”

Yeah, his brother knew him. “I’ll just let Shelley buy some stuff. She seems to like clothes.”

He would just wear whatever she picked out for him.

Leo’s smile became a sad thing. “She does.” He sighed and looked at his watch. “You now have ten minutes. Please take a shower. I think Jack Barnes is in town. He’s not terribly fond of me. I would prefer his first impression of my only brother be a good one, not that you have hygiene problems.”

“What did you do? Hit on his wife?”

A devilish light hit Leo’s eyes. “As often as possible. His sub is a lovely woman. Trust me, if you didn’t have Shelley, you would hit on her, too. Make a good impression, brother. It might keep the man from killing me.”

Leo turned and walked out of the room.

It wasn’t perfect, but it would have to do. Time. That was what Leo needed. He needed time and patience. Their father had done a number on everyone in their little family. His mother had finally moved on. Of course, she’d moved on with one of the craziest people Wolf had ever met, but she was in love and happy. Wolf knew what he wanted.

Leo was floundering.

For all his brilliance and perfection, Leo was struggling in a way Wolf wasn’t.

Leo had spent half his life taking care of him. It was Wolf’s turn to look out for his big brother. Whether Leo wanted it or not.

Wolf grabbed his bag on the way out of the bedroom. Shelley might not know it, but her training didn’t end because they left the dungeon.

Logan looked up from the kitchen table. “Dude, your girl’s hot.”

“I can still kill you, Logan,” Leo shouted from the back of the condo.

Wolf gave Logan a thumbs-up. Logan really seemed happier since they had left Bliss, but Wolf wasn’t buying the act entirely. He’d let Logan be for the time being. It was another problem for another day. Shelley was his concern now. It was time to see how his hot girl liked having a plug worked up her ass.

Wolf had a grin on his face as he walked toward the guest bathroom. He would sneak into Shelley’s shower and show his sub a good time.

Because the good times never had to end when a man loved his family.

Leo took a deep breath before opening the door. The events of the night before weighed on him.

He’d watched Shelley come in his brother’s arms. He’d nearly lost her to a goddamn assassin’s bullet. He’d finally gotten inside her, and now he felt closer to her and his brother than he could have imagined.

The night before had been the best fucking night of his life. Why was he pulling away now?

“Leo,” Julian said with a broad smile. He pushed back his chair and stood. A long, dark wooden table dominated the elegant dining room. It was covered in a crisp, white tablecloth and some lovely china. Leo would have preferred paper plates because he was always worried he would break that damn dainty stuff, but he’d learned to deal with it. He’d become somewhat comfortable in Julian’s super-wealthy world.

Wolf, on the other hand, looked terrified at the ritzy spread in front of him.

Yeah, Leo was a little happy about that. His brother seemed to take almost everything with an annoying aplomb.

“Julian,” Leo acknowledged. “Nice spread.”

“Always,” Julian nodded, gesturing around the room. There were several men standing around the room talking as they drank coffee or orange juice. Well-dressed servers filtered through the room, offering drinks. “You know everyone. Jack, you remember Leo.”

Jack Barnes turned, his big body encased in a snowy white dress shirt and slacks that Leo was damn sure his lovely wife had picked out. Jack used to wear jeans and Western shirts to everything.

Jack reminded him a little of his brother. He had chosen well when it came to wives, and he was crap at dressing himself. Leo kind of admired both men.

“Oh, I can hardly forget Leo,” Jack said in his long, slow drawl. “And who’s the new guy?”

Julian looked thrilled to be able to answer. “That’s Wolfgang Meyer.”

Jack’s eyes went wide. “Wolfgang? Seriously?”

Wolf sighed beside him. “Our mom liked artists. She liked painters and composers. I was named after Mozart. Leonardo there was named after da Vinci. If she’d gotten knocked up again, we would have had a Giuseppe because she loved Verdi. I am so grateful she didn’t. We would have been defending that kid every day on the playground. Ma didn’t get that names are important when it comes to avoiding an ass kicking. Though I would probably be less tough if she’d named me Nick or Jake.”

Jack Barnes laughed out loud. “I like it. So this is Leo’s brother? The one who’s now screwing Leo’s girl? I like him. I don’t know him, but I seriously like him.”

Yeah, Jack Barnes wasn’t his biggest fan. “She isn’t my girl.”

