I pinch my lips into a thin line, holding off a chuckle at the sight of her small form standing her ground in front of the brute of a man her boyfriend is.
Ryder’s here too, his muscular body folded into a chair, a glass of Bourbon in one hand. Koby’s at the kitchen island, amused eyes darting between Hailey and Carter.
The only one missing is Broadway. He went straight home with Violet. Koby didn’t hold back from explaining that they hadn’t fucked for four hours... and that’s way too long for them since Violet got pregnant.
And way too much information for my liking.
“Who would you have me send with Bianca?” Carter asks, his tone level. The control he exudes is astounding.
Hailey’s an agitated ball of frustration, huffing and puffing in his face. It doesn’t ruffle Carter’s composure in the slightest. If anything, it seems to amuse him.
She’s not happy about his choices for my bodyguards, neither up to her high standards.
“Ideally, Broadway and Koby,” she says. “But we both know Broadway won’t leave Violet, so Koby and Ryder.”
Ryder chuckles, raising his glass a bit higher. “Cheers, pretty girl. How am I last on your list?”
“Watch your fucking mouth, Ryder,” Carter grits out, shooting him a murderous glare.
Hailey rolls her eyes and for some reasonthatruffles Carter’s composure in a flash. She blanks out the hungry look crossing his face, too focused on Ryder to pay attention.
“Oh, come off it,” she snaps. “You’re more than capable, Ryder, but we both know violence is not your forte.”
Now, it’s Carter who chuckles, but the tension in his posture doesn’t ease. “You’d be surprised. Don’t let that calm exterior fool you. You’ve seen nothing yet.”
He grabs her by the shoulders, backing her toward the couch until she plops beside me, arms crossed over her chest. Carter crouches before her to save her craning her neck.
“Arthur and Apollo won’t let a hair fall off Bianca’s head,” he says, winding their fingers together and running his thumbs along her knuckles. “As much as I love indulging your demands, I can’t spare Koby. I need him here. There’s too much happening that you don’t know about.”
“Fine. But please send Ryder with her.Please. He can work from anywhere, right? Cleveland’s two hours away, and—”
“Breathe, pretty girl,” he cuts in, looking over his shoulder at Ryder. “What do you think?”
He looks up from his phone. Those brown eyes, the color of melted chocolate, clash briefly with mine before swinging tohis boss. “Whatever you decide. Considering what we discussed earlier, I’ll be tracking for the foreseeable future. Whether I do it from Columbus or Cleveland doesn’t make a difference.”
“I sure hope that won’t take up too much of your time,” Hailey pipes in. “I want you with Bianca, keeping her safe.”
“As unbelievable as it sounds, I can multitask.”
“Then it’s settled,” Carter denotes before Hailey can say anything else. “Happy girl?”
“Happy girl,” she admits, beaming at him, no trace of the anger she showcased a moment ago. “Thank you.”
Carter leans in, kissing her forehead. “Anything for you.”
It takes a lot of restraint not to pop two fingers in my mouth and theatrically gag at the display. They’re so sweet together it makes my teeth hurt...
And my heart ache.
I bet being cared for that way feels glorious. No one ever looked at me as if I held the answers to everything, and that’s exactly how Carter stares at Hailey. Like she’s the one who hung the moon. Like she’s a rare gem.
Urgh. Sickening.
Jealous, much?
So fucking much.
“What time are we leaving tomorrow?” I ask, daring to shatter their moment.
