by Finn, Emilia
Keys in, door open, door closed. Keys in, door open, door closed. Over and over, with a fuzzy reset between each.
Someone watched this and fixed the loop to be the most annoying.
I’m laying that right in Jay’s lap.
“I’ve got work to do.” I collect my chair from where it rolled ten or so feet from my desk and drop down with a grunt. “Nobody talk to me.”
“You’d think he’d be more relaxed.” Soph snuggles under Jay’s arm and snickers. “He got laid last night for the first time in forever.”
“Shut up, ballerina! Nobody asked you.”
* * *
Ten hours after leaving the diner and five hours after Jess and Kane got back to the office with white faces and shaking hands, I pull up to their home in suburbia and cut the engine. It’s six o’clock on the dot, and the whole block is covered in cars since Jess’ family is massive and everyone knows something big is going down.
Today’s announcement will hardly come as a surprise, but tensions are still high, and big brothers are on alert. Harsh words might be said, so I vow to step in the middle and keep the peace between the Capulets and the Montagues until Jess can get the news out and Kane survives the attacks on his life.
Pocketing my keys and heading up the front path of the home I was living in for a while, I smile when Jess’ twin sister spills out the front door with a relieved gasp. “Finally!” The woman who was once scared of her own shadow grabs my arm and pulls me forward. “Everyone’s here, and the air is thick like butter.”
“They didn’t announce it yet?”
“Of course not!” Stopping at the front door, she turns and fixes my collar with a soft hum under her breath. Her actions surprise me, and when she catches herself, I think they surprise her too. Laine was an abused girl not so long ago, hurt beyond anything I know, and stripped down until she was treated as less than an animal. She couldn’t stand to be in the same room as me or any other man, but she’s growing, changing, as Angelo helps her feel safe and her sister pushes her out of her comfort zone.
But the collar thing… that’s new.
“I’m so sorry.” She blushes. “I’m a little wired up.”
“It’s okay.” I take extra care not to touch her while she fixes my shirt. “Your sister has exciting news. Why didn’t they announce it yet?” I cast a glance out to the yard. “Looks like everyone’s here.”
“But not you, silly. Kane can’t do it without you. But now you’re here, and someone’s about to get shot, so hurry inside.”
I swing the front door open with a laugh and step through the crushing crowd. Cops, fighters, mechanics, school teachers, and about eleven billion kids ranging from zero to seventeen. I step through the crowds and come into the small living room to find Jay standing in front of his big brother like a security detail, and Kane standing in front of Jess as he does the same.
“Jesus.” I glance from the Bishops to the cops. The local PD has a reputation for being a little… stuffy in this town. Well, one of them does. But that one just so happens to consider Jess and Laine Lenaghan his little sisters, and now he’s staring at Kane like these are his last moments on this planet. “Is he actually gonna shoot?”
“Nah.” Laine pushes me through the crowd until Kane catches sight of me, then his tense stance relaxes as though my presence comforts him.
Fuck if I understand the relationship between us.
I mean, I get my side of it. I’m one of the oldest in the bunch. I was task force handler on the final case the three of us worked, so I guess I kinda considered the guys my little brothers in a way. Or like sons, maybe, despite the fact they’re not a hell of a lot younger than me. But when the team was disbanded and everyone was released, I can’t say I entirely understand their reasons for keeping me around.
I push myself on them because I love them, and I don’t want to go home to an empty house if they’re right here living a life I want to watch. But why they keep me around, I can’t be sure. It can’t be easy walking on eggshells every day, working extra hard to avoid certain topics around me. No doubt life would be more fun for them if I wasn’t around. But still, they don’t ask me to leave. In fact, they go out of their way to invite me in, to have me planted firmly in Checkmate Security and over for dinner as often as they can host.
Glancing around the room, I find all the usual faces. Spence stands with his back against the wall, watching the room and making sure he’s got control of the pending brawl. Soph sits on the kitchen counter with her laser focus on her man but her mouth full of appetizers. Jess’ best friends stand at the front of the crowd, her brothers right beside them. The fighters are here too, and fifty more faces buzz around the house that was once a war room for a drugs and sex trafficking case.
