Page 83 of Brazen Obsession

“We have two days to do that.”

Wyatt

Sara fell asleep in my lap, so when Finn texted, I told him I was staying put for the time being.

Tom and I chat like his sister isn’t curled up on my lap. Like old times, until he starts to fade too. I’m glad I came.

The door opens slowly. With the guard outside it, I’m not worried it’s someone intending harm. Natasha comes in and heads to sit on the bed next to Tom, taking his hand. Dante puts his hand on my shoulder and his other hand runs over Sara’s hair.

“How’s it going?” Dante asks softly.

“Tom’s good.” I breathe in and Sara clings to me a little tighter. “We’re good.” I lift my gaze to Dante’s. “It’ll take you and Finn time to digest, but Sara and I are good with Tom.”

Dante nods. “He protected Sara when she was at risk. That’s what matters.”

“I did take a bullet for her.” Tom’s eyes are open and he grins. “I guess that makes me her hero again.”

“She wouldn’t have been shot at if it weren’t for you,” I point out.

He sighs. “Yeah. I’m just glad it wasn’t one of you out there.”

“They might have only been looking for a redhead.” Dante leans against the wall and crosses his arms over his chest.

Natasha runs her hand through Tom’s messed-up hair and he turns his gaze to her with a smile. He captures her hand and kisses it.

“We’ve got information to go over.” Dante straightens. “We need to head back to the house. It’s getting late and we need all the time we can spare to figure this out.”

“To figure what out?” a new male voice says.

We all turn toward the door where Roger stands with his arms crossed. His eyes don’t miss anything.

“Bitsy’s with Caitlyn in the bathroom, so you have—” He glances at his watch and continues, “ten minutes to explain everything before she goes into full mama bear mode.”

Sara stirs on my lap, but I don’t try to wake her. She’ll be awake soon enough. Roger takes in how all of us are positioned.

Roger lifts an eyebrow and says, “Nine and a half minutes. Out with it, boys.”

Chapter 28

Internal Audit

Sara

“Nine minutes.” Roger’s voice startles me awake.

“It might take longer than that,” Dante replies.

I open my eyes to find Roger standing just inside the door of Tom’s hospital room. My heart jumps in my chest. Mom! I straighten to see if my mother is here. When all I see is Roger, I relax back into Wyatt.

Roger is just as imposing today as he was when Mom first introduced him to me and Tom. He stays fit. His brown hair shaved in a military cut and his blue eyes piercing. But he’s also safety and comfort.

My chest aches.

I get up and walk into his arms, resting my head against his chest. His arms come around me, solid. As I release my breath, all the worry flows out of me because Roger and Mom are here. I don’t have to be strong anymore. A little shudder goes through me.

The guys have protected me and given me their strength, but Roger is different. He’s my father. One of his hands cups the back of my head.

“Why was Tom shot?” Roger’s voice is low and rumbles through his chest.