Siren in Bloom

Chapter Thirteen

“Please tell me what’s going on.” Shelley looked around Leo’s apartment. Finn and Lucas were sitting on the couch.

“Wolf should be here soon,” Lucas explained in his smoothest tone. “He’ll know more than we do.”

“It’s going to be okay,” Finn assured her.

But it didn’t feel that way. She’d been hustled out of the breakfast by Finn and Lucas as though she was under some sort of immediate threat. Her stomach turned.

“Is this about Bryce? Has something else come up? Did the feds find something new?” It was her greatest fear. Bryce had used her in a myriad of ways to cover his crimes. She’d been too trusting. She’d signed documents she hadn’t really understood, giving Bryce a place to hide his money. She’d unwittingly given him a vehicle for his blackmail operation. He’d hidden spy cameras in the various lamps and vases she’d used in her designs. He’d gotten her the clients, wealthy, powerful men. She hadn’t known a damn thing. She’d been stupid. She’d always known it would catch up to her.

“I don’t know, Shelley,” Finn said. He seemed to be trying to soothe her. “I just know that Julian asked that we escort you down here and we don’t let you out of our sights. From what I understand, Aidan is handling the weekly meeting because everyone else is dealing with this situation.”

That meant it was damn serious. There was a hierarchy at The Club. If Julian couldn’t handle something then Leo would. Ben and Chase were next in line. Aidan wasn’t even a full timer here. If Aidan was talking to the employees about the Saturday-night scenes, then every Dom on the payroll was in this emergency meeting.

It was serious. And it was about her.

Tears threatened.

“Would you like some tea?” Lucas asked. “Or coffee? Have you eaten anything?”

Shelley shook her head. The last thing she could think about was her stomach. “I’m fine. I think I’ll just freshen up.”

She started down the hallway to the bathroom. She needed a minute. She could hear Finn and Lucas talking.

“Should we let her go?” Finn asked.

“We’re sixteen stories up. There’s no back way out, and we swept the place when we came in. She’s fine. Give her a minute,” Lucas replied.

Fine? Not anywhere close. Fine was a state she’d moved away from a long time before.

She closed the bathroom door behind her. But she’d been more than fine the night before. She’d been perfect. She’d been held between Leo and Wolf. She hadn’t had to think. She’d just felt the press of their bodies against hers, into hers. She’d been surrounded by them, safe and protected.

God, she wanted to be between them now and not for sex. She wanted them to hold her, to promise her it would be all right.

She walked to the sink and turned on the cold water, splashing it on her face. To hell with her makeup. She couldn’t breathe.

The phone in her pocket trilled.

Leo? Wolf? She scrambled, her fingers fluttering as she pulled the phone from her pocket. It was a text, and she didn’t know the number.

I know what you did. If you want to leave the men out of it, meet me in five minutes. The Mexican place down the street. If not, I can kill those two and then we’ll still talk. You have five minutes.

She dropped the phone as though it had burned her flesh.

All of her nightmares were real. Someone knew and they wanted revenge. The question was, would she let her men stand in the way of it?

Hell, no. She’d hidden for too long. The thought of Leo taking a bullet was worse than her own death. An image of Wolf’s big strong body forever silent threatened to wreck her.

She couldn’t let it happen. She needed to call the police, but what would this person do if she didn’t show up in the requisite five minutes she’d been given? How vulnerable were Leo and Wolf?

She took a deep breath. She needed a few things. She winced a little. The first thing she needed to do was get the damn plug out of her ass. She couldn’t run with it. Wolf would be pissed, but then again, she might not see him again.

She got it done, anger coursing through her veins. She should be exploring, having fun with her new Dom and trying to bring Leo in, but no, she was still dealing with Bryce’s shit. He would never let her go. He was dead and gone and still screwing with her life.

One mistake. That was all it had taken. One mistake she’d made when she was too young to know better and her life was over. It had been the day she’d said yes to Bryce.

She smoothed her hair back. She couldn’t look like a woman who was about to make a break for it. Damn it. She missed the stupid plug. It had been a reminder of Wolf, as though he was there with her. Now she was alone.

And she had a job to do.

As quietly as she could, she slipped out of the bathroom and down the hall. Wolf had talked about carrying a gun. She wondered if he had more than one. She went into the small bedroom she’d shared with the men the night before. Wolf’s duffel bag was on the bed. Guilt knifed through her. Wolf trusted her, but she wasn’t sure what else to do.

