Four days. It took us four days to come up for air after making a commitment to each other. I’d moved Anabeth into my place, accepting the offers of my brothers and friends to guard the house…so long as they stayed outside. Gage and Rex had moved into the house on the ridge so he could fix the two broken doors and give us some space. Anabeth and I had a lot of reconnecting to do, and that required privacy. Something the guys and Gage accepted. I had a feeling I’d be mocked relentlessly once I went back to work, though.

Worth it.

I opened the door to The Baker’s Cottage, guiding Anabeth through the opening with my hand on her lower back. And if I dropped that hand just a little to brush across her ass, so be it. She definitely didn’t seem to mind. In fact, she shot me a saucy smile over her shoulder before Shye stole her attention.

“Good to see you, Anabeth. Bishop.” The little blonde grinned while escorting us to a table by the bar, probably having heard all about our renewed relationship from Alder. My brother was a nosy fucker at times. He claimed he needed to know what was going on to be able to keep the town safe. I figured he just liked to gossip.

“The soup of the day is corn chowder, and Katie’s got a meatloaf on special that’s gotten to be real popular. Can I get you both something to drink while you look over the menus?”

Before we could answer, Alder came strolling through the door from the kitchen with Katie following him. Gage wasn’t far behind, which didn’t surprise me. Finn walking through the front door at basically the same time certainly did, though.

Anabeth stiffened at my side, and all that unresolved anger from her story—from learning he’d used drugs with her, introduced them to her knowing she was the child of an addict, and never said a goddamned word to me about it—overflowed. I had thought the next time I saw Finn, I’d beat his ass. I felt more like I was going to kill him.

“Bishop, please.” Anabeth leaned close, her hand on my face and her eyes holding mine. “It’s the past. Don’t take things out on Finn.”

“Why do you think I’m going to take anything out on him?”

She raised an eyebrow. “If looks could kill, he’d be toast right now.”

So I hadn’t lost my SEAL glare. “Good.”

Anabeth sat back as Finn headed for the bar, nodding in our direction but not saying anything. Which was fine by me. I had no idea what would come out of my mouth if I dared to try to speak to him in that moment.

Gage and Katie seemed to be having a conversation at the far side of the bar from where Finn sat down. And by seemed to, I meant Katie looked to be babbling endlessly while Gage stood there and watched her. Other people might have thought he appeared bored or uninterested because his face looked blank, but there was a carefulness to the stoic expression and a fire in his eyes. He was anything but bored, though I had no idea if Katie could discern his interest. If the way she headed toward Finn as soon as she noticed him, practically leaving Gage behind in mid-sentence, was any indication, that would be a no.

Alder sat down across from us, grabbing Shye and pulling her into his lap. “Been wondering when we’d see you two again.”

I pulled Anabeth’s chair closer and sat back, looping my arm behind her. “I seem to remember you disappearing for a few days after the lovely Shye finally stopped running away from you.”

“I never ran,” Shye said, smiling at my brother in a way that he had damn well better be thankful for. Any man would want their woman to look at them like that. “I just never realized he was chasing me.”

Alder grinned and pulled her in for a small kiss before refocusing on us. “This is going to sound weird, but you two smell like spearmint.”

I grinned as Anabeth blushed a little. Yeah, we had a bit of an obsession. Anabeth had admitted her addiction to the taste was brought on by memories of me, so I fueled that. Spearmint gum, candies, her teas…I made sure she had all of it around her.

And the fact that she had a tendency to straddle my lap and kiss me nice and deep and long whenever I chewed spearmint gum certainly helped.

I pulled out a piece and shot my girl a wink. “It’s just gum, man. No big deal.”

“That’s some strong gum.” He sat back, looking me over, flicking a glance to Anabeth before asking me, “What do I need to know?”

I shrugged, rubbing my thumb against Anabeth’s shoulder when I felt her stiffen beside me. “We’re together. What more do you want?”

Alder eyed Anabeth, a wary sort of expression on his face. I knew what he was thinking—he’d been the one to drag my ass out of Vegas after Anabeth had left. He’d seen me deeper into a bottle than I’d ever been in my life and ready to give up everything because of how badly she’d hurt me. He didn’t know the whys of what had happened, only the results, and as a big brother, he probably had concerns. I understood that. I’d still fight my own brother if he dared to speak against her.

