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“You didn’t ask, I decided. I guess you should know that when I make a decision, you’ll be hard-pressed to change it. We’re doing this together, and that’s that.” She lifts her chin, daring me to defy her.
“Okay, baby. We’ll do this together.”
Quinn’s face softens, and she slides into my side and under my arm. Kyrian leaps from her arms into mine and playfully begins to slap my cheek for attention.
“When are we doing this?” Steady asks.
“Orion’s asked if you could put this off until tomorrow,” Wildcard says. “He’s on to something and wants to see if he can get more information.”
Saint adds, “Yeah, and it’ll give Zane time to clear his schedule for an hour to meet with us.”
With a plan underway, Camille seems more content. This gives me relief. We stay a little longer, but I know that Quinn has work she wants to get done, and I have to connect with Ghost to see what skips are on the docket and if we have enough manpower to cover for the time I’ll need to take off.
In the car, heading back to Quinn’s apartment, she puts her hand on my knee. I glance in her direction. She’s staring out the window, quietly assessing the morning’s events.
“Are you all right?” Maybe this was too much too fast. Christ! We only just decided to be an “us,” and I’m involving her in a family drama she doesn’t belong in.
She turns her head to face me. “Shouldn’t I be asking you that?”
“This is too much, right?”
“For me?” she asks, raising her voice an octave. “I’m fine. I’m worried that this is a lot for you. There are a lot of emotions that can be felt, and knowing what I do about your family so far, it’s got to be affecting you. I’m worried you’re keeping it bottled up and not sharing with me.”
“My family is the Pride and you. Dad is a sperm donor at best. What I hate is that my past keeps sucking Camille and me back into their crap.” I take a breath and exhale. “I feel better knowing we have a plan. If he needs the surgery, I’ll pay for it. He needs rehab, I’ll pay for that too. It stops there, though.”
She bites her lower lip and nods slowly. “Decisions are good. We just need to take it one step at a time.”
TWELVE
Careers and Beers
QUINN
Our dramatic morning ended in a chill night. I think Priest is taking this all really well. I’m not sure I’d handle an abusive mother showing up on my doorstep, being belligerent and picking a fight, only to drop a bomb and leave, quite as well as he’s doing. Then again, my parents have always been “follow the rules” kind of people.
Mom believed in creating the necessary structure we kids needed, and for the most part, it served us well growing up. A strong work ethic was important to both my parents. They taught me to apply myself and study hard, and it’s paid off. It’s the same with the way I look after my finances. It’s also the way I approach business.
My clients are mainly referrals. I make sure to hit every deadline and do the best job ever. This makes them return clients with interesting projects that I adore working on. I’ve got a couple of projects going on right now, with another on the horizon. I love my job, and let’s face it, I also love shoes and purses. Every so often, I take a little money I put aside and have a fun shopping spree. Bethany and I usually make a day of it.
Which reminds me that I need to give her a call. Last night was intense, and my focus was on Priest. So far, I have three missed calls and four texts. I managed to send off a quick “Everything’s good. I’ll try to catch up later.” I get a happy-face emoji back.
After we get back to my place, I get down to work, and Priest spends most of the afternoon making calls and organizing his week. When he’s done, he makes us each a turkey sandwich, loaded with cheese, mayo, lettuce and tomato, and a side of chips.
“Food, babe,” he says as he puts the plate down in front of me.
“I do that a lot,” I tell him. He tilts his head and lifts a brow, wondering what I’m talking about. “I forget to eat. Then all at once, it hits me and I’m starving.” I laugh.
“You gotta eat.”
“Oh, I eat. Although sometimes it’s pretty late and I don’t feel like making a meal, so I settle for toast with jam and coffee.”
“Then I’ll make sure to remind you.” He gives me a big grin and takes a huge bite of his sandwich and points to mine. “Eat up.”
I grab the huge half and take a bite. It’s delicious and just what I needed. We keep chatting as we eat. He asks me about my work and seems really interested in what I do. Priest talks all about the bounty-hunting business, recounting stories of some of the weirdest skips he’s ever had to bring back.
“Sounds dangerous,” I say.
“It can be. After he turned in one of their pals to the local cops, a bunch of thugs attacked Roscoe when he was on his way back. Willow saved his life. From that moment on, Ghost doesn’t let anyone go it alone. There’s always two of us, and we’re in constant contact. It’s not as bad as you think. I like what I do, and I’m lucky that if I want a break, I can take a job or two with Risk in his construction business. I’m a pretty good carpenter too.”
