Total pages in book: 158
Estimated words: 144908 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 725(@200wpm)___ 580(@250wpm)___ 483(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 144908 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 725(@200wpm)___ 580(@250wpm)___ 483(@300wpm)
The older women smiled at her as if, because she was a new bride, they understood perfectly that she would be worried about her husband under the circumstances. It was only Lana, Seychelle and Anya who seemed to catch the fact that she was still feeling a terrible sense of dread.
“You’ll feel so much better when you see him,” Seychelle whispered. “Savage had a hit put out on him, and I was terrified to let him out of my sight.” She flicked a quick glance at Lana. “I still feel terrified at times.”
Anya gave a small, almost imperceptible nod. “When they go out on those missions and I have no idea where Reaper is, what he’s doing or when he’ll get back, I feel the same way.”
“I’m ashamed to say I never once thought what it must be like for you,” Lana whispered.
Hannah’s aura reached them before she did. Calming, soothing, a powerful presence, she seemed to exude tranquility, even managing to tamp down the feeling of impending danger as she placed a tall frosted glass on the table in front of Ambrielle. “This is for Master. It should help his throat as the numbness wears off.”
“Thank you,” Ambrie said.
Hannah smiled and turned to Czar and Blythe’s table. “Jimmy, it’s nice to see you again. I hear you have a very bad toothache.”
Jimmy nodded solemnly and pointed to the swelling on the side of his jaw.
“We managed to get him an emergency appointment,” Blythe said. “He has an abscess. His teeth have been such a problem for him. The baby teeth have been stubborn about coming out before his adult teeth want to come in.”
“We can take care of that pain for you, Jimmy,” Hannah reassured him. “We’ve done it before, haven’t we?”
Jimmy glanced at Czar and then at Blythe. Both smiled encouragingly. He clutched at Blythe’s hand before he nodded.
“Do you have a preference on a flavor you would like me to make your special drinks?”
Again, Jimmy looked to his parents. Ambrielle found herself, just like the other members of Torpedo Ink, willing the little boy to voice his choice. It took patience on Hannah’s part not to hurry him. Blythe and Czar were quiet, allowing Jimmy to make up his mind whether or not he would speak on his own behalf.
“I like the cherry a lot.” Jimmy stated it in such a low tone he could barely be heard.
Ambrielle wanted to cheer. She couldn’t imagine how his parents felt with that small victory. Hannah beamed at the boy. “Cherry it is. It will only take me a couple of minutes, Czar, and I’ll have six of them made up for him.”
“Thank you, Hannah. I’d like to get my family home as soon as possible.”
Czar’s tone didn’t convey urgency, but Ambrielle remembered the threat hanging over his head. The Russian woman wanted to kill him. Not only him, but his wife and children. Czar was keeping them in lockdown, where they were safe from her assassin squads. He wouldn’t have brought his son into town unless it was an emergency.
The bells jingled merrily, announcing more visitors to the shop. Ambrielle looked around. There were quite a few members of Torpedo Ink at the tables. Reaper and Maestro remained standing near the bay windows. The tables were filling up for teatime. The Floating Hat was popular with tourists and locals alike.
Jonas strode in, nodding to Czar and a few others, but not breaking stride as he went straight behind the counter to his wife. One arm slid around her waist. “I’m off for the day, Hannah. How can I help? I saw you had deliveries that weren’t unpacked. Would you like me to take care of that?”
“Are you sure? You’ve been working overtime, Jonas,” Hannah said, leaning into him. “You should go home and sleep for a little while. Abbey took our little naughtiness for the day. The house is quiet for once.”
“I’d rather be here helping you. Give me something to do, baby doll.”
She tried frowning at him but laughed instead. “If you really don’t mind unpacking all the crates for me and shelving everything. You know where it goes. You’ve done it enough times. You make prettier baskets than anyone, so if you finish . . .”
“Hold up there, woman, you don’t need to say that where anyone can hear you.” He bent down to bite her neck.
Hannah yelped and glared at him. “I swear you’re a vampire.”
Jimmy burst out laughing. “He can’t be a vampire,” he whispered, overly loud. “It’s daylight, Mom. Wouldn’t he burn up in the sun?”
“Jonas is a cop, Jimmy.” Savage leaned over Blythe’s shoulder. “They don’t burn in the sun. They can walk around harassing the crap out of innocent bikers and biting beautiful women on the neck. You have to watch out for them.”