Theirs to Keep

C H A P T E R T W E N T Y

MERRICK SAT IN THE DARKNESS, brooding silently as he listened to the rain patter against the roof. A weather system had moved in—a cold front—in the latter portion of the afternoon while Elle was sleeping.

Today he’d done something he’d never done. He’d cancelled a training session. Dakota had called, worried. And then Catherine had called on her husband’s heels. He’d known, though, that he ran the risk of being injured if he sparred because his concentration was shot to hell. He was focused on the woman curled up in the bed in the next room.

He’d checked in on her twice, worried that she’d remained sequestered in her room. But each time, she’d been deeply asleep. She hadn’t so much as moved from the spot she’d curled up in.

He didn’t know what to do or if there was anything to be done. He was tired of the patience route. He wasn’t one to sit around and spout psychological bullshit. Elle was on the verge of cracking, and he was helpless to do anything but sit and watch.

Maybe he and Cade were wrong to discount her fears of her past. It was easy to say her past didn’t matter and that they were her future. But the truth was, until they knew exactly what was in her past, they had no idea what they were dealing with.

And if she’d been in trouble with the police, they could have a clusterfuck on their hands.

A noise in the hallway alerted him, and he turned his head to look over his shoulder to see Elle shuffling toward the kitchen.

“Finally awake, sleepyhead?” he called out in a teasing voice that he hoped covered his relief at seeing her.

She ignored him and continued on, disappearing from view. There was something off about her. The way she walked. She never even reacted to his voice, and if she hadn’t been aware of his presence, he should have startled her.

Frowning, he pushed himself up from the armchair and started toward the kitchen only to hear the door slam shut.

What the hell?

He charged into the kitchen only to find Elle gone. He glanced toward the door and saw the silhouette of her body heading through the garage.

“What the ever-loving fuck,” he muttered.

He yanked open the door just in time to see Elle walk from the confines of the garage straight out into the rain.

“Elle! Elle!” he yelled.

He sprinted out of the garage, flinching when the cold rain pelted his face. Elle had stopped at the end of the walkway and stared sightlessly into the street. God, what if he hadn’t been up to see her walk out of the house? She could have been killed!

He grasped her shoulders and steered her back toward the house. She blinked in surprise and then seemed to come back to reality.

She stared up at him, rain sluicing down her face. Her hair was bedraggled and soaked through.

“Merrick?” she asked in confusion. “Why are we standing in the rain?”

She looked down, holding her arms out as her clothing dripped water, and then back up at him in bewilderment.

“Come on, let’s get you back inside,” he said in a grim voice.

He herded her back through the garage and into the kitchen.

“Stay right where you are. Let me grab a towel.”

He ducked into the small laundry room and pulled a towel from the dryer. When he returned to Elle, she was shivering, partly from cold, but she seemed to be in shock.

He wrapped the towel around her and rubbed vigorously.

“We need to get you out of these clothes and into a hot shower.”

She allowed him to lead her toward the bathroom. Her expression was still mostly blank, as if she had no idea what had just transpired. He sat her down on the closed toilet seat and then turned on the shower.

“What happened, Elle?” he asked as he started removing her shirt.

He hoped if he could get her talking that she wouldn’t focus on the fact that he was stripping her down to nothing. He didn’t want her to freak out, and it was entirely possible given her current emotional state.

“I don’t know,” she said blankly. “The last thing I remember is going to bed and then suddenly I was standing in the rain with you in front of me.”

Merrick cursed. “Never known anyone who sleepwalked, but it sure as hell sounds like that’s what happened.”

“Why on earth would I walk out of the house?”

Her voice shook, and he could see how freaked out she was over the idea of just walking out without realizing it.

“That I don’t know, baby. You scared the hell out of me. God only knows what could have happened if I hadn’t been up and seen you walk out the door.”

Reaction set in on him about the same time it hit her. His hands shook as he pulled her up to peel down her wet pants. He and Cade would have woken up and found her gone, and they may never have found her again.

