Page 65 of Shattered King

“I think that’s my cue to leave,” she said. “Maybe I’ll go hit a club . . .”

“Do not fuck with me. Not tonight,” he rumbled. His voice had dropped, so deep, so low, it sounded like thunder. “I have to stay here and watch Lulu. I won’t be around to bail your ass out of trouble.”

Ruby shrugged. “Maybe my ass wants trouble.”

He growled, like a fricking wild animal.

Ruby grabbed her bag, hitched it over her shoulder, leaned down, and hugged me. “Sorry, Lulu. But I need to take off.” Then she flounced out, slamming the door shut behind her.

Neco watched her go then stomped off, slamming the bathroom door behind him. And I sat there wondering what the hell just happened.

When he finally surfaced again, he was quiet, surly. Eventually, after trying to make small talk, which failed miserably, I headed off to bed. The guy was obviously not in the mood to chit-chat, and I had no idea how late Hunter would be. So I left him to it.

Hunter had been amazing. He’d helped with the funeral arrangements, stuck by my side, took care of Josh. Today was the first day we’d been apart since I found out my mother had passed away.

And I could admit, I felt a little lost without him.

I missed him.

The funeral had been a quiet one. Just a few close friends. He’d held my hand the entire time, was my strength when I felt like I had none left.

There’d also been a police presence, and every one of the King Agency guys there as well, just in case, but Pierce hadn’t made an appearance. Thank God.

I tugged on Hunter’s Ramones T-shirt and climbed under the covers beside Josh. I’d slept in Hunter’s bed all week. I don’t know how it happened. It just had. It’d just felt so right, God, and safe. His body wrapped around mine, warm, strong. But with him not here—well, I didn’t want to be alone, so I snuggled closer to my son, blanked my mind, and closed my eyes.

But my mind wouldn’t shut up. Losing my mom had hit hard, the lost time, something that dug at me, festered inside me daily. I wanted Pierce caught. I wanted to go to bed at night knowing that son of a bitch wasn’t living it up on some island paradise, destroying someone else’s life. I didn’t want him to get away with it. I wanted him to pay for what he did to me, to Hunter, and the time he stole, the time he took from all of us.

Because of him, I’d lost pieces of myself. Important, vital pieces. Pierce had broken me in a way I didn’t know could ever be repaired. The people that cared for me, loved me, they deserved all of me in return. Something I didn’t know I would ever be able to give.

He needed to pay for that. I didn’t care how sick and twisted it made me, but I wanted him to hurt while that payment was being dished out.

I don’t know how long I lay there, staring into darkness, but I must have fallen asleep, because when I opened my eyes again there was no low hum of the TV coming from the living room. The place was completely silent. I checked my phone. 2:30 a.m.

I reached out for my son, but the space beside me was empty.

Panic tore through me, and I shoved back the blankets, racing to the living room.

It was dimly lit, the lamp beside the couch the only light on in the big room. Hunter lay on the couch on his back, bare-chested, eyes closed. Josh lay on him, thumb in his mouth, out cold, his little face tucked under Hunter’s chin. Hunter’s muscular, inked arms wrapped around my boy, protective and strong. Perfect.

My gaze lifted back to Hunter. His eyes were open.

“Hey,” I whispered.

“Hey,” he said back.

“Did he wake?”

“Yeah.”

“Thanks for taking care of him.”

He just stared at me, then shook his head and held out a hand. “Come here.”

I went to him, climbed onto the couch beside them. Hunter wrapped his arm around me, pulling me into his side. One arm around me, one around Josh. My heart squeezed, but it wasn’t in pain; it was in happiness. I turned into him and kissed his pec. “I missed you.”

His arm got tighter. “Missed you, too.”

We were silent for a while. I absorbed his heat, the comfort he was giving me. Then I tilted my head back, looking up at him. “What’s going on between Neco and Ruby?”