The Quantum team gathers in Kristian’s living room, preparing to go to war on his behalf. Emmett Burke, Quantum’s chief counsel, is on the phone with the LAPD, negotiating what details of Kristian’s story will be released to the media and what will be kept confidential. Liza, the Quantum publicist, works two other phones, fielding the inquiries that have come in since the LAPD announced an arrest in the decades-old cold case murder of Kristian Bowen’s mother.

And downstairs, Gordon keeps the paparazzi away from the celebrities he’s paid to protect. Natalie picked up my kids at camp and delivered them to Cece, who’s watching them at my house.

Everyone is doing what they can to contain the damage, while I do what little I can to comfort Kristian.

He sits beside me on the sofa. We’re surrounded by his Quantum partners and their close friends, all of whom came running when they heard we’d found him.

I’ve never seen this group quieter than they are now. No one knows what to say, so they say nothing.

Emmett and Liza end their calls and join us in the sitting area.

Kristian reaches for my hand. “My earliest memory is being alone in the dark.”

No one moves or seems to breathe as we wait to hear what else he will say.

“My mother would leave me, sometimes for an entire day or two. I don’t know for how long. I was too young to understand time, but the sun would come and go, and I’d be left in the dark. I wasn’t afraid of the dark, though. I could hide in the dark. The dark was my friend. She would bring people home, always men. They would go in her room. I wasn’t allowed in there. I remember being hungry and dirty. I remember her face and her brown hair and the smell of cigarette smoke. I would hide in the closet with my blanket until the strangers left.”

Next to me, Marlowe is rigid. I slowly let my free hand wander in her direction, and she grasps it, holding on tightly. Across from us, Natalie holds Flynn’s hand while Ellie and Addie do the same for Jasper and Hayden. His Quantum partners are his family. This is hard for them to hear.

“One night, the stranger didn’t leave. He dragged my mother out of the bedroom by her hair. She was crying and pleading with him. I vividly remember the sound of her begging him, but I don’t recall exactly what she said. He knocked her down onto the floor and got on top of her. I didn’t know then what was happening. That took until I was about twelve, the first time a woman did to me what he did to her. I understood then that my mother hadn’t wanted it, because she was crying and screaming, and then she didn’t move anymore.”

A soft sob comes from Marlowe.

Jasper, whose expression is tight with tension, slides an arm around her while keeping his other arm around Ellie.

“When he left her, I saw his face. I was so sure he saw me because I felt like he looked right at me. But he kept going out the door. I went to her and tried to wake her up. I shook her and talked to her, but she never moved.”

I can’t bear this. Even though I’ve heard the story before, hearing him tell it to the others is somehow harder than hearing it the first time when it was just us. It doesn’t come naturally to him to share his private agony, even with the people who love him. I wish there was something I could do to make it easier on him, but there isn’t anything any of us can do but listen. So that’s what I do. I listen, and I ache.

“I was alone with her body for four days before one of the neighbors called the cops because of the smell and the child crying.”

Hayden gets up and walks over to the window, his shoulders rigid, his head bent.

Addie wipes away tears as she follows him, putting her arms around him.

“I spent a week in the hospital because I was dehydrated and had been bitten by the rats that lived with us.”

“Dear God,” Emmett says under his breath.

Next to him, Leah lets the tears slide down her cheeks as she stares blankly at the far wall.

“After that came a progression of foster homes, each worse than the one before. At ten, I landed in one I actually liked. The people were nice to me, and their son was the first real friend I ever had. But then their older son came home from college and they needed my room for him, so I was relocated. Again. I lasted a week in the new place before I decided the streets would be better than living with a mean son of a bitch who got his kicks from beating on defenseless kids. I lived on the streets for the next eight years, hustling for money and food and shelter wherever I could. I saw things… I did things…”

He shakes his head, regret pouring off him in waves. “I met Max Godfrey when he was filming a scene in Compton. The greatest stroke of luck of my life—until recently,” he says, glancing at me, “was meeting Max. I’ll never forget that day. I’d heard about the movie being shot in the neighborhood, and I wanted to see what it was like, so I went there. He caught me stealing food from the craft services table and took me into his trailer, set me up with a proper meal and grilled me about my goals in life.”

Flynn grunts out a laugh. “Of course he did.”

To him, Kristian says, “Neither of us have ever told you about that day when he offered a hard-luck street kid a job in his company and set me up with an apartment. Then he introduced me to his son, who became one of my closest friends, and the rest, as they say, is history.”

“He always says he saw something special in you from the first day he met you,” Flynn says. Like everyone else, his eyes are bright with tears after hearing Kristian’s story.

“He saved my life. Without him, I would’ve ended up dead or in jail. I owe him everything.” After a long pause, he says, “I lied to you guys when we formed our partnership. I never graduated from high school. I barely have a fifth-grade education.”

Hayden whirls around, his expression ferocious. “Who the fuck cares about that?” Gesturing to the assembled group, he says, “None of this works without you. I don’t give a shit if you fucking flunked kindergarten. You’re the heart and soul of Quantum.”

“Agreed,” Flynn says. “We’re nowhere without you.”

Kristian bows his head, overwhelmed by the outpouring.

“Liza, what’s it going to take to protect him?” Flynn asks.

“We’ll have to go to war on the media,” she says bluntly.

“Then let’s go to war.”

