The rejection in her posture—the way she hunched her shoulders protectively, head down, arms wrapped tightly around her middle—ripped at his heart. The sweltering resentment bubbling in his veins evaporated instantly. He’d turned her away, and now she tried to hide in her own skin and shield herself from the pain.

  Bloody fucking hell. Liam felt as if someone had hit him in the chest with a battering ram.

  He’d done this to her. And why? Where had all this ugly envy come from? It wasn’t as if Raine cheated on him with Hammer. Yet he wallowed in betrayal, like the night he’d collared her…and she’d left him to spend it in Hammer’s bed. The only difference was that now Hammer intended to screw Raine in front of him instead of behind his back.

  He knew what sharing a sub meant, and Raine was the epitome of everything he’d ever wanted. So why had he needed to exercise all his self-control not to beat Hammer to a pulp and rail at her? Had he really thought they didn’t give a shit about him? Christ, he had enough to deal with. He didn’t need to add more torment to the list, especially self-inflicted.

  All he wanted in that moment was to hug Raine close, feel the warmth and comfort of her soft and sure in his arms. With his pride so wounded, he didn’t know how reach out to her. And after hurting her, did he even deserve to?

  Hammer cleared his throat. Liam met his friend’s gaze. Understanding flickered before Macen arched his brows and nodded toward her. The message was clear: Fix the damage he’d done to their girl’s fragile heart.

  Seeing her so completely withdrawn gutted him. He couldn’t indulge in this pity party. He wasn’t the only one with feelings, troubles, and worries. As her Dom, his job was to give Raine what she needed. Right now, that was reassurance. Liam loved her too much to let her believe he didn’t want her.

  Groaning, he gathered Raine into his arms. She held herself stiffly as he cradled her against his chest. Then she blinked up at him with an ache that nearly destroyed him.

  “I’m sorry for being an ass, love,” he murmured.

  With a cry, she threw herself against him, wrapping her arms around his neck. She clung. Little sobs shook her.

  Combing his fingers through her hair, Liam held her tighter, rubbing her back and kissing her face. “I’m so sorry. Can you forgive me?”

  Raine sniffled and nodded, gripping him as if she feared he would disappear—or leave her. Remorse stabbed him again.

  Beck weaved the SUV through the congested Southern California traffic as Raine drifted off in his arms. Without her cries, the car went completely silent. Liam felt waves of disapproval coming from every direction. He closed his eyes, knowing he’d earned it. What the devil had gotten into him?

  When Shadows finally came into view, the sight filled him with dread. He didn’t want to let Raine go. He didn’t want to face his ex-wife.

  He didn’t have a choice.

  Beck killed the engine. “Welcome home.”

  Chapter Three

  Let the games begin.

  Hammer glanced down at Raine. Thankfully, she still lay sleeping peacefully in Liam’s arms. He really wanted to slam his pal against the nearest hard surface. Evidently, Liam hadn’t purged his jealousy via his fists last night. Instead, he’d let his cheating ex crawl up his ass and flip his switch again. Hammer didn’t want to disturb Raine until Beck and Seth were ready to lead her safely inside. Then…all bets were off.

  “Hold tight. I’ll be right back. Then we’ll wake her together.” He tamped down his anger to whisper to Liam before tapping Beck and Seth on the shoulder. Jerking his head, Hammer motioned the other two to join him outside the car.

  They each opened their doors and exited, shutting them softly, then clustered behind the vehicle.

  Hammer turned to Beck. “Do you have time to bring us a DNA kit before your surgery?”

  “Yeah. I can swing it. It should only take an hour or so. Once the lab has the swab, I’ll have it rushed through so you’ve got results in less than twenty-four hours.”

  “That would be great. I owe you. Thanks.” Hammer kept his voice low, hoping that by this time tomorrow, they would have concrete answers.

  So they would know whether their future was fucked.

  Sighing, he glanced at Seth. “While we were en route, Gwyneth spied and found Liam’s room—and Raine’s things inside.”

  “It would be my pleasure to hurt her,” Beck volunteered with cheer.

