Deviant (Boys of Winter #3) - Sheridan Anne Page 0,77

can’t handle this.

I go to grab another when Carver reaches out and grips my wrist. He gives it a hard tug and I instantly fall into his arms. He adjusts me on his lap and wraps his arm around me, holding me tight to his chest as his hand slides up to the back of my head.

My face buries into the curve of his neck and he holds me there like a weighted blanket, swallowing all my pain. “Just close your eyes and breathe,” he murmurs. “In and out. You’ll get past this. We’re going to figure out who the fuck did this and then we’re going to put him down like the bastard that he is.”

I don’t respond, just close my eyes and focus on breathing, and as I do, all I can smell is Carver. He wraps around me, he consumes me, and after a minute of silence, I find my control and relax into his hold, feeling right at home.

“All I know,” King mutters, “is whoever did this knew we were going to be gone. They knew we were planning on leaving her unprotected.”

“It has to be London,” Cruz says. “She was gone from the mountain home. What are the chances of her being gone the same day we planned on going up there only to come back to find our place trashed? It has to be her.”

I nod against Carver’s neck, refusing to open my eyes and pull away from him just yet. Right now, he’s the only thing keeping me calm, and though he can’t stand his mother, I doubt he really wants me trashing all the remaining vases in his home.

“You have a point,” Grayson says. “But it’s too easy. Any of the fuckers who live on this street could have seen us driving away first thing in the morning. It could have been any of them. We can’t rule them out just because London seems like the most likely culprit. I’ll never forgive myself if we went after her and left the door wide open for someone else to swoop in and take Ellie away from us. I won’t do it.”

Cruz lets out a deep sigh. “You’re right. Either way, whoever the fuck did this is not getting away with it. They’ve gone too far.”

“So, what do we do?” I mutter against Carver’s neck, my lips moving against his soft skin like a caress, though for the first time, being close like this is the furthest thing from my mind.

Carver’s fingers knot into my hair as his other hand trails up and down my back. “We regroup,” he tells me. “We find out who the fuck hacked my security system and move our asses back into your place. We don’t do anything until we’re certain that you’re safe.”

I nod, swallowing hard over the lump in my throat. “I’m sorry,” I whisper. “If it wasn’t for me, your home wouldn’t be destroyed and all this bullshit wouldn’t be coming down on you guys.”

“This isn’t my home,” Carver whispers. “It’s just a house that will be rebuilt, it’s just possessions that will come back to us. Home is where you are. Home is where the guys are. As long as the five of us are together, we’re okay.”

I hold back the tears. I hate it when Carver gets sentimental and says sweet shit like that. I can’t handle it. It messes with my heart and my head. If those words had come out of Cruz’s mouth, I’d be fine. I’m prepared for the sappy shit that comes from him. I’ve worked up to it and now embrace his sweet words, but Carver … it’s like being hit with a curve ball. It shocks me right down to my core.

I pull back and meet his stare. “You really mean that?”

Carver nods and I feel the weighted stares from the guys on us. “I do,” he says.

My brows furrow as I search his eyes. “But … in the car, you said …”

“I know what I said, Winter, and I stand by that. There is no deal between us. It’s time we move on from whatever … thing is between us, but you’re my family, and that will never change. Where you are, is home to me.”

I watch him for a moment, hating how sweet and yet so devastating his words are. Hell, I don’t even know how to respond to him, but if anything, they only make me want him more. I have to respect him though.