Kane
“L oad ‘em up.” Sophia takes charge the way she so naturally does, ordering her men to transfer shit from the cars to the plane that had to have cost an easy fifty million dollars. “Leave nothing behind. Those crates are important.”
“You look stressed.” Jess turns her back on our adversaries, so carelessly taking care of me when war could be breaking out around her. But that’s my job, ain’t it? To watch her back and keep her safe.
“Kinda hard when I know we’re about to fly with the fuckin’ enemy.”
“Why are they the enemy?” She takes another step closer and presses her belly to mine. Her thighs against mine. And when my hands go to her hips, her lips curl with victory. “Because you say so?”
“They’re the fuckin’ mafia, Blondie.” I stroke the fronts of her hipbones with my thumbs and feel the dimples in her back under my fingertips.
“I don’t know if you remember, but they’re the exact breed I spent years of my life hunting.
They’re not Abel, but that doesn’t make them better . Or different .”
“They come with Soph’s seal of approval, though.” She pushes to the tips of her toes and buzzes her lips along the underside of my jaw. “Has she ever put us in a situation that was dangerous?”
“Uh, yeah! She fuckin’ has. A thousand times.”
“Well…” She snickers. “Has she ever gotten us hurt? Dangerous situations are sometimes inevitable, especially when our friend circle is made up of…” She gestures over her shoulder, where Romeo and Spence literally transfer a cache of something into the belly of the Malone private jet.
“No matter where she’s taken us, we’ve always been in control of the situation, don’t you agree? Why are you freaking out now?”
“I’m not freaking out.” I bring my eyes back to hers and consider taking her plump bottom lip between my teeth. “I’m weighing my options and the risks that come with them.”
“Because I’m here?” She shows me a beautiful, teasing grin. “Any other time, and you’re completely chill. But I’m flying too, and suddenly, the risks seem a little too high? Would you feel better if I didn’t come?”
“Yes.” No ifs. No buts . No fucking hesitation. “I’d feel a hell of a lot better if you jumped back in the car with Cap and went home.” I glide my hands along her ribs and up to cup her cheeks. “Thanks. I knew you’d do the right thing.”
She laughs. “I’m still coming. I was just asking where the line was.
” She fists my shirt and turns on her heels, dragging me toward the plane’s stairs.
“We’ll see you on the other side, Cap.” She holds the stair railing and starts up, the first fucking body through an enemy’s door.
Because that’s who she is. That’s the stress she puts me under.
“We’re coming in,” she announces three steps before the top.
“Don’t shoot at us, or my husband will never shut up about how he’s always right. ”
“Dammit, Blondie.” I lift her off her feet and stuff her behind my back, stopping when Felix fucking Malone emerges in the doorway. I hate that I’m forced to look up , despite the fact we’re the same fucking height. That motherfucker simply knows a position of power and uses it to his advantage.
He looks down his nose at me, more curious than he is vicious. “Bishop.”
“Malone.” I don’t offer to shake his hand. Nor does he offer his in return. But I have my whole family coming in after me, so I make fucking sure we’re all on the same page. “Sophia and you have an understanding?”
He drops his chin. “We do.”
“I’m armed. And I don’t intend to disarm myself to make you more comfortable.”
Again, he nods. “Same.”
“I’m bringing my wife along for the ride, which places me in a particularly difficult position. If the world is burning, I have a list of people I’m gonna save. Your name ain’t on it.”
“So long as you don’t have a list of folks you intend to fuck over, then I’ll take care of mine. You take care of yours. You’re bringing your brother on board. And your wife. My brother is here too, and we’re heading toward more of them.”
“Are we done yet?” Jess ducks under my arm and takes point, flashing a friendly smile as she passes.
Then she slips under his arm, too, and disappears into the darkness of the plane until my heart slams inside my chest. “Oh my gosh!” she explodes, drawing me forward with the ferociousness of a man possessed.
I shove past Malone and inside the plane, only to skid to a stop, knocking Jess forward a step.
“Holy cow, lady. You’re big pregnant. Fully pregnant.
” Jess busts past Micah Malone, Felix’s next line of defense, and heads straight to a heavily pregnant Christabelle Cannon.
She flops onto the seat beside hers and places her hand on her belly.
“Oh my goshhhhh. Has anyone told you that traveling right now is not a good idea?”
“She won’t listen.” Felix follows me in, bristling at my back and firming his jaw.
He’s way more vulnerable than I am today .
Understood. “She’s eight months and refuses to stay home, so I’m keeping my weapons, too.
My eyes are on you lot, and I insist that we all get along.
Because if the actions of you or any of your men—or women,” he adds, as Sophia steps through the door.
“Brings harm to my wife or child, then the world burns anyway, and none of us will survive my wrath.”
“Oh, shit.” Soph draws a licorice whip from between her teeth and smirks. “Christabelle Cannon is crowning, huh? That’s cute.”
“I’m not crowning!” Christabelle abruptly bounds from her seat, brushing Jess’ hands away— which annoys me .
But then she dismisses Felix’s worried advance, too.
That isn’t nearly as annoying . “I’m pregnant.
You people need to get over it. I’m not crowning, the baby’s staying inside for at least another month, and if one more person looks at me sideways, I’m gonna riot. ”
Jen swings through the door ahead of Corey and whistles when she finds our standoff. “Sheesh. That’s a baby belly, huh? You need a hospital, or?”
“That’s enough of that.” Jess jumps to her feet and places herself between Christabelle and the rest of us.
Glancing past me, she waits for Spence and Troy to follow us in and for the door to close.
“We’re all here, and it appears the alpha species is feeling a little testy.
” She peeks over her shoulder at Christabelle and murmurs, “You having a boy? Because there may be an overflow of testosterone or something going on here.”
Christabelle stares. Dangerous, deadly.
So Jess brings her eyes back this way. “Nope. Okay. We’re all gonna get along. We’re gonna be nice to each other. This is not the first time we’ve been in the same room at the same time. In fact, I know we’ve worked harmoniously in the past, so the peacocking is superfluous and dumb.”
“You called us.” Micah steps forward, approaching Jess like she’s the one in charge.
“You said our family’s in danger. So why don’t you explain what the fuck is up with that, so we can formulate a plan and be ready to take care of business when we land again?
” And I guess, since it’s on his mind, he stalks to the cockpit door and bangs once, twice, three times in quick succession. “Wheels up. Let’s go.”
“Let’s sit down.” Jess comes to me, turning and pressing her back to my chest to force me backward. “He can’t take off till we’re sitting.”
“Fuck he can’t.” Felix snatches Christabelle’s hand and pushes her into her seat, whipping her seatbelt across her hips and securing her in. “And we don’t have enough seats for you all, so some are gonna be on the floor. I don’t care enough to feel bad about it.”
“Oh, dibs!” Soph bolts past Jess and me, slumping onto a comfy chair, and though Jen follows, Soph shakes her head in warning and waits for Jay instead. “How long till we arrive?”
“Two hours,” Micah rumbles. Looks like he didn’t bring his girl, though I know he has one. Which makes him one of the more dangerous, focused motherfuckers on this flight.
That’s okay. We brought Spence for the same reason.
I lift my head and meet his eyes, making my orders without saying a single word out loud. And because he understands, he backs up until his shoulders touch the door, and his broad form guards us all.
“The tension’s kinda sticky, huh?” Jen grabs Corey’s hand and saunters to the next set of vacant chairs. “Do you think the pilot would let me steer the plane if I asked really nicely?”
As one, Micah and Felix rumble a hard, “No.”