But now it’s a happy space, smiling faces, and excited hugs – except for that one stuffy cop.
“Alright.” Stepping out from behind her protectors, Jess lifts her hands as though to pull everyone’s attention. “Hello? Everybody, shut up!” The buzzing lessens but doesn’t dissipate completely. “Kane and I want to thank you for coming over. There are too many of us for a sit-down dinner, but the snacks are plenty, and the fridge is stocked with drinks, so help yourselves and throw your shit in the trash on the way out.”
“Get to the point, Jessica!”
Alex Turner – Chief of Police, stuffy cop, and one pregnancy announcement away from a heart attack – stands at the front of the pack despite the fact he’s not actually her biological brother. Jess’ real brother stands a few feet away with his girlfriend, holding Meg Montgomery’s baby in his arms, while the couple makes gooey kiss faces, and make their godson giggle the way he did for me in the diner.
“Fine.” Jess turns away for a moment, studies the space in front of her, then climbs onto the coffee table so she stands a couple inches taller than Kane. Then she telegraphs her announcement by cupping her belly. “Kane and I have something exciting to tell you all. But if anyone cusses us out or pulls a gun, I’m gonna lose my ever-loving mind.”
Finally, Luc’s eyes come up from the spitting baby. “Jess?”
“Kane and I are expecting.”
Alex leans forward as though she didn’t finish speaking. “Expecting… groceries? Cable satellite installation? A new car?”
Kane flashes a wide grin. “My fruits are in her loins, Chief.” I bite off a choking laugh at the ridiculous announcement. Of course that’s how he’d say it. “We had a scan, and it was confirmed. My swimmers fought the good fight and won.”
“A baby?” Alex’s face blanches. “You’re having a baby? You’re not even married!”
“Well… that’s just it. We’re gonna get married too.” Jess leans into Kane’s shoulder when he pulls her closer. Lifting her left hand, she shows off a shiny diamond ring and fans her fingers to make the lights above reflect off the stone. “I know you guys consider us girls babies, but it’s not true. I’m nearly thirty; I’m with the man I love, and this won’t be undone. So we hope you can get on board and be happy for us.”
Silence overtakes the room but for a mini-pig honking and picking up dropped scraps of food, Meg’s giggling baby as he smacks Luc in his stunned face, and Spence’s dirty chuckle while he shakes his head. “His fruit’s in her loin. Only that motherfucker.”
“When are you due?” Luc asks with a shaking voice. “How long have you known?”
“I peed on a stick a few days ago. Scans to confirm, and here we are.” Stepping down off the table with Kane’s help, Jess walks forward and waits as her brother passes Meg’s baby off to free up his hands. “We didn’t keep this from you, Luc. We peed; we made an appointment, and now we’re here.” Looking up at him through long lashes, she begs, “Don’t be mad about this, okay? This is a good announcement. This is exciting, so treat it the way it should be treated, otherwise you’ll break my heart. You promised you’d only ask me once, and if I said I was happy, you’d get on board.”
“I said that.” Clearin
g his throat, he nods and takes her hands. “I definitely said that. And I trust you.” He pauses as though he needs a moment before he can say the words out loud. “You’re gonna be a mommy?”
Jess nods with tears in her eyes. “I’m gonna be a mommy… twice.”
“Get the fuck out!”
Chuckling and swiping tears from her cheeks, she nods and reaches down to cup her stomach. “I mean, it’s not like we didn’t expect that. Stupid twin genes just had to come up here and tear me apart.”
“Jesus.” Running a hand over his face, Luc glances from Jess to Kane, who stands at her back and holds her hip. “We’re still cool, Bish. I promise we are. But I need a minute.”
Kane claps his shoulder and grins. “Take ten. Have a beer. Process. But all the while, know that your sister is loved, and I promise to take care of her forever.”
“Hey, Captain.”
