I wanted to tell them about Amelia and the friends I had made, but I was exhausted and that was a conversation that would take hours, so I moved the subject off me. "How's Derrick?"
Ryder released a breath, Kimber's expression turned sad. "We split up."
"Why?"
"It just wasn't working."
"Bullshit," Ryder shouted and since she was sitting right next to me my ear was now ringing.
"What's bullshit?"
Ryder pointed accusingly at Kimber. "They were working just fine until this one got cold feet."
Kimber was studying the lines in the comforter. "Kimber?"
"I like … okay I love him. That scares the shit out of me, so I ended it."
"You fell in love for the first time in your life so you broke it off with the man."
"Yes. Coward." This was clearly an argument these two had been having for a while.
"Sticks and stones," Kimber said then stuck out her tongue.
"And how did Derrick take the breakup?"
"He hasn't."
Remembering the man in question, yeah he didn't seem the type to give up if he wanted something. "He'll break you down, particularly since you want to be broken down."
"I know."
Ryder jumped from the bed. "We should join the others because dinner is almost ready."
Before we went to dinner, the guys and I sat in the library as they once again briefed me on what to expect.
"Once you know the restaurant, my team will setup the surveillance. You will not be alone with him. Silas will drive you and my men will be posing as waiters. You'll be covered every second."
"I'll be fine."
I had never seen Damian like this. And I appreciated that I'd be feeling the same had the roles been reversed, but Guy wasn't getting away with this.
Cam reached for my hand. "I get what you're feeling. We all are, but control your temper until we have him. He wants something from you so make him feel comfortable to ask for it. Anything he says could help us with nailing him. We only need one thread and his shit will unravel."
"I got this."
They all looked grim, but it was Anton who said, "We know you do."
Cam then did the weirdest thing. He stared at Damian then me and back again.
"You and her finally got it together?" he asked.
Damian didn't even blink. "Yes."
"What are your intentions?"
"Are you serious, Cam? Ignore him, Damian. My brother's a moron."
"I'm not kidding. What are your intentions?" Cam demanded.
I rolled my eyes because honestly. "You're being an idiot, Cam."
"Damian?" I knew that tone of Cam's and couldn't believe he was actually being serious.
"Cam, cut the shit." I was getting pissed now.
Damian's focus shifted from Cam to me. The hard lines smoothed out and warmth moved into his gaze. "To offer her a blanket and my body when she watches a scary movie. To hold her hair when she is sick and to supply the water when she drinks. To keep the house stocked with cookie ingredients and working fire extinguishers. To make her eggs and bacon and two cups of black coffee with two sugars every morning. To fall asleep next to her every night and to wake to her beautiful face every morning. To plant my babies in her, to build a life and family with her, to grow old with her … watching as life etches itself on her face. My intention, Cam, is to spend the rest of my life with her."
No words would come after that breathtaking vow, so instead I stood and walked on unsteady legs to the man I loved and buried my face in his chest.
"Fucking finally," Cam said after a few minutes.
I had just climbed into bed when Damian entered. I hadn't stopped playing his vow over and over again in my head. For a man who conserved words, he sure as hell could string some really fucking great ones together. Still I teased him. "Did you and Cam agree on my dowry?"
"He loves you."
"I know that. I love him, doesn't mean he wasn't being an idiot."
"Concern for his sister does not make him an idiot."
I was reminded of Amelia and how Damian wouldn't ever get to have that with her, so I changed the subject.
"Mrs. Cooke is very forward thinking with her room assignments."
That earned me a look from over his shoulder. A shoulder that was now bare since the man was undressing for bed. I suddenly felt overdressed in my nightshirt.
I waited for him to finish preparing for bed because that included getting naked. Yes, the man slept in the nude. I had said once I didn't walk in the light. I would like to retract that statement.
He climbed into bed and pulled me under him, his hands brushing my hair from my face. "Follow the plan."
"I will."
