Siren in Bloom [Texas Sirens 6] (Siren Publishing Ménage Everlasting) (42 page)

She winced, her scalp stinging. She tried to pull away, but there was nowhere to go. She turned her eyes to Chase, who had tried so hard to keep them both alive. He’d bought them time. He couldn’t die now.

Joe held up his gun, but Chase merely smiled at the man.

There was a loud crack, the sound ringing through the air. The shot hadn’t come from the man on the outside, but from her left. Joe’s body jerked, and the gun fell from his hand, clattering to the floor. She heard Holder gasp behind her. Joe spun around, and before he could hit the floor, Shelley saw the neat hole in his forehead. His eyes were dead and glassy as he fell.

“Drop it, Holder. Move away from her.” Leo stalked into the room, his feet moving silently across the floor. Wolf was next to him. They moved in perfect time as though they had been partners all their lives.

They were the most beautiful sight she’d ever seen.

Holder tightened his hands around her and quickly shoved the needle in her neck. Shelley screamed at the pain. She could feel the burn.

Holder stood behind her, only paying attention to the men walking toward him. He used her body as a shield. “One step closer and I pump this whole fucking syringe through her system. It’s too much. She won’t be able to handle it.”

“Yes, I can. I’ll be fine,” Shelley said. God, she didn’t want him to push that plunger down. She wasn’t sure what it would do, but she knew if Leo and Wolf dropped their guard that Holder could have a gun in his hand really fast.

“It’s a barbiturate. I already pumped her full of ketamine. Do you want to see how she’ll handle an overdose of this shit, too?” Holder asked.

“The cops are on their way,” Wolf said. His eyes found hers. “Baby, it’s going to be okay.”

“Don’t you drop those guns,” she replied. “I’ll be fine.”

“She won’t,” Holder said. “I already killed one of your bitches, Meyer. Do I need to kill another one?”

“Ben, that’s a confession. You’re good to go,” Leo said. Shelley noticed the small device in his ear. Ben was the man on the ledge. Ben was the sniper, and he had his command.

“What the?” It was all Holder got out before Shelley felt something whiz by her head and then Holder’s hands softened, and he fell behind her. The needle stuck in her neck, but Leo was at her side in a second, gently pulling it out and tossing it aside. She wanted to get her arms around him. She’d almost died. She’d almost lost everything.

There was another loud report, jarring Shelley.

“Hey, he was already dead, Wolf,” Leo said, his hand on her skin.

“He stuck a fucking needle in her neck. He can’t be dead enough for me.” Wolf paced the floor, but his eyes didn’t catch hers.

Tears streamed down Shelley’s face. Her neck hurt, but it didn’t matter.

Leo used a knife on the tape, and she was free in a moment. He pulled her into his arms. “Baby, baby, I was so scared.”

She wrapped her arms around him.

Ben ran in the warehouse as the sirens wailed.

“How the hell did you get here so fast?” Chase asked.

“Kitten made Shelley swallow her GPS,” Leo explained.

Chase smiled. “Kitten’s getting a reward spanking. Oh, yeah.”

Shelley held on to Leo like he was a lifeline, but her eyes trailed to Wolf. He glanced at her, but didn’t move to hold her.

“I’m going to wait for the cops.” Wolf nodded and walked out.

“Don’t worry, baby,” Leo said.

But she couldn’t help but worry. Half her heart had just walked out the door.

Wolf stared at the elevator doors as they closed, surprised at just how nervous he was. He was bone tired, having slept next to nothing the night before. He’d managed a brief nap while waiting in the interrogation room of the downtown Dallas police station. It had been a long night filled with lots of questions. Julian and the legal brigade had shown up. Finn and Dane had rushed around, smoothing over the fact that he and Ben had killed two men.

“You okay, man?” Ben asked. He looked past tired, with dark circles under his eyes and a deep slump to his shoulders.

He felt for the box in his pocket. It was there. Julian had worked a bit of magic, getting someone to open the store so early in the morning. Wolf had explained what he wanted, and one of Julian’s employees had picked it up.

