His face was a gorgeous cold mask. “It means I agreed to work with you, not with MI6.”
“Cool,” Kala said. “You can come with me then.”
Ben didn’t even look back at her. “No.”
“I think I’ll take the assignment I was given,” Oliver interjected. “It’s been forever since I got to work with my cutest American cousin. Though that’s what we call each other. No blood between us, right, gorgeous?”
She rolled her eyes and got ready to give Oliver an earful, but Ben stood up.
“We could ditch the Canadian and work on our own,” Oliver suggested.
Ben gripped the back of his suit and hauled him up bodily.
It was violent. It was sexy in a way it should not be. In a way that was dangerous since the man had spent the last twenty-four hours ignoring her. So why the hell was he jealous?
“Hey,” Oliver began.
Ben punched him in the face and then let him drop. He turned to her father. “I’m not taking that asshole with me. He’ll be far too busy hitting on my sub to protect her. We’ll take Lucy with us. And Kenzie will be coming with me.”
Oliver turned and started to throw a punch, but Ben simply put out an arm and blocked it then swept out with one leg and put Oliver on the ground. He stood over him.
“Mine,” Ben said, his voice dark and deep. “You look at her again and I won’t hold back.”
It was exactly the kind of thing that should have her panting after him, but she couldn’t forget the coldness he’d wrapped himself in after taking all her warmth.
She was a prize, something he could toy with for a while before he decided if she was worth keeping around.
Or he was planning some revenge on her. She could see that, too.
Her father stood. “Well, on that note, I’ll take my wife and settle in. We’ll meet again tomorrow morning to talk logistics. Kenz, figure out what you want to do.”
“She’s coming with me,” Ben insisted, stepping back and letting Oliver up.
Oliver straightened his suit. “I don’t think this is going to work. I never realized Canadians were so humorless. Fine, then. I’ll go with Louisa. I’ve always appreciated a smart bird.”
“I will kill you,” TJ vowed.
“Or I could stay back and help out around The Garden,” Oliver offered. “The club is open for the younger set tonight since we’ll be out of my father’s hair in a day or two.”
Damon sighed and agreed. “I think Tag and I should talk anyway. We’ll head out to dinner and discuss the situation with his assassins. I’m afraid the younger set is a bit too much drama for me.”
Her father stood and held a hand out for her mother. “Ben, that was the smartest thing you’ve done since I met you. Ollie’s a menace. Kenzie, let me know where you think you can best benefit this team.”
Her mom hesitated. “Maybe we should talk, Kenzie and I.”
Lucy stood, holding her laptop to her chest. “I’ll take care of her. I’ll get her settled in and we can spend the evening watching Netflix and drinking some truly delicious wine. My mom brought it back from New Zealand. It’s completely ethically sourced.”
Yep, that was probably her night.
“She’s staying with me,” Ben declared. “I already had her things moved. Tim can use your spare room.”
Lucy frowned. “Uhm…”
Tim held up a hand. “I already found one of the privacy rooms. It’s cool. I don’t mind sleeping with a bunch of sex toys and a spectacular amount of lube. The bed’s nice.”
Oh, well that was lovely. He’d ignored her all day and then expected her to comply with his wishes?
Who the fuck did he think she was?