  Hammer smiled, appreciating a little comic relief. “I’d enjoy watching. Hell, I might even help. Sadly, there’s no time for fun. Liam is going to remove the bitch from my club, so I plan on taking Raine out for a while until the coast is clear.” He faced Seth again. “For now, I need you to escort her to Liam’s room so she can shower. In the meantime, he and I will talk to Pike and get the scoop.”

  “No problem,” Seth assured. “While you two are gone, I’ll make some calls and see if I can dig up any info on Gwyneth’s recent activities, try to find out who else might have fathered that baby and what she’s been up to.”

  Seth’s skills as a private investigator would be an asset, and Macen was in favor of anything that would make her go the fuck away.

  “Much appreciated.” Hammer nodded. “Before we bring Raine inside, would you go in first and make sure the she-beast is contained? We don’t want her springing any nasty surprises on Raine.”

  Seth chuckled. “No problem. I’m not sure anyone can hold Gwyneth back with a whip and a chair, but I’ll try. Oh, maybe I could use a tranq gun instead?”

  “If I had one, Pike would have already emptied that bad boy in her,” Hammer drawled. “Let’s get the car unloaded and get this nightmare over with.”

  Beck hauled out the luggage as Seth ducked inside the club, then emerged a minute later and gave Macen a thumbs-up.

  With a little sigh of relief, Hammer opened the passenger door. Liam greeted him with a grim look of determination before he gently roused Raine. She rubbed her eyes as she eased off of Liam’s lap. Hammer helped her from the car.

  “Why don’t you go inside and take a long, hot shower?” he suggested, ushering her across the parking lot. “I’ll take you to breakfast.”

  “That sounds heavenly,” she moaned, then glanced back at Liam, who followed them. She looked like she wanted to say something more, but Beck sauntered up with a suitcase.

  Seth grabbed his own duffel and followed close behind. “Come on, little one. We’ve got your things. Let’s get them to your room.”

  Liam held the door to the club open. She reached out to touch him, sending a hopeful gaze his way. “Are you coming to breakfast, too?”

  “I’d love to join you, lass. But I’m afraid I need to tend to some matters.”

  Disappointment weighed in the heavy fall of her shoulders. The anger Hammer had been shoving down at Gwyneth’s untimely return sparked to life again.

  “I’ll square everything away as quickly as I can so I can spend time with you.” Liam smiled, as if his earlier burst of jealousy had never occurred. “I promise.”

  “I hope it doesn’t take too long.” Raine stared at him, so raw and yearning.

  God, Hammer wanted nothing more than to drag the two of them away, find a place where they could block out the rest of the world, and solidify their future.

  He felt it slipping through his fingers.

  “Me, too. I love you, Raine,” Liam murmured.

  Hammer joined in, brushing a strand of windswept hair from her lips. “We both love you, precious.”

  “I love you both, too.” She smiled tremulously.

  “Go get ready,” Hammer instructed with a caress to her back. “I’ll come find you in a few.”

  Beck nudged her toward the portal. Raine peered back over her shoulder, almost reluctant to leave.

  “We’ve got her,” Seth assured before he swaggered by, and the wooden door closed behind him.

  As soon as they disappeared inside, Hammer spun around to glower at Liam. “What the hell happened in the car?”

  Liam threw his hands in the air. “I have a lot on my mind. Then you lied to her, which I can’t say I’m happy about. And when you started mauling her…I lost it.”

  Mauling? “At the time, I thought I was saving our asses.”

  “By almost fucking her in the car?” Liam sneered. “Please… I was all but invisible to you.”

  “Invisible?” Hammer gaped. “We both asked you to get involved. Raine herself asked you three times, and you tuned her out. Did you want her to beg?”

  Liam’s face closed up. “You two were doing fine on your own.”

  The green-eyed monster still choked him, nice and tight.

  “I thought we worked through this shit last night.” Wasn’t that why he and Liam had pounded the crap out of each other in the snow? If it hadn’t worked, he’d ruined a great pair of Vuitton loafers and sported several bruises for nothing. “Remember how right it felt to get Raine between us? In the car, I tried to remind you of that—and everything we’ve worked so hard for. You wouldn’t have a thing to do with us.”