But Alder had been a happy fucker since Shye had finally become his. No longer grumpy, the man sat a little deeper, gripped his woman a little tighter, and fucking smiled.

“Well then, welcome home, Anabeth. It’s good to have you back.”

Anabeth rested her head on my shoulder and laid her hand on my thigh. “It’s good to be home.”

Thank fuck for that, because having her home was about the best thing I could have ever imagined. Even as short-lived as it would be.

“We should celebrate.” Alder smiled at Shye. “What does Katie have that we can toast with?”

“No alcohol,” Anabeth and I said at the same time, both chuckling afterward. Yeah, she didn’t drink, which meant I probably wouldn’t anymore either. I was okay with that choice too. Whatever it took to keep her happy, sober, and by my side, I’d do.

Shye gave us a questioning sort of smile. “Toast but no alcohol. Got it. I think there’s a bottle or two of that sparkling grape juice we had for the kids during the grand opening. Would that work?”

Alder raised his eyebrows at us, looking back to Shye when we nodded. “Sounds good, honey. Make sure you grab a glass for yourself.”

Shye rushed off, stopping at the bar where Gage, Katie, and Finn sat. As she spoke to them, she nodded toward us, and my gut locked down. Fuck me, she was going to send them over to celebrate with us. Had I not known about Finn’s involvement in Anabeth’s almost death, I would have been happy to spend time with my girl and my friends and family together. Now?

No fucking way.

“Stop,” Anabeth whispered, angling her body across mine so she could whisper in my ear. “Nothing was his fault, and I made him swear never to tell you about the drugs. He didn’t know about…anything else.”

The baby. He hadn’t known about the baby. Didn’t matter, though. He knew she was using, and he never said a fucking word.

Anabeth tried to pull away, but my hand gripping her waist stopped her. I stared into those blue eyes that meant the world to me, the ones I’d missed for a damn long time. The ones I swore I’d wake up to every day for the rest of our lives.

“He put you in danger. I will never forgive him for that.”

“Bishop, don’t—”

“Hey, guys,” Finn said as he appeared beside the table. “I hear you’ve got some news.”

I tried to control my temper—I tried real fucking hard. I purposely thought about Finn’s own fight with drug addiction, about the phone call I’d received while stationed in Afghanistan that he’d been arrested for dealing, about the years he’d lost being sent to prison for a crime he hadn’t committed. I tried to keep all of that in the front of my mind.

But then he fucked up.

“Good to see you, Anabeth,” Finn said, and he dropped his hand onto her shoulder. Anabeth jerked, her face going pale and her body leaning into mine as if on instinct. That obvious discomfort, that fear, snapped my fucking leash.

“Don’t touch her,” I said as I rose to my feet. Anabeth tried to hold onto my arm, but I simply squeezed her hand and kept going. Refusing to take my eyes off Finn. “I know what you did, so don’t you dare lay a finger on her. Don’t even fucking look at her.”

Finn’s eyes went wide. “Bishop, I’m sorry. I never thought—”

“No. You don’t get to be sorry right now. You don’t get to seek forgiveness or try to smooth this over.”

“What’s going on here?” Alder moved between us, looking ready to tear the two of us apart if need be.

But I didn’t need to tear into Finn physically. Not yet, at least. “Finn here and his drug use reared its ugly head again.”

Alder’s expression turned thunderous. “You’re using?”

“No. Fuck no.” Finn took a step back and ran a hand through his hair. “I… Back when I was using and Anabeth was still here—”

“He used with her,” I said, interrupting him and refusing to let him spin the story. “He almost killed her.”

“Why did we not know this?” Alder said, looking from Finn to Anabeth with a stormy expression on his face.

Anabeth grabbed my arm, sliding her body against mine. Effectively putting herself between Finn and me, something that just revved my temper even more.

“I made him swear never to tell.” She pushed against me, trying to take my focus off my brother. Trying to calm me. “This isn’t Finn’s fault, Bishop. I have to take responsibility for my actions.”

“You got scared when he touched you.”

“I felt uncomfortable because I still associate Finn with…what I lost. I’m not scared of him, though. And I don’t want you fighting with him because of what happened so long ago.” She rose onto the balls of her feet and tugged my chin until I looked down at her. “Please. Let this go so we can move forward.”

