Page 118 of Security and Submission
“Yas? Yas! Do something!”
The anguish in Zeus’ voice followed her down into the darkness.
Zeus
Pacing back and forth in the waiting area, Zeus ignored Mason’s glare and the confused looks Naomi was giving both of them. Claudia was babysitting Mason, sitting next to him and talking to him in a low voice, while he responded with low, pointed questions. Whatever she was saying to him didn’t seem to make a dent in his glare at Zeus.
Not that Zeus fucking cared.
All that he cared about was currently on an operating table because she’d been fucking shot. Even thinking about it made his stomach drop out.
Next to Claudia, Naomi was also sitting and waiting with Mrs. Sussex at her side, holding her hand. Drew had stayed back with the rest of Black Fox, Zeus supposed. He had no idea what had happened after he’d gotten in the ambulance with Yasmine. He hadn’t even asked Lincoln if he could leave.
He might be fired after this, but he didn’t care.
“Zeus! Where is she?” The question was high and shrill and came from the last person he’d expected to see. He spun around to see Sarah slowly walking into the waiting area, an older Asian woman at her side, both of them with faces full of worry.
Grace, his brain supplied after a moment. That must be Grace. She was supposed to come in today.
“Surgery. They’re getting the bullet out,” he said, dumbfounded as Sarah came over to give him a supportive hug. His arms went around her automatically. “What are you doing here?”
“You texted that you couldn’t come check on me today because Yasmine had been shot.” Sarah sniffed derisively. “Where else would I be?”
“Hello, I’m Grace,” the other woman said as Sarah let go of him, reaching out to shake his hand. She was taller than Sarah, thinner, more angular in her facial features, and her no-nonsense gaze reminded him a bit of Claudia. “How are you holding up, dear? Can we do anything for you?”
Zeus shook his head, partly in answer to her question and partly in disbelief.
He didn’t get a chance to answer, though, because there was an approaching cacophony of female voices. Recognizable female voices. Naomi jumped up from her seat and rushed toward the hall as Audrey, Ashley, Cassidy, Brenda, and two of Brenda’s friends came in.
As soon as Ashley saw Naomi, she opened her arms, and Naomi rushed into them. All the girls closed in around her, making sympathetic noises and tightening their grip on her. Zeus automatically took a step back, unsure how the women would react to his presence.
Brenda moved around them, though, headed right for him, and he braced himself for whatever she might say. She was David and Audrey’s grandmother, and although they’d met, he hadn’t had much to do with her. He did know that she hung out with the younger women a lot, and if he had to hazard a guess, the other two older women were from her book club.
Even he’d heard about the book club.
“Ah,” Brenda said when she reached him, studying his face. “So, you’re the one who’s been giving Yasmine some good, haunted dick spirit.”
“I… what?” Zeus floundered.
“She means big dick energy,” Claudia said from behind him, amusement threading through the tiredness in her voice. “Just ignore the outrageous shit. She likes to shock people.”
“Gotta get my kicks somehow.” Brenda tilted her head. For a woman who was more than a foot shorter than him, with flossy white curls all over her head and a purple shirt he just now realized depicted a cat taco, she was surprisingly intimidating. Reaching out, she patted his arm. “You’ll do.”
“Take it as a compliment,” Claudia muttered as Brenda turned away. “She likes you.”
“Um. Okay.” Zeus shook his head. He wasn’t entirely sure why that would matter to him, but there was a part of him that was relieved to hear it. Especially since Mason’s glare had only softened, not let up entirely, now that Audrey had arrived. Yasmine would probably prefer that some of her friends liked him.
“Ignore Mason. He’ll get the stick out of his ass soon.” Claudia glanced over to where Mason was now standing with Audrey, having some kind of discussion in hushed tones.
Zeus supposed all the secrets were coming out now. It didn’t matter.
Nothing mattered as long as Yasmine was okay.
Chapter 42
Zeus
They were all still in the waiting area when an older couple came in, looking haggard. Mason jumped to his feet from where he was sitting, his hand still in Audrey’s, just as Zeus did. He only needed a glance at the woman to know these were Yasmine’s parents. Yasmine was the spitting image of her mother, whose anguished expression made his chest tighten.