---

Kristian is completely drained after sharing the story with his partners and the others. I lead him upstairs to lie down while his partners and friends wage war on his behalf. Emmett is working with the district attorney’s office to try to get Kristian treated as a victim, which would keep some of the more salacious details out of the news. Emmett’s argument is that because Kristian was a child when my mother was murdered, he should be afforded the same protections any child victim of violent crime would be granted.

But because he’s a public figure, it’s a stretch to hope that Emmett will succeed, but he’s trying nonetheless. 

“I can’t believe what they’re doing for me,” he says.

“They love you.”

He nods. “It means the world to me that you’re here, too.” 

“Where else would I be with this happening to you?”

In his bed, I cuddle up to him, my arm around his waist, my leg tucked between his. 

“This must be what people mean when they refer to someone as their other half.”

I smile up at him, and see the look of wonder in his expression. “What do you think of having another half?”

“I think I love it.” He caresses my face and then kisses me. “What about the kids?”

“Cece said she can spend the night. She told the kids you aren’t feeling well, and I’m taking care of you. They said they hope you feel better.”

“We can go to your place if you want to be with them.”

“We’re fine right here. Try to relax and get some rest.”

“I’m too wired to rest.”

“What would you rather do?”

He tilts my chin up to receive his kiss. “This. I’d rather do this.”

“I’m always happy to do that.”

But rather than kiss me, he leans his forehead against mine and releases a deep, shuddering breath. “Thank you.”

“For what?”

“Everything. I never could’ve told the others without your encouragement, without you sitting next to me, holding my hand, offering your support. If this had happened before I had you, I’d be losing my mind without you here to tell me it’s going to be all right.”

“No, you wouldn’t have. You would’ve done what you always did before. You would’ve survived.”

“But this is so much better,” he says, kissing me. “So, so much better.” As he kisses me, he removes my dress, only pulling away from the kiss to lift it over my head. He continues to kiss me while removing my bra, breaking the kiss again to slide the panties down my legs. His hungry gaze travels over my body, making me feel beautiful and desired—two things I used to wonder if I’d ever feel again after my illness.

I reach for him, help him out of his shirt and tug at the button to his pants.

When he’s naked, he settles on top of me, gazing down at my face and holding my hands over my head. “I love you so much. I’ve never had anyone who belonged to me the way you do.”

“I’ve never had that either. Not like this.”

His lips curve into a small smile, but in his eyes, I still see the wounded little boy. I’m determined to ensure that little boy is never hurt again.

“Make love to me, Kristian.”

“There’s nothing I’d rather do.”

He drives me wild with his lips and teeth, kissing every part of me and refusing to allow me to come until I’m nothing but writhing, desperate need. Then he enters me, triggering the release that’s been building from the first kiss.

“Very naughty,” he whispers in my ear. “Subs who come without permission get their asses paddled.”

“Yes, please.”

His eyes go dark, and his cock gets even harder inside me. “You want me to paddle you?”

“I told you I want everything with you.”

Gripping my shoulders, he thrusts into me several times before pulling out abruptly, leaving me gasping from the sudden loss. “On your knees.”

Everything about him is different, including the tone of his voice. Gone is the wounded little boy. In his place is the commanding Dom who thrives on control. “Hurry up.”

Adrenaline speeds through me as I move into the requested position, anticipation and anxiety spiking into a hot throb of need between my legs. This is what Kristian meant by more. He hasn’t even touched me yet, and I’m about to explode. I hear rustling in another part of the room and start to glance over my shoulder to see what he’s doing.

“Head down.”

That commanding tone makes me shiver. I drop my forehead to my hands and wait. And wait some more. He doesn’t make a sound. I have no idea where he is or what he’s doing.

Until the paddle connects with my ass in a blaze of heat and pain that quickly turns to desire. I immediately want more.

He gives it to me. The paddle rains down on my ass, more times than I can count.

I love it. I want more. “Don’t stop.”

“Fuck, Aileen,” he says through gritted teeth, but he doesn’t stop.

The next thing I know, I’m in his arms, looking up at him. I blink him into focus. Why does he look so concerned?

“Thank Christ,” he mutters. “You totally punched out on me.” He caresses my face and runs his hand down my arm. “Are you okay?”

I feel… divine. I can’t recall the last time I was so relaxed or free of worry. It’s like I’m floating on the softest cloud in a sea of absolute contentment.

He gives me a little shake. “Aileen.”

“I’m fine. Better than fine.”

“You are? Really?”

Nodding, I grasp his hand and link our fingers. “I loved it.”

“You came so hard.”

“I did?”

“You don’t remember?”

“Not really. It’s like I was somewhere else or something. I can’t explain it.” As I regain my senses, I realize my ass and pussy are tingling.

“It’s subspace. That’s what happens when the endorphins kick in.”

“I feel so relaxed.”

“I’m glad one of us is relaxed. You kind of scared me with the way you zoned out.”

“I’m sorry you were scared.”

“I don’t know if I can do this stuff with you. I love you so damned much. The thought of hurting you makes me sick.”

“You didn’t hurt me, and I knew how to stop it. Did you hear me say I loved it?”

“Yeah, but—”

I kiss him. “No buts. I loved it. I want more.”

He shakes his head in disbelief. “I’m still trying to figure out how I got lucky enough to find you.”

“We were both lucky to find each other. Everything is going to be better now.”

Tightening his hold on me, he says, “You promise?”

“I promise.”