“They should already be here,” Dev said, ignoring the range of emotion that came through in Cash’s tone while keeping an eye out for any sign of unwanted surveillance. Well, no one other than the small team Cash had watching out for him.
“What does your mom know?” Cash asked incredulously.
Dev was better able to pinpoint that tone. He had to hand it to Cash. His mister hadn’t used the word dumbass at the beginning or end of the sentence like Dev might have.
He came to a stop inside the garage, pressing the remote control again to close the overhead door. He glanced at the Ferrari parked next to him. Alec Pierce’s expensive sports car that spoke of money. Lots of it. “She doesn’t know shit about the case because you said not to tell her anything.”
He knew that wasn’t what Cash meant so he answered flippantly. Only for the amusement of watching Cash begin to spin out of control.
“I meant about Keyes and Alec being here. Why does she think they’re here?” Cash asked. This time, the implied dumbass was laced in every word uttered.
Dev grinned, cutting the engine to his ride.
“Oh.” He let the word hang between them for a couple of long seconds. He pushed open his door then looked over at the agent. That line between his brow, now a hard crease, became more pronounced. “She knows I’m checkin’ on Keyes. We’re meetin’ in the guest house. She started the heater and knows not to tell anyone. We’re good.”
“They aren’t worried about the DA?” Cash asked. Dev guessed that meant Keyes and Alec. Most likely only Alec. Keyes knew how to sneak around unseen like the motherfucking reaper.
Since he had finally wrung some emotion out of the usually stoic pretty boy, Dev continued the path of answering questions that weren’t really asked.
“Should they be worried?” Dev asked, his hand on the handle, his foot dropping to the concrete pavement of the garage. He paused again.
“Stop being purposefully dense. We’ve got to keep up appearances. You’ve brought those men to your mom’s house. If anyone followed them or us, it’d take about a minute to learn who owns this house.”
Dev shook his head as if the worry had no regard. “It’s owned by a shell company. My mom’s smarter than to alert anyone that a club member owns this house.” He shook his head again as if Cash were the one being dense and left the vehicle. He sent the door swinging shut with more force than necessary. It was a statement slam. Definitely harder than he’d ever let anyone else shut the door to his vintage cage.
He gathered all his swagger, using it in each step he took to the kitchen door.
=♥=
In a long line of internal sighs, Cash gave another. He was slower to exit the vehicle, walking toward the house entry as he made a note in his phone to fully research the ownership of this house.
Dev stopped just beyond the doorframe leading into the kitchen. The guy was so damned dramatic all the time, it could be anything that suddenly stopped him in his tracks, making Cash push into Dev’s back to get him out of the way.
What greeted them, took a second to absorb. Keyes sat at the kitchen table like a scene from any family biker digest magazine, celebrating domestic bliss. Mae balanced on one leg with Abi between his thighs, showing him something on her cell phone. Their puppy had doubled in size and sat perched on the other thigh, happy as could be. Alec Pierce stood behind Keyes, angled in such a way to look over Keyes’s shoulder at the phone.
This wasn’t Cash’s first time to come face to face with Keyes. He couldn’t say Keyes had lost any of his intimidation factor, but these children and the dog had no fear of him.
“Why aren’t you in school?” Dev barked, surprising the girls.
“Daddy,” Mae squealed as all eyes lifted to Dev.
“Shh,” Abi instructed. The phone in her hand held all her attention. Keyes’s gaze followed Abi’s but not before giving a side smirk toward Dev.
Mae wiggled off Keyes’s lap. Keyes helped her safely to her feet. Mae’s sweet, appreciative grin pulled one from Keyes. His boyfriend was a different story. Alec held a solemn stare, worry and concern knitting his brow as he glared directly at Dev. Yeah, the guy completely understood the high stakes at play by having Keyes associating with his former brothers.
Alec laid a hand on Keyes’s broad shoulder. A protective move. Keyes obviously didn’t seem to care about the challenges he faced if he got caught with Dev. Abi held all of his attention as if nothing else in the world mattered.
Dev hoisted Mae in his arms, brought her to his hip as he gave Cash an annoyed look over his shoulder. “You could’ve just asked me to move.”
As if anything was that easy when dealing with Dev.
“Daddy, look at me.” Mae’s palm pressed against Dev’s cheek, urging him to look at her. She was exactly what this tension-filled moment needed. It was so easy to see Dev was enamored with the little girl. His facial features visibly relaxed as he turned to face Mae.
“Why’re y’all home from school?” he asked in a tender voice.
“The water pipes froze and burst,” Mae explained.
“Momo’s in Dallas. We have two more days off,” Abi added.