The right gift. He had it this time. Now he just had to hope that she would accept it.

“I’m fine. How’s Chase?”

“Already home. He’s tough. Don’t worry about him. I think he’s already going through those files trying to find the one Holder was after. He was also able to identify a couple of the men who took him. They got into The Club with a man named Mitchell Cross. He’s a US senator who was visiting tonight. He’s either connected to Holder or Holder used him to gain access. Chase is determined to find out.”

He turned to Ben, whose flat monotone let Wolf know that Ben still hadn’t really processed. “Man, are you okay? You killed the man who murdered your woman.”

A look of pain crossed his face. “She wasn’t mine. She was never mine, but I’m glad she has a little justice. Are you going after Shelley?”

Wolf nodded.

“Have you ever had a long-term ménage before?”

Wolf shook his head. “No. I’ve played around, but I’ve avoided it as a relationship. Where I come from, it’s a viable option, but I didn’t want a partner besides my brother.” He laughed a little. “There’s actually a woman I dated back in Bliss who I told flat out I didn’t do the ménage thing. Yeah, she’s going to have a laugh when I invite her to my wedding.”

It would happen. He wasn’t going to take no for an answer.

“You move fast, man. I don’t think I’ll ever find the right woman,” Ben admitted. “I loved Ada, but there’s no way she could have handled Chase. The two women we’ve had longer-term relationships with weren’t really serious. Chase didn’t want to marry one, and the other laughed when we asked her. Be careful. Shelley seems like a sweetheart, but not a lot of women want a ménage on a permanent basis.”

The door dinged open, and Wolf looked at the long hallway that led to the condo. Ben stepped out.

“No way to know until you try, man,” Ben said. He gave Wolf a tired salute and walked to the condo he shared with his brother.

Wolf walked down the hall. He could still see the moment that asshole had stuck a needle into her neck. It was right there, floating in his brain like a nightmare he couldn’t shut off. He’d realized in that moment that she really could die, and his life would be over, too. He’d known he cared about her, but that one moment had proven how much she’d taken over his soul. When she’d wrapped her arms around Leo, he’d realized how brutally he’d fucked up.

And how much it would hurt if he couldn’t fix it.

Leo had been able to go to the hospital with her. Leo had been able to hold her and assure himself that she was fine. All Wolf had had for the long hours of the night were short text updates.

He stood outside the condo. Fuck. He didn’t even have a keycard yet. That was ironic. The love of his life was behind the door and he had to knock, had to beg to be let in. He had to hope they were even awake.

He took a deep breath and tapped on the door.

It opened almost immediately, his brother slamming it wide.

“Why the fuck didn’t you call me? Do you understand we’ve been waiting up all damn night? We didn’t know if you’d been tossed in jail or god knew what.” Leo barked at him, making Wolf feel like he was a teenager slinking in after a stolen night.

“I thought Finn would tell you what was happening.”

“I didn’t want to hear it from Finn. I wanted to hear it from you. We need to talk about this whole partnership thing. If this is your idea of communication, it sucks, brother.” Leo moved back from the door, revealing Shelley, who was lying on the couch, a blanket around her. Even from here he could see the bruise on her neck.

Wolf pushed past Leo and got to his knees in front of her. “You told me she was fine.”

Shelley’s eyes came open. “You’re home.”

He pushed her hair back, uncovering the vicious-looking bruise on her neck.
Asshole
. God, he wanted to get his hands around Holder’s neck. It was wrong he’d gone down so quickly. He should have suffered. “You should still be in the hospital.”

“She’s fine, Wolf,” Leo said, calming down. “Though she might not be for long if you keep manhandling her. Maybe now she’ll follow her Master’s orders and get into bed. She refused. She wanted to go to the police station.”

“I was anxious to tear off a piece of your hide, Wolf Meyer,” she said with a yawn. “Now, I think I’ll skip that part.” She sat up. “I don’t want you to leave me, Wolf. I should have just said that. I should have just been open. I love you. I don’t know what idiot idea you have in your head, but I love you, and I want a family with you and Leo.”

