"Kincaid," I say, jerking my chin in a nod when he reaches us. "This is my fiancée, Mila. Mila, this is Kincaid."
"Hi," Mila says and bravely takes a step forward, holding out her hand to him.
"Sup, gorgeous?" he says, his eyes sparkling with mischief. He takes her hand in his and acts like he's going to tug her forward to hug her.
I growl softly in warning as possessiveness flares to life inside. I pull her back to my side, keeping her close. No way is he wrapping her up in his arms. He likes to play too damn much, and I'm already on edge just being here. I don't want to lay him out for touching her when I know damn well he's hung up on his own girl, but that's a real possibility right now. I’m still pissed over what happened yesterday.
"So it's like that, huh?" Kincaid asks, laughing.
"It's like that," I mutter.
His smile grows wider and he nods before glancing down at Mila who blushes furiously. "I would hug you, but your man is a possessive asshole. It's nice to meet you, Mila."
"You too, Kincaid," she says, her voice soft and sweet.
"You can call me Michael," he tells her, shocking the hell out of me. Very few people call him Michael. Even fewer do it to his face. "Congratulations on the baby."
"Thank you." She smiles at him.
A man in a suit rushes by, his arm brushing against her.
"Let's go," I murmur, ready to get this over with so we can get the hell out of here. Maybe once Remi is dealt with, I'll feel better about having Mila out in public…but until he's no longer a threat, having her out here has me on edge. It feels like everyone is staring at her.
Kincaid falls into step with me. "Kaleo's pimping out girls," he says, pitching his voice low so it doesn't carry beyond our group. "Teenagers."
"Motherfucker," I growl, my head starting to throb.
Mila makes a sound of dismay. I pull her closer, offering her comfort.
"Sorry," Kincaid murmurs, grimacing.
"It's fine. You're sure?"
"As sure as I can be at the moment. I've got one of his dope boys on the hook. He's supposed to find out names and get back to me. Any word on Pledger?"
"Not yet," I mutter, stepping to the side to let a golf cart pass. "You want to raid Kaleo's property?"
Kincaid nods. "I want the girls out of the way first. The stupid son of a bitch," he growls. "I warned him that I would take everything from him if he didn't back off. I've already arrested several of his people."
"So I heard."
"I was in a bad mood," he says, shrugging.
Mila giggles like she finds that funny and then bites her lip and looks up at me. "I like him," she whispers, loudly enough for him to hear.
"What's not to like?" Kincaid asks, grinning cheekily. "I'm fucking awesome."
Mila laughs, but I just snort and roll my eyes as we reach Tristan and Lillian's gate. I spot them immediately. They're in a row of seats with their backs to the windows. Lillian has her dark head tucked against Tristan's shoulder while he and Jason Ames both glower at a pale, trembling couple across the terminal. Tristan looks like a dark-haired avenging angel hovering protectively over Lillian's smaller frame.
Despite the glower on his face, he looks good. The hollow shadows around his eyes are gone and so is the tension that practically radiated from him the last few weeks. Even so, authority ripples in the air around him, giving him a dangerous vibe that's hard to miss.
"Yo!" Kincaid yells when he spots them.
Tristan and Lillian both look up, an amused smile sliding across Tristan's face when he sees the three of us headed toward them. His smile reflects in his blue eyes. Everyone else in the terminal turns to look at us too, causing Kincaid to cross his arms over his chest and glare until they quickly decide to look elsewhere.
What the fuck did he think was going to happen when he shouted at the top of his lungs?
"Are you ever anything less than loud?" I ask him as we make our way toward Tristan, Lillian, and Ames.
"I'm not loud. People are just naturally attracted to my charm and sexiness," Kincaid protests. "Don't hate. It's not my fault you look like someone should have stopped feeding you about ten inches and ninety pounds ago, Sasquatch."
"Man, fuck you," I laugh in genuine amusement for the first time in what feels like years.
Mila laughs loudly at my side.
Lillian smiles at us. With her hair pulled back from her face, she seems so young and innocent. Hell, she is young and innocent, barely older than Mila. Despite the fact that she's traveled the world, dancing for millions, she still has a gentleness to her, like the cruelty of the world hasn't hardened her heart or made her bitter. She's genuinely nice, sweet.
