“I’m aware. Believe me, I’m aware.”
“No, Brie. She’s different in ways that have nothing to do with your outer appearance.” Blinking against tears, she turned to look into his green eyes. “There are many reasons we didn’t bring it up. It represented a couple of hours of their lives and I had to get involved but not in the capacity you suspect. I ask you to trust me.”
“Gabriella. I’m sorry.”
“Do you know why you’re apologizing, Harper?”
“In this, there’s no doubt.” He reached out to take her other hand. “I didn’t seek her out but responded to her focused, aggressive advances. I knew your parents but you and your sister weren’t familiar to me because of our age differences. When I discovered later, I found myself in a problematic situation.”
Frowning, she turned to look into silver eyes. “I don’t understand.”
“You love your sister. You’re very close.” She nodded. “Let’s keep it that way. Please don’t ask me anymore questions, Gabriella. I won’t lie to you but…I swear on my life that nothing good will come of the knowledge.”
Looking at Elijah, he held her gaze for almost a minute. “What is she…wait.” She took several deep breaths. “Is she safe?”
“For the most part.”
“Is there any way I can help her?”
Closing his eyes, his hand tightened around hers. “Brie…let me give that question some thought before I answer it. I don’t want to lie but I can’t risk your safety either.”
“Elijah, if you find yourself in a position to keep her from being hurt, will you do that?”
“Yes.”
Pulling her hands from theirs, she rubbed her temples. “Is there anything else that’s going to fall out of the closet when we swing the door open?”
They laughed hesitantly. “Not that I can think of at the moment.”
Exhaling roughly, she replied, “That was a big one. Talk about awkward.”
Leaning in her direction, Elijah started to respond when the room quieted. Hudson and Natalia walked up on stage.
“We’d like to thank all of you for joining us. Hudson insisted I have a real wedding. I’d have happily married him at the courthouse.” Hudson wrapped his arm around Natalia’s waist and she leaned against him. “Special thanks to my circle of female friends for making this possible. I don’t get up early enough to taste cake or meet with wedding planners. Without you, this wouldn’t have happened.”
The guests laughed and she grinned. “Harper, your words moved me. It’s an honor to have you here after so many years of history. Hudson and I have always respected you, admired you, liked you…though he’s hidden it rather well.” There was another round of laughter and Harper reached out to hold Brie’s hand. “Thank you. Truly.”
Hudson kissed the top of her head and Natalia’s eyes closed for a moment. “For the majority of my life, my best friend has been a man who always thinks I look lovely and never has a single criticism about my tendency to be late for positively everything. Feeling comfortable in a group of intelligent and funny women for the first time is something for which I’ll always be grateful. I’m the oldest but they make me feel young when I’m around them.”
Tilting her chin up with the side of his hand, he murmured at her ear. Clearing her throat, Natalia inhaled deeply. “Hudson is a fixture in my universe and has been since I was ten years old. Sometimes, you can be so close to something that you miss the obvious.”
Across the short distance, she met Brie’s eyes. “It took a particular woman to show me how deep my love went for the only man who’s ever mattered to me. Gabriella hadn’t known us long before she started working her particular brand of magic. Love, given selflessly, can heal wounds you didn’t know you had, open your eyes to someone you’d been blind to, and change your life.”
Brie struggled to maintain her composure.
To the room, Hudson announced, “We have a plane to catch and I’m going to celebrate with the woman who’s put up with my bullshit for three damn decades. Always beautiful, never late, and addresses any situation with the perfect dose of sarcasm.” He hugged her hard and whispered at her ear for a long moment.
“Harper. Outstanding to have you here. I admit you’ve made me work to keep up over the years. Knowing you were out there made me hungry and kept me focused. You have one of the most brilliant business minds in the world and bitch about my charity calls but always give until it hurts. I’m glad to know you, proud to consider you a friend.”
Then Hudson Winters looked into Brie’s eyes and promptly destroyed any possibility of composure.