Jack’s face went a little cold. “No, of course she isn’t. She’s your brother’s.” He turned to Wolf, a broad smile on his face. “It’s nice to meet you, son. You’ve been working with Jamie Glen out on the G. Nice ranch. I like having another cowboy around here. I heard you took care of some problems last night. I heard you did a real fine job with them.”

Leo watched as Wolf stepped up and started talking to the rancher. In mere seconds, Wolf had Jack Barnes laughing out loud and talking about everything having to do with cows.

Leo took a step back. Jack had never responded to him like that.

“It looks like your brother is fitting in,” Julian said, slapping him on the back. “And your charge is doing well, too.”

Leo followed Julian’s line of sight. Logan stood in front of the big windows that overlooked the city skyline. He had a grin on his face as he talked to Dane Hawthorne. Dane was a Dom who worked at the same law firm as Finn and Lucas O’Malley. He was a big, all-American looking guy who had a real light touch with the neediest of subs. Logan was laughing as he talked to the Dom.

“Yes, I think my charge might have been a little less traumatized than he was advertised.” Leo stopped. Crap. Was he actually upset that this guy wasn’t as fucked up as he’d been told? He really did hide behind his patients.

A vision of Shelley’s lovely face assaulted him. She’d been perfect. She’d opened herself body and soul to him and Wolf, not holding a single thing back.

He’d almost lost her. His heart still seized at the thought. He could still hear Wolf’s monotone as he’d called and said flatly, “Trouble. Come now.”

That was all. Three words and he’d come running. Wolf hadn’t thought to explain. He’d simply said three words and known that Leo would move heaven and earth to help him.

Maybe he wasn’t as far from his brother as he thought.

One of the servers offered Leo a cup of coffee. He took it as Julian talked about something that was going on with Finn. Leo nodded, but his brain was on his earlier talk with Wolf.

Maybe he should take his brother up on his offer. If Wolf and Shelley were cool with it, why should he hesitate? Why shouldn’t he take everything they were offering? He could have Shelley and not have to worry about it ending because she would be fine. She would have Wolf. Wolf wouldn’t leave her. Wolf would make her the center of his whole fucking world. He would build a life around her.

And Leo would show up for some nice long fucks.

Wasn’t that what he wanted?

“And then I gave away everything to charity. This is our last day in The Club. It’s being taken over by the Society for Smarter Butterflies.”

Leo shook his head. “What?”

Julian frowned, his face a mask of disapproval. “Well, it was brutally obvious you weren’t listening to me.”

“Sorry, boss.” He had to get it together. He didn’t have to make any decisions today. He needed to think. He never acted on his instincts the way Wolf did.

Except that once when he’d tried to get Shelley to run away with him. And he’d seen where that got him.

“Do I need to get Wolf his own condo?” Julian asked, his eyes looking to Wolf. “There’s an open spot on the tenth floor.”

Leo shook his head. “No. That unit is a one bedroom. Mine is a three. We’re fine.”

He was surprised at how fast the denial came out of his mouth. He didn’t want Wolf to move. He didn’t want Shelley to leave. There had been an oddly comfortable domesticity to the morning. It had been nice to not be alone. He’d woken up with Shelley’s head on his chest, his arms wrapped around her.

Of course, he’d also woken up clinging to the edge of the bed because his brother was so oversized he took up most of the queen-size mattress. Leo and Shelley had barely been left with enough room for one person, much less two. He hadn’t minded snuggling, but he’d almost ended up on his ass.

They needed to move into his room. He had a king.

“So you’re comfortable with your brother and his sub staying with you?” Julian’s eyes pinned him as though he couldn’t quite believe that was possible. “It’s necessary that they stay close, but they don’t have to stay with you. I don’t believe Shelley should be on her own right now, but I understand it could be difficult for you. Should I move Logan out? You only have the three bedrooms. I seriously doubt Wolf was comfortable on your couch.”

“He was comfortable enough, Julian. He didn’t sleep on the couch.”

Julian nodded. “Well, that was inevitable. He seems to work fast.”

Julian didn’t know the half of it. Leo stared out over the Dallas skyline. “And he talks in his sleep. And he hogs the damn covers.”

Julian Lodge was a man of perfect manners. It gave Leo a little lift of joy that Julian spit his coffee out, sputtering as Leo’s words hit him.

With an elegant twist of his hand, he put the coffee down and wiped off his suit. “So I am to assume that the adrenaline of the night before led to some physical interaction?”

