“Understood.”
Holding my gaze, he listens for a few beats before ending the call.
I raise my brows and for a second all I can hear is the rush of my blood in my ears. “What is going on? She who?”
He looks like he wants to grill me for information, but opts out of that option as quickly as the idea hits.
He settles on something that doesn’t make me feel any better with his next words.
“Your father saw you at the old station. You’re coming with me.”
My body tenses. “No, I’m not. I’m getting out of here, yes. But I have no intention of staying in Haven. You asked about the whole family? What was that about?”
“The Vultures have a little black book full of names and yours is in it. So are your father’s and brother’s.”
I instantly recall watching one of the Savages grabbing a book from a Vulture earlier this evening.
“What’s in it?”
“All kinds of juicy details. The bad of the bad. All kinds of evidence about the dirty people working in the shadows of the Euphoria underworld.”
Aka how we take down my father.
My brain stutters hearing that information. “Mine?” Confusion threads through me. “Why would I be in any book?”
With a frustrated grumble he says, “Good question. Let’s find out.”
In one fluid motion, he tucks Kaylee into him and stretches a hand out for mine. He threads his fingers through mine and for the first time in three years I feel I am right where I need to be.
Calluses cover the pads of his fingers. His hand is larger than mine and yet he takes care not to tighten his hold to the pointof pain. Rough skin glides over my palm. I’m not an expert at relationships, obviously. I am also on new grounds on how to feel about rekindling an old one. But the sight of him slowly raising my hand and placing a delicate kiss over the backs of my knuckles has my mind whirling with curiosity.
“We can’t play family, Phantom.”
He frowns deeply, his brows knitting together. “You’re done running and not trusting the people around you. That ends here and now. You’re not safe out there all alone. But you are with me. And so is this little angel. Got it?”
Kaylee’s fully fallen asleep on her dad’s shoulder like she knows she is safe with him.
I look to Chloe and then to Phantom. “I don’t know how to do that.” The truth slips out when I mean to fight his words down to the last command. I want to blame it on how gentle his touch is, but the other truth of the matter is, he’s right.
“Chloe, lock up tight after we go. I’ll send some prospects your way. Don’t open for anyone.”
He walks toward the front door, holding me at his side. We don’t stop until we are outside of his SUV. It’s nearly one in the morning and my father has his men cruising around New Orleans looking for me.
He opens the passenger door and extends a hand. “The first step to learning to let others help you is getting in and letting me get you both to safety.”
I shoot a hard look at him but I also don’t fight him when he helps me into the passenger side and passes our baby girl to me.
“And?”
His gray gaze fixes on mine in the light of the overhead dome light and I know I am going to hate what he says next. “And second, if you want to see your brother, I am the only one who has the firepower to help you.”
With that he closes the door. Something tells me my fate is sealed and I better learn to accept I don’t have control over this moment in my life.
I’m starting to think I never had it to begin with.
6
EVERLY