I turn with a frown and meet a pair of green eyes and dimples on a familiar chin. Mac Blair steps forward and extends a hand as though he’s a grown ass man and we’re old pals.
“Mac.” I shake his hand but glance past his shoulder as my heart spins out of control. “Um… Your mom here?”
He shakes his head and takes a sip from a soda can in his left hand. “My mom is… busy.”
“Okay… You here for the bride’s side, or the groom’s?”
He gives an arrogant “psht” and steps back to lean against the same wall I do. In jeans that are a size too big and a shirt from the same rack, Mac lifts a sneakered foot and rests it against the wall so we stand side by side. “I’m on everyone’s side. Everyone’s my family, ‘cause I’m adorable and shit.” He flashes the kind of grin I’m not sure I’ve ever seen on Katrina’s face. It’s carefree and full of mischief. “And we already know you’re on the groom’s side, seein’ as how the thug didn’t say a word about his fruits till you walked in. Law and thugs,” he scoffs. “This entire house can be split in half: law and thugs.”
“You think so? Which are you, Blair? Law or thug?”
“Touché,” he chuckles. “Sheesh, you were fast with that one. Can’t say I wanna limit my options either way, so I’ll just say I’m friends with everyone.”
“Where’s your girl?”
His eyes flare wide and give me a sense of satisfaction. This kid is smooth, and he constantly has a comeback that always puts me on the defensive. “Which girl? I don’t have a girl.”
“Coulda fooled me. You’re always staring at her hair when she’s with your buddy at the diner. All those long locks and such a pretty smile.”
“How much do you stare, dude? Jesus, how could you know I like a girl with dark hair?”
“So you do like her?”
“No! Stop.” Pushing off the wall, he chugs half of his soda in one go and scowls. “I was on your side, man. I could have helped you with my mom, but then you go ahead and throw shade like that. I’m out.”
“Wait.” I grab his arm before he loses himself in the crowd. Turning back with a victorious grin, Mac cracks his neck and makes me realize my mistake. “How do you mean you’d help me with your mom?”
“Well, I see you looking at her sometimes. I see you maybe like her hair. So I suppose I could nudge her in your direction.” Thank God his sentence doesn’t start with “I know you fucked her last night.” “My mom doesn’t date because most men are pricks, but also because she’s worried about me. I don’t think you’re a prick, so maybe I could give my blessing and promise not to get into trouble while she’s out with you. I could even accidentally tell you about the concert tickets she has for next month. She has two tickets, and it’ll be sucky if her handbag is the only thing sitting in the second seat.”
I narrow my eyes with suspicion. “What’s your angle?”
“I don’t need an angle. My mom had a big birthday recently. She’s getting old.”
“Thirty is not old!”
He snorts. “You’re like forty, but like I said, you aren’t a prick, so I’ll overlook the fact you’re old enough to be my grandpa. I’m more concerned with the fact my mom watched a shitty movie with me for her birthday. She put on a ratty pair of sweats, tied her hair into an ugly bun, wore goopy cream on her face that made her look like Robin Williams in a chick’s getup, and she watched that show with me.” He pauses and studies my eyes. “She was right there with me, but in her mind, I know she was thinking about you. She was thinking about the dude she yelled at in the diner, and I swear, she wasn’t always scowling.”
That surprises me. “She wasn’t?”
He shakes his head. “Smiled more than she scowled and did a butt wiggle when she ate her cake. But the thing is, I’ve never in my life seen her go out with a man. Not one single kiss at the door, no missed curfews. Not one single awkward breakfast with a random dude, or weird dinners where everyone pretends to be a happy family.”
The crowd around us buzzes and jostles forward. Everyone wants a piece of the expecting mom, but I’m busy trying to understand this thug’s angle. “Why the hell would you want those things? Nobody wants that shit.”
“I want my mom to be happy,” he huffs. “I mean, I don’t want awkward shit either, so you better watch your step and don’t make shit weird, but I want her to be happy, so I’d be willing to look the other way if you wanted to ask her out to dinner or whatever. My friend’s mom got remarried recently, and though breakfast was awkward for them sometimes, Benny admits she’s always smiling now.”
