Page 19 of Warrant
There were certain things it was okay to hide. Like the fact that a man might have bugged his current fascination’s office and home with cameras to keep an eye on her. There needed to be some mystery after all.
CHAPTER 8
Ainsley
Wiping my hands on my jeans, I juggled the bottle of wine I’d brought with me as I paused before knocking on the door.
Why am I here?
A hound dog bayed at me from the side of the porch, making me jump even as he came over to sniff me, tail wagging a mile a minute.
“Quiet, Beau!” Cindy said, sounding exasperated at the dog as she opened the door with a smile. “Right on time.”
That was why. I gave Cindy a weak smile and thrust out the wine bottle. “Hi.”
She wiped her hands on her blue and white checkered apron and took the bottle from me with a wide smile. “Thank you so much, Sweetie. Come on in.”
Warrant’s mother reminded me of my own. What was it about moms? I was tempted to just…step into her and wrap myarms around her. Sink into her embrace and let her take all the stress and worry out of my very bones. Moms were the best at that. I wasn’t sure what they did with that negative energy, but it was like they managed to release it off into the ether. They left you feeling boneless and loved and safe.
God. I needed a hug. Someone to talk to about the fact that I was worried about messing up and disappointing…well everyone. Didn’t matter that Denison had been such a fuck up that no matter what I did I looked good. I wanted todogood. Tobegood. To be exactly what Sentinel needed. It was a lot of damn pressure. But that wasn’t new. I always put too much pressure on myself.
I followed Cindy into her home, wringing my hands as I went. My steps paused as four men looked up at me from where they were crowded around the dining room table. They were practically carbon copies of each other. The older man was clearly Warrant’s father and he had the same blue eyes. The only difference was the crow’s feet at the corners that let me know he smiled often and had worked in the sun all his life. From there, they ranged downward in age until you got to Warrant.
I’d bet the lacy thong I was wearing that Warrant was the baby of this family. It explained so much about him and his attitude. But all four men were smiling at me. Before I could say anything I was being tugged against a muscular body.
Shocked, I froze in Warrant’s hold. After a moment, I asked, “What are you doing?” under my breath.
“Looked like you needed that.”
How did he do that? It was like he knew me on a level no one else did. It was…worrisome.
Pulling away from him, I stepped a little away, trying to get my blush under control because everyone was staring at us. His dad looked mildly surprised, but his mom and brothers didn’t.
“You’ve met my mom,” Warrant said, motioning to Cindy as she turned to the stove and stirred whatever was simmering there.
The kitchen smelled so good I was tempted to lick the walls. Seriously, cooking wasn’t exactly my forte. But I was very, very good at eating and I hadn’t had a truly delicious home cooked meal in weeks. Most nights I made due with cereal.
“This is my dad, Dale. My brothers Lucas and Alex.”
“We’re the better looking brothers,” Lucas said, flashing me a smile.
“Which your wife and newborn baby daughter know all about,” Alex said, arching a brow his way. He gave Ainsley a wide smile. “I’m single, though.”
I couldn’t help but laugh when Warrant knocked Alex’s hand out of the way before I could shake it. “It’s nice to meet you all.”
“Go wash your hands, Alex,” Cindy said, shooting me a wink.
“What am I? Seven?”
“You’re a man with dirty hands,” Cindy said, eyeing Alex’s hands with a look of disgust. “Scrub under your nails.”
When Alex opened his mouth to argue, she leveled him with a look that made every one of us in the kitchen straighten up. It was that ‘Mom’ look. The kind that no one, no matter how old they were, argued with.
Sighing, Alex shoved Warrant before heading out of the kitchen to go do as his mother asked.
“I’m sorry about them,” Cindy said as I drifted closer to her, mostly so that Warrant would stop finding small ways to touch me. It was distracting having his fingers brushing my arm.
“Don’t be. You have a very nice family. And I love your home.” It’d taken a full five minutes of driving down their driveway to get back to the house. Their ranch was huge. This was my kind of place. Well, maybe bigger than I’d ever need. But it had all the wide open space you could want.
