Chapter 19
“She seems to like Vale,” Ranger says, watching the two women speaking in the living room.
My head tilts as I study Vale and Laken. Apparently, the torrential downpour put a stop to our plans of a trip to town.
“She didn’t immediately dismiss the clothing Vale brought for her. That seems like a good sign, right?” Ranger sounds desperate, and it makes me even more anxious to find out what the hell the two of them did last night.
Laken does seem more at ease with Vale.
Vale is less of a threat to Laken, considering she’s bonded. Kate isn’t bonded to her men, and that’s probably what set off Laken’s impulses. It’s difficult to tell, but alphas hear our entire lives how territorial omegas are.
I’d just never had the opportunity to see it firsthand before Laken practically hissed Kate out of the house.
“I think she’s enamored with the baby.” I scratch my beard, watching Laken coo down at the infant. Seeing her interacting with the kid has my chest feeling some type of way.
“Vale is easy to get along with,” Ranger says, nodding. “She’s also fond of me, since I helped remove the problem of her stalker. She will say nice things about me. I’m her baby’s godfather.”
My eyes bug as I process what he just said. Someone made him their kid’s godparent? Luckily for my future employment prospects, I keep that question to myself.
Ranger continues muttering to himself, but he stops dead in his tracks when Mercer comes back inside from taking a business call on the front porch.
Today is the first day I’ve met the man, but I know he’s one of Vale’s alphas. He also owns Assurance Security. We had a five-minute chat where he told me the company would be happy to have me if Ranger approved me to work on his team. I still need to verify that with Ranger, but he’s all out of sorts, and now doesn’t seem like the time.
Mercer nods toward the hallway, and Ranger goes even more rigid.
“Are you okay over there?” I ask, quirking an eyebrow.
“Everything is fine,” he growls. “Keep an eye on them. I need to make several phone calls and secure the license.” With that, he strides out. “The damn rain ruined my chances of finding a ring today.”
I stare, blinking at his back, totally fucking confused.
That man makes no sense at the best of times.
Mercy and Ranger leave the office close to an hour later. Nova and Haze came out a while ago, and they seem as enamored by Laken and the baby as Laken is with the baby.
Mercy collects his omega and they leave. Laken stays curled up on the couch with the dogs at her feet.
Maverick jogs into the room with a sandwich and tosses himself down on the other side of the sofa.
I briefly plot his demise when he offers half to my omega.
My brow furrows as she takes it with a grateful smile.
It is close to lunchtime. She never had breakfast.
Good god. We’re just as bad as her previous captors.
Ranger strides forward with his arms crossed and a significant frown marring his face. “I have confirmation, Adair and Kurran have been spotted in New York. They’re no longer locatable, meaning they’ve been taken in by the Barretts.”
My entire body goes stiff. “And they know the exchange was to take place with you? I mean, they know your information and that you’re responsible for the massacre at the Andretti compound?”
He nods. “I have no way of verifying it, but I’d imagine Lucien informed the Barretts of his plan to ambush me during the exchange.”
“Maybe they’ll decide they don’t want to go to war after how fast you guys wiped the Andrettis off the map,” I offer, suddenly feeling itchy all over. This has the potential to be a big fucking problem.
“Mercy and I discussed the same thing,” he says, keeping his voice low. “I’m afraid I made things worse by allowing myself to be distracted.”
“What do you mean?”
“I-I…” He swipes a hand over his face. “There was an incident this morning, and I’m unsure what it means. I did ask Laken to move in with me permanently, but she seemed dismissive.”
My jaw falls. “You did what now?”
“We were intimate. And the monsoon that came from nowhere isn’t helping matters. I wasn’t even able to buy a ring. How am I supposed to inform her that we’re getting married if I don’t have a ring to offer?”
“You know this isn’t the 1950s, right, man?” I chuckle.
Ranger glares. “I miss Kane. Sparrow stole the only person I even half-liked.” He pauses. “Outside of Laken. It’s not solely about what transpired between us. There’s also the benefit of spousal privilege. No one could force her to give testimony about anything she may or may not have seen me do that night at the Andretti mansion. She could willingly waive that right, but why would she choose to do that?”
“Just to be clear. You’re planning to ask her to marry you?” I ask dubiously.
“I intend to offer her the ring upon informing her of our union. Her birth control lapsed during the kidnapping…” He rolls his shoulders back, and he waves at the omega in question when he catches her staring. “It’s only right. Also, I would like to revisit doing those things again sometime…” He bites his lip, watching her with a look I’ve never seen on his face. “Very soon.”
“That’s still not grounds for marriage.”
I’m not sure what I’m feeling. On one hand, I got my questions answered about last night. On the other, I was trying to take my time and build something a little more slowly.
I mean, it’s practically impossible to miss their chemistry, but he straight-up ran from her in the hotel.
And then, I basically did the same.
Jesus Christ.
“I feel confident anyone who learns of our union will think twice before taking action.” He nods, agreeing with himself. “I’ve successfully picked off many of their soldiers over the years. They haven’t gone to war with me yet. All of that was before I had something worth protecting. The world isn’t prepared to see exactly what I’m willing to become if someone threatens her.”
My mind replays what he said before, and my jaw drops. Her birth control lapsed during the kidnapping.
“Holy fuck,” I whisper-hiss, grabbing his arm and dragging his skinny ass away from the living room. “What the hell is she going to do about her heat if her birth control isn’t active?”