Leo felt a grin cross his face. He hadn’t fucked with his boss in over a year. How much of himself had he cut off after Shelley had denied him? He’d gone into his shell, and he was only just now coming out of it. Screwing with Julian had been his favorite pastime. “If you’re talking some serious playtime, then yes. My brother is very open-minded.”

And generous. And might know him better than Leo thought.

The door to the dining hall came open, and Ben and Chase walked through, their gaits in perfect time. He and Wolf might not be in such perfect synchronicity, but they had been able to please their sub anyway.

Leo winced inwardly. There it was. Possessive words. Shelley wasn’t his.

Julian watched the twins walk in. “I’m going to talk to Ben and Chase for a moment, Leo. We’ll start breakfast in ten minutes. We need to discuss the scenes for tonight and tomorrow night. We have some VIP politicians coming in, and they need some unique setups.”

Leo stifled his groan. He hated politicians, and they tended to be tourists. But still, he had a job to do. “All right. I can accommodate them. When are we going to talk about Shelley?”

“I talked to the police chief last night. I’m sure Ben and Chase found something as well. When we’re done here, we can all go up to the penthouse and discuss it. Be right back.”

Leo watched Julian walk away with a growing impatience. It had been easy to forget about the thugs after Shelley when he’d had his face in her pussy. Now, in the light of day, the enormity of the situation hit him squarely in the chest.

Someone had tried to kill her. Two someones. It hadn’t been a mugging. They had been after her.

Leo walked to the balcony and slipped outside. The early-morning air had the slightest chill, but Leo welcomed it.

No way was he going to let Wolf move even to another floor. He couldn’t stand the thought of not knowing where Shelley was. And more than that, he didn’t particularly want to lose track of his brother.

He could still remember how angry he’d been when Wolf had given him the news that he was joining up. Wolf hadn’t exactly discussed the situation with him or their mother. He’d been on his way to Great Lakes when Leo got the news.

And then years of not knowing where he was. Years where his brother’s location on the planet earth had been a state secret. Leo knew he’d put Wolf and his mother through the same thing, but damn it, he’d had a plan. He’d been doing it for them.

“I hear you’ve come to the dark side.”

Leo closed his eyes briefly. Jack Barnes. Well, he did flirt outrageously with the man’s wife. “Dark side?”

“I heard you finally got into Shelley McNamara’s bed.”

God, Julian had become a gossipy old man. “It’s really not your business, man.”

“I don’t know about that. I like the hell out of her brother. Trev spent some time with Barnes-Fleetwood a couple of years back. I enjoyed working with him. I wonder what he would think about you playing around with his sister. Julian might think this is funny, but that girl is going to get hurt.”

“Don’t be a hypocrite, Jack. You share your wife.”

“Yes, I share my wife with my partner,” Jack replied. “We’re all committed to our lives together and the family we’re raising. You’re just playing around.”

Leo felt his eyes narrow. “You don’t know anything about this situation, Jack.”

“I know the way she’s looked at you for years and the fact that since she walked into this club, you haven’t spoken to her. She was lost and broken and you didn’t reach out. You reach out to every goddamn person in this club, but she gets nothing. If she meant a thing to you, I can’t tell.”

Anger rolled in his gut. “I asked her to marry me, Jack. She turned me down. So now who’s the asshole in this situation?”

Jack raised a single brow, and Leo had the sudden fear he’d been manipulated to the exact position Jack wanted him in. “I would say it’s you since she doesn’t have a ring on her finger or your protection.”

Leo took a deep breath to keep from shouting. His words came out quietly, but with pointed sarcasm. “Do you not understand the words ‘she turned me down’? I offered to save her from that hellacious marriage, and she told me to leave.”

“Yeah, I get what she told you to do. I just don’t understand why the hell you did it.”

Leo frowned, staring at the cowboy. “She didn’t want me.”

But those words were starting to sound like an excuse.

“Bullshit.” Jack leaned against the elegant railing. “I don’t claim to know exactly why she did it, but I would make a bet that she got it into her head that she was protecting you. Women do that with men they love. Don’t think for a minute that because they’re soft and submissive in bed that they don’t know how to protect what they love. I’ve never seen anything more ferocious than my Abigail when she thinks me or Sam or one of the kids could get hurt.”

How many times was he going to have to hear this argument? “That’s ridiculous, Jack. I’ve gone over this with her. I’m a freaking former SEAL. I can handle myself.”

“But she doesn’t want you to have to handle yourself. God, Leo, you spend all your time psychoanalyzing people but you’re playing blind when it comes to her.”

