Page 75 of Imperial: The Corvidae Family
She glared, but I could see the truth in her eyes because we both knew she was cool with me putting in work and missed meas much as I missed her. Baylyn shifted in her seat, playing with the sleeve of my hoodie as she glanced over at me.
“Where are we going?”
I didn’t answer right away and kept my focus on the road. I could feel her watching me. Her eyes were searching my face waiting for a response and when I finally glanced at her, I caught the slight crease in her brows.
“Is something wrong?”
I reached over with my fingers moving gently across the inside of her thigh. The contact was firm but reassuring. “Nah, everything is straight. Relax, beautiful.”
She sighed softly at my touch and didn’t press.
“We’re going to your place,” I finally told her. “I need you to grab a few of your things.”
Her frown deepened. “Why?”
My eyes lingered on her face for a minute longer before I squeezed her leg and then dragged my focus back to the road. “I want you to stay with me for a little while.”
She sat up straighter and her brows pinched. “Why, what’s wrong?”
“Nothing’s wrong. I just want you with me until I figure this out,” I said, cutting her off before she could argue. “I’m not trying to disrupt your life, Bay.”
My goal was to make sure she was safe. She kept her eyes on me for a long moment before finally nodding and then exhaling a sigh.
“You look mad as hell about staying with me. Is it really gonna be that bad?”
Baylyn shook her head and the tension in her shoulders eased as she let her eyes trail over me. The pretty ass smile surfaced.
“Might be kinda fun.”
“I promise to make itveryfun.”
She bit her lip, but I could see the amusement in her eyes. I glided my fingers against her thigh again before adding, “But seriously, it will make me feel better to have you close. You cool with that?”
“Yeah, I’m cool with that.”
That was all I needed to hear. We got to her place and I did a quick sweep. While she packed, I kept my phone in hand, checking in with my brothers.
Kades’s message was first.
Kades: I’ll handle Mendez tonight.
Me: Good. One less thing to deal with.
Yair followed up a second later.
Yair: Still no movement from Trent. He’s a ghost right now.
My jaw tightened and my fingers gripped my phone as I texted back.
Me: Keep watching. He’ll slip. That muthafucker is not that bright…
Yair: I’ve got the search running in a loop to make sure I don’t miss anything.
Me: Preciate that!
I didn’t like waiting but at the moment it was all I could fucking do and that pissed me off. Baylyn stepped out of her bedroom with her bag slung over one shoulder and another in her hand. I pushed off the wall, grabbed both before she could argue, and carried them out to the car.
She locked up and we were gone in less than ten minutes. The drive was quiet and easy. Baylyn leaned into the seat, scrolling through her phone. She seemed at ease and that relaxed me. When we pulled up to my house, I grabbed her things and led her inside, dropping her bags in my room.
