A smirk lifted my lips as my brother tore Sledge apart right in front of my eyes. This was my world, the one I’d grown up in, the one I’d been homesick for from the first day I’d walked away for the job my cousin had given me. I thrived on the emotions the crowd projected into the warehouse. The screams, the boos, the cheers, and the shouts of profanity. All of it filled my soul with something it longed for whenever I was off on another assignment.

  Without even realizing it, I leaped to my feet, screaming and cheering on Judge right along with the rest of the crowd.

  Out of nowhere, Judge’s head flew back, blood pouring from his nose. Sledge had an open wound on his forehead, but it was all too obvious he’d headbutted my brother. He didn’t even seem fazed by it, whereas Judge stumbled to his feet, trying to clear his head.

  It was all the opening the other man needed. Jumping to his feet like his entire body didn’t ache from the beating he’d been taking, Sledge hit Judge in the face with an uppercut that had my own head snapping back with the force of it.

  Shaking his head to clear it, Judge’s eyes landed on Ellianna, directly to his right. Her pale blue eyes were wide, her face a sickly green. I watched her mouth his name, his real name, and a single tear trickled down her cheek.

  Something he saw on her face seemed to snap him out of his dazed state, and just as Sledge was coming in for a hit that would have surely knocked my brother out, he ducked. When he came up, he landed a direct blow to the side of the other man’s head. Sledge went limp, falling at Judge’s feet with a thud that echoed through the warehouse.

  While the ref attended to the downed man, I took stock of my brother. He had a gash across his nose that was bleeding, as was his left nostril. There was a bruise already forming on his jaw, and with the way he kept running his tongue over his teeth, I suspected one or two of his back teeth were loose.

  Other than that, he looked fine, but I knew he would need to be looked over by the doctor to rule out a concussion or any other internal injuries.

  From across the cage, I saw Ellianna jump to her feet and rush toward the exit. Judge took two steps, as if he were going to follow, then stopped and turned his back to the sight of her running away.

  “Did I actually see what I thought I saw?” Howler muttered from beside me as I sat down.

  “That my brother is crazy in love with Ellianna?” He nodded and I grimaced. “Do all guys treat the woman they love but don’t want to love like total shit?”

  A heavy sigh left him, and he dropped an arm around my shoulders. “It’s a defense mechanism, baby.”

  “Sounds like they’re just pussies to me.”

  “That too,” he agreed with an amused twist of his mouth. “But we learn our lessons eventually.”

  An indelicate snort left me. “I’ll have to take your word on that,” I told him snarkily, while hoping he was right. I wouldn’t ever say Howler had been a bully like Judge was to Ellianna, but he’d definitely put my heart through the wringer more than a few times.

  Grasping me by the hips, he lifted me up and onto his lap. The back of my neck began to prickle, and I didn’t have to look to know every eye in the building was suddenly on us. Instead of glancing around, I melted into him.

  Straddling his waist, I kissed him slowly. Lifting my head long moments later, I brushed my nose against his. “Let’s get out of here,” I purred.

  His Adam’s apple bobbing, he nodded. “Best idea I’ve heard all night, baby.”

  Grinning, I stood. As I turned, Judge caught my gaze, his brows lifted. Let him do whatever he wants, I thought as I smirked at him and lifted my hand to give him a finger wave, before letting Howler pull me through the crowd toward the exit.

  --

  Dawn was just breaking through the window when I heard Howler’s phone ring. Groaning, he unwrapped one arm from around me and blindly reached for it. “Yeah?” he rasped, still half asleep. But a moment later, I felt every muscle in his body tense, and he released me completely as he sat up on the edge of the bed. “Yeah, okay. I’ll be there as soon as I can.”

  Turning onto my side, I watched him stand and walk toward the closet. “Something’s wrong?”

  “Just a little issue at one of the sites, baby. I’ll go take care of it and hopefully be back before lunch.” Pulling on a pair of boxer briefs, he grabbed a pair of jeans. Once they were fastened, he picked out a plain white T-shirt and walked back to the bed without putting it on.