“I was an asshole the first time I met Gabriella. Two weeks later, she gently placed the first block in a friendship that remains difficult to define.”
Elijah gave her a handkerchief and Brie wiped her eyes with shaking hands. His palm on her back, Harper’s hand holding hers tightly, she inhaled.
“Had this fantastic woman not entered our lives, Natalia and I would likely have gone on as we had for years. There’s a chance we never would have embraced the utter simplicity of what we have. That’s a fact. Brie brings chaos in her wake and reflex might be to fight it.”
He winked. “I found it was best to go with it. She once told us she’d always have our back. She said she wasn’t very imposing but she offered a soft place to land. The words stayed with us and we’d like to remind our best friend that if you ever need a place to land, a moment to breathe, you always have a home. It’s the home you encouraged us to create together.” Natalia lifted her face and the couple shared a smile. “Thank you for the gifts you brought into our lives and we love you.”
They stepped off the stage and walked to Brie’s table. They hugged her and wiped her tears. “Darling, we’ll let your men comfort you. Call us if you need any little thing and we’ll see you in a few weeks.”
“Gabriella. Take until you’re drunk with it. No one deserves it more and you’re fucking due.” Hudson stroked his knuckles over her cheek. “Text me when you arrive.”
All she could do was nod and they kissed her with smiles. Then her best friends shook the hands of the men beside her and made their way to the exit.
It wasn’t until they’d disappeared from sight that Brie asked in confusion, “Wait. Text when I get where?”
Elijah and Harper stood. Silver eyes stared into hers. “We leave for Washington the moment you say your goodbyes, Gabriella.”
She blinked, speechless.
Bending, Elijah murmured, “Say goodbye quickly, Brie.”
* * *
Forty-five minutes later, after several confused questions and shocked reactions to where she was going, Brie allowed Elijah and Harper to lead her from the venue.
Her mind spun as she boarded a private plane. When she was seated, she said, “I…I didn’t pack.”
“We have everything you need at the estate,” Harper replied.
Swallowing hard, she stared out the window as the plane started to move. “I haven’t been back to Washington in almost two years.”
Elijah wrapped his hand around hers. “You’re stronger than when you left, Brie.” She nodded absently.
When they were in the air, the blonde unbuckled her and lifted her in his arms. “It’s after midnight and the flight will take about six hours. You need to sleep.”
“I don’t…” Her words trailed off as they entered a small bedroom at the rear of the plane.
Setting her on her feet, he smiled.
From a drawer, he removed a soft t-shirt and sleep pants with fluffy sheep on them. Stripping her gown over her head, he helped her dress and took down her hair.
“You’re adorable.” He tucked her in and sat beside her. “You need rest. You’ve had a lot of emotional input today.”
Brie frowned. “What about you guys? You’re going to leave me in here alone?” His eyes widened. “I’ve never been on a plane like this. I have had a lot of emotional input. You can both sleep with me. I’m not the only on
e who needs rest.”
When he stared at her in confusion, she sat up and called, “Harper!” The dark man appeared in the door with a frown. “Will you both lay down with me?”
“I don’t…what?” His frown deepened.
“We have a long flight. I don’t want to be back here alone. You need rest, too.”
“I don’t sleep when I fly,” he said stiltedly.
She threw back the covers and climbed out of bed to stand in front of him. “Okay.”
“Okay…what?”
“I’ll stay up with both of you.” She put her hand in his and smiled when he squeezed it. Glancing back, she held out her other hand for Elijah. “Come on.”
He stood up and stared down at her. “Brie.”
“Don’t make me,” she whispered. “I can sleep where you guys are.” Her toes curled into the carpet. “Please?”
“Are you afraid of flying?” After a brief hesitation, she nodded. “Did you just lie?” She nodded again with a smile.
“You don’t have to sleep, Elijah.”
Green eyes held hers, considering. “Tell me. Tell me what you need. I don’t always know, Brie.”
