Chapter 159: Everyone Had Friends

We spent the rest of the day ring shopping, and it was fun; we spared no expense. We honestly couldn’t decide. We knew she wasn’t into jewelry, but we wanted her to have a beautiful ring. By evening, we settled on a Neil Lane bridal diamond we saw at the local jeweler.

“Do you think it’s too flashy?” Justin asked when we got into the car. I sighed and made a mental note to never go jewelry shopping with him again. He was very indecisive, which surprised me.

“I think it is perfect,” I said as calmly as I could.

He went quiet, and part of me felt like the discussion was over. We drove in silence, only the faint sounds of the radio filling the car for almost twenty minutes.

“I know I am not easy to shop with; that’s why we have a personal stylist and shopper. When I get to regular places, it overwhelms me,” he said, breaking the silence, his knees bobbing up and down nervously. I placed a hand on his leg to steady him, and he visibly relaxed. I felt bad for feeling annoyed.

“It’s okay, baby boy. We probably could have brought a jeweler to the house if we weren’t rushing,” I said as we pulled up to the gate and reached to hit the button to open it, but it was already open.

My brow furrowed because the gate closed automatically, and there didn’t seem to be any reason for it to be open. He immediately sat up straight. My mind drifted back to the accident a few months ago and how it made so much sense for him not to have a bodyguard, since he was so capable of keeping himself safe. He said he had trained with Matt occasionally, but I think he was downplaying just how good he really was.

“Stay out here,” he said, opening the door.

“Don’t pull into the driveway. If I am not back in a minute or send you a text, call Matt immediately,” he said, and I nodded.

I wasn’t going to argue with him. He leaned over and gave me a quick kiss, seemingly calm. He closed the car door silently and made his way to the side of the gate just outside the entrance. He pushed on one of the bricks, and it opened, making me sit up. What the hell!

He pulled out a gun and checked the clip before sliding it into his back waistband and disappearing inside the gate. I checked the time and started counting. When one minute passed, I dialed Matt as instructed, worry immediately filling me. He answered on the first ring.

“Hey. Donald. What is wrong?” he asked gruffly.

“Justin told me to call. The gate was open, and he’d been inside for a minute. He took a gun,” I said quickly.

“I am on my way. Any sign of an intruder?” he asked, and I shook my head.

“Fuck,”

“Donald, I can’t see you, I need a verbal response,” he barked, and I heard a car door slamming and tires screeching.

“Shit, sorry. No, there is no sign of anyone,” I said, and he cursed again.

“Will be there in five minutes,” he said and hung up.

I sat there shaking. I felt useless, but I don’t know how to fight. Justin came out a minute later, after I hung up, looking perfectly fine. He gestured for me to come in. I pulled in slowly, looking around, but nothing seemed amiss. I parked the car and got out.

“The power is out, so the gate wasn’t working,” he said, rubbing the back of his neck.

“I never got a notification,” he added, and relief washed over me. I think we both expected the worst, given our bad luck lately.

“That is a relief. Why didn’t the new guy tell us?” I asked. He shrugged, unconcerned.

“He said it happened and he was looking into it. Apparently, the whole street is out, not just us,” he replied, pulling me into a hug.

We were definitely closer since the accident, and I held onto him tightly. Everything was okay. Matt’s overly large truck pulled into the driveway; he hopped down and headed towards us. He looked calm, so maybe he already knew everything was fine. Justin broke our hug and waited for him to approach.

“Kelly called me on my way here and told me the situation. Jack is rerouting Amelia to a hotel for you both to meet her tonight while we get this situation fixed,” he said. Justin gave him a one-handed hug in greeting.

Something about that made me a little jealous. I wasn’t sure why Matt was always Justin’s first call, even before his sister and brother, and it made me wonder if there had ever been anything between them. Justin said he had never been with a man physically before, but that didn’t mean they didn’t have a connection.

“We have candles,” he said, and Matt snorted.

“We still have a job to do, and we can’t do it if the system is down. I have a guy who can bring a generator before morning, and you all can come back tomorrow. Until then, as your security, I advise you to go to the hotel,” he said with a hint of humor in his voice, and Justin rolled his eyes.

“It’s not just you anymore, Justin. You’ve been fighting this for years, and Deborah and Taylor—no partners at the company will go unprotected any longer. Two different attacks in one year is so out of the norm, and I will not risk anymore,” Matt said in a firmer tone.

I could tell he was serious, and Justin could too. Matt was right; we all took risks being public figure millionaires without some sort of protection, and now that we wanted children, we needed to be more careful.

“Donald, I called Emily’s school to get the layout and security, and I wasn’t too pleased with it. So I sent two of my best female agents to work security for her. She won’t know; they’ll be campus security, but with your ex turning up out of the blue, I didn’t want to risk anything, especially with the three of you going overseas,” he added, my eyebrows shooting up.

I hadn’t thought about that, honestly. I didn’t think she would hurt Emily, but I’m also not sure how desperate she is to get under Amelia’s skin, especially knowing my feelings towards her.

“I appreciate that,” I said, looking at Justin, who was studying me with those beautiful eyes of his. Kelly came around the house and towards us.

“I called the power company; apparently, there was a car accident that caused the power to go out. Perimeter is secure, and the house is clear,” Matt said.

The next thirty minutes, we spent packing overnight bags. Most of our things were packed anyway, so it didn’t take too long. I sat on our bed, using the small amount of light from dusk coming through the windows, and watched Justin put some toiletries in a case, shirtless in a pair of sexy jeans.

“Would you say Matt is your best friend?” I asked. He paused mid-movement for the slightest moment; if I hadn’t been studying him so closely, I wouldn’t have noticed.

“Matt doesn’t have any friends,” he said with a soft chuckle, and I snorted.

“Everyone had friends,” I said, shaking my head, and he turned and walked towards me.

“Not Matt. He’s close to some of his men, but they definitely aren’t friends. He does his job, he trains, and he goes home. There are no friends, no partners. He has a grandmother who cooks and cleans for him and her boyfriend, who’s around to help at his house. That is it,” he said, and his tone held something that bothered me. Was it bitterness? I know I shouldn’t have, but I pushed.

“Did you want to be his friend?” I asked softly, and when his gaze met mine, my stomach dropped.

I shouldn’t have asked that question. I instantly felt guilty by the look on his face.