“The nurse is coming back over. They’re going to reconnect your IV.”

Hannah put her hands on her hips. “Call them and tell them to forget it—I don’t need an IV. I need to be mobile; I’m going back in to see Wes first thing in the morning.”

I sat on the bed and scooted over next to her so our shoulders were touching. “You’ve been through a lot, and you need to get better. You’re no good to Wesley if you’re not healing.”

Hannah rolled her eyes. “I’m fine.”

“Listen, I appreciate that you want to be there for him. I knew you would, and I think it’s awesome. But you have to take care of yourself. Promise me.”

“I promise.” Hannah picked at her T-shirt for a minute. “But Lauren?”

“What?”

“What if…what if he’s not okay when he wakes up? Or…what if he doesn’t wake up?” Her voice cracked.

I hugged her to me. “Then we’ll deal with it.”

“Okay,” she said, even as she wept against my chest. “Okay.”

* * *

Later, after my poor sister had finally gone to sleep, Gabe and I went to bed. Gabe propped himself up a little, the sheet falling away from his broad chest. I looked away and then closed my eyes so I could think straight. “It’s been a hell of a day.”

“I know.” He brushed the hair off my face and stroked my cheek. “I gotta tell you, I really wanted to go after Li Na myself. I was ready to fight her, and if I couldn’t do that, I at least wanted to take out more of her guards. If I couldn’t do that, I was looking forward to having all our international partners bail out and leave her in the dust. I would’ve enjoyed the hell out of that. But do you know what’s so much better?”

“Um, no?”

He traced his thumb along my jawline. “Watching you rip up that contract and telling Li Na to fuck off. That was awesome. That was hot, babe.”

“Thanks for the, er, compliment, but I’m still very upset about what you did. I thought I was going to lose you…” Even all these hours later, I shivered at how close he’d come to being killed.

“You couldn’t lose me if you tried.” He flashed his dimple.

“Don’t try to use your dimple on me right now. I’m still angry at you. About the…shooting.” I could barely get the word out. I shifted away, my wrath resurfacing. “It was terrible seeing you like that—I was so worried you were going to get killed. You don’t have to prove anything to me, you know.”

“I wasn’t trying to prove anything to you.”

“You don’t need to prove anything to your brothers either.”

He moved closer. “It didn’t have anything to do with them.”

“Then why? Why would you put yourself in harm’s way like that?”

The muscle in Gabe’s jaw jumped. “If things were different, I would say that the reason I did it was to prove something to myself. Because I wanted to know if I could be brave…if my father might’ve misjudged me. But I understand that my father didn’t think I was weak—he just wanted to protect me. A very special person showed me that.” He leaned down and kissed the top of my head. “So that’s not why I went out there.”

“I’m glad that’s settled. But I’d like to know the real reason you risked your life.”

“Because I love you. You’re my family now, babe. I wanted to save your sister more than anything…” He looked over and gave me a tentative smile. “And I got to the car first. Okay?”

I could only pretend to be mad at him after that—he did save Hannah. “It’s only okay because you’re not dead.”

“I appreciate that.” He kissed me, our tongues connecting lazily at first. I started to get excited, to get wet with need as my heart rate picked up, my breath coming faster. My hands roamed over his chest, tracing the planes of his muscles greedily as he stripped off my clothes.

I wanted to stop, but I couldn’t help myself. I wanted him, despite my exhaustion and my anger from earlier in the day. I always wanted him. My body reacted even as my mind told me to stop—that he should be punished for what he’d done, risking his life like that.

Still, as if they had a mind of their own, my hands ran down his back to his firm ass. I pulled him closer.

My body was such a traitor.

“I told you I’d enjoy having you thank me when you were naked.”

“I didn’t say thank you.”

His eyes flashed. “You will.”

“You really don’t ever stop, do you?”

“You’d get bored if I did, babe.”

Gabe nudged my legs apart with his knee and brushed his fingers along the inside of my thigh. I shivered in pleasure. His hand inched its way up to my soft folds, which he expertly parted. I moved eagerly against his hand, and he chuckled darkly. “You’re still angry—I can tell—but you’re also wet for me. I can also tell that.”

He circled my clit, and I felt a sharp need radiate from deep inside me. My body ached for him, for him to fill me the way only he could.

Gabe spread my legs farther apart and put his face between my thighs, sighing happily. “I can’t wait to get back in here. But I’m going to make you come like this first.” His tongue lashed at me, causing my body to instantly spasm in response.

