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"Yes, I am. I'm not dragging you into this."
She wanted to feel happy that he wanted to protect her, but she didn't. She couldn't let him go and screw up everything she'd worked so hard to achieve. Shifter or not, no one could do this for her.
"You either take me with you or, so help me God, I'll fucking knock you out and go myself. Don't think I won't get there and get those balls before you."
They stared at each other. They were at an impasse. She didn't care. She was going to be part of this, or he was going to be hurt. Thoseeggswere hers.
THIRTEEN
STRAP
Strap glared at Mickey. She sat on the couch with her arms crossed, staring daggers at him. He stood a few feet away from her, shaking his head. He'd repeated himself ten times already.
There was no way in hell he was letting her go with him. Not if Biagini was the one who had the balls. He was stupid even thinking about stealing from the mafia capo.
The problem was both of his shifter sides desperately wanted her close. As his mate, they wanted to protect her, but he couldn’t put her in more danger than she already was.
She may not have seen the problem, but he knew Biagini. He wasn't someone you wanted to screw around with, and if he was going to steal from him, he sure as hell didn't want her anywhere nearby.
"Don't fight me on this." He sighed, rubbing his eyes. "I'm not letting you go."
"You either take me, or you're going to regret it," she snipped, narrowing her eyes.
He would because she would do something stupid and get herself caught and then killed. He didn't want to worry about her while he was trying to find out where the balls were stashed.
Images of her being hurt slammed into his mind, and he winced. That wasn't something he wanted to ever think about. He'd seen how it played out for unfortunate idiots who crossed the man, and it wasn't pretty.
Biagini had a man stabbed in the eye for bringing his dinner at the wrong time. Strap heard about another guy being hunted and strangled by Biagini’s men because the fool sold him a shit car. The stories piled up.
He looked back at her, and she still held her stern expression telling him she wasn't moving on the issue.
"I'll regret it if I take you and you end up getting hurt, Mickey. He isn't someone I want to mess with." His panther snarled in agreement.
"Then why are you?" she jabbed, her lips turned up in a snarl. She was looking for a good reason he had to go, and he couldn't give her one. He couldn't tell her the truth.
He swallowed. "Because."
"That’s a very adult response," she stated matter of factually.
He ran his hand through his hair, wanting to stay angry, but how could he? She wanted to go because she was worried about him. She wanted to protect him just like he did her. Why else would she be so stubborn?
He could argue all we wanted, but he wasn’t going to win. He might as well take her rather than her going behind his back.
"You will listen to everything I say," he growled low. "And I mean everything! I say jump. You ask how far, understood?"
She tilted her head. "Does this look like my first heist?"
He took a step toward her getting into her space. He smelled her lotion and wanted to scoop her up. His condor flapped his wings impatiently, asking for it. He bared his teeth instead.
"Did any of your last heists involve a man who smiled wickedly while he watched a man getting stabbed eighteen times? Or better, a man who loves to take people's intestines out and display them for the person to watch themselves slowly die?"
She didn't answer, which told him the answer. Mickey hadn't stolen from someone ready to rip another person's throat out because he felt like it.
A shiver ran down his spine, realizing he was allowing her to go. He didn't like it, but he knew he didn't have a choice. She wasn't giving him one.
If I tell her no, she’ll do the opposite. The more I push, the harder she will shove back. And I don't need her sneaking off to prove me wrong.
He needed to plan things perfectly to ensure if shit went south, they could still get out without being hurt. Especially Mickey. He couldn't let anything happen to her.
