Total pages in book: 128
Estimated words: 124870 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 624(@200wpm)___ 499(@250wpm)___ 416(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 124870 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 624(@200wpm)___ 499(@250wpm)___ 416(@300wpm)
“I’m not sticking my dick in someone whose father killed mine.”
“And after he’s dead and the score is settled? Theo won’t be out for a long time. Too long for ‘what ifs.’”
“I’m not waiting until he’s released.”
They both sat up at the same time. “Come again?”
“Yeah. What changed?”
“If Theo is behind me getting robbed, then how much more does he know? If Mian isn’t involved, then he obviously has connections outside those prison bars. We cannot allow him to reach too far.”
“He already has.”
“Then we cut off his arm as payment.”
“How exactly do we do that?” Z questioned.
I pinned Lucas with my stare. He didn’t fidget like most men. He stared back, which is one of the reasons I trusted him. “You said you have a guy inside, right?”
“Yeah. He’s looking to get out in a year with good behavior, and he needs money quick.”
“Tell him tostayready, but warn him I don’t pay for sloppy work.”
“On it.”
“I want this message sent personally. No paper trails. No loose ends. Establish contact and pay him a visit.”
“You want me to go back to Chicago forthis?”
“Not just for this. There’s something I want you to steal.”
* * *
Lucas left thenext day, and I was faced with a difficult decision. Mian wasn’t going to be moved by force, which only left gaining her trust. I pushed inside the nursery and found Caylen awake in his crib and kicking his feet contentedly. I stood over the crib and gazed down at the child whose happy personality had yet to waver despite everything I put his mother through.
It’s been two weeks since I discovered she had a kid. I’d lie awake at night wondering about the man she gave her body to. I told myself his father didn’t matter, but then jealousy forced my hand. She lied about Caylen’s conception. Sometimes we forget how those years together made us know one another better than we knew ourselves. When the time was right, I’d finally uncover her secrets.
I guess Z had been right.
Mian made it impossible not to want to know more.
I was pulled from my thoughts when I felt a light touch on my hand. The baby stood with his little fists grasping the edge in between my hands. When my gaze met his shiny blues, his gummy grin shone bright.
“What are you up to?” He made a high-pitched squeal of excitement, and he bounced up and down in place. “Showing off?” His grip slid closer to mine until his fist touched my much bigger one. I flinched and lifted my hand to move it away but froze when his smile dropped.
I told myself it was a trick of my own mind.
My hand lowered anyway and closed over his fist. His smile returned brighter than before.
I ignored the stabbing pain in my chest and took a deep breath. “All right, kid. Let’s go see your mother.”
He did that squealing shit again when I lifted him from the crib. I held him to my chest while he stuck his fist in his mouth. My heart stopped beating for a moment as if to disguise itself when he laid his head against my chest.
I was reminded of Mian. While she guarded her emotions with others, she let them free with Caylen. Keeping them apart had been my only weapon, but last night, I’d begun to wonder if there was a different way to yield it.
I kept my arm locked around him to keep him secure and unlocked the door. She stood with her back turned, gazing out the window.
“I get this chill down my spine whenever you enter the room. It’s how I know you’re there even when you don’t want me to.”
Caylen chose that moment to babble in my arms. Mian spun around. Fear and surprise seized her when her gaze landed on Caylen in my arms.
“What are you doing with him?”
We moved at the same time. She looked ready to defend her child against me, and for one insane moment, it made me want to protect them both against me, too.
“I thought he would like a visit with his mother.”
“So you’re satisfied I won’t infect my own child?”
“The continuation of this visit is contingent on whether or not you can behave.”
She glanced down at her son and her hard exterior softened. Caylen’s head moved excitedly, and I wondered if he recognized his mother’s voice.
“I can behave.” She’d whispered so softly it was a wonder I’d heard her at all. I handed her the baby. She spoke to him softly in a way she had never spoken to me and held him close in a way she would never offer me.
Come on, Knight. You’re not actually jealous of the baby.
I stood back and watched them interact. I kept as still and silent as possible so as to not taint the scene playing out in front of me. She leaned down and rubbed her nose with his, and he returned her affection with a toothless grin.