They stayed curled together until the sound of boots against linoleum had Wyatt turning toward the intruder on their private crisis as if he expected an attack, but the tension fell out of his shoulders just as quickly as it appeared.
“Who the hell did he have to kill to get a flight from New York that fast?” Wyatt said in disbelief.
Before she could ask, Tino shouted, “Nova!”
“Romeo’s other brother,” Wyatt filled in for her.
“Oh.” Tabitha watched Tino hug his brother as if desperate for the comfort.
Nova kissed Tino’s forehead in a way that was common for New York Italians. Then he patted Tino’s cheek and draped an arm around him, pulling him close. “Where’s Rome?”
“He’s with the babies,” Tino whispered.
“How are they? What have you heard?”
“Romeo said they were doing good the last time he came out.”
“You told me they were in NICU when I got off the plane,” Nova said sharply. “Where are the doctors? Has anyone talked to them? Are they specialists? Who is hacking into Jules? Who is taking care of our nephews?”
“I don’t know,” Tino whispered.
“Merda, Tino, you didn’t ask?” Nova ran his fingers through his hair, making it stand up in dark spikes. “You know Romeo’s outta his mind.”
“What the fuck am I gonna ask them?” Tino threw up his hands. “What do I know about this shit?”
“I know. Not your fault.” Nova patted his cheek again. “You did good. Missed you.”
“Yeah, we’ve missed you too.” Tino hugged his brother, clinging to him once more. “I hope Jules and the babies are okay. You don’t even know how horrible that shit was. I’m gonna have nightmares for life. I thought she was gonna die right there in Rome’s arms.”
“We’re here now. We’ll get it taken care of.”
Nova let go of Tino and pulled off his long trench-coat-style jacket, showing off a thickly muscled chest. He wore a simple black T-shirt and jeans, but they were all obviously designer. He ran a hand through his hair again and looked around the room, as if searching for someone who had better answers. His gaze stopped on her and Wyatt.
He tilted his head, shock showing on his handsome face for one long moment, and Tabitha got the impression not much surprised this young man. She was naturally a people watcher, and Nova Moretti had such a powerful air about him she couldn’t help but be fascinated by him. It was like he demanded everyone in the room look at him if they wanted to or not, and it was doubly strange because he couldn’t be more than twenty-five.
He walked over to them, and Wyatt lifted his head from where he had bowed it, obviously not nearly as interested in the reunion as Tabitha was.
“Moretti.” Wyatt grunted.
“Hey, Conner.” Nova’s gaze darted back to Tabitha even though he was still speaking to Wyatt. “Bad night.”
“Yeah.” Wyatt nodded. “We really got to stop meeting like this.”
Nova let out a little laugh as he reached out and grasped Wyatt’s shoulder affectionately. “It’ll be okay, paisan.”
“They’re specialists,” Wyatt said, as if sensing Nova’s next question. “I wouldn’t let someone hack into my sister unless I was confident they knew what they were doing. Romeo wouldn’t either. She’s in good hands.”
“I still wanna talk to them.” Nova’s gaze darted back to her. “Tabitha.”
She smiled. “Yes.”
Nova held out his hand, and when Tabitha took it, he introduced himself. “Nova.”
“Hi, Nova. It’s nice to meet you. I’m sorry the circumstances are so difficult.”
“You don’t remember me,” he whispered.
Tabitha raised her eyebrows in surprise. “Am I supposed to?”
Nova seemed to think about it for a few seconds before he said, “No, you’re not. It’s better.” He wrapped his other hand around hers, holding it trapped between his warm palms as his smile broadened. “It’s nice to meet you too, Tabitha. I bet you like heroes.”
“I do.” Tabitha nodded. “I love them.”
“Yeah, I like them too.” His gaze darted to Wyatt, and he shook his head. “Unbelievable, Conner. I cannot believe you landed T.C. Rennoc. I knew those books were about you. I just didn’t know who actually wrote them. It’s a small fucking world.”
“Now’s the point where you let go of my wife’s hand.” Wyatt eyed Tabitha’s hand still trapped between Nova’s. Then he turned to her and said loud enough for Nova to hear, “He’s strange. He says weird stuff all the time.”
“I’m not even going to hold that against you.” Nova was still smiling. “I know you’re having a shit night.”
“Moretti.” Wyatt lifted his head and let out a broken laugh. “You don’t know the half of it. Let go of her.”
Nova threw his hands up in surrender and then turned to look toward the doors where Jules was having surgery. “Now where are these doctors?”
Jules made it through the surgery.
They didn’t take her uterus.
The twins were both okay.
Wyatt had a lot to be thankful for, but the DOJ investigators showing up at the hospital when everyone was still there wasn’t one of them. They’d waited until Wyatt had gotten a chance to see his nephews in the NICU. The babies had Romeo’s dark hair and Jules’s lungs. Wyatt could hear them through the glass, and it was a good thing.
Bawling babies were healthy babies according to the doctors.
Wyatt wished he could see his sister too, but she was still in recovery. The only one who’d gotten to see her so far was Romeo, who looked like he was going to drop where he stood from the relief.
“Sheriff Conner.” One of the investigators stepped forward as Wyatt walked out of the maternity ward and inclined his head to him. “Do you have a moment?”
“Sure.” Wyatt lifted his arm off Tabitha’s shoulders and leaned down to kiss her. “Give me a minute. Cop stuff.”
“Okay.” Tabitha nodded. “I’ll just go get another cup of coffee.”
Wyatt had taken two steps with the DOJ investigators before Nova called out from behind him, “Hey, Conner.”
He held up a hand to Jules’s brother-in-law. “It’s fine.”
“Yeah, no, it’s not.” Nova said with a laugh. “You’ve been up all night fearing for your sister and your nephews’ lives. You’re too tired and distracted to properly explain what happened. It would put the investigation in jeopardy, and I’m sure none of you want that.”
“Have you been up all night?” the investigator asked in concern.
“I have, yeah.” Wyatt nodded. “My sister’s in ICU. Her sons are in the NICU. She was medevaced in from Garnet earlier. This wasn’t a normal delivery. She had a uterine rupture.”
“We’re going to give you our card, Sheriff.” He pulled a card out of his wallet. “We understand this is a family emergency. You can call us tomorrow.”
Wyatt took the card and looked at it. “I’ll do that. First thing.”
The other investigator smiled. “I hope your sister and nephews get better.”
“Thank you. I appreciate that.”
Wyatt looked at the card again as the investigators walked off. Then he glanced at Tabitha, who frowned in response.
“What was that about?” she asked.
“Um.” He flipped the card over in his fingers and then stuffed it into his back pocket as he considered lying to her. Then he decided the two of them had enough lies between them to last a lifetime. “I shot Vaughn Davis during a traffic stop earlier this morning.”
Wyatt could actually see the color drain from Tabitha’s face. She didn’t say anything, just stood there staring at him in muted horror.