Page 80 of The Billionaires' Gamble
“Are the guys awake?”
His dark gaze flicks across the room as his lips flatten. The odd expression clears in an instant. “King’s asleep. Gabe’s over at his place.”
“Oh.” Maybe I shouldn’t feel dejected. But I do. Yesterday was hard on everyone, there’s no way around that. But… Why wouldn’t Gabe be here?
King’s here. I’m here. Alex is here. Gabe’s family is here, yet he’s over there in a renovation zone?
Alex wraps a hand around my mug and lifts it to his lips. I’m mesmerized by the sight of sharing this with him, not only my coffee, which already feels intimate, but this moment. Quiet. Settled. Domestic.
So different from yesterday. Almost like the last twenty-four hours were a bad dream.
“There’s more of that in the main house. Marissa’s making a breakfast feast.” I lean close. “I think she likes having a big group to cook for.”
Alex lets go of the mug, and I guide it to my lap, letting the warm ceramic heat my fingers. “She left us a spread here, too.”
The hand around my hip splays wide, feeling like a brand. I take a deep breath, my body relaxing into his touch. Moment by moment, everything, from my bruised scalp to my soul, feels better.
“Thank you. For yesterday.”
“You don’t have to thank me.”
“I do.” I lean in and kiss the corner of his mouth. He smells of toothpaste and coffee. “I’ve never been happier to see anyone in my life.”
“Same.” He squeezes me.
Nuzzling closer, I give voice to the question that’s been rolling around in my brain. “How’d you find me? Was Tyler able to get out a message?”
Only once the questions are out of my mouth do I notice how still he’s gone. Like a statue. His stillness makes me sit up straight. “Alex?”
His thumb glides along my wrist and fiddles with my bracelet. “There might be a tracker in this charm.”
A tracker?
He gave me a bracelet with a tracker in it? Like an AirTag? Like I’m a puppy who might need help getting home?
If it were anyone else, it’d be unacceptable. Creepy. Maybe it’s still a bit creepy, but after yesterday, I can’t muster much annoyance.
Okay, I can’t rallyanyannoyance.
“How’d you know? That we’d need it?”
“I prayed I never would.”
“Does Gabe have one?”
“What do you think?”
“And King?”
His lips curve into a ghost of a smile. “He doesn’t need one.”
“He doesn’t?”
His smile broadens and turns mischievous. I’d even call it a bit devilish. “He’s wherever you are.”
Those words make me melt. He steals the mug and sets it aside before I throw myself against his chest, hugging him tight enough to leave a mark.
He presses his face against the side of my neck, and his broad chest relaxes on a deep sigh. There’s a bone-deep relief in him that echoes through my soul.