"Don't take any chances."
"I won't."
"And if you feel uncomfortable, drop your napkin."
I ran my hand down his face, brushed his lips with my fingers. "You will be right there. I'll be fine."
"I want a lifetime, Thea."
"We'll start with that."
And then he kissed me.
It was weird being home, but I had missed it. I had called Uncle Guy as soon as I got home and scheduled the dinner. The man would make an incredible actor because he sounded so happy to hear from me, so familial and yet the bastard killed my dad. We were meeting in two days, Damian was even now wiring the restaurant and setting up the surveillance, drilling the teams. While he was busy doing that, I went about business as usual and spent yesterday cleaning the apartment and stocking my fridge. While cleaning the dreaded bathroom, I snapped the chain of the necklace Dad had given me. I almost lost my key down the toilet. I would have to replace the chain, but in the meantime I hung it on a shorter one because not wearing it wasn't an option.
After I got organized, I decided to hunt some zombies to brush up on my shooting skills. I wouldn't be packing, obviously, but I still liked the idea of practice and it was while I killed the undead that my cell rang. Uncle Tim's name popped up on the screen. I paused my game and reached for it.
"Hey, Uncle Tim. How are you?"
"I should be asking you that. I wondered why I hadn't heard from you and then I saw the breaking news. That's an incredible collar for your brother."
"And justice for Dad."
He was silent for a minute. "Absolutely."
"How are you? How's the Senate race?"
"Busy, lots of schmoozing, but early polling is looking favorable."
"Congratulations."
"Thank you. Would you be free to join me for lunch?"
"I'd love to. Why don't you come here and I'll make us something."
"I'd like that."
"See you around one."
"I'll be there."
"How good is this intel?"
"It's solid. Someone is following our digital footsteps. The team was able to reverse the search to pinpoint the IP address of the computer."
"And it was last active?"
"About a half an hour ago."
I swerved to miss taking off a car door then laid on the horn. Dumb fuck.
"You might want to switch to decaf."
I wasn't in the mood for Razor's shit. Thea was fucking bait and I didn't have her back. Cam was right. I was too invested. The guys on her were top rate. I had picked them out personally and still it fucking grated.
"She'll be fine. Your woman is a bit cutthroat. Seriously, man, you let her slip through your fingers and I'm snatching her up."
"Never going to fucking happen." I never had a home. I had one now.
"You're smarter than you look."
I jerked my head to him to see the fucker grinning. "Seriously, I'm happy for you. If I found me a woman like Thea, someone who actually tolerated my bullshit, I'd hold on and never let go."
Family, fucking hell I had one all along. "Talk to me about what the team found?"
"They're mirroring our search, it's like they're giving us a virtual middle finger, like they want us to find them."
"Or it's a trap."
"Or a call for help," he added.
"We'll know soon enough. We're here."
"What's the play?" Razor asked.
I didn't answer because my focus was on the man stepping from the shadows. "Fuck me."
"Who the hell is that?"
Guy Hartnett peered into the car. "Took you long enough."
The baked potato soup I whipped up had turned out perfectly. We were sitting in my kitchen. I had made sandwiches and soup. Uncle Tim wasn't eating, but he was nursing three fingers of scotch. Unusual for him, but he was running a Senate campaign. That had to be stressful.
"You look well, Thea. Your time away agreed with you."
More than he would know. I moved past that and studied his beloved face. He looked older since the last time I saw him.
"You look tired."
He lifted his glass and took a long sip. "I am. Campaigning is exhausting. It is definitely a younger man's game, but I've wanted the Senate for so long. When we were kids, I remember your father and I talking about what we wanted to be when we grew up. He always wanted to be a cop, was such a firm believer in right and wrong, black and white. I often straddle the line, but not your dad … incorruptible. Cam's the spitting image of him."
My soup was forgotten listening to Uncle Tim because there was an odd note in his voice. "Cam is like Dad. I think we both are."