“I-I’m really happy for my friends. Happier than I’ve ever been in my life actually.”
“You feel off balance?” She shrugged her shoulder. “Brie, are you jealous?”
There was no way to stop the tears. “Not of one or the other. Just the overall happiness and their confidence in it. It sounds bad but it isn’t…I don’t know.” She waved her hand and released Harper. “I’m ridiculous. Go work and stuff. I’m going to crash for a little while. I’m just overtired.”
She climbed back in the bed and pulled up the blankets. Curling on her side, she closed her eyes and tried to talk her brain into calming the fuck down.
Her eyes flew open as she was lifted into the center and the men laid down along her sides.
Harper stared at the ceiling. “This is my side.”
“Okay,” she murmured softly.
“I’ve never slept with a woman.”
“Ever? How did…never mind.” She reached out and took one of his hands as Elijah curled against her back. Harper had always returned to his own bed on the nights she stayed with them. Holding it to her chest, she smiled at him. “I won’t bother you. I don’t move much.”
“Sleep, Brie,” Elijah said at her ear. He planted a kiss on her neck and nuzzled her hair. “I’ll wake you up an hour before we land.”
“Okay. Thank you.”
Closing her eyes, her brain gently quieted. She didn’t realize how quickly she fell asleep.
* * *
A soft tap on the door woke Elijah first.
Brie registered that she was sleeping on Harper’s shoulder and he had his arm around her back and curled at her waist. Elijah’s hand around her crossed it.
Quickly rising, he spoke at the door. Glancing up, she met Harper’s eyes.
“I slept.” She nodded. “You’re very soft and warm.”
“Do I snore?” He shook his head. “Excellent. I think we all overslept. Even Elijah.”
“That’s never happened.”
“It’s my fault. I forget you have important things going on and I shouldn’t distract the two of you. I’m sorry.”
Elijah sat on the bed. “I’m training a team.” Glancing over her shoulder, she waited for him to continue. “To cover Harper when we’re with you. I have one that backs me up but I’ve always been present.”
“Until you met me. I sidetrack you and that’s dangerous.”
“Things with you are different, Brie. We have to make changes before we’re forced to make them on the fly.”
Carefully, she unwrapped her body from Harper’s and sat up. Raking her hair out of her face, she stared at an aerial photo of the Delkin estate affixed to the opposite wall.
“I don’t fit, do I? The life you both lead, there isn’t room in it for someone like me. I’m t-time consuming.”
“Brie…”
“Don’t lie to me, Elijah. Not on purpose.” She inhaled carefully. “It’s okay. I’ll be more conscious of it. I’d never forgive myself if I put either of you in danger.”
Swallowing past the lump in her throat, she plastered a smile on her face. “We’re in Washington. I have strange feelings about it. I’ll get dressed.” Climbing to the end of the bed, she stood and went into the bathroom. “Just going to take care of some necessities.”
Closing the door, she experienced a moment of panic.
Then she reminded herself that she would take everything she could in the time she had with them and be grateful for it.
By the time she stepped from the tiny space, she felt stronger.
There were clothes on the bed for her. Soft leggings, flats, and a pretty top sat beside a gorgeous bra and panty set.
As she dressed in the underthings, Elijah opened the door and paused to take her in. Harper leaned in the door behind him.
“Thank you for the outfit.” Smiling, she finished getting dressed. As the top fell over her, she quipped, “No way in hell you haven’t seen plenty of women put their clothes back on.”
“You’re very strong, Brie.”
She stepped into the flats. “I work at resiliency. It’s a good skill to have being me.”
Looking around, she quickly made the bed and gathered her things. She was glad she always had her messenger bag. Everything she’d worn the night before fit in it. She removed a clip and pulled her curls away from her face.
After folding the clothes she’d worn to sleep in, she set them back in the drawer Elijah took them from and turned to them with a smile.