She looks better than she did even a few days ago. The swelling on her face has gone down and the bruises are starting to fade. The sight of her battered face still tugs at my heartstrings though, sending another wave of hatred for Remi rolling through me. Anyone who can do what he did to a woman doesn't deserve to live. Anyone who could do it to a woman who's been through what Lillian has deserves it even less.
"Hey, Little Mama," Kincaid says, leaning down to gently kiss her on the cheek before holding his fist out for Tristan to bump. "Sup, boss man?" he asks, giving Ames a chin lift.
"He's always loud," Ames says to me with a grunt. "We gave up trying to teach him manners years ago."
"Whatever. You fucking love me and you know it." Kincaid smirks.
I tug Mila forward to meet Lillian.
"Hey, little one." I offer Lillian a smile that she returns. "Lillian this is my girl, Mila. Mila, this is Lillian Riley."
"Hi, Lillian," Mila says, her voice soft and sweet. She leans down and wraps her arms around Lillian in a tight hug before she steps back into my side and wraps an arm around my waist. "I've heard a lot about you. I'm sorry about everything you've been through, and I'm really glad you're okay."
"Thank you." Lillian smiles up at her, happiness shining in her brow doe eyes. "I've heard a lot about you too, and I'm sorry for everything you went through, too. Congratulations on the baby."
Mila smiles widely and then claims the chair beside her. They murmur back and forth, their heads together like they've known each other for years. Within seconds, they're giggling like neither has a care in the world. My heart rolls in my chest at the sight.
I love seeing that. Love knowing that despite all the bullshit, they're happy and they're safe. I might not want to keep the shit about Remi a secret, but it's clear that Kincaid was right yesterday. Lillian has made peace with what happened here. I'm not going to take that away from her now.
I glance at Tristan to find him watching the girls with the same soft expression on his face that I know reflects on mine.
"You ready to leave Los Angeles behind?" I ask, angling my body to shelter Mila and Lillian from the room. If anyone comes for Mila, they're going to have to go through me to get to her, and that will never fucking happen.
"So fucking ready," Tristan mutters. "No offense, but if I ever have to come back here, it'll be too soon."
"I get that." I grimace. "It's not exactly my favorite place either. I'd rather plant my ass in Santa Cruz and stay there, but Mila wanted to come home so…."
"Los Angeles is growing on me," Kincaid blurts, shocking the hell out of me.
"What?" he asks when our entire group turns wide eyes in his direction.
I'm happy to hear that, but keep that opinion to myself for the time being. One battle at a time, and right now, finding Remi has to be my priority. Convincing Kincaid to stay will have to come after I've ensured Cassidy and his ilk don't drag the skeletons out of his closet just to spite me.
"You thinking about sticking around?" Ames asks, leaning forward with his elbows on his knees to peg Kincaid with a no-bullshit look.
"Don't know," Kincaid mumbles, his brows furrowing.
Ames eyes him for a minute and then sighs heavily. "Figures I'd lose both of you at the same damn time," he mutters. "At least you'll both
be someone else's problem for once."
"We weren't that bad," Tristan protests.
Ames tosses his head back, a loud rumble of laughter breaking from his lips. "Are you fucking kidding me? The two of you are the sole reason I keep a bottle of vodka in my desk beside a bottle of Excedrin. If I could have gotten away with shooting you both in the kneecaps, I would have done it a long damn time ago."
Kincaid glances around and then flips him the bird.
"If you do decide you're here long term, let me know," I murmur to Kincaid as casually as possible. "There's a new opening on the taskforce. Bethel would kill to have you fill it."
Kincaid jerks his chin in a nod.
"You quit?" Tristan asks.
"Fuck yeah." A massive grin takes over my face. Despite everything going on, there's light at end of the tunnel and I can't fucking wait to step out into it. "My transfer paperwork was signed this morning. I'm officially out of the gang unit."
"Any idea where they're going to put you next?" Ames asks.
"He's the ATF's new SWAT Commander," Mila says, pride in her voice.
