A sly smile graced his sister’s face, and Cannon immediately shook his head and walked away from her. As he entered the kitchen, he heard footsteps behind him.
Taking the first food container out of the bag, he said, “I ain’t doin’ this with you, Capri.”
She laughed. “Doing what? Discussing work? We’re business partners, Cane. It’s kind of a necessity.”
Cannon cut his eyes at her. “I know you, Cap, and you ain’t tryna talk about no damn business.”
With a dramatic sigh, Capri placed both her hands on the island. “I am too. Is she . . . okay?”
Finally removing the last food container, Cannon said, “She’s straight.”
“The last time we talked, you said you were gonna keep an eye on her at her own house. Why are we here?”
Sitting at one of the barstools, Cannon opened his plate and eyed the ribeye, asparagus, and potatoes. It looked good as hell. He bowed his head and said grace before grabbing the knife and fork.
Cutting a piece of steak, he replied to his sister. “Somebody threw two bricks through her window tonight.”
Capri’s eyes widened. “Is she hurt? Did you see who it was?”
Cannon shook his head. “She’s good, but they were gone by the time I made it outside. It’s my fault I didn’t see shit. I should’ve been closer to the door.”
He chuckled and shook his head. “Ishould’vebrought her here in the first place.”
Capri shook her head. “No, it isn’t. I’m sure they had it planned so that someone would be driving off as soon as the brick hit. And you didn’t know that they already had her home address. This job came at us quickly, and you didn’t get a chance to do any recon like you usually do. You can’t beat yourself up about what happened. She’s safe, and that’s because of you. That’s all that matters.”
Glancing at his sister, Cannon smirked. Capri knew how personally he took his job. She knew he had the potential to obsess over everything he’d done wrong when something didn’t go according to plan, so she was always trying to reassure him in those moments.
“I hear you, Cap,” Cannon said, right before stuffing a forkful of steak in his mouth.
“I will say, though, if we were to expand our team, we’d have someone who could be in the field while you stick close to the client.”
“I already told you, I’m not ready to bring anyone else on right now.”
“Fine.”
They sat in silence, Cannon eating silently and Capri watching him, until she finally spoke up again.
“How is she in person compared to the picture in her file?”
Cannon looked up to see his sister grinning at him.
“Go home, Cap.”
She shook her head. “Nope. It’s late, and home is far. I’m sleeping here tonight.”
He just stared at her for a moment. The big brother in him didn’t want her on the road this late either, but he knew his sister. She had already peeped that he was attracted to Nahla, and she had been wanting to set him up for years. With the three of them under the same roof for the night, Cannon knew that there was no way Capri would be chill about this.
“She’s our client, Cap. That’s it. Don’t be in here botherin’ that girl.”
With her mouth hanging open in feigned surprise, Capri placed a hand on her chest. “Me,abother? Impossible.”
“Man, I really ain’t got?—”
He cut his statement short when he caught a whiff of Nahla’s scent. She smelled like a mix of coconut and something else that he couldn’t describe any other way than warm cotton. Whatever it was, it pleased him every time she was near. It also made it difficult for him not to pull her into his arms and bury his face in her neck.
A few moments after he sensed her presence, she was in his line of sight when she approached Capri with a bright smile.
Extending a hand toward Capri, Nahla said, “Hey, I’m Nahla.”
