An hour into the flight home Eric was sitting at the end of one of the bench seats, watching Jess. She was curled up with a blanket, fast asleep. Blake was sprawled across the other one, out cold, snoring softly. Ryan was still sitting at the table with Jackson and Malcolm. Jackson had finished deleting Jess' videos off Francois' system. He'd set aside his laptop and picked up a book to occupy his time for the rest of the flight. Ryan and Malcolm were discussing the next steps.
Eric got up, walked to the table, and took the empty seat next to Ryan. "I can't thank you guys enough for getting her back," he said. Jackson lifted a hand to wave off his statement. "I know you were putting your lives at risk."
"It's our job," Malcolm said as he sat back in his seat.
"About that," Ryan said. "We should talk about what happened."
Eric looked at him. "You got her out. What else do I need to know?"
"She might be in shock after last night," Ryan said. Eric's eyes narrowed.
"I had to kill a guy," Jackson said quietly.
"Did she see it?" Eric asked.
"I don't think so, she was looking at me," Ryan said. "But the guy had a hold of her at the time."
"Back up and explain this to me," Eric said.
Ryan briefly went through what happened with the guard. By the end of his short narrative Eric had leaned over in his chair to look at Jess. "She didn't scream or even cry. She just said she wants to go home," Ryan said.
"You should be proud of her. I've know men that couldn't have held it together as well as she did," Malcolm said. "If she ever wants a job I'm sure we can find a place for her."
"Fuck no," Eric said as he sat back. "After this I'm never letting her out of my sight again."
"Come on, with a little firearms training I'll bet she could do some damage," Jackson said with a grin.
"The point of telling you about that was so you can be prepared for when she comes out of it," Ryan said with a pointed look at Eric.
"Like a break down?" Eric asked.
"There's really no one way a person handles these kinds of things. She been through a lot though," Ryan answered.
Eric looked at him for a moment. "I'll do what I can if that happens."
"Let me know if you need help," Jackson said as he picked up his book.
Eric snorted. "You?"
Jackson shrugged. "Damsels seem to be drawn to me." He flipped the book open.
"Must be the grossly out of proportion shoulders," Ryan said with a smirk.
Jackson grinned at him. "Lots of room to rest their sweet little heads."
"Stay away from her," Eric said and pointed a finger at him.
"That's gonna be tough for the next few weeks," Jackson said.
Eric sighed heavily. "I need a way in so I can get her contract away from him."
"We're working on it," Malcolm said. "And in the meantime we'll look after her for you."
Eric gave him a nod then sat back with a distracted smile.
Work faster. He said to himself as he glanced at the men in front of him. This needs to end soon.
***
Jess was quiet during the drive to Eric's condo. She was sitting next to Eric in the back of Ryan's car. As they cruised through the city she carefully avoided looking at Blake, who was in the front passenger seat. Instead she watched the buildings whiz by and listened to the conversation taking place between the men.
"Are you sure you don't want to stay with us?" Ryan asked. "We have enough room for everyone."
"I don't want to disrupt Row or the kids," Eric answered then reached over and took Jess' hand. "We should be fine at the condo, but thank you."
Ryan glanced at Jess in the rear view mirror. "Row sent some clothes over for you. She said to let her know what you need and she'll go pick it up."
"That was really sweet. Will you thank her for me?"
"I'm sure you'll be able to do that yourself soon. God knows we won't be able to keep her away from you for long," Ryan said with a smile. A minute later he guided the car into the parking garage under Eric's building. Malcolm and Jackson pulled in behind then parked in a visitor's spot. When Ryan cut the engine Blake was the first one out of the car.
He hurried around it and opened Jess' door. As soon as she stood up he pulled her into his arms and tucked his face close to her ear. "He doesn't know about us," he whispered.
"You didn't tell him?" she whispered back.
"I wanted to talk to you first."
"We'll do that soon." She pulled back to look up at him. "Thank you for all your help." His arms slid down as she took a step back. "You really are a good guy."
"Sometimes," he said with a little smile. "Here." He reached into his jacket and pulled a phone out from an inner pocket. "Ryan picked this up for you. In case you had to leave yours behind."
"Why do you have it?" she asked as she held out her hand.
"I wanted to make sure you have my number," he said. "Remember what I told you." She nodded as she slid the phone into her jacket pocket. "I mean it. Anytime."
"Can I get one?" Ryan asked as he pushed Blake aside and held his arms open to Jess.
She accept his hug with a smile. "How will I ever thank you?"
"I'm just happy you're back." He gave her a quick squeeze. "Our numbers are in your new phone. Call if you need anything."
"Give Row a big hug for me." She slid her arms down. "I've missed you guys."
He nodded then took a step back. "You did a good job getting through that." The happy sparkle in his eyes vanished as his eyes searched hers. "All of it. Don't let go of that strength." He glanced over her shoulder at Eric then lowered his voice. "And if Malcolm or Jackson offer to show you any self defense moves take them up on it."
