I didn’t like it, but as I looked over at the women, I realized they wouldn’t have let us come anyway.
“Jackson, I want every single one of the women to have extra trackers put in before the trip. They’re leaving in five hours, so get Hunter up here and get those trackers installed asap. Cara’s pregnant, so she needs the all clear before she even takes one step toward that vehicle. Also, I want current bloodwork on all of them. Any signs of a problem, and they’re not going. No mistakes. Also, get hair samples.”
“You want fingernail clippings while we’re at it?” Jackson asked. Cap glared at him. “What, it was a joke.”
Sinner raised his hand. “Can I just say that I think you’re all overreacting? It’s a sex toy convention. There’s nobody after us. It’s basically been boring around here since the whole senator situation. Honestly, just relax. Everything will be fine.”
Cap glared at Sinner. “Our women are going out of town and you think everything will be okay?” he said slowly. “Your wife is pregnant.”
Sinner nodded with a bored expression. “Honestly, we’ve been training them for years. They’ve got this. They’ve all had the best defensive driving classes. They can all fire a weapon really well, with the exception of Raegan—“
“Thanks, man,” Jackson said.
Sinner shrugged. “It’s true. She can drive or something. Besides, firing weapons is cathartic. You should be happy about this. And you don’t have to worry about Cara. She’s got this. Hell, if it’ll make you feel better, send Vittoria along.”
“Yeah,” Cap snorted. “I’d like to see you tell Gabe that. Or Isa for that matter.”
“Look, I’m just saying, the kid has talent. He’s going to have to get used to that fact sooner rather than later. Besides, Knight’s been training her on the side. There’s no stopping that kid.”
“He what?” Cap exploded.
“Hey, don’t shoot the messenger,” Sinner held up both hands. “It’s not like I suggested it. I mean, I didn’t exactly tell him not to do it. Think of a female assassin around here. Tell me that wouldn’t be beneficial to us.”
“If I wouldn’t let my wife go to a sex toy convention by herself, what makes you think I would ever want a female assassin working here?” he exploded.
“Well, why don’t we just poll the ladies about what they think about that sexist comment?”
We all swiveled around in our chairs to find the other end of the conference room empty. I stood when I saw a single sheet of paper at that end. Picking it up, I read it over with a laugh.
“See you in three days.” I looked up at all the guys. “I guess that means they didn’t like our ideas.”
Chapter Nine
Craig
“I can’t believe Cap sent us out on a job right now,” Rocco muttered. “He knows I’m trying to finish that damn rulebook.”
“Frankly, I can’t believe that he put the whole company on working on the manual,” Florrie snapped, irritated with his ramblings.
He had been going on and on about the manual for hours now, and the drive was becoming more irritating by the second.
“Would you just let it go?” I snapped. “No one cares about the stupid rulebook or the manual.”
He slowly turned his gaze on me. “What did you say?”
“Look, you’re freaking out over nothing. So what if Brooke is pregnant? Do you really think that creating a rulebook is going to do you any good?”
“I have to agree with Craig on this one,” Florrie said.
“Right? You’re going about this all wrong. Compliance doesn’t come with being nice. You have to take what you want from her.”
Florrie shook her head slightly. “That…wasn’t what I was saying.”
I shrugged. “I’m just saying, out of all of you, I’m the only one that had the nerve to do what needed to be done. Reese didn’t seem to be coming around, so I made sure she saw things in a different way.”
“No,” Rocco shook his head. “I don’t want to force Brooke to do something. I want her to make smart choices.”
Florrie snorted. “And those smart choices include following your rules.”
“Exactly,” Rocco replied. “I’m just saying, if there was a strict set of rules for her to follow, things would be a lot easier.”
“For you, maybe,” Florrie snorted. “You’d better be careful what you wish for.”
“What does that mean?”
“It means that when you go after the women of Reed Security, they tend to fight back,” Florrie smirked.