  Leaning down, he kissed me, slowly and leisurely. “I’ll be back soon.”

  Yawning, I nodded, snuggling deeper into the pillow that smelled like him. “Be careful. Love you.”

  I felt his lips on my shoulder, and he whispered, “Love you, Lyla,” before the bed shifted as he straightened.

  I closed my eyes, waiting for the door to shut behind him before releasing the breath I’d been holding. It had taken everything in me not to beg him to blow off whatever needed his personal attention and ask him to stay in bed with me until it was time for Josie to get home.

  After the night before, openly defying my brother by kissing Howler in front of the entire Underground and walking out with him afterward, I could sense our time together was coming to an end. Like a bomb timer ticking down, I could feel almost hear the tick-tock of the clock running out.

  Soon, Judge would make Howler choose. I’d seen it in his eyes as I’d smirked at my brother on our way out and pretended I didn’t have a worry in the world. Like I didn’t already know what Howler’s choice would be when his best friend gave him the ultimatum that would destroy me completely.

  Knowing I wouldn’t be going back to sleep, I grabbed my iPad off the nightstand and pulled up the app to watch one of my favorite K-dramas. But even as the hot Korean actor was making the unsuspecting love interest fall for him, my mind kept drifting.

  After having to rewind the same scene three times and still not retaining a single word they were saying, I tossed the iPad away in disgust with myself and went to shower. When I was done, I tossed on a pair of running shorts and a hoodie before going down to the kitchen.

  Cherie was supposed to bring Josie home at noon, so I still had hours of alone time. Dropping my phone on the dock on the kitchen counter, I selected a playlist and got to work.

  Growing up, Mabel had taught me how to cook right along with Ellianna, and it was one of my favorite things to do. Especially when there was a lot on my mind and I just wanted to turn it off.

  Howler had someone come in and clean three times a week, and they stocked the fridge and pantry for the most part. Fresh veggies were in the crisper, so I pulled out what I needed and got to work on a pasta salad that both Howler and Josie would enjoy for lunch.

  While I was at it, I made some homemade yeast rolls we could use for sandwiches, something father and daughter always devoured whenever I’d happened to make them in the past. They loved my cooking, no matter what I made for them, and I loved taking care of both of them.

  To go with it, I made a cookie cake and the homemade icing Josie loved so much, but I didn’t decorate it. She would want to help me, so I put everything aside for her to turn the dessert into her own masterpiece once she was home.

  By the time everything was finished and the kitchen was once again spotless, it was time for Josie to get home. Hearing a vehicle pull up in the driveway, I bounced through the house and opened the front door just as Josie came running up the walkway.

  Seeing me standing there, she threw herself into my arms with a happy squeal. “I missed you!” she announced, clinging to my neck. “I was scared you wouldn’t be here when I got home.”

  I kissed her cheek, holding her tight as I smiled at Cherie, who was walking toward us with Josie’s backpack in hand. “I’m not going anywhere anytime soon,” I told her, silently praying I wasn’t lying to her.

  “What is that divine smell?” Cherie asked as she entered the house.

  “I’ve been cooking. Are you hungry? I’m sure the pasta salad is chilled by now.”

  The older woman shook her head. “I’m actually on my way to lunch with a friend, but thank you, darling.”

  I smirked at her. “Who is this friend?”

  Cheeks turning pink, she tapped me playfully on the arm. “None of that, young lady.” Placing the backpack on the couch, she returned to the door. “You two be good.”

  Laughing, I waved to her as she walked to her vehicle, before turning back to my favorite person in the world. “Should we wait for Daddy to get home from work before we eat our lunch?”

  She nodded as we walked into the kitchen. “Daddy doesn’t work on Saturdays, though.”

  “He had an emergency,” I explained.

  “Cookie cake!” she exclaimed when she saw the now completely cooled huge cookie sitting on the island waiting on her. “Can I have some, Lyla? Please, please, please?”

  “This is our dessert tonight, kiddo,” I informed her as I helped her up into the chair so she could see the cookie better. “But you can decorate it however you want with the icing I made.”

  Once her hands were washed, I let her get to work on decorating.