Lucas had a son. Finn had a baby on the way. She couldn’t risk them. She’d gotten herself into this position. She was going to get herself out.

There it was, just past his spare pair of jeans. She had no idea what the make was or the name. It was a gun. It was big and shiny and metallic and it would kill people.

She grabbed Wolf’s hoodie. It was enormous. It would hide the fact that she had a gun in the pocket of her jeans. Her hands shaking, she carefully placed the gun, muzzle down, handle up. She wasn’t going out without a fight.

She walked back out. Finn sat beside Lucas, both men watching their phones as if waiting for some message they were sure would come.

“Lucas, I changed my mind. I really am hungry,” she said, trying to give him a wan smile. She clutched at the cotton of the jacket as though cold.

Lucas stood up. “Of course. I’ll go see what Leo has. I’m sure I can make you an omelet.”

He walked back to the kitchen and Finn got up as well. He sighed and held out a hand, finding hers and squeezing it. “It’s going to be okay, Shelley. I promise. Wolf can handle this. If you’re worried about him leaving, I really wouldn’t. And Leo will come around. Trust me. This is all some horrifically convoluted plan of my Master’s to bring everyone together. Julian tends to get what he wants, and he wants all three of you happy.”

She nodded and brought a hand to her temple. She wasn’t worried about Wolf leaving. She was worried about Wolf staying and taking a bullet. “I know. I’ll be all right. I just have a horrible headache.”

“Stress. Of course. I’ll go see if I can find you something.” Finn turned and walked toward the bathroom.

She had so little time. Grabbing her purse, she moved as quickly as she could. She opened the door and slipped out. The moment she had the door closed again, she sprinted.

The carpet beneath her masked the sound of her feet pounding against the floor. She ran as silently as she could toward the elevator. She would use the stairs but she was all the way up on the sixteenth floor. But, perhaps…

She broke for the stairs. Finn would figure it out pretty quickly, and then he and Lucas would look for her. They would check through the apartment first, but then they would look in the hall. They would find her standing by the elevators.

If she ran hard, she could make it down a couple of flights of stairs and then catch the service elevator at the back of the building. She’d used it many times while working on the penthouse. It was large and utilitarian, unlike the elegant main elevator. It was big enough to hold furniture and appliances. It ran down to the garage.

From the garage she could make it to the street very quickly. She would be gone before Wolf or Leo was even told she’d left the apartment.

Her steps echoed through the stairwell, every single one making her wince, but she didn’t hear another set. Her breath sawed in and out of her chest. If she survived, she was joining a gym. Her muscles burned, but she didn’t stop. She had so little time.

She burst through the door on the fourteenth floor and made for the left hall. Fuck. She turned. It was on the right. She passed the main elevator, rushing past doors that led to suites. This was part of the hotel Julian ran for his guests and club members.

There it was. The service elevator. Thank god.

She could catch her breath while she waited.

She pressed the door to call the elevator. Her hands were shaking. She looked up and down the hall. Tears threatened.

She didn’t want to do this. God, she didn’t want any of this. She wanted to be back in that too-small bed, pressed between Leo and Wolf. She wanted to be back there, and she wouldn’t leave. She would just stay in that bed, in that moment when everything seemed possible. It had been a nice dream. She’d been loved and cared for. She’d been what they needed. She hadn’t needed to pretend or be someone she wasn’t. She’d just been Shelley.

And that was over. Even if she survived this little encounter, she doubted Wolf would forgive her. She knew Leo wouldn’t. It would be more direct proof that she couldn’t trust.

Trust. What the hell was that supposed to mean? How did wanting him to stay alive mean she didn’t trust him?

Where was the damn elevator? Panic threatened to swamp her. Time was running out. She pressed the button again, but it was finally opening. The doors split apart, and she started forward.

Only to stop in an instant because the elevator wasn’t empty.

Leo Meyer stood in the center, his face a mask of cold fury.

Her breath hitched. Her heart raced. If she hadn’t had such good control of herself, she might have peed a little because Leo looked ready to kill. His normally warm blue eyes had gone an arctic shade—the color of water just before it froze. He turned those dark eyes on her, his mouth a flat line. He held a cell phone in one hand.