  “Sex wasn’t foremost on my mind.”

  “You couldn’t have touched her? Kissed her? Let her know you cared a little?” he shot back. “You saw the complete rejection on her face.”

  “I didn’t mean to hurt her. But there was a bit of a crowd in the car, mate.”

  “Beck and Seth?” Hammer resisted the urge to remind the man that he’d fucked Raine’s ass with a watching crowd—including him—not terribly long ago, but that argument served no purpose except to prolong this fight. Instead, he clenched his teeth, reaching for the last thread of his patience.

  In the span of a few hours, they’d eroded too much of Raine’s progress. Gwyneth now breathed down their necks. Liam might be a father. And Hammer realized that his friend’s jealousy ran far deeper than he’d imagined. Goddamn it, they were supposed to be working together. They couldn’t afford to let rancor fester between them.

  “I’m not blaming you,” Hammer promised.

  “Good. You’ve got some responsibility in this, too,” Liam said. “When she figures out you’ve lied, it will blow up in our faces. What do you plan to tell her then?”

  “That I did it to protect her,” he shot back. “I’ll take full responsibility for my lie. But you have to own up to yours as well.”

  “What the hell are you talking about? I’m not the one who told her I was stressed out because of my business,” Liam spat.

  “It wasn’t that long ago you turned on that Irish charm and played Raine so you could trick me into claiming her. If she finds out, she’ll be heartbroken.”

  “That’s ancient history. Besides, I just meant to help you.” Liam stabbed a finger in his chest. “She needed some confidence and affection. Where would all of us be if I hadn’t put my plan in motion? You’d still be fucking Marlie with your eyes closed, pretending she was Raine.”

  Hammer shuddered. Liam was probably right. “Would it make you feel better if I said I was grateful?”

  Liam sent him an exasperated glare. “I didn’t seduce Raine to hurt her. Besides, I wasn’t in love with her then.”

  “That won’t make a damn bit of difference to her.”

  Liam bristled. “I meant well.”

  “So did I. Look, I didn’t see how else to avoid the truth,” Hammer returned. “You’re my fucking best friend.”

  He sighed. “You’re mine, too.”

  “Then get it through your thick skull that I’m trying to share a girl with you, not stab you in the back. I have absolutely no intention of taking Raine away. If you thought that earlier…” He sighed, rubbed at the back of his neck. “I-I’m sorry.”

  Surprised flickered across his face. “Say that again.”

  Apologies didn’t come easy to him, and everyone knew it. “Fuck you.”

  Liam cracked a smile, then sobered. “I’m sorry, too, mate.”

  Before the moment could turn totally awkward and bromancy, a surprisingly frazzled Pike rushed out the door. “What took you so long? Holy shit…”

  Macen extended his hand. “Thanks for holding down the fort and handling our little problem.”

  “Little?” The Dungeon Monitor scoffed.

  “I appreciate all you’ve done,” Liam offered. “If I’d known Gwyneth had plans to show up, I never would have left. Thank you for keeping this situation under wraps.”

  “Don’t ask me to deal with her again unless I get to shove a ball gag in her mouth.” Pike smiled grimly, then turned to Hammer. “Before I forget, you had a visitor last night, too.”

  Hammer frowned. He hadn’t been expecting anyone. “Who?”

  “Some old wino-looking guy. Said his name was Bill and that you owed him money.”

  Hammer’s heart stuttered, and he clenched his fists. “Big guy? Beer belly? White hair?”

  “Yeah, that’s him.” Pike nodded.

  Raine’s father. He and Liam shared a seething glance. For years, Bill had known where to find her, and Hammer had paid the asshole to stay away. The moment he’d stopped paying, Bill had darkened his door.

  “Fucking hell.” His friend looked ready to punch his fist in the door. “Bill knows he’s not welcome here. We don’t need this shit, too.”

  Pike looked confused. “I told him you’d be back soon. Sorry, man. I didn’t know he was trouble.”

  “He is, but nothing we can’t handle,” Hammer assured. “Go home and get some sleep.”