I cried out in spite of myself, and he laughed between my legs, his breath hot on my sex.

He toyed with my clit, lapping at it until I dug my fingers into his hair. He stopped for a moment and blew on my swollen nub, making me shiver. And then he put his mouth over me again, slowly and expertly.

I panted as he nipped me with his teeth. The combination of sensations was too much, and also exactly enough—I screamed as he overwhelmed me with sensations, pleasure ripping through me. And then I came, hard.

He kissed me gently and fingered my swollen clit. “I think you need more. You don’t seem grateful enough.” He gently pulled up my shaking body and rolled me over onto all fours. “So now I’m going to make you come like this.”

I was woozy, breathing hard, still not recovered from the depth of my orgasm. But I still shivered in anticipation as he notched the top of his cock into me. He slid in an inch, and I cried out, my body quaking around him, wanting more.

Gabe filled me with his cock and started to thrust.

“Oh, fuck yeah!” I cried.

“That’s my girl. I’ll give you what you want, babe.” He circled my asshole with his thumb and then slid it in gently so that every part of me was filled with him. He pressed down as he thrust, increasing the pressure and sensation. The edges of my vision blurred as another orgasm built inside me.

Gabe’s thrusts grew more intense as he pounded the tension and frustration of the day into me. I took it greedily. His thumb slid in and out of my ass, fucking me, and I felt my body spasm and tremble, out of my control.

“Oh,” I said, my voice quaking as I started to come again. “Oh!”

Gabe’s hips thrust against me, and he cursed as he came in a hot torrent. I started to cry in joy and relief as my body crumpled around his, sucking his seed greedily out of him, overcome with pleasure, relief, and exhaustion.

All thought ceased. All anger ceased. There was nothing but me and Gabe, and for a brief, precious time, the rest of the world fell away.

“Babe?” he said later, when I’d thought he was asleep.

“Yes?”

“You’re welcome.”

And even though I could barely move and my brain was mush, I laughed.

* * *

GABE

“Are you sure you’re going to be okay without us?” I asked Hannah as I followed her into the laundry room. She’d accepted our offer to stay and had settled in at the house. She’d been busy visiting Wes for hours every day, and she seemed to be getting back to normal—doing her laundry, catching up on email and texts from her friends and coworkers, stocking the refrigerator with sushi and foul-smelling green drinks from Whole Foods. Packages were being delivered every day from her online shopping efforts; she’d bought Wesley at least ten new pairs of very stylish pajamas.

“Yes, I told you. Go and have fun. Ellis and I will be with Wesley. Everything will be fine,” she insisted. “Dr. Kim said he wants to run some more tests before they try to wake him up, so there’s still nothing new with his condition. It’s just a waiting game. Trust me, I can hold down the fort around here.”

“You aren’t afraid to be alone?”

She unleashed an eye roll on me. “I’m hardly alone—Levi has ten guys watching me.”

“Well, then, good.” I shrugged.

Hannah watched me from where she was standing, neatly folding her clothes. “Why are you still standing there?”

“No reason.”

Her eyes sparkled. “Something’s going on.”

I shrugged. “Maybe.”

“Is Lauren pregnant?” she shrieked.

“Shh—no.”

Hannah jumped up and down. “Then what is it? Tell me.”

“I wanted to ask your permission for something—”

Hannah launched herself at me, enveloping me in a hug. “You have it. And I knew it—I knew it!”

I hugged her back. “Please, don’t say anything.”

“Oh, I won’t.” She released me and started pacing, gleefully rubbing her hands together, a manic gleam in her eye. “We’ll have to book the Ritz—no, that’s too obvious—The Palisades. That’ll be perfect! And I always wanted to see Lauren in a lace gown. I saw the perfect one in Ralph Lauren’s bridal collection last spring…strapless…she’ll have a fit, but tough luck. We’ll have to have vegetarian-friendly catering, of course, but that shouldn’t be a problem…”

“Hannah?”

She didn’t seem to hear me—she just kept pacing and talking to herself. I backed out of the room, wondering if Lauren would ever forgive me for unleashing her sister, the ultimate event planner, on her impending nuptials.

That she didn’t even know about.

And that she hasn’t even said yes to, I reminded myself.

I swallowed over a sudden lump in my throat, then went to collect Lauren and my brothers to head back home to Boston.