“Fourteen,” he said simply before shoving it into his pocket.

No hellos. No questions about what had happened. Just a number spoken to whoever was on the other line.

He took a single step forward, and Shelley gave in to her instincts.

She turned and ran.

She wasn’t even sure why she was running except for the fact that Leo scared the crap out of her. The man in the elevator was a predator, and she felt like prey. She ran almost mindlessly, not really knowing where she was going. She headed back toward the door to the stairs. Her chest felt like it would burst.

If she could just make it to the stairs, maybe she could salvage this.

The door to the stairs swung open, and her nightmare was complete.

Wolf stalked out of the door. She had no idea how many flights of stairs he’d run up. She’d been pretty sure he’d been on the tenth floor. But he didn’t show it. His breath was perfectly normal as though he’d just gotten out of his easy chair instead of run full tilt up a bunch of flights of stairs.

She faltered as she tried to stop. She fell, her ass hitting the ground. She tried to get back up, managed to get to her knees, but got hit by a Mack truck from behind. She fell forward, her chest hitting the carpet and the breath whooshing out of her lungs.

“Not on your life,” Leo whispered in her ear. She could feel the heat of his body holding her down. “You try to run again and you will regret it. I swear to god I won’t hold back and no safe word in the world will be able to fucking save you. Do you understand me? If you move one inch that I don’t tell you to, I will give up all my rights in the club, all my rights as a Dom, for the simple joy of beating your ass until I’m satisfied you can’t run again.”

“Maybe we should find out why she ran in the first place, brother,” Wolf said.

Shelley could see his boots in front of her face. She struggled to breathe, but there was a part of her that was happy to be on the floor. If she was here, she didn’t have to look into Leo’s eyes and see the rage there. She put her face down on the floor, submitting completely. Tears leaked out of her eyes. She couldn’t fight them.

She couldn’t fight anyone.

Leo cursed, the sound a low growl in her ear. “Don’t you fucking cry. You don’t get to cry.”

“Leo, come on,” Wolf said. “Can we figure out what the hell is going on?”

Leo pushed off her, his weight leaving, and she could finally catch a real breath. She was shaking. Her time was up. It had to be. She’d failed. Leo turned her over, and her own anger bubbled to the surface.

“You have no right to do that, Leo. Let me up and let me go.” At the very least she could distance herself. It probably wouldn’t work, but she could try. Maybe if she could get to the restaurant, whoever this asshole was would at least see she’d tried.

She started to roll up, but Leo straddled her hips, pinning her arms with his hands. His chest hovered over hers. “No.”

“Leo, you can’t tell me no. You have to let me go.” She tried to fight, but he was too strong. He was so strong. She struggled, but it was a weak, ineffectual thing.

Leo’s icy-cold eyes stared down at her. She could feel his cock. His eyes might be cool, but there was a part of him that was heating up. His cock thickened against her pussy, but there wasn’t a lick of desire in those eyes. “I don’t have to do anything. It’s been recently pointed out to me that I have allowed you to manipulate me over and over again. I’m done with allowing you to do that.”

“Manipulate you? Are you kidding me?” What the hell was he talking about?

“Leo, I think we should go back to the condo and sit down and talk this out.” Wolf was the calm voice of reason. “We have no idea that she was planning on doing anything dangerous.”

Thank god one of them had patience.

“Really, brother,” Leo said. “Can you think of a good reason for her to have run away from the men we asked to watch out for her?”

Wolf shrugged, those big shoulders moving up and down. “Maybe she was scared. Maybe she was looking for one of us.”

Leo laughed, but it was a bitter sound. “She ran the minute she saw me.”

“Dude, you looked kind of psychotic. You still do. Maybe you should try a sympathetic smile,” Wolf offered. He looked down at her. His handsome face was upside down, but she found comfort in it. His lips had curved slightly, his eyes warm. “Want to explain this whole thing, baby? We weren’t trying to scare you. We just need to tighten up security when it comes to you. We were going to come up to explain it to you. Finn and Lucas were just watching out for you until we could do it ourselves.”

Leo got up, his muscular body moving with grace. He ran a hand through his hair, shoving it back. “She wasn’t looking for us, Wolf. And she wasn’t hungry and trying to find a goddamn vending machine. If she had been doing either of those things, she wouldn’t have felt the need to steal your extra gun.”