“Okay! Done. Lead on, gentlemen.”
Both of them stared at her for a long time and then stepped forward. Their palms cupped opposite sides of her neck, their wrists crossed, and they took turns kissing her.
She was distantly grateful for the mouthwash she’d found in the bathroom.
“Good morning, Gabriella. Welcome back to Washington. It’s good to have you with us.” Harper rubbed his thumb on the skin behind her ear. “I don’t know how to talk to you.”
Wrapping her fingers around his neck, she told him, “You’re doing great. Good morning, Harper.”
Elijah waited when they pulled apart. “You fit, you aren’t time consuming. We’ll adjust and make it work.” She nodded with a bright smile and he tightened his fingers. “Trust me, Brie.”
“I do.” After another kiss that shook her foundation, she added, “I’m committed and I love you, both of you. I’ve gone too far to turn back.”
“Let’s acclimate you back to your stomping grounds.” Harper gave her a smile and added, “You’re very pretty.”
Surprised, she managed, “Thanks.”
Then her men, for as long as she was allowed to keep them, led her off the plane and she inhaled the Pacific Northwest for the first time in a long time.
It was terrifying.
Chapter Twenty-Eight
The trip from the airport was surreal for Brie. She watched familiar scenery pass and marveled at changes that had happened over the two years she’d been gone.
“Are you happy to be home?” The question from Harper pulled her from introspection.
“Conflicted. Despite the bad memories, I have good ones as well.” Shaking her head, she stared at the deep green of trees that were different here than anywhere else in the country. “When you leave…”
“What do you mean?”
She met his gray eyes. “I’m aware that neither of you take time off. In a day or two, a bit more if I’m very lucky, you’ll have to leave. I’ll check in at the winery. Spend some time with my family. See what still fits.”
Returning her gaze to the window, she murmured, “I feel more at home in New York now. I’m ashamed of the weak person I was here. I can’t wait for the awkward questions I’ll get considering why I left in the first place.”
“Brie.” Inhaling, she met Elijah’s gaze. “It’l
l be okay.”
She nodded but didn’t reply. After another few miles, Harper told her, “There’s a gala at the estate tomorrow.”
The very idea…
“I can’t attend and you know that, Harper.”
“Why not?”
Sighing, she rubbed her temple. “I’ve lived here all my life as have you. My family owns whatever your family doesn’t in a solid twenty square miles.”
Calming her thoughts, she sat up straight. “You are Harper Delkin, a name more familiar here than anywhere else. I’m sweet and chubby Gabriella Hernandez, the awkward artist and strangely business savvy youngest daughter of my parents. They once mentioned your name to me as an eligible male they approved of since I had no clue how to pick men for myself.”
“Shit. I’m sorry, Gabriella.”
“No reason to be.” She folded her hands in her lap. “The suggestion was preposterous then and the fact that you’ll be fucking me makes it no less preposterous now. Let’s avoid intrusive questions neither of us want or need.”
“Do you want to leave, Brie?”
Watching as they turned on the long drive into the Delkin estate, she replied, “No. I need to know I can survive being here. I can’t let my past haunt me.”
Elijah lifted her from the seat and settled her in his lap. “Look at me. Look at me, Brie.” She raised her eyes. “You’re hurting and I hate it. Tell me what to do.”
“I’m sorry. I need to adjust. There’ve been so many changes, new information, a lot of emotional upheaval.”
They pulled to a stop and a team of men waited outside to brief Elijah. “Brie…”
“I need somewhere I can decompress. Do what you always do. I’ll be okay. I just need…I need to be still.”
“Brief the men, Elijah. Gabriella can come with me.” She started to object. “I insist.”
Stepping to the shell drive, Harper took her hand and likely surprised himself as much as her. They left Elijah behind and he walked rapidly through the house, nodding at staff who greeted him.
Pausing at double doors, he stated, “This is my office. Elijah’s is next door. So you can find us.”
Radiance Page 22