He felt his whole body sag in relief. “Baby, I’m so sorry.”

His brother made a gagging sound. “Here comes the groveling.”

“You stay out of it, Leo Meyer,” Shelley said, her hand coming up to smooth back Wolf’s hair. She pressed him to her breast. He snuggled in, the anxious feeling in the pit of his stomach dissolving.

“You little brat, I’m keeping track of every time you turn that bossy mouth on me. When you’re physically able, we’re going to have some punishment.” Leo frowned down at her.

Wolf could hear the smile in Shelley’s voice. She winked Leo’s way. “I’m sure you will, you sadistic bastard. But until then, I think I would prefer something more pleasurable. After all, I did almost die. Shouldn’t someone kiss me?”

Wolf pulled away and looked at her. “Just like that, baby?”

He wanted to believe her, but it seemed too easy.

She smiled that little enigmatic smile that made his heart race. “Would you rather fight for a long time? I’m spent, Wolf. I could yell and scream and act like the brat I am, but I would rather just say it. I love you.” Tears pricked at her eyes, pooling there. “This isn’t the first time I thought I would die. My husband put me in a horrible position, and Leo is under the mistaken impression that I handled it beautifully.”

“You did, sweetheart,” Leo said, frowning. “You show no signs of having long-term emotional problems with it. Am I wrong?”

“I didn’t care, Leo. That’s what I never told you. That man held a gun to my head. He killed my husband right in front of me, and all I was worried about was whether Beth and Bo survived because I didn’t care about me. I felt dead inside. I didn’t care if he killed me because I didn’t have anything to live for. I was almost disappointed when Trev saved me. There was a part of me that wanted it to be over. I’d lost my mom and dad. I’d married a monster, and I thought I maybe deserved it all.”

“Shelley.” Wolf’s heart was breaking. He reached for her hand.

She shook her head, but her fingers threaded through his, accepting his comfort. Tears rolled down her face. “It wasn’t the same this time. Leo’s going to have to deal with some serious nightmares because I didn’t want to die. I couldn’t die, not when I just figured out what the whole love thing meant. Leo, I’m so sorry. I should have trusted in what I felt. I keep trying to sacrifice myself because I think it’s the only way to fix things, but I know now that I’m not alone in this. We’re all together. We can’t make decisions alone anymore. Holder put that needle in my neck, and I didn’t want to die. I wanted to do anything I could to live.”

“You told me to let him push the plunger,” Leo said, his voice hard. “Don’t think I haven’t forgotten that.”

“I know, but he was lying, Leo. It was truth serum. He didn’t want me dead when he measured the dose. He wanted me talking. I was pretty sure it wouldn’t kill me, but a bullet would have killed you.”

“It doesn’t matter, baby,” Wolf said. “We need to set some serious boundaries. Look, we will follow your instructions when it comes to swatches and paint and furniture.”

“Unless you try to wallpaper my office, and then we’ll have a problem,” Leo said.

Shelley laughed a little. “All right. I’m in charge of making things pretty, and you two handle the bad guys. I can agree to that.”

Wolf hugged her, reveling in the feel of her in his arms. This was his place in the world. He’d searched for it, longed for it, mistakenly believed it was something like a career, but this was his place. Her arms. Her heart. Her soul. This was his home.

“I love you, Shelley.”

She smiled brilliantly. “I love you, too.”

He pulled the blue box out of his pocket. “This is what I wanted to get before I decided to do the self-sacrificial asshole thing.”

“It seems to be a recurring theme in this family. We’ll be in therapy for years,” Leo said with a sigh.

Shelley opened the box and touched the interlinking circles. “This is perfect.”

“It isn’t a ring, but I thought Leo and I should pick that out,” Wolf said.

“I wouldn’t dream of picking out a ring for her,” Leo said. “I would screw it up. How about we take our woman and let her pick it out? After all, she’s in charge of pretty things.”

Shelley went still. “Is that supposed to be a proposal?”