“Already did,” I shot back dryly, moving past them toward the hall. “You’re both over your monthly allowance.”
Rebel chuckled, unfazed. “Fuck off, Ace. I budgeted for that shit. Put it under ‘necessary expenses.’”
Cross snorted. “Should probably include bail money for the next time you start shit at the bar, too.”
Rebel shrugged. “Got Ash and Ace for that. They can bail out a fucking nation with smooth talk and pocket change.”
I shook my head, my lips twitching slightly. “Keep dreaming. Next time you land your ass behind bars, I’m leaving you overnight.”
Rebel grinned, clearly unconcerned. Cross barked a laugh, downing his beer before turning back to the pool table. Their voices faded behind me as I continued down the hallway toward my office.
The moment my door clicked shut behind me, I exhaled, the lightness of the interaction replaced by the steady thrum of tension in my veins. Moving around my desk, I dropped onto the chair and powered on my computer.
I had several emails about different projects the club was working on. Diving into their requests, I only surfaced several hours later for lunch.
My mind drifted to Poppy, as it had frequently since I’d left her at work. Which reminded me of why I’d been there to meet her in the first place.
I pulled up our accounts again and frowned when I saw more micro-probes. The small transactions were repeating. And there were some new ones. They were almost all flagged, but each time they were cleared. Picking through the data a little more, I realized that it was the same clearance tier every time. I wasn’t sure yet what that meant, but given some time and digging, I’d figure out what the fuck was going on and shut that shit down. Impatience was not something I was usually plagued with, but I felt enormous pressure to handle this situation quickly for some reason. It didn’t take much soul-searching to figure out why.
Poppy’s face flashed through my mind again, her bright eyes wide and trusting. Innocent. I didn’t like that she was connected to this in any way. Didn’t want it to touch her if shit escalated and the situation turned out to be worse than I expected.
I needed to find out who—and why—this was happening and make certain she wasn’t caught in the crossfire.
I headed to the kitchen to grab lunch, and as soon as I stepped through the doorway, the scent of food eased some of the tension that had been building between my shoulder blades all morning. Wizard and his old lady were sitting at one of the long tables. Thea held a tiny spoon of baby food while Wizard held their five-month-old daughter in his lap.
I gave them a chin lift as I passed their table, smirking at Wizard, who was elbow-deep in a messy negotiation with Skye, who was currently smearing banana all over her father’s face.
Wizard grimaced, wiping his cheek with a napkin. “Kid’s lucky she’s cute. This shit is fucking sticky.”
Thea gave her husband a pointed stare, her voice sweet but firm. “Language, Baylor.”
Wizard’s eyes were warm when he glanced down at Skye. “Sorry, baby.”
My chest tightened with a pang of envy. I’d started feeling it more and more lately whenever I saw my brothers with theirwives and kids. When I was younger, it was something I never thought would appeal to me. I’d never envisioned settling down or wanting a family. My world had always revolved around numbers, money, and the brotherhood of the club. But with a front-row seat to my brothers falling in love and finding such happiness, I found myself wanting it too.
Poppy’s beautiful face flashed through my mind—the way her hazel eyes sparkled when she rambled, the softness of her lips against mine, her lush, warm body beneath me as she cried out in pleasure. The ache in my chest eased, replaced by a fierce, almost overwhelming sense of happiness and anticipation. The image of her with my vest over her shoulders, my ring on her finger, and a soft baby bump beneath her dress was more appealing than I’d ever imagined possible.
I made a sandwich, listening to Wizard curse again when banana was suddenly shoved up his nose.
“Thought you only liked shit you can hack,” I drawled, barely holding back a laugh. “Bananas giving you trouble now, too?”
Wizard shot me a dark look, grumbling under his breath. “Fuck off, Ace.”
Thea sighed loudly. “Good grief.”
Wizard instantly looked apologetic, shooting her a rueful glance. Then he glared back at me, lowering his voice. “Look what you made me do, asshole.”
I chuckled as I took my food and started for the door. “Yeah, definitely my fault you can’t control your mouth when your little hellion is winning the war.”
Wizard scoffed. “Easy to talk shit when you don’t have one yet.”
Yet.
Just as I was about to pass Wizard, I stopped and muttered softly, “Keep running your mouth, and I’ll make sure Skye’s first word is ‘fuck.’ You know your old lady won’t blame me.”
Wizard’s eyes narrowed dangerously. “You’re a real bastard sometimes, you know that?” His voice was louder than mine, and Thea looked up from her daughter to glare at him.
“Every fucking day,” I replied. Then I took a bite of my sandwich, grinning as Wizard muttered another apology to Thea.
