I asked.
“It’s not. But he’s a victim, and he’s looking to place blame,” Bryce explained.
“Then he’s forgetting that I saved his sorry ass,” Joe said.
Indeed, Joe had rescued Colin from Tom Simpson. Colin had been near death, and probably would have died but for Joe.
“We’re all sorry for what he went through at my father’s hands,” Bryce said. “He must know that.”
“Sure, objectively,” Talon said.
“Objectively?”
“Let’s just say I get where he’s coming from.” Talon sighed.
Of course Talon understood. He was in a precarious position. Colin had hurt Jade, so he wanted to hate him. Yet he was also a kindred spirit to Colin in a way, as they’d both been brutalized at the hands of Tom Simpson.
“I’ll go talk to Jade,” I said.
“I’ll go with you.” Talon stood.
“And I guess I’ll call the elder Morse and set up a meeting,” Bryce said.
“I’ll be going with you,” Joe said.
“He may not be willing to meet with you,” Bryce said.
“That’s why we’re not going to tell him.” Joe smiled. “But I don’t want you going alone.”
“I can take care of myself, Joe.”
“You think that’s what this is about? You’ve held your own against me for thirty-plus years.”
“Then why?”
“Because he’ll fuck with you, Bryce. He’ll use your father against you. I’m not going to let that happen. Plus, he and I have history to settle.”
I excused myself, Talon following me, to speak to Jade.
She was in her bedroom, dressed and looking better than she had in a while, so that was good news. Talon entered and I followed.
“Hey, blue eyes.”
Her face lit up. “Hey, yourself.”
“Marj and I need to talk to you.”
“Is everything okay?”
“Yeah, fine. But… Crap. You tell her. I’m still not sure I like this idea.”
I gave Jade the lowdown on what Ted had been saying and about my visit with Colin at the smoothie shop. “If you talk to him, maybe you can figure out what’s going on.”
“Sure. I’ll be glad to do my part,” she said.
“And I’ll be with you,” Talon said.
“Tal,” I said. “He may not be completely truthful if you’re there glaring at him.”
“He’s got to know that anything he tells me will go straight back to my husband,” Jade said.
“Good point,” I said, “though he might be more willing to talk if you’re alone.”
“I’m…not sure I want to be alone with him.”
“What if I’m with you? He’ll see me as much less of a threat than Talon. He and I were friends once.”
“No,” Talon said flatly. “I’m there, or this isn’t happening.”
I huffed. “Tal, stop being all Alpha for one damn minute and think about what’s best for the situation as a whole.”
“My concern is what’s best for my wife and child.”
“I get that,” I said.
Then, from Jade, “Marj is right, Talon. He’ll perceive you as a threat.”
“I am a threat.”
“Point made.” Jade smiled. “I can handle Colin. I was in a relationship with him for seven years. I know what makes him tick.”
“And I’ll be there to have her back,” I said.
“I’ll be fine,” Jade said. “Colin has no power over me. He hasn’t since I met you.”
“I hate that you were with him for so much longer than we’ve even known each other.”
“So? My time with you means a thousand times more than the time with him. And in a way, he led me to you. We owe him, really.”
Talon scoffed. “I’ll give you some of that. If he hadn’t been a no-show for your nuptials, we wouldn’t have met. But we owe him squat.”
“We owe him everything,” Jade said, her eyes soft. “I couldn’t imagine my life without you. You’re the love of my life, Tal. He never was.”
I eased toward the door. This was getting mushy. Jade had already confided in me that she and Talon wouldn’t be able to make love for at least a month after the bleeding stopped, but still… “If you’ll excuse me. Let me know when you want me to set up the meeting with Colin, Jade.”
I crossed the sitting area and closed the door behind me.
And walked straight into the hard chest of Bryce Simpson.
Chapter Twenty–Eight
Bryce
My arms went around Marjorie automatically and I hugged her.
I pulled back quickly. “Sorry,” I mumbled.
“No worries. Where were you going?”
“Just to tell Talon goodbye and see how Jade is doing.”
“You weren’t going to say goodbye to me?” she asked.
“Well…”
“You knew I was in there with them, right?”
“Yeah. I mean… Fuck.” I warmed with embarrassment. This was ridiculous. I was thirty-eight, not sixteen.
She moved out of my way, gesturing toward Talon’s