“What?”

Wolf didn’t look quite so reasonable when he reached down and hauled her up.

“It’s in her right-hand pocket. At least I assume she stole it from you. Maybe she has a whole bunch of guns I don’t know about. I wouldn’t put anything past her at this point,” Leo said. His fists were clenched as he pulled his cell out. “We have her. Tell the others they can stand down. No. We can handle it. We’ll be back down in my office in five minutes. Yeah, she’ll be with us. No. She’ll be in one piece, boss.” There was a long pause as Julian obviously made a request. Leo shook his head before replying. “I told you she’ll be in one piece. I promise nothing more than that.”

Wolf had her up and on her feet. His hands ran down her torso, stopping when he got to the gun.

“Wolf,” Shelley began. She couldn’t quite find the words. She thought she could handle Leo’s anger more than Wolf’s disappointment.

Wolf reached under the cotton front of the jacket and pulled the gun free. His eyes closed briefly, and his mouth firmed into a grim line. “The safety isn’t on. I left the fucking safety on. I know I did.”

Shelley looked down at the gun. It was a foreign, dangerous thing, and now she was starting to realize she didn’t know much about it. “I might have fumbled with it a little. I might have hit it. I don’t know. I didn’t really know it had a safety.”

She’d never worked with handguns. Her father and brother had used shotguns and rifles on the ranch. How was she supposed to know?

There was a loud crack. Shelley started. Wolf wrapped an arm around her middle and hauled her back.

Leo had put his fist through the wall.

“What are you doing?” Shelley asked, shocked. Leo was always calm.

“Hush or I’ll start your punishment here and now,” Wolf promised. “I’m only calm because my brother isn’t. You’re going to keep your mouth shut unless you want to apologize sweetly and beg for some forgiveness.”

“I am sorry, but you don’t understand what you’ve done,” Shelley said, trying to wiggle away. Tears coursed freely now. There was a huge part of her that wanted to do exactly what Wolf had said. She wanted to get down on her knees and ask them to forgive her. She wanted to calm Leo down. She didn’t like seeing him on the edge of his control.

Leo pulled his fist free of the wall. Miraculously, he hadn’t broken anything but the wall. There were scrapes, but he managed to flex his hand.

“Are you done taking it out on the walls or should we move on to other inanimate objects?” Wolf asked. He didn’t let up on his hold.

Leo’s face was a blank as he turned back to them. “Better the wall than her ass. I can’t touch her right now. Set the punishment for later. Neither one of us is in any headspace to lay a hand on her.” Leo took a deep breath. He closed his eyes, and when he opened them, he seemed to have more control. “Why?”

“It’s none of your business. I would really like to go now.” They couldn’t hold her. They couldn’t force her to stay here. She would get her things and leave. She would try to text this guy back and figure out another meeting. She would find another gun.

“Try her phone, Wolf.”

Sneaky, too-smart-for-his-own-good son of a bitch. “Hey, that’s mine.”

Leo was too smart, and Wolf was too fast. He had the phone out of her pocket and tossed it to his brother.

“Damn it,” Shelley cursed.

Wolf’s arm tightened around her waist. “I have a very good memory, love. Every time you curse me or Leo, you’re doing nothing but adding to your punishment. And it’s bad right now, Shelley. I can’t begin to tell you how bad it is. Do you see how that vein over his right eye is throbbing?”

Sure enough, Leo’s eye twitched. He didn’t seem to mind. He didn’t look up, merely began going over the contents of her phone. His mouth tightened.

“That’s his tell. You think you’ve seen him mad before, but you haven’t until you’ve seen that little tic. You pushed him too far.”

“I was only trying to protect you.” There was nothing left to do. Leo had read the text.

“Mother fucker.” Leo read the text out loud. “Bring her along, Wolf. I don’t dare lay a hand on her. We’ll deal with her when we get her down to my office. I want to see if Ben and Chase can do anything with this. And I want a full workup on Holder, man. I don’t like the fact that he showed up just as someone is after Shelley.”

Shelley dug her heels in. “No. You guys have to let me go.”

Wolf simply lifted her up, and in a show of pure power, turned her in the air until she was over his shoulder and her stomach was flattened against him.

“Damn it, Wolf, you do not have to obey him.”

Wolf started to follow Leo back to the elevator. “That’s not what our momma said.”