Or she could have been killed or seriously injured.

Or she could have simply walked away and kept on walking.

“Slip out of your panties,” he said in a gentle voice. “We need to get you in the shower and warmed up. You need help, or can you make it on your own?”

She glanced down and remained still for a long moment. “I can do it,” she finally murmured.

“Okay, but I’m staying right here. I’ll get another dry towel and a change of clothes for you, but then I’ll be back.”

She nodded and stepped into the shower, flinching when the hot water hit her cold skin.

When he was certain she wasn’t going to take a header in the shower, he quickly left the bathroom to get the towel and something for her to wear. He hesitated outside of Cade’s bedroom a moment, pondering whether to wake his friend.

It wasn’t that he couldn’t handle the situation with Elle, but if they were going to be in this together, Cade needed to know. Merrick would be pissed as hell if this had happened while he’d been sleeping and Cade hadn’t woke him up.

And there was the fact that Cade could brew a pot of hot coffee while Elle was in the shower. Then maybe they could sit down together and hash this out.

He knocked on Cade’s door and then stuck his head in. Cade stirred and stuck his head up, his eyes blurry with sleep.

“What’s up?” Cade asked.

“I’ll explain more later, but I need you to put on some coffee so we can warm Elle up. She was sleepwalking in the rain. I have her in the shower now.”

Cade was up in an instant. “What the fuck?”

“Yeah, that was my reaction,” Merrick muttered.

Cade dragged on a pair of sweats and was throwing on a T-shirt when Merrick ducked back out of the bedroom.

He entered the bathroom to see Elle standing under the spray, her head down, eyes closed. Her face was contorted as if whatever she was thinking was causing her pain.

He hated the helplessness of the situation. His helplessness. He’d do anything in the world to help her, and yet there was no way for him to take away whatever private hell she was enduring.

His worst fear was of losing her. And hell, he didn’t even really have her yet. Not fully. And it had nothing to do with the fact that he hadn’t touched her sexually or made love to her. Fuck all that. He didn’t need a physical relationship with her to feel like what they had was real.

He didn’t have her fully yet because her past still had a firm hold on her mind. Though he didn’t doubt one bit her desire to commit to him and Cade, he knew she couldn’t fully do so until she’d resolved what had happened to her.

And he wanted her. More than he’d ever wanted another woman.

Realizing that it was likely she’d stand there in the shower in whatever daze she was currently in all night, he reached in to turn off the water.

When his hand closed over her shoulder, her skin was hot and flushed. Her eyes flew open, and she gave him a startled look before relaxing when she realized it was him.

“Come on, baby,” he said in as gentle a voice as he could manage. “Let me dry you off.”

He helped her over the edge of the tub and made sure her feet hit the bath rug so she wouldn’t slip. Then he briskly rubbed her down with the towel before wrapping her dripping hair in it and arranging it atop her head.

“I got you something to wear. Can you manage on your own?”

She nodded, nearly toppling the towel from her head. He righted it and motioned to the pair of sweats and the T-shirt on the counter.

“Cade and I will be in the living room. He made fresh coffee. Come on out when you’re dressed, and we’ll talk.”

She grimaced but nodded. Her arms had crept up to her waist, and she wrapped them protectively around herself as she stood naked and vulnerable to his gaze.

Not wanting to make her any more uncomfortable, he averted his eyes and then backed from the bathroom, though the image of her standing in the shower, water running down her sleek body, was still firmly imprinted in his mind.

Cade was pacing the living room floor when Merrick appeared. When Cade saw Merrick, he pulled up abruptly, his face a cloud of concern.

“What the hell is going on? You said she was sleepwalking. In the fucking rain?”

Merrick blew out his breath. “I was up. Couldn’t sleep. Guess I was worried about her. I checked in on her twice, but each time, she was sleeping soundly. I was sitting in the chair over there and heard her come down the hall. I called out to her but she kept walking. Next thing I know she’s out the kitchen door, through the garage and standing out by the street. I don’t even want to know what could have happened if I hadn’t been up.”