“Always?”
“Always,” he presses. “So I’m saying I’m willing to be cool if you’re willing to be cool. Don’t turn into a prick, or I’ll borrow the gun you’re not hiding very well, and I’ll shoot you in your dick. But if you wanted to take her to dinner and make her smile, I’m willing to sit my ass down at home and not give her reason to worry.”
“Kid, you’re thirteen–”
“I’m fourteen.”
“You’re a child! You have no clue if I’m looking for a date, and even if I was, you don’t get to make these decisions for your mom.”
“Right.” He reaches up and fixes long hair back off his face. “I agree with you there. I can’t make her decisions; I don’t have that power, but I know you watch her. I get the feeling you wanna make her smile. If you watch her but don’t wanna date her, then we’ll revisit the shooting your dick off thing, because you’re not allowed to have the milk unless you buy the whole cow.”
“Dude…”
“I’m just saying, I can make this easy, or I can make it hard. I can make it so she knows I’m okay with the thought of her dating, and I can make it so I’m good, and she can trust me alone for a couple hours while you buy her dinner. Or I can flip the switch and get myself grounded till I’m old like you, in which case, she’s not leaving my sight.”
Fuck him and his old shit. “So if my watching her is honorable, you’re willing to play?”
He flashes a handsome grin. “Yup! I just want her to be happy, whatever that means, with whoever. Except Zeke, he’s a fuckin’ prick.”
He’s your father!
“Why are you zeroing in on me?” We move a little to the left as the crowd becomes rowdier. Jess accepts hugs from everyone, and Kane watches on, since no one but Jay is game enough to touch him. “I’m not the only guy who watches her, and I could be a murderer psycho. How do you know you’re picking the right one?”
“Well…” His chin dimples flash. “Are you a murderer psycho?”
I guess that would depend on perspective. “No.”
“Right. You’re a cop, sorta. Ben’s mom’s new husband is a cop, too, and since I’m over there more than I’m at home, we heard Oz and the chief talking about you.”
That draws my attention for a whole other reason. “The chief was talking about me? What the fuck about?”
Chuckling, Mac lifts a finger and wags it in my face in a way no grown ass man would dare do. “You gotta watch your gutter mouth in front of me. I’m not saying I don’t cuss, but I’m sayin
g my mom will beat you till you’re black and blue if she thinks you taught me to say ‘fuck.’”
“You already know that word?”
“Of course I do.”
“Who taught you?”
He laughs. “My mom did, but that’s beside the point. My mom doesn’t want any bad influences around me, since apparently I’m easily led into trouble.”
“Are you?”
He shrugs. “Sometimes. I get bored, and sometimes doing stupid shit sounds like fun. I don’t do a lot of that stuff anymore, not because I think it’s stupid, but because it hurts my mom. I’m trying to be mature and shit, so she’ll stop freaking out so often.”
“I mean… I guess that’s cool of you. Mature and stuff.”
“Right. So that’s the deal, if you’re a good guy, not a murderer, have honorable intentions, not looking to steal her away from me on a permanent basis, and are willing to make her smile, I’d be willing to put in a good word for you and endure a teeny bit of awkwardness. I heard Alex and Oz talk about you and the Bishops for hours. Like, a lot of hours. And the general consensus is the local PD respects the fuck outta you guys. So I’m saying we could be cool.”
“Um…” I clear my throat. I’ve worked in and around undercover operations, guns, drugs, criminals, murder and worse. I’ve seen it all. But this fourteen-year-old kid still manages to walk up to me at a party and make me nervous. “Alright. I guess I could–”
“Awesome! Hey, Mom.” Ducking away on fast feet, only to spin back before my next breath, the little shit deposits a radiant Katrina right under my nose and flashes a smartass grin. Katrina wears all black, a cinched dress that shows her hourglass figure to perfection and heels that give her a couple extra inches I didn’t realize I love. She carries a glass of champagne in her left hand and presses the right to her heart while she furiously blushes and looks me up and down with wide eyes.
