Page 86 of All In

Having a bond is a unique experience. I’m learning pretty quickly that Laken’s facial expressions do not necessarily match her mood.

She frowns, browsing the aisles of clothing, but she’s not upset or dissatisfied with the options.

I’m pretty sure she’s just overwhelmed with the price tags in the small boutique shop.

“I feel like maybe I should return the clothes Vale gave me,” Laken whispers, smiling politely when she spots Ranger watching her browse the racks. “Most of it was from this store, and sweet Jesus, I’d be fine with Target.”

I grab one of the dresses and whistle under my breath.

“Yeah, that is pricey.” I shrug. “Don’t worry. You could buy a new dress for every day of the year, and I guarantee you’re not touching what that guy has to spend.” I laugh as her eyes narrow. “I’m just playing. Also, I’m not as well off as your husband, so be gentle.”

“Ohmigod, I actually forgot about that,” she whispers, wrapping her arms around my middle. “I’m not incapable of buying things for myself. Or I wouldn’t be if someone would kindly return my debit card.”

“That would be an excellent way for our enemies to track you,” Ranger says, grabbing the dress she looked at and verifying it’s in her size. He adds it to the growing pile resting over his left arm.

“Won’t they already know where to find me when you announce our wedding?” she asks, bringing up a very good point.

“My back-up residence is the only property listed in my name.” Ranger selects the same style dress he just collected, except in a pale blue. “My home and the house I had built for Sparrow are legally hidden behind a persona I keep very close to the vest. I do enjoy sleeping peacefully. Even when I announced Kate’s location to Andretti, I wasn’t dumb enough to attempt to send him to my actual home.”

“And you couldn’t have housed Kate at your back-up property?” Laken asks, giving Ranger a damn impressive frown.

“No,” Ranger says simply. “It’s even more secluded than the compound. I use it as a mare’s nest of sorts. I’ve told the two of you something very few know.” He glances between us. “My colleagues at Assurance know the true location of my home, but outside of a select few, if I’m conducting business, it’s done at my back-up property.” He smiles at Laken. “Although, if I had anticipated your arrival in my life, I certainly would have planned better. I gain no satisfaction in knowing your senses are uncomfortable due to Kate.”

The little omega’s discomfort lights up in the bond. She pats my back before releasing me and heading over to Ranger. I’m pretty sure she’s feeling guilty for bringing up Kate again. The bond gives me unparalleled access to her emotions, but not necessarily her thoughts, so there’s no way to be positive.

“That was very sweet.” She circles his waist with her arms, stretching up to kiss his jaw.

I exhale heavily.

I’m fully aware of her affection for Ranger. That lunatic is pretty much gone for her, if his conniving plan to marry her is any indication.

“I feel bad bringing it up again, and I do believe you,” she says. “I also feel terrible about what happened to Kate. That petty comment slipped right out before I had time to even think it through. I’ll work on being less defensive about her. My instincts are straight-up catty when I think about you with someone else.”

“You certainly don’t need to defend yourself to me. I also feel distaste when thinking about you with anyone else,” Ranger says, raising his arm that’s absolutely loaded down with dresses. “Now, would you like to try any of these on, or can we just check out?”

“Um, I better try them on,” Laken says. “I also need bras and underwear. I got distracted by the prices and that extremely soft fabric.”

“Fair enough.” Ranger nods. “I’ll ask them to begin setting up a dressing room for you.”

We send our take-out orders to Maverick, and he and Gunner head to the diner to pick them up while Ranger pops into the small jewelry store.

He’s only inside for ten minutes, and Laken and I sit in companionable silence on the bench out front while we wait.

Ranger doesn’t say a word about his purchase. Instead, he leads us to the pharmacy, which he mentioned we would visit next.

It’s a legitimate small-town mom-and-pop style pharmacy, with rows of first aid, medical supplies, contraceptives, and feminine care products.

I aim for the pain reliever section because I have a feeling that dealing with Ranger on a regular basis is enough to give anyone tension headaches.

Laken follows behind me, and I slow so she can catch up. She links her fingers in mine as we browse the aisle.

Ranger meets us with a giant handheld basket filled to the brim. My eyes bug when I catch sight of probably ten pregnancy tests, pads, tampons, and weirdly enough, like three brands of lube. “I also need to grab QuikClot before we leave, but yes, pain relievers might be necessary if we don’t conceive during this heat.”

Laken trips over her own feet. “I’m sorry. What now?”

“The post-heat cramps can cause discomfort.” Ranger grabs several types of headache medicine. “Nothing with aspirin. That could exacerbate the bleeding.”

I glance between them with less than zero idea what he’s talking about.

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