Page 98 of More Tricks

“Yes, I’m aware of that. What does that have to do with you?” I challenged, not understanding the connection.

“Dax sent us out right away as reinforcements to the compound. We got there just in time to turn the tide until Dax and the rest of the guys got there to finish them off,” Brian informed me. “The FBI has been running all over the place dealing with the dead bodies and such. Interviewing random people, so I thought I should get out of there for a while. Dax has immunity, but I’m not so sure that applies to the rest of us, and a fair amount of those people have a bullet in them from my gun.”

That certainly made sense and sounded like what my little hellcat would do. She liked to make sure she had all angles covered. I held out a hand, and he took it, shaking it gently, clearly knowing I’d been hurt.

“Eagle,” Dani snapped as she walked into the store. “What did I tell you about leaving the car?”

Ignoring her for a moment, I met Brian’s gaze, but he was already lost eyes only for the fiery woman behind me. That was a look I knew well, and it took everything not to smirk. “Thanks for taking care of my people, but it seems my jailer has found me. Stop by the house, have a drink, and stay for dinner. I know Dax considers you family.”

Brian shook his head and tried to cover up that he hadn’t heard half of what I said. “Yeah… sounds great. Are you heading back to the compound now?”

“If she has anything to say about it. Dax put her in charge of me for the next two weeks until I get these damn stitches out,” I answered as I headed for the door.

Dani looked like she was about to cuss my ass out until she noticed Brian. “You better not be talking him into smoking anything. With the meds he’s on, that would be a disaster.”

Okay, clearly the infatuation didn’t go both ways.

“No, no, I came in here looking for more juice for my vape,” Brian blurted out.

Dani’s nose wrinkled in distaste. “You know, just because it’s not a cigarette doesn’t mean that’s any better for you. We don’t even know the damage those things can do, not to mention how much nicotine you’d be ingesting without even realizing it.”

Poor Brian just looked at her, gaping like a fish, not having a clue how to handle this situation.

“Leave the man alone. You’re nagging at him like you're an old married couple,” I interjected. “Did you get my meds? I really want to get home, eat something that tastes like food, and put my feet up.”

Now Dani looked taken aback at my observation and chose to focus on me instead.

“Alright then, let's go,” she said, holding the door open and gesturing for me to exit.

Not wanting to make a big scene in the store, I headed out and over to the car. I paused when I got to the door, wondering if I could manage to pull the damn thing open.

“I got it, boss man,” Brian offered as he reached past me and opened the door. “I get the feeling you and Dax are pretty similar. She wouldn’t have admitted she couldn’t open the door either.”

Part of me wanted to be pissed he’d called me out, but it wasn’t like he was wrong. Nodding to him, I slid into the car, then looked around the lot. “Did you need a ride?”

“No, I’m good. I got my bike. It’s hidden by that big-ass truck. Think I’m gonna stay out of their way for a bit just to be safe,” Brian shared, giving us a wave before shutting the door.

Dani had us back on the highway heading home, and I couldn’t be more thankful. I wanted to be back in my own space with people I trusted and a world I could control because there wasn’t much of that happening right now.

“You were with Brian’s group in Vegas, weren't you?” I inquired.

“Yeah, when the explosion happened and everyone was getting shipped off to hospitals, I had one of the guys take me while everyone else stayed at the ranch waiting for orders,” she explained. “I didn’t know they all left to help until well after the fact, but it makes sense. Not like I could’ve done much since you were made my top priority.”

“Sorry about that. I’ll try not to get shot next time, so you can go with Brian,” I teased.

Dani snapped her head in my direction. “What are you talking about?”

“You mean to tell me you didn’t notice that man has a total hard-on for you?” I asked. “He would have been sending smoke signals if he knew how.”

She just shook her head and focused on the road. “I’m not looking for anything right now. My last relationship was a shitshow, and I don’t need that in my life. For the first time, I’m doing things how I want to, playing by my own rules. To add someone into the mix would ruin that, so I’m keeping things loose and easy.”

I could absolutely understand where she was coming from. Before Dax, we’d had other women who claimed they could be with all of us, but it never worked. They’d pick favorites or exclude one of the others, not really having any interest in them. So we took a break and just had flings, just sex, no attachments, but damn, did that sometimes make things harder. It was worth it, though, to wait for Dax, the little hellcat I now called my own. When I told them that she was my wife at the hospital, it wasn’t just for convenience. I one hundred and ten percent planned on wifing her ass up. She would be mine, well ours, legally with a contract and everything. No way was she going to get away from us because there would never be someone who could take her place.

The sound of a phone ringing pulled me out of my musings, and I realized Dani was calling someone. “Dani,” Void answered. “Everything okay?”

“Yeah, I just wanted to give you a heads up. We’re about five-ish minutes away. I’m sure things there are kind of crazy, but I figured you’d all want to be around,” Dani explained.

“I’m warning you, if anyone thinks they’re going to treat me like an invalid, I’m gonna shoot them in the leg. Then they'll be the ones people need to look after,” I growled out, feeling the need to set expectations.