Page 88 of Wilde and Deadly

From the other side of the door, Sabin’s voice called out, thick with amusement and his unmistakable Cajun drawl.

“Y’all best be decent in there, ‘cause I ain’t got the stomach for seein’ Wilde’s bare ass before breakfast.”

A beat of silence.

Then, with even more mischief, he added, “Though Rowan, cher, if you’re the one who’s naked, feel free to invite me in.”

Davey growled, already reaching for his pants. “I’m going to kill him.”

Rowan rolled her eyes and tossed Davey’s shirt at him. “Ignore him. He’s just trying to get a rise out of you.”

“Well, it’s working,” Davey muttered, yanking on his clothes.

Rowan dressed quickly, efficiently. As she reached for the doorknob, Davey caught her wrist. He pulled her close, claiming her lips in a fierce, possessive kiss that left them both breathless.

“We’re not done with this conversation,” he murmured against her lips.

She gave him a soft smile and stroked his stubbled cheek. “I know. Later.”

twenty-two

When they emergedfrom the bedroom, they found Sabin lounging against the kitchen counter, a shit-eating grin on his face.

Liam stood beside him, far more composed, though the tick in his jaw suggested he wasn’t entirely thrilled about Sabin’s antics. Across the room, Daphne was already seated at the dining table, her laptop open in front of her, fingers flying over the keyboard. The glow of the screen cast eerie shadows across her face, making her hazel eyes gleam with sharp intensity.

Sabin pushed off the counter, arms spread wide. “Well, look at y’all. Hair a mess, lips all swollen—hell, Davey, you ain’t even got your damn shirt on. Must’ve been real nice, sleepin’ in, tangled up all cozy while some of us were bustin’ our asses all night.”

“Hey, I told you to go home and get some sleep.” Davey grabbed a shirt from the duffle bag on the floor, yanking it on as he crossed to the coffee maker that Liam already had going.

“Couldn’t,” Liam said and handed him an empty mug. He hooked a thumb over his shoulder at Daphne. “Sabin suggested we check the lab before going home and, surprise, surprise, that one was there, and she was already working on our problem.” He yawned and grabbed another mug, filling it with coffee. “We were there all night.”

“I didn’t need you to stay.” Daphne didn’t look up from her screen as she responded. Unlike the two men, she didn’t look the least bit tired. Her dark hair was pulled back in a messy bun, and her gaze was laser-focused on her computer. She’d work in this hyper-focused state until her body would eventually demand rest, and she crashed. Until then, her blood was at least ninety percent caffeine.

Liam yawned again and leaned against the counter. “And I told you we weren’t leaving you alone in that lab when we have no idea who tried to take out Davey and almost took out Elliot.”

Davey poured a cup of coffee and offered it to Rowan.

She waved it away.

He frowned, lingering a second too long as she turned back to whatever thoughts had taken her hostage. Rowan didn’t turn down coffee—not unless something was eating at her. He wanted to press, wanted to tell her to sit down and take a damn breath, but she wouldn’t listen. So, instead, he kept the coffee for himself and leaned against the counter, glancing from Liam to Sabin. “Either of you hear from Brody or Sullivan?”

Liam shook his head. “Not yet. But you know how they are. If they found something, we’ll know when they’re ready.”

Sabin smirked. “Or when one of ‘em gets arrested for excessive enthusiasm. My money’s on Sullivan.”

Davey grunted, but the tension in his gut didn’t ease. He’d told them to catch a few hours of sleep first, but he doubted either had listened—especially not Brody. The man had been pissed when he left, and angry men didn’t sleep. They hunted.

That was either good news or very, very bad news.

He exhaled sharply and took a sip of his coffee. Instant regret. It was like someone boiled asphalt, then dared to call it coffee. Histhroat burned as he swallowed, the bitterness clawing its way down like it had a personal vendetta. He coughed and scowled at Liam as tears leaked from his eyes. “The hell is this?”

“Coffee,” Liam said, genuinely confused, and took a long drink from his mug.

Sabin made a face. “Mon frère, I think we need to talk about what coffee actually is, ‘cause whatever you brewed up in there? That ain’t it.”

Davey had to agree. He moved to the fridge for some creamer and dumped a large amount in. It helped. Marginally. He stirred the so-called coffee as he walked over to Daphne. “Have you found anything?”

Her fingers stilled on the keyboard. She looked up, her expression grim. “You’re not going to like it. Our systems were compromised, alright. We’ve got multiple security breaches. Someone’s been poking around in WSW’s network, and I mean deep. Not just scraping the surface. This was coordinated, precise, and meant to go unnoticed.”

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