Her mouth drops open in surprise as Dex lets out a laugh. Out of the corner of my mouth, I see Elias trying not to laugh, and even Jagger and Sly look amused.
I consider how to answer without hurting her feelings. “Let’s just say that you’re going to need a few more lessons before we’ll let you back behind the wheel of any vehicle.”
“Hmm, fair enough,” she says, looking like she doesn’t love that but understands why.
“I’m sorry you never had the chance to learn,” Elias says, gaining her attention again.
“I wanted to teach you, and your brother said no. That you would always have someone to drive you.”
“Just another way to control me,” she says, frowning down at her hot dog. “If I couldn’t drive, I couldn’t get in a car and leave.”
“I’ll teach you,” I offer with a smile.
It’s immediately followed by two “No’s” from Sly andElias. They glance at each other before Elias concedes, allowing Sly to speak. “Wren, if you wish to drive, I will teach you. But let’s save that for when we’re free of all the threats.”
“Thanks. Right now, I’m fine being a passenger anyway,” she says easily, her chipper tone returning.
“Our passenger princess,” I say with a grin.
We continue eating, talking about the go-karts, and avoiding the topic of tomorrow. We’re all in some sort of silent agreement, not to mention the upcoming battle, and it keeps the conversation light and Wren’s smiles frequent.
Watching her thumb wrestle Dex for the last fry, I smile in amusement. She has this refreshing zest for life. I used to think of her as naive, but I don’t think that’s the right word to describe her anymore. She’s optimistic, most of the time, and she’s eager to experience the world. She’s incredibly intelligent, and the way she picks up new information and seems to adapt so easily makes my dick twitch in delight.
Who knew I had a thing for brainiacs?
My stomach clenches a little at the thought of everything she’s not getting to experience because we’re constantly having to look over our shoulders. That’s why we’re taking this fight to Robert tomorrow. We’re tired of sitting back and letting our enemies dictate the next move.
It’s time we start to settle the score and remove our enemies. Only then will Wren be safe.
CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT
DEX
“Does it bother you?” I ask, tugging down the corner of the comforter.
“What?” Pete asks, pulling his shirt off as he gets ready for bed.
“That she gave her stuffed whale to Elias to sleep with?”
His mouth quirks into a smile. “I think it’s cute. Kids give their younger siblings their stuffed toys all the time to help them sleep.”
I raise an eyebrow as I slide into my side of the bed. “You don’t actually believe they see each other as siblings, do you?”
He rolls his eyes. “Of course not. But it’s kind of amusing. He gets to cuddle her stuffed whale while we get to cuddleher.”
“What do you think Elias will do when this is all over?” I ask, lying back with my hands behind my head, staring at the ceiling in thought.
He shrugs. “I hadn’t really thought about it. I’m more concerned with ourplans.”
My mind drifts to our conversations about the future. “You really think we can make it work? Be hired guns?”
He takes a second to weigh it before answering. “We were all doing it for free before, anyway. May as well get paid, right?”
“But what if the person is innocent?”
“We can set some guidelines, boundaries. We get to decide what cases to take and do our own research into the target before we agree.” My mouth tightens when I realize there’s only one person I know who can hack into someone’s life like that.
Maybe I could get Elias to teach me?
