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PORTER
Thoughts of Ravenand the flirty things she’d said on the drive to the mansion filled my mind for the rest of the evening. I’d been upset when I hadn’t gotten clearance. I never thought I had control issues until I wasn’t the one with boots on the ground making the decisions.
Though that could be more about Raven than control. I wanted to be with her, and being stuck at the home base wasn’t going well for me.
“Porter, I’m about to be the only Hardy in this Crew if you don’t stop,” my brother hissed, narrowing his eyes at me as I tossed a ball against the wall.
Where I was used to being on the inside, Phoenix preferred his computers and working alone—the introverted weirdo.
“Ugh,” I groaned. “How do you do this? I’ve only been sidelined for one day, and I’m going mad.” I leaned back and tossed the ball into the air, forgetting that Phoenix had just threatened me.
“Believe me; I’m not enjoying this either. Your constant chattering is throwing off my rhythm. I feel like I’m missing something, but I can’t put my finger on it,” he mused, staring at the screen in front of him.
“Argh, leave it for now. You’ll see it better if you step away,” I encouraged, but really, I just wanted him to talk to me. My brother rubbed his eyes and blinked but eventually nodded and scooted back. “So, it’s our turn with Raven tonight. What should we do?” I asked, instantly perking up now that I had an audience.
Phoenix sat up, his interest piqued. “Do you think she’d let me wash her hair? She seemed to really enjoy it when Rueben brushed it. I bet she has the cutest toes. I want to paint them. Yeah. Let’s pamper her, Bro.”
His idea had merit, as I thought it over. We’d get to touch her and dote on her, two things I enjoyed a lot. Seeing Raven smile because of something I did was the best reward. Phoenix and I hadn’t grown up with good parents, only teaching us how to steal and con others before we knew it was wrong. Back then, the only things either of us could give freely were smiles, so we didn’t share them with anyone.
Meeting Otto and Rueben in the group home, we’d learned to trust and smile again through their friendship, knowing the true value of their love. And even after all the items we’d stolen over the years—all the riches we’d uncovered—none of it felt as good as earning a smile from our brothers.
And now Raven.
She was like us in many ways, growing up without a real family and relying on herself. She deserved to be catered to and pampered so she’d know how special she was. Raven gave out smiles easily, believing the best in people, but I wanted to earn the ones that reached her eyes and felt like a giant beam of sunshine.
“Do we have any of that stuff?” I scratched my jeans in thought, my body unable to stop moving. Phoenix shrugged his shoulders, lost in thought now. He was either hyper-fixating on the case, trying to solve the thing he missed, or focused on Raven. It could go either way.
“What do you think will happen after this case?” he asked, stopping my movement.
“What do you mean?” My body froze as fear and insecurity rose their ugly heads. Was she going to leave like all the others? How could I prove to her that we’d love her forever? What more did I need to do to show her we were worth it?
“Stop, Port. It’s not like that. I just mean, do you think she’ll keep taking assassin jobs? Or will she join us? Should we retire? Will we all live together? Raven is with us. I’m just curious about what that will look like. For once, I’m excited about the future. I can see one with her.” He smiled softly, the gesture changing his face.
My brother had always been the more subdued twin, careful who he trusted with his heart and kept people at arm’s length. I, on the other hand, played the odds game, scooping up as many friends as possible, hoping one of them would work out. To see him confident in our relationship with Raven quelled my fear, trusting his judgment far over my own. I also didn’t want to lose that smile on his face.
“Whatever we do, it’s going to be a blast. I’m going to grab some things at the store before I pick up our girlfriend. Any requests?”
“Get purple nail polish. I want to see her toes in that color. And lots of snacks. It will be fun to feed them to her.”
Chuckling, I stood and patted him on the back. “Will do, Brother. I’ll see you in a few hours.”
He nodded, returning to his computer and opening a new tab, his fingers flying over the keys before I even stepped foot from the room.
* * *
After spendinga small fortune at the corner pharmacy on things to share with Raven, I eagerly drove toward the mansion when it was time to retrieve my cutie-pie. My leg bounced the entire ride, wondering if she meant what she’d said earlier about rewarding me. I’d tried not to think about it too much, worried I’d walk around with a hard-on all night if I had.
But now that I was back in the car with the anticipated reward hanging in the air, she was all I could think about. Raven had slotted into our life so easily. It sounded insane when I thought about how strongly I felt about her after only a few days, but I couldn’t deny my emotions were real. I was falling in love with the girl.
Giddy excitement bubbled in my stomach as I turned into the driveway, getting out to talk to the guard. My friendly demeanor helped to lower defenses, giving me that extra edge to distract someone when I needed to steal something right under their nose.
“How’s it going, man?” I asked, waving as I neared with a perfect smile on my face.
“Pretty good. You the only Uber driver in town?” he asked, lifting his eyebrow. I could spot an information dig a mile away—this guy liked Nurse Molly and wanted to know if I was competition. As much as it killed me, I bit my tongue, knowing for her cover, it worked better. But the words tasted bitter in my mouth.
“Ha. It seems that way, huh? Apparently, I’m the only one willing to drive out here.” I shrugged, placing my hands in my back pockets. See, I’m unthreatening and nonintrusive. Just a friendly guy here.
The guard crossed his arms over his barrel chest, his shoulders dropping a millimeter. The sun peeked over the trees, the morning upon us, and coated everything in pinks and purples. I peered around, taking in the place in the daylight. The fences were high and would be impossible to climb without a ladder. I didn’t spot any guards this close, but they probably figured the one at the gate would stop most people.
