Total pages in book: 78
Estimated words: 77341 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 387(@200wpm)___ 309(@250wpm)___ 258(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 77341 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 387(@200wpm)___ 309(@250wpm)___ 258(@300wpm)
Or not.
I should get up and go home. I should check on Bianca and figure out how I’m going to maneuver the next few days without losing everything—my sanity and my career. But there’s something centering and calming about sitting with my mother at her kitchen table.
“So,” she says, easing her way into a conversation she’s clearly nervous to broach. “Are we talking about the beautiful young lady who bid very aggressively to win a date with you today?”
“No.”
She stops, a notebook balanced in her hand.
“No,” I say again, this time with more emphasis.
“It was Jason Brewer’s sister, wasn’t it?”
“How in the hell did you know that?”
“I’ve seen him a few times, and that bone structure doesn’t appear out of thin air, Foxx.” She smirks. “And I saw him there today, so I put two and two together.”
Oh.
“She looked pretty enamored with you,” Mom says, her voice far too … hopeful … for her own good.
“Stop it.”
She puts the notebook down. “What’s wrong with a woman being smitten with you? It’s a completely natural thing—”
“Can we not do this, please?”
“Sure.” She shrugs. “Are you here for advice, possibly?”
I sigh. “No. I am here for Banks, and I know exactly what I need to do with him. But thank you for your concern.”
She smiles to herself.
My phone buzzes. I jerk it out of my pocket and look at the screen, hoping it’s Landry. But the text is from a number I don’t know.
Unknown: Foxes are solitary animals. They are not pack animals. They live by themselves or in small family groups called skulks (not skunks). These usually include a mama fox and around six cubs.
“Is that written in English?” Mom asks. “Because you’re looking at it like it’s not.”
I toss my phone on the table. It spins as it slides, coming to a rest against Mom’s books.
“Someone thinks they’re cute and just sent me random facts about foxes,” I say, unamused.
“You, too, huh?”
“What do you mean?”
“Your brothers get texts like that. They all get a different animal. Of course, you get a fox.”
“Someone is so witty.”
She grins. “I think it’s cute.”
“You would.” I stand and grab my phone. “I need to get home. If you see that kid of yours, tell him I’m looking for him.”
“My gut says that he already knows that.”
I turn to leave.
“Foxx?”
I look at her over my shoulder.
“In all seriousness, I know you don’t need my help or advice,” she says, her words solemn. “But I’m here. If you can’t hear your heart, you can come talk to me.”
I knock on the table with my knuckle. “No worries. My heart is loud and clear, and it’s telling me to find Banks and remove his spleen.”
“Just don’t get blood on the carpet or furniture. You’ll never get it out.”
I shake my head, chuckling. “Love you.”
“I love you, Foxxster.”
Just as I turn to leave, the front door opens. Banks stops, freezing in place with his eyes wide as dinner plates.
“Oh, shit,” he says, spinning on his heel to flee.
I cut the distance between us in half and pluck the back of his shirt, yanking him backward.
“Mom!” he yells.
“Don’t yell for Mommy,” I say, shoving him into a corner. “You and I are going to have a little talk.”
“Foxx, buddy, pal—just listen to me with an open mind …”
“Shut up.” My phone buzzes in my pocket. I manage to get it out and into my hand without dropping it. Ford Landry flashes on the screen. I look up and point at Banks. “Stay put, or it’s going to be worse for you.”
He nods slowly.
I press the green button. “Carmichael.”
“This is Ford. I got your message. What’s up?”
Anger begins to build inside me again.
I point at Banks to back up closer to the corner. He holds his hands up and presses himself flat against the wall.
“I want to talk to you about Bianca,” I say, my jaw aching from clenching so tightly all afternoon.
“Of course. What about her?”
Stay calm. “Why in the hell was she on a plane with Jason and no backup if you know there’s an open threat?”
He sighs. “All right. Calm down. Let me explain.”
“I’d love for you to explain. I’d love for you to explain to me why the protocol is being ignored.” I suck in a breath. “Where was her security detail? Where was Troy? Dominic? Calvin? You had no one escorting them? Jason is flying a fucking plane with her on board, and there’s no backup?”
“Everyone had another assignment—”
“No one called me.”
“You asked to be removed from her detail.”
I’m breathing fire. “I ask to be reassigned. That doesn’t mean I’m unwilling to rejoin her team if there’s no one available.”
Banks starts to slip away from the wall.
I lunge at him, and he slides right back into place.
“You’re not affiliated with that plan,” Ford says. “You know how this works.”