“She’s no threat to anybody. If I could’ve kept her out of our world, I would have. Because she’s too good for us.” Kane swallows hard. “And I love her.”
I nod. “So do I.”
Silence falls over the room. Even Payton doesn’t make a sound from behind her gag. Myles rubs his temples but stays quiet.
Finally, Ace speaks. “You love her? Both of you? You’re serious.”
“Deadly,” I mutter, looking him straight in the eye. “She’s ours. I’d trust her with my life, and I know Kane would, too. He’s right. We don’t deserve her. But she needs us, too, and we’ll be there no matter what.”
I look at Myles again. “That’s just how it is. You’ve got to accept it. I’m sorry we didn’t tell you guys sooner that she confessed about her juvenile record, but it didn’t seem like anything you’d lose your shit over—”
“—without coming to us first.” Kane’s heavy breathing tells me he’s not ready to apologize just yet. He wants Myles to pay for what he did. All I care about right now is Payton, taking care of her, making sure she’ll forgive us for what she’s been through.
Ace sighs. “Fine. You love her, you vouch for her, and her story checks out. That’s enough for me.” Archer and Knox nod their agreement. Myles does, too, though he’s slower about it. Like he doesn’t want to give up this easily.
Finally, our brothers step aside and let us get to her. We make quick work of untying her. The second she’s free, she jumps out of the chair. We catch her in our arms and hold her between us.
“I was so scared,” she whispers against my chest. I hate feeling her tremble the way she is.
“We’ve got you.” Kane presses his lips to the top of her head, eyes closed. “You’re safe. You’ll always be safe with us.”
She lifts her head and looks up at me, then at Kane. “Did you mean what you said? That you love me?”
“Of course, tiny dancer.” I kiss her gently and try to soak in the moment, to freeze time and always be right here. With the woman I love. She’s safe, she’s in our arms, and nothing’s ever going to get to her again. Nothing has ever felt this right.
“I love you, too.” She’s crying again, but this time she’s beaming. “I love you both.”
Though her smile fades a little as she cuts a look across the room to where our brothers are standing around, looking annoyed and embarrassed. “But your brother is scary as hell.”
“Him?” Kane snickers. “He’s not that bad once you get past the fact that he’s a crazy bastard. But we all are. He won’t be a problem anymore.”
“And even if he was,” I add, exchanging a glance with my twin, “we’d still take care of you. You’re what matters.” I can tell we agree on this just the way we agree on her. She’s what makes us complete, and we’re never, ever letting her go.