Cade let a vehement string of curses fly. “Maybe I should call Dallas.”

“That might be a good idea,” Merrick said grimly. “This is beyond my scope. I don’t know how to help her, Cade.”

Cade went quiet, his gaze moving beyond Merrick. Merrick turned to see Elle walk into the living room, her feet bare, and she was shivering.

Merrick was at her side instantaneously, his arm going around her. “Come sit on the couch and get warm.”

Cade was there with a blanket as Elle settled against the cushions. She tucked her feet underneath her, and Cade arranged the throw securely around her body. Then Cade perched on the couch next to her, worry creasing his brow.

“What happened, Elle?” Cade asked.

She closed her eyes for a moment, and when she opened them, they were swamped with confusion and fear.

“I don’t know,” she said helplessly. “I don’t remember anything except waking up outside in the rain when Merrick shook me.”

“Were you having a bad dream?” Merrick asked. “Think about it. Try to remember.”

She frowned, her lips pursing in concentration. “I remember a badge. And bright sunlight. It glinted in the sun.”

She broke off abruptly, her hand going to her forehead. Her fingers shook badly as she rubbed over her eye.

“Elle?” Cade asked gently. “What is it? What do you remember?”

Her hand slowly dropped, delving below the blanket to touch her hip through the sweats she was wearing.

“I remember the badge digging into my hip while he…”

Her voice broke off in a sob, and her hands flew to her face to stifle the escaping sound.

She hated the feeling of helplessness that assaulted her the moment she thought back on that awful dream—the awful memory. It wasn’t a dream. It had really happened. To her. She’d been violated. Held down, helpless, while a man forced himself on her. Had hated her. Had every intention of killing her. He’d tried to kill her. He’d shot her.

What could she have done to inspire such animosity? She couldn’t fathom that kind of hatred. Couldn’t imagine having done anything to deserve something that awful. But what woman did? No one deserved to be raped. It wasn’t a woman’s fault. There was no excuse for a man to violate a woman, no matter how angry he was. No matter what the perceived sin of the woman.

Logically she knew that, and yet she still couldn’t wrap her mind around it all. There had to be a reason, didn’t there? But no. Women were raped all the time for no other reason than a man wanted to exert his power, that he wanted to degrade and punish her.

The fault wasn’t with her. She knew that. And yet she couldn’t get past the idea that she’d done something to warrant a man raping and trying to kill her.

Cade slid his hand around her nape and pulled her head to his chest. She shook violently against him, and she heard the low curses from both Cade and Merrick. She heard the worry in their voices, and the anger. Not at her. But at what had happened to her and the grip her past still had on her even though she couldn’t remember it.

“It’s okay, honey. You’re with us. It’s okay to remember. He can’t hurt you now. Talk it out if you want. We’re here. We’ll listen.”

“I don’t want to remember,” she said, her voice muffled by Cade’s shirt.

Merrick sighed, his heart softening at the vulnerability in her voice. He ran his finger up her bare arm and rubbed his knuckle back down in a soothing manner.

“I don’t claim to understand what you’ve been through, baby. I won’t insult you by saying I do. But I do understand why you don’t want to remember. I get that. But I also know that this is like a festering wound, and it’s not going to go away. At some point, we have to face it. Together. And you need to know that Cade and I are going to be here to help you in any way we can.”

She picked up her head and met his gaze, her eyes burning with emotion.

“I think…” She licked her lips nervously and glanced back at Cade before returning once more to Merrick. She seemed to be waging a horrific war with herself, not just over the dreams and memories that tormented her, but over the here and now and about what she was about to say. “That is, I’m pretty sure I love you both. And I’ve battled with myself until I’m exhausted over it. I keep thinking that I can’t love you. That I can’t love two people. That the very last thing I can offer someone in my current emotional state is love. I keep questioning whether my feelings are real or whether they’re the result of you saving me and taking me in. But they feel real. I want them to be real.”