His head was starting to pound. None of this shit mattered. Barnes was pushing him. “No matter her reason for doing it, she was right. I was a crappy husband the first time around. I’m just glad Janine and I didn’t have kids or they would have to grow up the same way we did. Without a dad.”

Jack stopped and stared for a moment, and Leo wished he hadn’t opened his damn mouth. “I didn’t have a dad, either. It’s hard. I watched how hard it was on my momma. She struggled. And then she died and I didn’t have anyone. Tell me, Leo, do you think that affected the way I view marriage?”

Leo snorted. “Of course. Jack, I know where you’re going.”

“No, son, I don’t think you do. I don’t know that I would have married Abigail if Sam hadn’t been around. I wouldn’t have touched her because I would always have worried about what would become of her if something happened to me. I spent years having sex that didn’t mean anything, but Sam freed me. Sam would kill or die for our wife and our kids. If I left this earth tomorrow, Sam would be there. I don’t have to worry about Abby because we have Sam.”

“I don’t know if that can work for me. Jack, Abigail never tried to push you away.”

Jack leaned over and laughed. “Think you know everything, do you? Abigail kicked me out of her life before we got married. Abigail, sweet, loving Abigail, told me she didn’t love me. She told me I was only good for sex.”

Abby had done that? Leo couldn’t imagine it. Abby worshipped her husband. She looked at Jack like he was the sun in the sky. “Why would she say that?”

Jack’s eyes moved away, his mind obviously lost in memory. “She thought a little old lady was going to ruin my life and that I wouldn’t be able to stop it.”

Leo had to laugh a little. Jack Barnes was a ruthless son of a bitch. He’d built his ranch on hard work and by taking what he was owed. The thought of one small redhead trying to protect him seemed a little silly.

And yet hadn’t the fierce love Shelley had shown for her mother and brother been one of the very things he’d been attracted to?

An idea played at the back of Leo’s mind. A question he’d always wondered about.

Why had Shelley—beautiful, vivacious, smart Shelley—why had she married someone like Bryce Hughes?

He’d never asked, a bit afraid of finding out she’d been madly in love. What if she’d had different reasons?

Emotion, regret, and no small amount of fear threatened to well up inside. “What did you do, Jack? What did you do when Abby told you to leave?”

Leo was pretty damn sure Jack Barnes hadn’t turned away.

“I didn’t even think about it. I knew that woman. That woman has held a piece of my soul since the day she was born. I told her if she left that I would follow her. I told her that if she didn’t love me, then that was okay because I would love her until the day I died. I would love her enough for both of us. You’re a smart man, Leo. You’re probably the smartest man I know, but you haven’t figured this out. It isn’t about how much she loves you. It’s not about how much she can give or withhold from you. It’s about what you feel. If you had really loved her, you wouldn’t have been able to walk away not knowing her circumstances. You would have stood by her. You would have protected her even when she didn’t want your help. You would have done it because you couldn’t do anything else.” Jack sighed and patted Leo on the shoulder. “So don’t worry about it. It wasn’t love. Hopefully it’s going to be different for your brother.”

Jack Barnes walked back into the condo. Leo stared after him.

He’d made a horrible mistake.

Leo had to force himself to breathe. He’d shoved Shelley away because she hadn’t answered correctly. He’d been like a child with a toy that hadn’t worked exactly how he’d wanted it.

And he couldn’t take it back.

The French doors flew open and Wolf stood there. “Waffles are going to have to wait, brother. We have trouble.”

“Shelley?” Why hadn’t he put on his shoulder holster? He needed to carry all the fucking time now. He’d been out of the game for far too long.

“No. It’s Kitten. She’s got a package for you in your office.” Wolf’s face was a blank slate. It terrified Leo. It meant that whatever Wolf had seen had deeply affected him. So deeply he had to hide it.

“What is it?” He had the sudden urge to run to Julian’s condo and make sure Shelley was safe. He wanted to see her, hold her. “Where’s Shelley?”

Wolf held out a hand. “She’s with Dani, and apparently there are a bunch of men at this breakfast for the subs. Sam and Finn are with her. She’s fine. This isn’t about Shelley.” Wolf swallowed and took a minute as though he couldn’t figure out just how to say what he needed to say.

Leo took a step forward, unable to stand the waiting. “Goddamn it, Wolf, just tell me.”

“It’s about Ada.”

Leo felt the whole world tip, and he didn’t like where he landed.

Ada. The woman he’d cared for in Afghanistan. Ada. The woman he’d killed.