She frowned as she looked over at the mercenaries. They were busy unloading bags from the other car. "I thought everything was done."
"Not yet," Eric said as he moved behind her. "They're going to be staying with us for a bit." He caught her hand then looked at Ryan.
Ryan reached over and pushed Blake toward the front of the car. "We'll see you soon," he said then opened his door. He paused to give Malcolm and Jackson a little salute then got in and fired up the engine. Blake gave the couple a little smile before joining him.
They watched Ryan's car pull away. "I'll leave the door open," Eric called to Malcolm then turned and led Jess to the elevator. He held her hand in a firm grip until they were inside his condo. When he let her go she walked through the rooms slowly and stopped in the kitchen. "Are you hungry?" he asked as he followed her.
She shook her head. "I'd really like a shower."
"Sure," he said with a wave at the stairs. "I put the stuff Row sent over in my closet."
"Thanks." She smiled at him then walked to the stairs. "Eric." She stopped with her foot on the bottom step. "I—" She swallowed hard then waved her hands weakly. "I missed you— even when I thought—" She sucked in a breath as she looked down. "You didn't want me."
He moved forward to pull her into his arms. "Shhh," he murmured as his hand cupped the back of her head. "That was never true." He pressed his lips against her hair and closed his eyes as her body shook with the sobs she was trying to hold back. Her hands gripped his shirt tightly. Behind them the front door opened and Jackson stepped inside with Malcolm on his heels. They kicked off their shoes and continued through the condo till they reached the kitchen. Eric rubbed her back gently. "I'll get them situated while you shower."
She nodded then pulled away from him and wiped at her cheeks. "Sorry," she said with a sheepish smile.
"Don't apologize," Malcolm said as he moved around Jackson. "If you didn't cry I'd worry about you."
"Cause that would make you a psycho," Jackson said with a wink.
"In that case, I hope you stocked up on tissue," she said to Eric. He smiled widely.
"If not, I'll run out and get a case of it for you," Jackson said then jerked his head at the stairs. "But right now, I need you to scoot. I think all the gear got packed in my bag."
Jess turned and hurried up the stairs. Once she reached the landing she turned to watch as Eric led the other down the hall to the spare bedrooms. After a second she went to Eric's room, straight to the en suite. She flipped the water on in the shower, quickly striped off her clothes, and piled them on the counter next to a still in the package tooth brush. She smiled as her fingers grazed the marble counter top. When she turned to enter the shower enclosure her gaze fell on the freshly laundered fluffy white bathrobe hanging next to the towel bar. She took it as signs that Eric had been sure of her return.
"I'm glad one of us had some confidence."
***
Eric waited in the kitchen while Jess showered, absentmindedly made coffee, wiped already clean counters, then started on a shopping list. Jackson was the first one to come down. He helped himself to the coffee took a seat on one of the stools to watch Eric try to keep himself busy.
Ten minutes later Malcolm came down the stairs. "Are there any good pizza places around?" he asked Eric. When Eric didn't answer he turned to Jackson.
"Eric?" Jackson said loudly.
"What?" Eric looked at him for a second then frowned.
"Pizza?" Jackson prompted.
"There's some take out menus in the drawer next to the fridge," Eric said as he moved toward the stairs.
"Hold up," Malcolm called to him. "Give her a few more minutes."
"Ya, and help me pick a pizza place," Jackson said over his shoulder. He pulled out a handful of menus and waved them in the air.
"Jess likes Marco's," Eric said as he came back to the island. "They do a really good thin crust."
"Thin crust isn't pizza," Malcolm said.
"I know but she likes it," Eric replied with a shrug. "Look over the menu. I'm going to check on her."
"Resist the urge to hover," Malcolm said as he sat down.
"I'm not," Eric said.
"You are," Jackson said as he slid a menu over to Malcolm.
"She's had her every fucking move monitored since your dad got his hands on her," Malcolm said. Eric stared at his bent head. "Give her a little space."
"I'm just going to ask her what she wants," Eric said then turned away to march up the stairs. When he entered his bedroom Jess wasn't there. The door to the en suite was open, the light was off. He turned away and rushed to the walk in closet. He flung the door open and came to a stop.
Jess was standing in front of a long white garment bag. She sniffed softly as her hand fell away from it. His heart dropped down to dangle somewhere around his knees. The bag was open and a slice of scarlet material was visible between the two halves. She didn't turn or acknowledge his entrance into the room. "It started that night," she said softly.
"When he first saw you." He inched closer to her, his hands reached for her shoulders.
"Why didn't you tell me about him, about what he was like?" She sniffled. "Why didn't you warn me?" His eyes closed and his hands dropped before he touched her. "Why?"
"You're right, I should have said something."
"Why didn't you?" His hands clenched at his sides. She spun around to face him. "Wasn't I worth even one little 'hey my dad's a dick, you should stay away from him'?"
"That wasn't it." He opened his eyes and she stepped back. They were filled with pain.
She swallowed hard. "What then?" she whispered.