He was frustrating. And it was very difficult to talk to his ass. Even though it was a spectacular ass.

“Besides, if I hadn’t listened to Leo, you probably would have gotten away. I was going to take the main elevator,” Wolf admitted. “But Leo said that you would probably run either down or up and try to get to the service elevator because you would think we would go up to the condo.”

Leo pressed the button to the very service elevator in question. “And I had men in the garage and at all the exits. The minute Finn called me, there was no way out of this building, Shelley. I had everyone in place before you could even make it to the elevator. Remember that the next time you decide to take things into your own hands.”

The only thing she could take into her own hands now was Wolf’s ass, and she thought that might be pushing things. “Please let me take care of this. It’s my problem. Did you not read that text? Don’t you get it?”

The elevator doors closed behind her, and Leo gently lifted her head up. “Do you know what they would call you in writing circles? I know a little about this. I’ve thought often of writing a novel of my own. You wouldn’t be the heroine because anyone who read it would say you’re too stupid to live.”

She felt herself flush. “Screw you, Leo. I was trying to protect you.”

Wolf put her down, her feet hitting the floor as the elevator shuddered to a stop. Wolf stared down at her. She barely reached the top of his shoulders. He outweighed her by a hundred pounds. He knew that guns had safeties.

Yeah, maybe she was too stupid to live, but she’d only been trying to make sure they didn’t die.

“I’m sorry.” She couldn’t look at him. “I didn’t want to drag you into this.”

Leo put a hand on his brother’s arm. “Don’t. The elevator will be infinitely harder to fix than the wall.”

“You got to punch something,” Wolf said with a frown.

“I’ll let you punch the hell out of the condo later. Or maybe Chase. He annoys me at times. Yes, punch Chase.” Leo actually smiled a little at his brother. “It’s all right. This is what she does. I let her get away with it once. Don’t make the same mistake I did.”

The doors opened.

“Guys, I know you’re mad. I know you think I’m stupid, but I had my reasons. This isn’t your fight.”

Wolf’s fists clenched. “She’s pushing me, Leo.”

“Yep,” Leo agreed. “It’s what she does. Of course, you’re her Dom. You know she’s going to require a bit of training. Come on, Shelley. Don’t give me any more trouble. You’ve already made us both look like idiots.”

She found herself following Leo down the hall, Wolf hard on her heels. “I didn’t mean to. And I don’t see how me trying to handle a situation makes the two of you look bad.”

Frustration was starting to crowd out her panic. There was nothing left to do now except convince them to let her go. Except they didn’t seem to want to listen to her.

Leo stopped, turning on his heels. It threw Shelley off balance and sent her stepping back, where she ran straight into Wolf. Wolf didn’t seem to feel the same need for personal space that she did. He was a brick wall.

“Wolf is your Dom,” Leo pointed out. “You signed a contract to obey him. Everyone in this club knows we slept together last night.”

“Everyone?”

Leo’s eyes rolled. “Yes, everyone. It’s a small club, and I have a housekeeper. She comes in early on Saturdays. She caught me coming out of Wolf’s room this morning. If Kristina knows, then everyone knows. And if everyone knows that I slept with you, then everyone will know that you’re a disobedient little brat who can’t mind her Dom or her lover. Every goddamn Dom in this place is questioning us right now. You reflect on your Master.”

Wolf’s voice was a low rumble. “And if I hear one more time that this isn’t my fight, I won’t care about the damage, Shelley. I’ll punch my way through something.”

She felt her fists clench. “I don’t understand.”

“Then let me explain it to you. I enjoyed your body last night. I took it over and over. I take that seriously, Shelley. We have a contract. You aren’t letting me do my job. I don’t have anything else. I can’t be a SEAL anymore. There wasn’t a place left for me in Bliss. For the last month, all I’ve thought about is you. I got that tat two days after we talked for the first time. You told me about growing up with Trev and how you weren’t sure of your place in the world anymore. I was in the same boat. I thought maybe we could find it together, and I made a choice. I gave up trying to fight my way back in. I was done because I had something else I wanted. You. So I want you to tell me here and now if you’re just using me for sex or fun or whatever the hell a woman like you wants from a man like me.”

