I shake my head. Iffn Tavish is in that van. Anyone for something to take would look there first.
CHAPTER TWO
TAVISH
The back doorsof the van burst open. My head flies toward the rear of the van.
“There you are,” he says.
“Draven,” I gasp at the sight of him filling the open door.
“Dinnae say a word. Yer fucking name is on this arsehole’s kill list, and you thought it was a good idea to walk out o’ headquarters with nae any protection? Without telling me. Yer a sitting fucking duck in this van and ye dinnae have anyone in here with ye to protect yer arse,” he yells at me, and I cringe.
He’s not wrong. The back of my neck’s been tingling since I stepped outside the manor. I open my mouth, but Draven shakes his head.
“Nae! Keep yer mouth fucking shut and get out here.”
I clamor out of the van, bringing my gear with me. His disappointment and anger washes over me. It drenches everything.
He wouldn’t be so upset if he didn’t care. Right?
He grasps my bicep, half dragging me along with him, chastising me every step of the way.
“I dinnae ken what to do with ye, pojke. I never thought I would need to worry about you putting yerself in danger.Starving yerself, aye. Never sleeping, absolutely. But walking outta the mansion, kenning ye are walking into danger and doing it with nae a care what could happen to ye? Nae. I never considered that.”
“I didn’t plan this.”
“Then who the fuck did? Never ye mind answering. I can guess. The lot o’ them are fucking blind to the revenge they seek. And I ken that’s rich coming from me, but they had nae right dragging my boy into their stupidity.”
My boy?
Those two words have me close to bursting at the seams. The happiness that fills me is as bright as the sun at noon on a summer’s day. He’s told me I’m his. Several times. He’s called me boy and little one and several other things but to have him claim me as his boy. That…there aren’t words for how that makes me feel.
If I were a pig, I’d roll in it like mud.
“Get in,” he orders.
I look up at him and then back in front of us and see he’s holding open the passenger side door of a car. “How did you get this here without me seeing?”
He shakes his head, pushing me into the passenger seat as he mumbles under his breath. “This is why ye needed someone in the van with ye.”
“I’m serious, Draven. How did you get close without me seeing? And how did you know where to find me?”
“It was on the screens in yer room.”
“And how did you get this close without me seeing you coming?”
“Nae idea.”
I pull open my laptop. Glancing around, I look back at the screens and see he’s somehow managed to find the only blind spot in the area. I can’t believe I missed it. My chest heaves withrelief. I’m damn lucky it was Draven who pulled me from that van.
“What did ye find?”
“It’s a blind spot in the cameras. It was a trap.” I knew this already. I watched it happen, but I promised him honesty.
Draven’s face hardens, but he says nothing as he starts the car. But instead of putting the car into gear and driving us away, he slams his fist on the steering wheel.
“Daddy…” I whisper. My voice sounds small and thready with sorrow and fear. He’s a violent man. I’ve seen him kill with his bare hands and with the axes he always has close at hand.