  With a nod, Pike dug his keys from his pocket before sauntering to his motorcycle. They watched in silence until he rode away.

  “Why would Bill think you’d give him more money?” Liam asked. Hammer noticed a new line of worry creasing his friend’s face. “You told him you were done.”

  “I’ll remind him of that shortly. But the way Raine retreated into herself in the car is exactly what I feared would happen if we told her about Gwyneth.”

  “Don’t be daft. She was upset because she thought I’d rejected her.”

  “That’s part of it, but she also knows we’re keeping something from her. It’s crushing her, and I can’t stand to see it anymore. So I’ve changed my mind. We need to tell her what’s going on. You were right.”

  “I think you’d better repeat that.” Liam arched a brow. “I’m not quite sure I heard you.”

  “Get your ears checked, prick,” Hammer grumbled. “You were right. There. I said it. Gloat all you want. But it doesn’t matter if we have all the facts, we owe her the truth about Gwyneth, the baby, her dad sniffing around…everything.”

  “We do,” Liam agreed, then glanced at his watch. “I’d love to tell her now, but I don’t dare keep Gwyneth waiting anymore. She might go back to my room and find Raine in the shower.”

  “Then I’d have to bury the bitch,” Hammer agreed. “And I promised to feed Raine. I could explain the situation to her at breakfast, but it’s something I think we should do together.”

  Liam nodded. “Yes. Gwyneth is my ex-wife.”

  “And the lie about your business woes is mine, so I need to apologize for that.”

  Liam frowned. “When you take Raine out, she’ll ask more questions. Try to be honest.”

  “I’ll do my best.” But Hammer didn’t expect that to be easy. “Before we go, I need to deal with Bill. That’s something we can’t afford to put off.”

  “You’re right. My first priority needs to be keeping Gwyneth away from Raine long enough to get that baby swabbed and the sample dropped off at the hospital.”

  “Fuck yes. Do you think that baby is yours? Really?”

  Liam grimaced. “I’m afraid to find out.”

  Hammer was, too. “You also need to get Gwyneth out of Shadows and moved…somewhere. A hotel, the local Y, a freeway underpass—I don’t care. As long as she isn’t under my roof and near Raine.”

  “I can’t just dump her off anywhere. The kid might be my son.” Liam sighed.

  “I know.”

  “We’ll keep in touch via text. When we get everything squared away, we’ll explain this mess to our lass.”

  “Maybe we’ll take her to a nice, romantic dinner. Make sure she knows she’s important.”

  “I think she’d like that,” Liam agreed. “Once we come home, we sit her down and explain, let her ask questions.”

  “Then we’ll make sure she knows she’s loved,” Hammer vowed.

  Liam smiled. “That we will.”

  They’d made a plan. The time to execute had come. Now Hammer just hoped everything fell in line.

  * * *

  Why couldn’t she, Liam, and Hammer just be happy for five freaking minutes?

  Raine made her way down the hall inside Shadows and headed toward the room she’d been sharing with Liam, wishing she could just enjoy a bright new future with the men she loved. Instead, something had gone terribly wrong.

  If Liam had business issues, why the hell had Hammer been trying to feel her up in the car, almost flaunting her at Liam? If he’d meant it as a distraction, the ploy had failed miserably. Her gorgeous Irishman almost never turned down the opportunity to touch her. This morning, he hadn’t seemed interested in the least.

  Was the fact that he and Hammer had shared her last night troubling Liam now? Or had something else entirely upset him? She hated not having any answers.

  Since Liam and Hammer had spent days with her to open up communication, promote trust, and focus on honesty, she’d really hoped they wouldn’t lie. But she suspected they were.

  At her side, Seth held her elbow, guiding her down the hall.

  Aching to be alone, she tried to shrug out of his hold. “I can find my way.”

  “Please prove to me you learned something at the lodge.” It wasn’t exactly a request, as evidenced by the bite in his voice.

  Just behind him, Beck carried her suitcase and barked out a laugh. “That’s the thing about the princess. Her temper sometimes overrides her good sense.”

  Over her shoulder, she shot Beck a dirty look. “Since when is being factual a problem?”