I shrug, smiling when the same emotion reflects in her eyes before she turns back to her conversation with Lillian.
"Congrats, man," Tristan murmurs, seeming genuinely happy for me.
"Thanks." I don't mention that we pushed the paperwork through so quickly to free up my spot while Finn works to open enough others for Luke and the other four agents like him who are embedded in the unit from the DEA. Like so much else, I can't bring it up. That burns like a motherfucker.
"Flight 2319 to Seattle will begin boarding momentarily."
"Guess that's our cue to get the fuck outta here," Kincaid says, looking around as other passengers start gathering up their shit and rising to their feet.
I hold out a hand to Mila, pulling her up beside me.
"How'd you get back here anyway?" Lillian asks, allowing Tristan to pull her to her feet.
Kincaid grins, pointing at himself and then at me. "We're cops, Little Mama."
"Oh."
Kincaid chuckles at her and then pulls her in for a hug. He whispers something in her ear, kisses her on the cheek, and then sets her back on her feet. "Behave, Little Mama. You're going to give T gray hair."
Lillian sticks her tongue out at him.
"So mature," he mutters in mock disappointment. His adoration of the ballerina standing at his best friend's side is apparent in his voice and the soft look on his face. He treats her like a little sister.
"Have a safe flight, little one," I murmur, pulling her in and giving her a quick hug. She squeezes me back, her eyes misting over. "If you ever need anything, you call me, okay?"
"Okay," she promises and then turns to hug Mila. "It was really nice to meet you, Mila."
I watch out of the corner of my eye as Kincaid pulls Ames off to the side and the girls exchange phone numbers. Tristan hovers beside Lillian like I do Mila, keeping her close at all times.
I pull him in for a handshake and a hug.
"Thank you for everything," he says, gratitude throbbing in his voice. "If you ever need anything, I'll be there in a heartbeat."
"Take care of her," I tell him. That's all he needs to worry about now.
"Taking care of her is my greatest pleasure in life," he says, his gaze landing on his ballerina. He seems happy, at peace for once. Relief and hope shine like beacons from his blue eyes. And that tells me all I need to know about where his head is at. For him, just like for Lillian, it's over and done with. Maybe one day I'll be able to tell him the truth, but for now, knowing that he's found some semblance of peace will have to be enough.
Mila slips her hand into mine, cuddling up against my side as doubt flickers through me. "You're doing the right thing," she whispers to me as Tristan, Lillian, and Ames head toward the line waiting to board the plane. "Even if it doesn't feel like it, you are."
Christ, I hope she's right.
Chapter Nine
Roman
"Rick Sanders just quit," Finn says, poking his head into my office.
I glance up from my computer screen, not sure I heard him correctly. The pleased look on his face tells me I didn't mishear anything. Sanders is out. "You're fucking kidding me."
"Nope. Rumor is he heard IA was going to recommend termination. He walked." Finn chuckles, the sound dark and dangerous. "Guess he thinks that'll save his sorry ass."
"You're going to recommend decertification?" I ask, already knowing he is. The last thing we need is a predator like Sanders running around with a badge, regardless of what agency he works for.
"Already have. Sent it up the chain this morning." Finn nods at the file spread all across my office. "Anything yet?"
"Not a fucking thing," I mutter, scrubbing a hand through my hair. It's been two days since Tristan and Lillian flew home, and I'm no closer to finding Remi than I was before they left. I've spent most of the last two days chasing down leads, and they've all been useless. No less than four hundred people have called in tips, saying they've spotted him in the city. At least a handful of those are reliable, and two were confirmed through traffic and security cameras in the area, but we still haven't found him. The tracker on the car he dumped still says it's right where he left it. I've got cameras on his dead uncle's place, but he hasn't been back there either.
I'm losing what little patience I had. I've barely seen Mila since I dropped her off after we left the airport. By the time I get home, she's already passed out. I'm up and out again before she wakes.
"You'll find him," Finn says.
I wish I shared his confidence, but I'm beginning to wonder if I will or not. I'm looking for a needle in a haystack, and thanks to the motherfuckers at the DEA, I'm mostly looking by my damn self. "I'm going to hit up tent city again tonight, see if I can't shake anything loose."