  By the time she was done, it was almost one o’clock, and Howler still wasn’t home. Grabbing my phone, I called him to see if everything was okay.

  “Hey baby,” he answered in his deep voice. “Looks like I’m going to be here a little longer than expected. Go ahead and eat without me.”

  “Have you eaten today?” I asked, concerned.

  “Grabbed a biscuit on my way to the site this morning.”

  Rolling my eyes, I started pulling out the makings for the sandwiches I’d planned on being our lunch. “Very healthy.”

  “I was in a hurry, babe.”

  “Which site are you at? Josie and I are bringing you something to eat that isn’t soaked in saturated fat and grease.” Hearing me, Josie clapped her hands happily, and I winked at her.

  “That really isn’t necessary,” he started, but I wasn’t having any of that bullshit.

  “Howler,” I said his name, warning dripping from my tone, and with a sigh, he told me where he was. “We will see you in less than an hour,” I told him, and I disconnected before he could complain.

  With Josie’s help, I made enough sandwiches to feed the three of us and packed us each an individual serving container of pasta salad. Grabbing drinks and putting an entire pot of coffee into the thermos I found, we walked out of the house just as Judge’s town car pulled into the driveway to pick us up.

  At the construction site, it appeared they were in the early stages of building someone’s house. With the bag containing our lunch in one hand and holding Josie’s with the other, I carefully walked to the edge of the site and waited, knowing that unless we had a hard hat on, Howler would lose his mind if either of us set foot inside, where it was so dangerous.

  Spotting us, Howler left his foreman and jogged over to us. Scooping Josie up into his arms for a kiss, he threw his arm around my shoulder and kissed my cheek. “What have my girls been up to?”

  “Daddy, we made you lunch,” Josie told her father excitedly. “And tonight, we get to eat the cookie cake I decorated. It’s so pretty. I put flowers all, all, all over it.” As she spoke, she widened her arms more and more, making her father laugh.

  “She’s not exaggerating,” I assured him as we walked toward the little trailer that was one of the temporary offices for each job site. “I think there is more icing than cookie.”

  “That’s my favorite way to eat a cookie cake,” Howler said with a grin.

  “Mine too!” Josie exclaimed happily.

  In the trailer, he set his daughter down, and I walked over to one of the two desks to unload our food. When I passed him the thermos, he groaned his appreciation. “You’re the best,” he muttered, kissing the side of my head. “I’ve been dying for some coffee.”

  Hiding my smirk, I placed the food in front of him and Josie before grabbing my own. Producing plastic forks from the bag, I sat down beside Josie and opened my pasta salad container.

  “Babe,” Howler moaned around his bite of sandwich. “How did I ever survive without you all these years? This sandwich tastes like heaven.”

  Heart leaping with happiness, I dug into my meal without responding.

  Thankfully, Josie gave us a play-by-play of her sleepover at her grandmother’s house, keeping us both distracted while we ate.

  Once we’d finished and all the containers were empty, I started packing everything away.

  “Will you be home for dinner?” I asked, only to clamp my lips together when I realized I sounded like a nagging wife.

  “I shouldn’t be here much longer. Now that I’ve been fed some of the best food this side of the country, I think I can figure out the issue and get the show on the road.” Standing, he kissed me. When he pulled back, his lips twitched with amusement. “So yes, I’ll definitely be home for dinner. What are we having?”

  “Cookie cake for dessert!” Josie informed him proudly.

  “I hadn’t given dinner much thought. What would you like?” I allowed myself to stroke my hands down his chest once before stepping back. “Josie and I can stop at the grocery store on the way home if we don’t have what you want.”

  “You are all I want,” he breathed close to my ear before brushing his lips against my neck. I shivered but forced myself to take another step away from him. It would be hard to explain to Josie why I was walking funny if I continued to let her father make my panties soaking wet.

  “Roasted chicken it is, then,” I told him, and Josie cheered.

  “I love Lyla’s chicken.”

  Howler smiled for his daughter. “Me too, baby girl.”