Merrick was momentarily struck speechless. Cade was no less affected by the sudden declaration.

She looked distressed as she continued on. Not at all like a woman should look when she’d just confessed her love for a man. She was clearly nervous and unsettled and seemingly anxious to get her point across before they could respond.

The words tumbled out of her mouth, so fast he could barely keep up.

“And I know you’re wondering what that has to do with what happened tonight or, well, anything, but it has everything to do with it, because I don’t want to remember my past because I’m terrified that it could come between me and the two of you. It’s a fear I live with every single day.”

When she would have continued on, Cade took her hand, engulfing it in his much larger grasp. “Elle, I don’t give a shit about your past other than the fact that it’s a source of pain and emotional stress for you.”

Merrick was still reeling from the powerful words she’d uttered. He couldn’t seem to get his mouth to work, and he couldn’t afford to screw this up. He had to get this right.

“Elle.”

Her name came out barely a whisper, and he had to clear his throat so he didn’t croak the rest of the words.

The weight of emotion in her gaze took his breath away. She looked…scared. As if she’d taken the biggest risk of her life by blurting out those words.

Viewed from her eyes, it had to be terrifying to lay so much on the line when she had no past, nowhere to go, no one but him and Cade to rely on.

In the end, there was no deep, drawn-out explanation. There was nothing to say to her but the utter truth in all its simplicity.

“Ahh, baby, I love you too,” he said hoarsely.

He framed her face in his hands, rubbing the pads of his thumbs over her cheekbones. The relief was crushing in her eyes. Her entire body sagged, and then she turned her mouth into his hand to press a kiss to his palm.

“Do you mean it?” she whispered.

He could barely form the words. He was too shaken by the emotion welling in his chest. When had he ever felt so much for another person? It was a completely new experience for him. Nothing had prepared him for this. It undid him. He was tough. Strong. A mixed martial arts fighter. He could take apart a man in the ring without remorse. He could lock his emotions away until they were encased in stone. But this slip of a woman unraveled him as no other person had ever even come close to.

“I love you,” he said more firmly, knowing he owed her conviction. “I think I fell hard on my ass for you the very first time I laid eyes on you.”

She glanced nervously at Cade, her teeth sinking into her bottom lip as she took in his reaction to the scene unfolding.

Cade stroked her hair with one hand. Then his gaze met Merrick’s, and there was determination there.

“We’re okay with this, Elle,” Cade said in a firm but gentle voice. “This isn’t something we’ve approached lightly. I don’t want you to ever think we did. You’re important to us both. You mean everything to us. You don’t have to walk on eggshells around us for fear of pissing one of us off because you think you left one of us out.”

She reached for Cade’s hand, pulling it to her mouth to kiss the inside as she’d done to Merrick.

“I love you.”

Cade’s eyes softened. He seemed to melt right there on the couch. He cupped her face and leaned in, angling his mouth over hers to apply gentle pressure with his lips.

“I love you too, sweetheart. We’re going to get through this. I promise.”

Her eyes glittered with unshed tears, and Merrick could tell she was battling for control.

“I don’t know what to do,” she choked out. “I don’t know how to fix me. I wish I did.”

“Shhh,” Cade said as he kissed her again. “I’m going to call Dallas and see what he has to say. He may can offer insight or at least address the sleep issue.”

She hesitated, opened her mouth as if to say something and then closed it again.

“What is it?” Merrick asked.

“Maybe… Maybe it would be better if one of you slept with me. In case it happens again.”

“I think that’s a very good idea,” Cade said.

He glanced up at Merrick as he said the next words, as if he were checking Merrick’s reaction.

“I think it would be best if you slept between us. No way for you to slip out of bed if you have to crawl over one of us.”

Merrick nodded immediately. Elle looked relieved. She rubbed her hands up and down her legs, pressing tightly against the sweats.

“Call Dallas,” she said in a quiet voice. “I want to fix this, no matter what I have to do. I want to be able to move forward.”