Claim - Page 57

“You must think I’m horrible for bringing my troubles here,” I said. “And dumping them on Beau.”

The women all shared long looks.

“Here.” Macy pulled a stool over. “Sit. Frankie, pour her some of the hot chocolate we made for the kids. London and Mila, you keep buttering that bread.” Macy stepped in front of me. “No one can dump anything on Beau unless he wants it.”

“Or any Fury brother,” London added.

“Plus, Beau’s a big guy,” Frankie said. “Hard to dump anything on him that he can’t handle.”

“You don’t understand,” I whispered. “I have a serial killer after me.”

“Pfft,” Macy waved a hand. “I had a crazy stalker after me. Colt saved me.”

Mila held up a knife. “I was hiding under a fake name while working at Ember. I was hiding from the killers who murdered my parents.”

My heart squeezed. Mila’s situation sounded similar to mine.

“I had an international criminal out for revenge after me.” Frankie set a cup of hot chocolate down in front of me. “Plus, he wanted to steal my top-secret government project.”

“Hey, I was next,” London complained. “I had a crooked federal agent trying to frame me, and they kidnapped my sister.”

“I win,” Frankie said.

“No, I do,” Mila shot back.

I looked at all of them. They were all smiling at me, welcoming me.

“The Fury brothers can handle a lot, Bell,” Macy said. “Beau’s holding a hand out to you. Take it.”

I nodded, feeling overwhelmed.

She squeezed my shoulder. “These brothers, they’ve had their own rough time, and they all have their own demons. Justmake sure that while Beau’s looking out for you, you look out for him right back. Now, drink your hot chocolate.”

23

BEAU

“Good job, Ben. You’ve got a good punch on you.”

The kid grinned at me.

God, I saw so much of myself and my brothers in this foster kid. From his ill-fitting clothes that he was growing out of, to his shaggy hair in need of a cut. I ruffled his hair and spotted a sullen kid standing at the edge of the mat.

I walked over. “Everything okay, Trey?”

The tall, lanky kid shifted on his dirty shoes. “Boxing is dumb.”

I crouched. With his dark skin and dark eyes, he reminded me so much of a young version of Reath. “It’s not for everyone, but learning to defend yourself is an important skill.”

Trey hunched his shoulders. “Not if they’re bigger and stronger than you.”

My gut hardened, but I kept my feelings off my face. This kid had been someone’s punching bag. I shoved the anger down. “There are ways to compensate if you’re smaller.”

The boy snorted. “You’re huge. I bet you’ve never been small.”

“I was once.” A memory hit me—my mother screaming for me while a stranger, a man, stood beside her with hungry eyes. “And I was in foster care once like you.”

Trey’s lips pursed. “They said you were. You and your brothers.” He glanced around. “No way those guys are really your brothers. I figured it was all lies.”