  He walked us out to my brother’s car, where Tony was still waiting. As we approached, the driver’s window lowered, and Howler bent to speak to the man before telling him to stop at the grocery store on the way back to his place.

  Straightening, he ruffled Josie’s hair, then kissed my lips one more time. “Thank you for lunch.”

  “My pleasure,” I murmured, brushing a speck of dark lint off his white shirt. “We’ll get out of your way now, Daddy.”

  His nostrils flared. “We have to talk about you calling me ‘Daddy.’”

  I lifted my brows. “You don’t like it? Is it creepy?”

  “No, baby. It does things I can’t tell you about in front of my kid.” Tapping me on the ass, he opened the back door of the town car. “Buckle up, and don’t do anything reckless. I’ll see you in a few hours.”

  “Yes, Daddy,” I said with a wink and buckled Josie into her booster seat.

  Jaw clenching, he shook his head at me. “You’ll pay for that later, Lyla.”

  “Looking forward to it.”

  Chapter 13

  Lyla

  I was just getting Josie out of the bathtub when my phone rang.

  Unsure why it was ringing, I looked at the noisy thing apprehensively, an uneasy feeling settling in my gut.

  Wrapping the towel around Josie’s wet little body, I urged her toward her bedroom. “Go on, Jo. I’ll answer this and be right there.”

  “Okay,” she singsonged and skipped away.

  Finally looking at the screen to see who was calling, I realized it was Barrick and lifted it to my ear. “How did your meeting go last night?” I asked by way of hello, knowing the meeting that had been planned for weeks with Mia’s father had been weighing heavily on him.

  “Where are you?” he demanded, sounding…off. There was a strain in his voice, desperation, and something more. If I didn’t know any better, I would have thought my hard-ass cousin was close to tears.

  “I’m at Howler’s.”

  “I’m in fucking Georgetown, and I have no way back. Mia left, with Braxton, and they took my Jeep. No taxi or Uber will take me that far, and I’m about to lose my fucking mind, Lyla.”

  “Wait, wait. Hold up. What do you mean, Mia and Braxton took your Jeep? They’re supposed to be in New York for the weekend.” The dread I’d first felt at the sound of my phone doubled, because he wasn’t making any sense to me. “What the hell is going on, Barrick?”

  “Mia found out,” he said with a groan. “She knows everything.”

  “Shit,” I muttered. “I’m assuming she didn’t take the news very well, then?”

  “That’s an understatement. Her uncle called the cousin yesterday to check in on his daughter, and Mia happened to pick up, and she heard me in the background. She showed up at the hotel this morning with Braxton and her mother, and things went south rapidly.”

  “Oh man. I’ve heard stories about Mia’s mom.”

  “Lyla, they’re all true. She handled those four Demons like they were fucking toddlers. She had one of the brothers by the ear and was pulling him around like a kid instead of a grown man. And he just let her. It was surreal.” He blew out a frustrated breath. “But it’s Mia who scared the hell out of me. She wouldn’t believe me when I told her I love her. Please, Lyla, send the car. I have to get back to campus and fix this before I lose her.”

  “Okay, okay. I’ll call for the car now. I’m coming with you, though. She might listen to me.” I hoped, at least.

  “Thank you,” he rasped just before the phone went silent.

  Texting the driver who was always at my disposal, I walked into Josie’s room. “Jo-Jo, I have to go out for a little while.”

  “Will you come back?” she asked, her eyes filling with sadness.

  I crouched down in front of her, giving her a reassuring smile. “Of course I will. It will probably be late before I get back, though, so don’t give your dad a hard time about going to sleep. Okay?”

  “Okay.” She gave me a tight hug, then handed me the brush. “Will you braid my hair before you go?”

  I made quick work of her hair, then hurried downstairs where Howler was sitting on the couch in the living room. He glanced up as I grabbed my purse. “Where do you think you’re going?” he demanded as he got to his feet and followed me to the door.

  “I have to go pick up Barrick. Shit hit the fan, and Mia now knows that we’re her secret security detail.” Opening the door, I leaned up and kissed his lips. “I’ll probably be late getting back. Don’t wait up.”

 

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