“You don’t seem to be a problem,” Rocco muttered.
“That’s because everyone knows not to fuck with me. Your problem is that you underestimate Brooke.”
“I’m well aware of her capabilities.”
“Really? Even after all those training sessions, you still think that she’s just a little kitten you can pet?”
“Look, I’ve seen her skills with a gun, and while they’re not bad, I’m not exactly worried about her killing me.”
I watched in the rearview mirror as a smirk slid across Florrie’s face. I had a feeling she knew something we didn’t.
“Not all lethal skills come in the form of killing someone.”
Rocco’s brows furrowed. “What other way is there?”
“If you don’t know the answer to that, I can’t help you.”
We pulled into the residence of a man by the name of Milo Caselli. He was currently living in an apartment outside of D.C. From the looks of things, he wasn’t doing too good right now.
“Did Cap say who took out the hit on him?” I asked, staring up at the dingy apartment building.
“His wife,” Rocco snorted. “He must have done something really bad to piss her off.”
I frowned. “I don’t know. Look at our women and tell me if you still think that’s true.”
We parked in front of his building and glanced around as we approached the front door. I didn’t see anything out of the ordinary, but then again, this place was a dump. It would be easy to conceal yourself around here. Hitting the buzzer, we waited outside, my eyes continually scanning the property until we were let up. He didn’t even ask who it was. He just opened the damn door.
Trudging up the stairs, Rocco banged on the door, pulling his gun as soon as the door was opened. He shoved the man inside, his weapon pointed at him the whole time, as Florrie and I checked out the rest of the place.
“What is this? Who the hell are you guys?”
“Clear,” I shouted as I walked back into the room.
Rocco held the guy by the shirt collar, his gun still trained on him. The guy looked absolutely terrified. “Are you Milo Caselli?”
“Yeah.” Sweat trickled down his face and his whole body shook with fear.
“Milo, you’ve got a real fucking problem.”
“I know,” his voice shook. “Someone’s trying to kill me.”
“And you just let us walk right up to your apartment,” Florrie snapped. “You opened your door without checking to see who it was. Tell us again how you’re still alive?”
“I…I just moved in here. I figured it was safe.”
“Then who did you think was at the door?” I asked.
“I ordered a pizza!”
“And that almost just got you killed,” Rocco said, shoving the guy away from him as we all holstered our weapons.
“So, your woman is trying to kill you. Any idea why?”
He snorted. “You want a list?”
“Did you try and kill her first?” Florrie asked. “Hit her?”
“No,” he shook his head, “Nothing like that.”
“Did you cheat on her?” I asked. “Women tend to not like that.”
“Of course not. I love her.”
“And she loves you?” Rocco asked.
“Well, up until about a year ago.”
“What happened a year ago?” I asked, crossing my arms over my chest.
“I don’t know,” he s
hrugged. “One day, she just started getting really pissed at me, saying things like, Do you know how to flush the toilet, or do you need me to do it for you? Or I would ask where something was, and she would say, The same place it’s been for the last ten years.” He stared at us with wide eyes. “And then she just wouldn’t tell me. I don’t know where to go with that.”
“So, let me get this straight,” Rocco scratched his head. “You haven’t threatened her, hit her, cheated on her, run over her dog, or anything at all that suggests you don’t want her alive?”
“Right,” he nodded.
Rocco turned to me with a long look. “Christ, this guy doesn’t need protection. He needs a marriage counselor.”
“I mean, we’re here,” Florrie said. “We could just shoot him and collect the hit money.”
“Hey!” Milo said indignantly.
“Relax,” I held out my hand. “We’re not going to shoot you. We’re going to take you to your wife, and we’re going to have a long chat about…so many things.”
“Yeah, you should definitely be the one to discuss the ins and outs of a relationship with him and his wife,” Florrie snorted.
“Hey, if anyone can show this guy how to come back from the worst of the worst, it’s me.”