Oh, god, what had she done to Wolf? Her heart ached. He stood there, a big, glorious piece of masculinity. She’d been so stupid. She hadn’t really seen past his good looks and grace. He was a man, a man who could be hurt. She gave up fighting. She walked up to him and put her arms around his waist, placing her head over his heart. “A woman like me is crazy about a man like you. A woman like me can’t stand the thought of a man like you getting hurt.”

His hands came up, stroking her hair. “I would rather take a bullet than have you rip my heart out, baby. Leo made a huge mistake when he let you kick him out of your life. He won’t make it again. And I won’t make it at all. I don’t care how mad you get at me. I’m not allowing you to make this decision. I’m never going to let you walk into a dangerous situation alone. If that means that you won’t be with me anymore, then that’s what happens. But I won’t let you go until this situation is settled.”

She’d thought she was doing the right thing, but as she stood there hearing the beat of Wolf’s heart, she realized that maybe she’d been wrong. She’d spent so much time in a relationship that didn’t work that she no longer really knew what did work. Her parents had been in love and not once during their years together had one of them pushed the other away in the name of protection. They had been bound together, their troubles and their joys shared. The risk was shared, too.

It was what people in love did. Good. Bad. Life. Death. All shared.

She’d done this to Leo.

“I’m so sorry,” she whispered. If the positions had been reversed, she wouldn’t have wanted Leo to push her away. She would have wanted to stand by him. She would have demanded her place, as Wolf had. “I won’t do it again. I am sorry.”

Wolf’s arms tightened around her. “I’m glad to hear it, sweetheart. I don’t want to go through this again. We’re either in this together or we’re not.”

“Together.” She wanted them all together, but she might have burned that bridge with Leo. He was proud, and he might never again open his heart. Time. She needed a bit of time to show him that she understood now. Wolf had opened that door. It was up to her to make sure it didn’t shut. She sniffled and turned out of Wolf’s arms, looking to Leo. He stood, staring at her, his expression closed. She wanted to turn back to Wolf. He was safe and warm and secure, but she was done playing it safe. “I’m sorry, Sir.”

One of Leo’s brows lifted. “Are you? You might be more than sorry when you realize what Wolf is going to do to you.”

She’d known this was coming. “Only Wolf? I lied to you, too. I’ll take my punishment.”

“Both of us, Shelley. I think a breach of trust this big requires more than one Master’s hands. If you’re up for it,” Wolf offered.

Leo nodded slowly. “I will help you. I think she won’t like some of my suggestions, however. She’s going to get a rapid-fire education in what happens when a sub breaks her word.”

She took a deep breath, dread coming from more than one side now. She was absolutely certain that neither man would really hurt her, but Leo had a diabolical mind. She was in for some extreme discomfort.

And she would handle it. “I’ll be good.”

“Excellent,” Leo said. “And you’ll start in just a moment. You will be polite and obedient while we’re in my office. You will accept your bindings.”

“Bindings?” Was her punishment starting early?

“Yes.” Wolf put a hand on her shoulder. “I’m going to show you what happens to little subs who run from their Masters.” His lips cracked a bit, a little smile appearing. “But I will say that I’m surprised you managed to run as fast as you did. A lot of subs struggle with the plug in the beginning.”

Leo sighed. “You’re kidding right?”

Shelley chewed on her bottom lip, trying to look as sweet and vulnerable as possible because Wolf was going to be upset.

Wolf’s eyes narrowed. “You took out my plug?”

“I couldn’t run with it. I could barely walk with it. I’m so sorry.”

“Now you’ve done it,” Leo murmured. “He doesn’t explode when you nearly get yourself killed, but watch what happens when you take that plug out.”

Wolf’s face flushed, even white teeth flashing. “Move, Shelley. Leo’s office—now. Go into the bathroom and pull those pants down and spread you cheeks. I’ll make sure you remember to leave my plug where I put it.”

“Wolf, let’s talk about this,” Shelley stuttered.

Wolf wasn’t in the mood to talk. He picked her up, flipping her over his shoulder again.

“Damn it, Wolf, you have to stop treating me like a sack of flour.” Shelley squealed as he slapped her ass. It wasn’t a pansy-ass slap. It stung.

“No cussing. And I’m done talking.”

She caught a glimpse of Leo’s smile as Wolf stalked past. She was once again staring at Wolf’s perfectly perfect ass. This time she was wondering exactly what he was going to do to hers.