Chapter 12

CHAPTER 12

TAKESHI

Archie was a temptation I hadn’t been prepared for.

My little husband was a delight to have around. Our first week together flew by. We’d shared meals, slept side by side, and even hung out when I wasn’t trying to make sense of paperwork for the guys in the office.

I hadn’t been allowed to catch up on all the material Memphis had gathered while I was bedridden and recovering. It wasn’t much, but that along with the details of their raid to save the trafficking victims it kept me plenty busy in the week since our wedding day.

Tank told me I couldn’t come in until I had one more week to recover and to get to know my husband.

There was no need to further recover. I felt a good as I knew I’d get. There was only a twinge of pain every now and then when I overexerted myself.

My husband was a different matter. Getting to know him was becoming an addiction. I wanted every moment with him I could get. There would never be enough.

I’d even picked up a bit of the sign language he’d begun to show me. They were little things here and there. He would be telling a story, and his hands would move about as he spoke. It was in short bursts, making it obvious he was describing a single word or an expression.

Part of me knew it was him trying to make it seem like less of a big deal for him to teach me. Like it wasn’t an entire scheme that we’d ended up together, so my team had an excuse to bring me back to life.

Because that’s really what it boiled down to.

They were trying to revive me from the state I’d entered after getting shot. I’d been morose, far beyond just my quiet nature from before. None of them knew what to do to cheer me up.

And then Archie showed up with his adorable floppy hair and eager smile wanting to help in any way he could.

He had no clue how just his presence alone fought back the darkness that often tried to overtake me. Seeing his smile made me feel like I could actually get back in the field with the team without feeling like a burden to them.

“You ready for your first day back?” Archie asked as he came up beside me in the bathroom. His grin in the reflection of the mirror sent my pulse racing.

He was so fucking beautiful.

And he was all mine.

For now, an unhelpful voice echoed through my mind.

Shutting down those negative thoughts, I turned to face him and motioned toward the door. It was all the indication he needed to know I would follow.

As we made our way to the office, Archie sang along to the radio. It was some upbeat pop hit about being treated like a girl. It didn’t make much sense to me, though I didn’t really care with the way my husband belted out each word.

It was one of the many things I’d come to love about him. He’d fill the quiet space around me with sound. I didn’t have to be alone with my thoughts anymore. Archie took up residence in my mind, filling every void with visions of him, the sound of his voice, and the feel of his touch.

I took his hand after exiting the car. His touch grounded me, and I knew I’d need it with the day ahead of me. The guys were sure to walk on eggshells around me. I didn’t want that, but I saw no way of preventing it.

While Archie had read everything that happened to me, these men had lived it. They’d watched my body become a broken shell of what it once was. They witnessed the recovery and the toll it took on my emotional wellbeing.

For them, me coming back was both a blessing and a worry. They wanted me to be part of the team; however, they weren’t sure I was ready.

I had no clue how I’d make it clear to them I was. Maybe my husband could help. He’d already done so much in such a short time to improve how I viewed things. Surely he could help them see it all too.

With our fingers linked together, I felt that sense of calm that always came with Archie close. Jared’s wide eyes greeted us as we got off the elevator.

“Takeshi!” he yelled, jumping from his seat to stand.

I could tell he wanted to hug me, though I wasn’t much for physical touch. At least I wasn’t outside of my team and my husband.

Archie chuckled at the way Jared seemed to fidget. I nodded to the young man, who then raced around the desk to wrap his arms around me and Archie. It was a strange thing to hug someone I’d known for so long but had never been really close with.

Even so, it was nice to know he was excited enough to show it. I patted his back, then pulled away.

“Sorry about that. It’s just been weird not having you around again. Made me think about…” He winced, letting his voice trail off.

Neither of us had to elaborate on what he meant.

His mind had gone back to when I couldn’t be here because I was fighting for my life in a hospital. And then I was trying to rebuild things by recovering down the hall.

