Page 111 of Bad Situation

With Ellie tucked beneath me, I feel alive. I’m not sure I’ve ever felt more alive than right now.

Still, I’m afraid to look.

Until I feel a hand on my ass. A touch that’s so familiar—warm and possessive—I never want it to leave my body. Not for the rest of my life.

“Baby. Look at me.”

His voice hits me soft. Compared to the hard floor, the cold space, and what just happened, it’s a caress to my soul. I lift my head but don’t let go of my shaking sister.

Eli has his phone to his ear as he as his eyes gaze into mine. “It’s over. It’s all over.”

Chapter 31

Your Hands

Eli

Jen climbs into bed with me in the guest room at her sister’s house. Ellie refused to go to the ranch. Jen refused to leave Ellie. And there was no way I was not sleeping under the same roof as Jen tonight.

Or for any other night in the future, if I have anything to do with it.

So here we are in Ellie’s big-ass house situated in her gated community. At least the gates are keeping the press at bay. Still, her house is ridiculous. If I were her, I’d sell this thing tomorrow.

I thought Jen and Ellie were close, but close doesn’t begin to describe it. They’re thicker than thieves.

I got them out of the carnage-filled room as fast as I could after taking Robert down. They were both transported to the hospital and checked out after being tranquilized. Ellie is fine other than being shaken but Jen has a concussion from when she fell and hit her head. She said she won’t have to worry about staying up all night between checking on Ellie and coming back to me. It wasn’t easy for Ellie to come back to her house and she refuses to sleep in her own bed. The only reason she’s here is because of her son. She’s sleeping in Griffin’s room and refuses to leave his side.

I had the police go to her house right away to check on Griffin. He was fine but the sitter freaked when the police showed and stayed until we got here.

Jen’s parents just left, as did the babysitter, who, I’m pretty sure will never return.

I’ve been slapped with a second OPR investigation, but this one is routine since I was involved in a shooting.

Whatever. I don’t give a shit.

“Ellie okay?” I ask.

Jen pulls the covers back to settle in. “I don’t know. How can anyone be okay after what happened tonight? She’s angry and bitter at Robert—she even feels guilty for bringing him into our family.” She shakes her head. “She hasn’t been okay for a long time and it hurts my heart.”

I pull her gently to me. She tangles her legs with mine but winces as she lays her head on the pillow.

“How’s your head?”

“Not bad. I took what they gave me at the hospital. I’ll lie low this weekend and maybe I can work on Monday.” She closes her eyes and sighs. “Things are a mess. We just lost Patrick and now I’m down a controller, not to mention the drama and public scrutiny. My dad is about to have a come-apart over everything. He’s the one who hired Robert and is carrying his own guilt. Now he’s worried about my mom, too, since she just had a heart attack. It was a mild one, but she’s so worried about Ellie, she’s stressed. I just got off the phone with Cam who’s beyond angry. He wants to see for himself that we’re okay. Paige is so sweet—she wants Ellie and Griffin to go to Omaha while this dies down. I told Cam that might not be a bad idea. We’ll see what she does.”

I put my hand to her ass and slide my thigh between her legs. “It’ll calm down. Ellie has you and, from the sound of it, her marriage was shit. The whole thing is over and that’s all that matters.”

Her eyes fill with moisture and that mask she puts on for everyone else disintegrates in a way I’m getting used to when it’s just her and me. She’s been strong for her sister, her family, even her company. Hell, for herself. She didn’t panic and, when the time came, she did what she needed to do to keep herself and her sister alive.

“Thank you for tracking me.” She shakes her head and her voice hitches. “Had you not come when you did…”

I lean in to kiss her, if for no other reason than to shut her up. I got there in time and there’s no reason to visit the what-ifs. “You did everything you could and you were brave doing it. You kept yourself alive until I could get to you. You know what this means though, right?”

Her brow crinkles. “What?”

I’m serious as shit when I say, “There’ll never be a day that I don’t track you.”

Tears escape her eyes even as a smile breaks across her beautiful face. “I’ll be happy for you to creep on me. Forever.”

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