Ranger shrugs. “I spoke briefly with the local OBGYN. He’s the brother of one of Vale’s alphas. His practice also sees omegas. He recommended back-up contraception until after the heat passes. I should possibly allow Laken the opportunity to check her voicemail to see if she heard back from her doctor. Although, I’ll need to coordinate with tech to ensure that call isn’t traced.” I’d say he’s talking more to himself than to me, which is fine.
My brain is still a little obsessed with the fact that birth control never crossed my mind. I don’t even let myself focus on the tiny piece of my impulses that scream that I missed my chance to breed her.
Jesus Christ.
Being an alpha is straight-up weird at times.
The rain doesn’t let up all damn day.
Ranger leaves for an hour to stop by his sister”s house, but he”s back in time for dinner.
Laken eats with me, Ranger, Maverick, and Gunner, but then she heads upstairs to shower. She and Ranger are back to acting super sketchy around each other, and it would be humorous to watch if I wasn’t also wondering where she and I stand.
I’m not expecting Ranger to literally snag me out of my chair and drag me toward his office. We barely make it inside the room before he speaks.
“Kane was often my sounding board, but I don’t want Sparrow to worry. I have low expectations of him keeping anything I say to himself, so I would like you to listen.”
I lean against the wall, nodding. “You got it.”
This is my chance to make myself invaluable to him.
“There are reports Braxton Barrett is missing,” he says, pacing a line in front of his desk. “I had nothing to do with his disappearance, but I’m sure I’ll be a suspect.”
“I’m guessing by the last name that he’s high up in the Barrett family business?” I ask, scratching my jaw.
“Number three.” Ranger nods, swiping his curls back from his forehead. “The top two places are held by the sons of the original family. Number three, Braxton, is an especially ruthless cousin.”
“And there’s no chatter on where he might have disappeared to?”
“None as of yet,” Ranger says, staring at the ceiling as he finally halts his pacing. “It’s too great of a coincidence. I’m not sure if it’s someone trying to force a war between us, but I’ll handle that when the time comes.” He turns to face me, yanking out his phone. “The marriage certificate should be delivered within seven to ten business days. I selected a ring online that can be picked up in Charlottesville tomorrow, but I don’t know her ring size.”
“You’re going about this the wrong way,” I tell him, striding forward. He twists the phone to face me, and I examine the giant rock. It’s a single square diamond in platinum. I whistle as I get a look at the price tag. “Okay, she might actually forgive you for what that sucker costs.”
A squeak comes from the doorway.
“I asked if you had a girlfriend or any romantic partners.” Laken’s small hand shakes as she points at Ranger.
“I didn’t when you asked,” he says simply.
“Seriously?” I scoff. “I didn’t think you could make it worse, but trust me, that made it worse.”
“I didn’t want to ruin the surprise.” Ranger shoves his phone into his pocket. “Our marriage certificate should be here within a few days. We can talk more about what you’d like to do in the future, but I have a bit of a work emergency I need to handle.”
“Whose marriage certificate?” she asks, her eyes narrowing.
“Ours,” he says without hesitation. “Yours and mine.” I’m not sure if he realizes he’s digging himself deeper with every level of clarification, but Laken looks a little like the top of her head might pop off. “I’ll explain more when we cuddle at bedtime.” He gives her what might pass for a friendly smile on anyone other than him. “Please shut the door on your way out.”
Laken lets out a sound between a scoff and a growl. “Oh, I’ll shut the door all right.”
The door closes with a thunk.
My eyes bounce between the door and the idiot alpha. “Were you trying to piss her off right now? Like, was it your goal to drop a bomb, then casually dismiss her?”
“I need time to look into the Braxton Barrett situation,” Ranger says, completely ignoring me as he begins to pace. “My instincts are screaming there’s a player we don’t know about on the board. There are multiple factions that want the Barretts removed, but none of them are powerful enough to make a move this large on their own.”
An obnoxious buzzing sound comes from Ranger’s pocket, and he rips his phone out, pulling it up to study the screen. “Laken is wandering around in the rain.” His face scrunches. “In the backyard with Nova and Haze. Jesus Christ. I’ll never be rid of the wet dog smell. What on earth is she doing?”
I snort, swiping a hand over my face.
If I had to guess?
I’d say she’s making a break for it.
There’s only so much insanity a person can take before they try to escape.
“I’ll get her.” I jog toward the door without waiting for a reply.
“My property is as secure to get out of as it is impossible to get in. She’ll be fine. I think she just needed a moment to herself,” Ranger calls after me. “I also wasn’t done brainstorming this problem.”
That man is either fully clueless or delusional.
I haul ass through the living room, and Gunner stands near the open door that leads to the back porch. Each glass French door has its own security shutters, marked by the rectangular boxes over the top, proving exactly how secure this place can get when Ranger needs it to be.
“The omega stole our dogs,” Gunner growls. “It was a mutiny. Haze has refused to go out to take a piss all damn day because he’s a princess about his paws getting wet. Laken strides right out in the rain, and both dogs hauled ass with her.”
“And you wonder where your dog gets it from. Maybe don’t be a spoiled ass and step outside to call them in?” I offer, jogging through the open door. “They won’t fuck with me if I scoop her up, right?” I call over my shoulder.
“Normally, I would say no, but Nova has been all over Laken. She’s been sticking close to try to comfort her,” Maverick says, leaning over the edge of the porch railing. He’s still under the cover of the roof, but if he leans over the railing much farther, he’ll be soaked too. “You’ll probably want to send them back before touching her.”
I snort, hitting the bottom step. “You could come with me, you know.”
Cool rain stings against my face as I jog. Luckily, Maverick starts whistling for the dogs.
Lazy asses.
I’m going to be really pissed if I get bit by either one of those massive beasts.