Colters' Gift (Colters' Legacy #5)(61)

He turned to the older Colters and Dillon. “I’ll want the three of you to remain with Lauren at the hotel we choose. We’ll have a set time to report in and if you don’t hear from us, if we’re so much as a minute late, you’re to cut and run with her. Get her to the airport as fast as possible and get the hell out of there. The only priority is her safety. If something happens to me and Liam, I’ll want you to take her home and take whatever steps are necessary to ensure her protection.”

The others nodded their understanding.

“Okay then, I’d like to take Lauren back home so Liam and I can talk to her privately,” Noah said. “We’ll check back in before we take out for Raleigh. If we leave in three days, that gives us plenty of time to arrive ahead of the D.A. and set up.”

Adam, Ryan, Dillon and Seth nodded their agreement.

To Ethan, Michael and Max, Noah grew more serious. “You’ll need to be on guard while we’re gone. We have no idea how far reaching this is or what Joel Knight will do in order to keep Lauren quiet. You’ll need to watch Holly, Callie and Lily like a hawk. Don’t let them go anywhere alone, and make sure one of you is always with them.”

The other men scowled and crossed their arms over their broad chests. Their body language said all they didn’t.

“We’ll keep in touch,” Noah said quietly. “Right now I want to take Lauren home. She’s upset and shook up. I want a chance to explain what’s happening to her privately so she’s not considering the potential danger to her family. She’s very reluctant to do anything that causes any of you harm.”

“She’s ours,” Adam said simply. “It’s what we do for family.” He paused a long moment and then looked to both Liam and Noah, taking them both into his intent gaze.

“You’re family now too. That protection extends to you.”

Noah swallowed, blindsided by the surge of emotion he felt at the older man’s words. Noah knew he had family. Liam’s parents. They were as much his parents as if he’d been born to them.

But as soon as he’d walked into the Colter home, as soon as he’d met Seth and Seth’s brothers and knew how fiercely protective of Lauren they were and of their own women, there’d been a part of him that had selfishly wanted that connection himself.

Since he was a teenager, Liam and Liam’s parents had been Noah’s only support. The only people he had to turn to. And now, through Lauren, an amazing, beautiful woman, he had even more extended family. Good people. The kind he’d always wished for.

“That means a lot to me, sir,” Noah said, his voice cracking.

Adam smiled, his eyes full of understanding as if he knew every part of Noah’s past.

“And you can stop calling me sir, son. I’m proud Lauren has men who know the meaning of respect, but you’re family now, so you can either call me Dad like everyone else, or you can call me Adam. And if I know my wife, if you call her Mrs. Colter, she’ll have a kitten. She has a lot of names but all of them are said with love. You can call her Mom, Mama C, Mrs. C, but not Mrs. Colter. She gets persnickety about that.”

The knot grew bigger in Noah’s throat and he glanced automatically to Ethan and Ryan Colter to see if they shared Adam’s opinion.

Ryan Colter stuck out his hand and merely said, “Welcome to the family. I expect you to take good care of our little girl. She’s the baby now. We care a lot about her. She’s been through a rough time.”

“We will,” Liam spoke up from a few feet away as Noah shook Ryan’s hand. “This isn’t some passing fling for us, sir. I love Lauren. She’s been it for me since the moment I set eyes on her. I didn’t want to let her go when Mr. Wilder came to get her, but I knew she needed time with her family and that she needed time to heal. But there was never a question of me coming for her.”

“Same goes,” Ryan said gruffly. “You can call me Ryan or Dad. I’ll answer to either. Mr. Colter just makes me sound old and stuffy.”

Max cleared his throat and rose. “I need a moment alone with Liam and Noah if the rest of you don’t mind.”

Ethan glanced sharply at Max, speaking up for the first time. “That depends on what you plan to say. I don’t want any trouble, and the last thing your sister needs is more turmoil. You upset her and it’s not us you’ll have to worry about, because you’ll have one very pissed-off Holly Colter to contend with.”

Max shook his head. “There are some things we need to get aired out. That’s all.”

“Then we’ll be in the kitchen,” Adam said. “You boys come get Lauren when you’re done. I’m sure you have a lot you need to work out between you when you get back to her apartment. But before we go, I do want to extend an invitation for you three to come stay out here. It’s a hell of a lot more isolated. It’s private. And it would be a lot safer than being in town. Those locks on Lauren’s apartment aren’t worth a damn. I’d planned to get in there and fix them once she got moved in, but with everything that’s been going on, there hasn’t been time.”

Liam and Noah exchanged glances. Liam lifted his eyebrow and nodded.

Noah turned back to Adam. “It’s not a bad idea, sir—Adam.”

“We’ll talk to Lauren about it and get back with you,” Liam added. “I like the idea of having her out of the diner where anyone can see her.”