This girl. How could I refuse her anything? But I needed to make a point.

Still, I never wanted Anabeth to be unhappy, so I nodded, and I leaned down to give her a kiss when she smiled. Then I gently pushed her out of the way before I swung and slammed my fist into Finn’s mouth. I’d never heard such a satisfying crack in all my life.

Anabeth screamed, and the room exploded into motion.

“Jesus, Bishop,” Alder yelled as he lunged for Finn. Gage grabbed me from behind, tugging me back. Glaring at Finn as if ready to jump into the fight on my side. Right or wrong, I knew Gage would be with me, but I wasn’t looking to brawl. Not really. I’d just given my little brother a taste of what he’d deserved.

“One,” I said, pointing at Finn who had Alder holding his arms the same way Gage held mine. “You deserve that one for what you did, but it’ll be the only one for the past. You bring any of that shit back around her, you threaten her sobriety in any way, and I won’t stop at just one.”

Finn glared at me but nodded, wiping the blood from his lip. “Fine. Good luck to you both.”

He yanked his arms away from Alder and headed for the door, looking pissed as hell. Good. Let him be mad. I had fourteen years of mad to deal with—he could take a little on himself.

I pulled away from Gage and watched my brother leave. Waited for him to disappear around the corner of the building. Waited to make sure he wasn’t coming back.

“You really think that was a good idea?” Alder asked, looking ready to spit nails.

“Yeah, I do.”

He nodded, glancing from Anabeth to me. “This isn’t going to be a long-term thing, is it? This beef with Finn?”

I tugged my girl back into my side, hanging on tight. Keeping her safe. “No. Like I said, he deserved the one. I won’t bring it back up so long as he doesn’t upset Anabeth.”

Alder didn’t look convinced, but that was too fucking bad. I had my girl, I had a future before me that I’d never thought possible, and there was no way I was letting Finn fuck that up.

“Fine. Just don’t push him too hard. I don’t want to see anyone travel back down a road to addiction.” Alder shook his head and walked away, grabbing Shye as he passed her and tugging her with him. There was a protective vibe about the way he held her, an aura of danger. I had a feeling Finn wouldn’t be acting as Shye’s guard for a while.

“Nice boots.” Gage bumped his shoulder into mine, watching Alder walk away. “Nice punch, too.”

“Stupid punch,” Anabeth said, grabbing my hand and looking at my knuckles. “Did you hurt yourself?”

As if I’d ever admit something like that. Besides, sore knuckles were worth it. “Not a bit.”

Gage snorted. “I think it’s time for me to get to work.” He nodded at Anabeth. “You keep him under control for me, okay?”

Her body went stiff, but the entertainer in her kicked in quick, her stage smile lifting her lips easily. “I’ll do my best.”

Jackasses, the both of them. “Go. I’m spending the day with my woman.”

“Never thought I’d hear you say those words, man.” Gage laughed as he headed for the door, leaving Anabeth and me standing together in the entryway of the restaurant. She turned to face me, not looking all that thrilled. Uh oh.

“You know that was stupid, right?”

I shrugged. I didn’t think it was stupid, but I wasn’t going to fight her on that. “You know I’d do anything to keep you safe, right?”

“That’s not the point—”

“I love you, Anabeth.” My heart nearly exploded when her eyes went wide and her hands gripped me tighter. “In the spirit of no secrets and no hiding things from one another, I need to tell you that. I love you, I always have, and I always will. No one gets to make you feel uncomfortable when I’m around. Whether that person is family or not. I will always fight for you.”

“Bishop, I—”

“Unless you’re about to say I love you back to me, don’t. You won’t change my mind on this. You are my heart, Firefly. Let me take care of you.”

She stood there staring up at me for what felt like hours. Days. Fuck, maybe even years. Luckily, I had patience. I waited her out, giving her time to get her words together. To find her own truth inside herself. And when a bright, soft, real smile spread across her face, I knew I’d been right to wait.

“I love you too, you big oaf. Now give me a kiss so we can go back and toast with Alder and Shye.”

Good thing I had experience following orders. “Yes, ma’am.”

I kissed her, and I grabbed her ass and tugged her against my aching cock just because I could. Because I knew she’d like it. She moaned, opening her lips to me and sliding her tongue against mine. So needy, this girl. So perfect. So mine.

Forever this time.