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“Good idea,” I said, nodding. “I’d like you here, just until everything calms down. I’ll walk you out. I need to talk to Marcio real quick anyway.” I turned to Mary as Lily headed for the door. “You okay while I go talk to the men real quick?”
“Yeah. Hurry and come back to bed.”
The emotional pain was so deep that it made me not want to leave at all. Not in her condition. “Five minutes, tops. Then you have me for the rest of the night.”
With her nod, I turned and headed for the front door, making sure to shut hers behind me. Lily was already gone. I took out my phone and checked the time as I approached the entrance. One hour and five minutes since they left. My jaw clenched as I opened the front door. Marcio and Brace stood a few feet away, next to the small table where they kept their drinks. Both turned as I closed the door behind me.
“I’m headed to bed. Mary is pretty upset. Let Zain in when he gets here, but tell him I said he sleeps on the couch. He can let Lily knows he’s back, but in no way, shape, or form is he joining her in that bed with me under this roof. Clear?”
I could see Marcio trying to hold in his smile. “Got it, boss.”
“Lily is too tired to leave tonight, so Washington won’t be a go until the morning. Also, my phone will be on silent. Gaige might be coming back over. If I don’t answer, inform him we have Lily. If he wants to see her, he can stop by in the morning before they leave. Unless, knowing him, he insists. Only then, are you to come get me. I’m tired, I’m hung over, and I want one night in bed with my wife without being interrupted by something. Like, morning sickness. Fuck, it was driving me crazy to see her body under so much stress. “Good night.”
“Night, boss.”
Even as they said the words and I walked toward my room, I knew sleep wouldn’t find me. Not with Zain and Blake still out there. I talked a good fight, but Zain was quickly making himself apart of my family. And not just out of respect for Lily. I liked him. And I’d be restless until he walked through my door safely—or not.
Chapter 24
Zain
“Black car,” I said, pointing to the luxury sedan pulling away from the parking garage of the expensive hotel my father was staying in. “He’ll be in that one.”
Blake’s eyes cut over to me. “How do you know? That could be anyone.”
My mouth opened, only to shut. “I just know. My father has one at home just like it.”
“So do thousands of people in this country. This was a bad idea. It’s like we’re looking for a needle in a haystack. You should have just let me call and ask if he was still there, like I wanted. Maybe I could have gotten some information from the front desk clerk.” Blake entered traffic, letting two cars separate us from whom I assumed was my father.
“Listen, I know Amir. He’s a creature of habit. That’s why he has guards. To protect him. He’ll have had what he knows made available so he feels comfortable. That,” I said, pointing again, “is my father.”
“If you say so,” Blake said, lowly. “If it’s not?”
The challenging look had my head cocking to the side and my eyes narrowing. “Are you proposing we wager something? Like a bet?”
Blake shrugged. “Why not?”
My attention went back to the car. With the way the lights hit from oncoming traffic, I could see the silhouettes of three men in the back. It was perfect. It was him. “Fine. If I’m wrong, I’ll—”
“Stand there and watch me kill your father.”
“What?” I was aghast and my voice showed it. I looked at the tracker, shocked and angry. “You can’t be serious? After how much you know I need this? That’s the stupidest thing I think I’ve ever heard you say.”
“This,” he stressed, “is the stupidest idea I think I’ve ever heard from someone who claims they have experience in these sort of situations.”
Anger intensified and I grabbed my coffee, taking a drink. “Do you do this sort of thing with Preston, the other guy you work with, too? Take his glory right out from under him?”
Blake’s head snapped back toward me. “You leave Preston out of this.” He waited few seconds and a smile eased to his face. “I actually got it from him. He started the whole bet thing, although ours are more on the humor side of things. With you, I just know where to push your buttons.”
“Well, you should have stuck to humor and not tried to piss me off. That’s not a good thing to do, just so you know.”
“Hmm, well I happen to find humor in my bet. The look on your face was enough.”
“You’re such an asshole.” I took another drink, trying not to smile. His had been glued to his face since the moment he started riling me up. Who was this man next to me, really? What kind of person was he around his wife? His friends? All I knew was he was true, honest in the way he carried himself. He came off hard and unfeeling, but that wasn’t all he was.
The car turned and I put down my coffee. Pulling out my gun, I put a bullet in the chamber.
“Hold on.” Blake’s eyes scanned the area as we followed behind. A traffic light loomed ahead and he slammed his foot on the accelerator, jumping past the cars that separated us, until we were even with the sedan. “Do you recognize any of them?”