“Alright,” Rocco said as we drove out to Milo’s house outside of Bethesda. “Let’s just get in and explain the situation. Maybe we can talk her into giving you a second chance, and then we can get home and I can finish the damn manual.”
“What manual?” Milo asked.
“It’s a relationship manual. I’m writing it, along with a rulebook for my fiancé.”
He leaned forward in his seat, obviously interested. “What kind of rulebook?”
“You know, rules that she follows so that we’re on the same page in our relationship.”
“Does this work for everyone?”
I shook my head slightly. “Probably not for you.”
“And she knows about this, and she’s okay with it?”
Rocco glanced at me for a moment before shifting uncomfortably in his seat. “I wouldn’t say she’s exactly thrilled about it, but there have to be boundaries in every relationship. Besides, I just found out she’s pregnant. I’ve got to get this thing signed before that baby comes. After that, her hormones will be going crazy, and she’d probably kill me.”
“Wait, so you have this notarized and everything? Like a real contract?”
“Not exactly,” Rocco said. “It’s more like guidelines.”
“But it’ll be laminated,” I added quickly.
Florrie snickered in the back seat.
“I don’t get it. If it’s not legally binding, and you can’t actually enforce it, then what’s the point of it?”
Rocco chuckled slightly. “He’d like to know the point of it.”
I laughed along with Rocco, both of us having fun laughing at his expense. Florrie just shook her head in the back.
“Yeah, I would,” Milo said, obviously confused as to how all this worked.
“You know what? We’re at your house now. How about you just keep your mouth shut and see if we can talk your wife out of trying to have you assassinated. Sound good, cupcake?”
The man frowned, and we all got out, but the minute Milo stepped out, gunfire erupted from a second story window. Milo cried out and collapsed on the ground. I picked him up and shoved him back in the SUV, slamming his door.
Turning with an all-knowing power, I slowly raised my head and narrowed my eyes at the top floor window where the gunfire was coming from. Holding up my hand, I shouted, “Stop right now!”
I saw the twinkle in her eyes, and I thought for just a minute that my eyes were playing tricks on me, but then she fucking fired her gun. Eyes wide, I dove to the side and covered my head.
“I just came to fucking talk to you!” I shouted.
“Fuck off,” she yelled back.
“Hey, lady! I’m a security agent, and I could kill you with the flick of my wrist. I strongly suggest you stand the fuck down!”
“And I strongly suggest you get off my property before I count to three, or I’m putting a bullet between your eyes!”
I stood slowly, standing tall. I was a fucking warrior and I wasn’t going to be threatened by a civilian like her.
“One!”
Rocco rolled down the window. “What the fuck are you doing? Get in the goddamn SUV!”
“She won’t shoot me,” I said confidently.
“Two!”
“I’m pretty sure she’s about to put a bullet in you,” Rocco shouted.
“No,” I whispered. “She just needs someone to stand up to her.”
Florrie leaned out the window. “She needs to let out some tension, and you’re standing out there like a fucking target!”
“Three!”
I closed my eyes, holding my hands wide. I felt like Dr. Strange or something right now. I was in the zone. I could practically feel her uncertainty swirling around me. She didn’t want to shoot me. I just had to believe that, and everything would be fine.
Bullets pinged all around me, one of them striking me in the arm. My eyes flew open as I turned and flung the SUV door open, jumping inside.
“She fucking shot me!”
“She shot me too,” Milo cried.
“Yeah, but you’re her husband. I’m just a guy coming to help.”
“She did warn you,” Florrie said, glancing down at her nails as bullets continued to hit the vehicle.
“Yeah, but I didn’t think she would actually shoot me! Look at this. My favorite shirt, torn to shreds.”
Rocco fingered the bloody hole in my shirt sleeve. “It’s just the arm. You could just cut the sleeve off.”
“Oh, like that’s the same. Then I’m just a dumbass walking around with one shirt sleeve.”