"You going alone?" he asks.
"Nah, Kincaid is coming with me."
Finn jerks his chin in a nod. "How's that whole situation going?"
"Still waiting on his informant to come through with the names of the girls Kaleo has been pimping out. Once we get those, we'll round them up, see if they're willing to talk. We already have enough for a search warrant, but Kincaid wants to wait."
"You good with that?" Finn cocks a brow at me like he's surprised I'm following Kincaid's lead on this, but I'm not stupid. The best thing we can do for those girls is get them out of harm's way before we raid. If we don't manage to scoop up all of Kaleo's people, the girls will be in danger. Though at the rate Kincaid is hunting down and hauling in Kaleo’s crew, that might not be an issue.
"They'll be safer this way," I say with a shrug, not willing to risk it.
Finn nods, his lips pursed. "How are things going with Ms. Donovan?"
"Not a fucking clue," I admit, scrubbing a hand down my face. "She and Mila are getting along great, but she's still not talking. I thought she was learning to trust Octavio again, but…" I shrug instead of finishing that sentence, not willing to tell Finn that Octavio's in deep with her. I don't know what the fuck happened between the two of them, but she wouldn't even look in his direction this morning. He growled something about spanking her ass and then stormed off before I could ask what was up. I'm pretty fucking certain she was crying when she ran inside the house.
The only good news that's come over the last few days is the fact that gang related shootings have dropped significantly. There have been two in the last five days…which is big fucking news considering there were over two hundred in four months. Word is out about Kincaid being in town, and they're all shaking in their boots.
"You had a chance to talk to Santiago yet?"
"Yeah. Fuck. He says he's down to transfer out." Not that we expected any different from him. He's been half-ready to jump ship since Remi kidnapped Lillian. When I offered him Brady's position, he was all over it. Thank fuck. As much as I want all of the team out of DEA hands, I want him out most. They know he's watching Mila for me right now. I do
n't want them holding his future over my head like they're holding Kincaid's past over me.
Finn nods again, crossing his arms over his chest. "I'll get his paperwork lined up. See if we can't get the ball rolling as soon as possible."
"Thanks, man."
"You need anything?"
"A fucking vacation would be nice," I mutter.
Finn throws his head back and laughs loudly. "I gave you one of those after Mila was shot, kid. You aren't getting another one until that baby gets here."
"Shit," I mumble, shooting up out of my chair at the mention of the baby. Mila's meeting her new obstetrician today, and I'm supposed to be there. "What time is it?"
"A little before two. Why?"
"Fuck me. I'm late." I grab my keys and shove them into my pocket, knocking a stack of papers off my desk in the process. I glare at them as they flutter to the floor. I've had a fucking office for a week and my goddamn desk is already covered in paperwork. I don't even know where it's coming from. I come in and find a whole new stack waiting for me.
"I'll get it," Finn says, waving me off. "You go."
"Fuck, thanks." I give him a fist bump and head out, dialing Mila's number while I jog toward the elevators.
"You're late," she says as soon as she answers.
Though there's no anger or accusation in her voice, I feel like shit anyway. "I'm sorry, baby. I lost track of time. I'm on my way."
"Okay, just meet me at the doctor's office."
"The next words out of your mouth better be that Luke is driving you," I growl, jabbing the button for the elevator, "or I will spank your ass, Mila."
"Obviously he's driving me," she huffs and I can practically hear her eyes roll through the phone. Her tone drops to an annoyed growl. "I know the rules, Roman. I'm not an idiot."
Shit. Now she's pissed.
"I know that."
"Then don't treat me like I am."
What the fuck?
I take a deep breath… and then expel it in a heavy sigh. She's hormonal and stressing about meeting the new doctor, and I'm being a dick for no reason. Of course she's not out by herself. "I'm sorry. Bad day," I murmur. It's not an excuse, but it's the truth. My day has been shit, and the thought of her driving through Los Angeles alone stresses me the fuck out. "I'll be there soon, Mila."
Desire Me (Her Best Friend's Father Book 4) Page 13