Archie spoke up, his voice encouraging as he said, “It’s good to see you again, Jared. We’ve got to get this guy into a meeting. Maybe we could do lunch later, you and me. I know you’ve got all the good gossip.”

Jared beamed at that. I had no doubt he’d heard so many juicy details while camped out at his desk.

“I do have some secrets I might be inclined to share. But only if there’s cake at lunch.”

“Of course! What's lunch without a bit of a sweet treat?” my husband replied, his hand to his cheek as if scandalized by the thought of not having such things.

I shook my head at the two, then tugged on Archie’s hand still wrapped in mine. He waved to Jared, who agreed to meet him at noon, then followed me down the hall.

When we reached the main office, the rest of the team was there waiting. They had varying degrees of expression — some worried and others eager.

“Welcome back,” Ronan said with a smirk. He knew how uncomfortable I’d be if the whole group descended on me. “Why don’t you head to your desk and get Archie situated? We’re going to have a team meeting in fifteen to go over things.”

With that, the others moved out of the way to let us through. My desk was positioned off to one side, the cubicle giving me an area with more than enough space for the work I did.

Before getting injured, I was the observer of the group. Ronan and Godric were the muscle, Memphis the brains, Cohen the distractor, and Orion the charmer. As an observer, I’d mediate conversations to ensure they didn’t go down a dark path. We often called what I did communications, though it wasn’t in me to talk something to death. Orion could do plenty of that all on his own.

My form of communication was in watching the nonverbal cues people gave. I’d listen to the words they’d repeat and the inflection they used to know exactly what they weren’t saying.

It had been a beneficial asset to the team on more than one occasion. I hoped I could still do it now, despite not being able to speak.

Archie took in the bare bones of my desk with a frown. “You need more stuff. This is so drab.”

I raised a brow at him. He grinned back at me, then sat in my chair and spun around.

“Can’t believe you work at a desk that looks like it’s being modeled in a Staples store. Even Ikea had better decor than you right now.”

My body shook from a laugh I failed to hold in. My husband smiled brightly, clearly happy to have gotten that reaction from me.

I leaned down, pecking his lips quickly before turning to take in the rest of the room. With how high the cubicle went, I knew no one saw the kiss, yet I still felt like I was sneaking around in school or some shit.

Not that I needed to. Archie was my husband.

Yet I knew the team didn’t expect us to be anything more than partners in an agreement Tank designed. They probably assumed we’d be friends at most.

I couldn’t blame them. I didn’t have much in the way of romantic entanglements like some of the others did. Climbing into bed with someone wasn’t something I needed to relieve stress.

The others were lingering around Memphis’s desk talking about something. It could have been about anything, though I suspected it was about me and my husband showing up hand in hand.

I was surprised to find Tank wasn’t around anywhere. I’d been curious to keep an eye on him after overhearing that conversation in the hall. The man was keeping secrets from his team. If the others knew, they’d have already spilled by now.

Tank being in a committed relationship was front page news for us. He was a fuckboy through and through. For him to be in love meant the person mattered. It also meant they understood his business and what all he did, so we likely knew them already.

I pushed away thoughts of my boss’s love life as I focused on the man seated beside me. Archie was running his hands over the desk and keyboard like he was studying a fine piece of artwork. He was so tactile it made me grin.

As if he felt my happiness, he turned to look up at me. “For a man with a bland desk, you sure are handsome.”

I threw my head back, body jolting as I laughed with all my might. It hurt, fuck did it hurt, but it was worth it. A little chuckle every now and then was fine, but full-blown laughter, the kind that made your stomach ache, would always feel like someone was clawing my throat out.

When I looked back at Archie, there was a sad smile on his face. “I don’t like when you do that. You hide your pain from me.”

I froze at his words. How did he know?

“For as much as you watch others, I’ve been watching you, husband. No more keeping things from me. I want it all, ok?” His demand was earnestly whispered between us.

Unable to argue, I nodded to agree. He would get all of me if that’s what he wanted. No holding back. Not anymore.