“You’re also the dumbass that stood outside with his arms spread wide while a crazy woman fired at you,” Florrie pointed out.
“I just didn’t think she’d actually do it,” I said to myself. “I swore, I could feel her energy all around me. She didn’t want to shoot me.”
“If it makes you feel any better,” Milo said, “she was never a very good shot.”
I slowly turned and glared at him. “That does not make me feel better. That means she really wanted to kill me, but just didn’t have good aim.”
He shrugged. “But you’re still alive. And hey, this was my best work shirt. At least yours is just a t-shirt.”
I narrowed my eyes at him. “Just a t-shirt? This is my Friday shirt. What the hell am I supposed to do now?”
He looked at the plain black t-shirt and frowned. “Um…get another black t-shirt?”
I was about to reach over the seat and throttle the fucker, but just as I lunged, Rocco pulled me back.
“Alright, let’s just cool down here for a minute. Obviously, we can’t just keep protecting Milo from his wife that wants to kill him because of stupid shit.”
I glared at him. “Just what the fuck did you do to her?”
“Nothing! I mean, nothing a normal person doesn’t do.”
Bullets continued to ping off the SUV, and I pulled out my phone. “Put her number in there.”
“She shot me!” he cried, holding onto his arm. I pulled his hand away and rolled my eyes. “That’s a minor wound. When I was trying to win my woman over, I was shot in the shoulder to prove my love for her. Then, I was shot in the foot, the leg, and the ass, all to win her back. You can deal with one small graze.”
His eyes widened. “You’re crazy.”
I tilted my head from side to side. “That’s debatable. Crazy for her, for sure. But actually off my rocker? No, they wouldn’t let me play with guns if I was.”
“Let me handle this,” Florrie said, taking the phone from me. Milo rattled off the numbers and she put the phone to her ear as it rang. “Mrs. Caselli, my name is Florrie, and I’m working protection for your husband…Why? Because you’re trying to have him assas
sinated…Yes, I know men are stupid…Yes, I understand that. All we’re asking is for a few minutes of your time to get to the heart of the problem…No, I’m not a marriage counselor, but if you need to let off some steam, I would be happy to take you out shooting.”
“What? Don’t give her training!” Milo shouted.
Florrie reached across the seat and shoved her gun right in his face. He shut up immediately.
“Right, I get it. Men are beyond stupid. How about we come inside and see if we can work this out. Besides, if you don’t work with us on this, I’m going to have to go to the police and report what you’ve done. Then it’s going to get messy…Well, no one wants to sleep next to a man that snores…okay, we’re coming out, but we have weapons on us. Please don’t shoot, or we’ll be forced to return fire.”
She hung up and handed me the phone.
“That’s how you handle it? Men suck is your message to her?”
“I was sympathizing with her. If I had called her an idiot, do you think we’d be about to walk through that door?”
Florrie flung her door open, but Milo shook his head. “You expect me to go in there? After she shot me?”
I chuckled. “Milo, you have to learn, sometimes getting shot is a sign of love.”
“In what world?”
I glanced at Rocco, wondering if this was a trick question. “Well, definitely in ours. I mean, it’s better than a lot of other things that could happen.”
“Like what?” Milo asked sarcastically. “Name one.”
“Well, she could leave you,” Rocco said.
“She could give you the silent treatment.”
“Whoa,” he stopped me. “What’s the silent treatment?”
“Oh, that’s when they’re really pissed at you, so they just refuse to speak to you.”
“That happens?” His eyebrows shot up. “I don’t get the silent treatment. I get the speaking treatment. She just won’t shut up.”
I winced. “Yeah, that might be worse. Anyway,” I said, clapping him on the shoulder, forgetting about his tiny, little wound, “let’s get this over with.”
We all stepped out, Milo cowering behind us as we walked up to the house. When we rang the doorbell, a woman answered, a scowl on her face.
The Reed Security Relationship Manual: A Reed Security Romance Page 6
