Page 74 of Unhinged Cravings
“Stay put and do not leave this plane under any circumstance until I tell you to.”
I pulled Riley into my arms and kissed her, knowing it might be my last, knowing I was risking everything on a dim connectionthat told me Emerson was really in trouble, that he needed me. She clung to my shirt while Mason argued with Tyson.
“Stay put, baby girl. If you leave that seat before I give you permission, you’ll suffer the consequences.” She shivered delectably, and Mason grumbled.
Releasing her, I motioned for Mason to come with me to the door. “Open it,” I told the pilot. He started the process as I pulled Mason aside.
“This door gets sealed the minute I’m out. If anything goes wrong, I want her out of here. I don’t care that it goes against your code to not fight your way out. Your sister is my only priority, and you will turn this plane around and get her as far from here as you can.”
He glanced toward the door where the stairs were being lowered. “I don’t run, Tides.”
“For your sister, you will. And if she’s in danger, Casey’s in danger. This is why I didn’t want to bring her, and you didn’t want to bring Casey or Angie.” I looked behind him, seeing Riley with her arms crossed, her eyes creased with worry. “Promise me you’ll protect her.”
“She’s my sister. That’s all I’ve ever done.”
“Then we have an understanding,” I said, heading toward the stairs.
“Tides.”
I turned back to him.
“Good luck.”
Giving him a nod, I descended the stairs, every step I took, heightening my alarms. I was an open target. One easily taken down. I could almost sense Den’s discomfort. His number one job since we’d met had been to keep me safe. He was likely watching my every step, his hand on his gun. I was sure every one of our men was doing the same. I didn’t take risks. Mason was right. That was Emerson’s move, not mine. Slow,deliberate, calculated. That was me. Not this. Not walking into the depths of hell, vulnerable with every step that led me to the devil.
Chapter Twenty-Six
EMERSON
The wait was excruciating. Every second that ticked by was another inch Ava slipped from my grasp. And Greyson was sitting on his plane like this was some game. The hours I’d spent waiting for him to arrive, I had put to use. A renewed energy filled me and with Pack’s help, I’d come up with a plan. But standing there watching a plane sitting on my runway was enough to drive me mad. It wasn’t until the second plane landed that I understood.
A decoy. How like my brother to not trust me. But then, why would he? He had no proof that anything I’d told him was the truth. But I’d stood there with no weapon, my hands in the pockets of my pants, an open target, hoping that was enough to give him some kind of proof this was not a trap. The door opened on the second plane, stairs unfolding, and within minutes, Greyson descended them. Alone with no weapon. His sign of trust on display to meet mine.
The stairs pulled back in, the door shut, and I wondered who was on that plane that he needed to lock it back up. His steps were confident and steady. I remained where I was, at the top of thedeck, the doors behind me. Pack was inside, the others all hidden in the shadows of the property and the house.
With every step closer he came, the tightness in my chest grew. The hatred had disguised the fact that I had missed my brother all these years. And only now, seeing him, no longer the young boy of twenty but a man, his features so like our father’s, creases in the corners of his eyes, gray along his temples. How much of our life had we missed because of his decision and my anger?
“Emerson,” he greeted me once he stepped on the deck. He kept his distance, and I stayed in place, but a tugging in my chest had me rethinking all the years of loathing that had sunk into my bones and my being. Until Ava had lifted it from me, replacing it with a lightness I hadn’t had since my youth.
“Grey.”
“You have me here.” The wariness was clear in his voice. The trust was still on a delicate branch, so easy to send tumbling. “Call your men in so mine can relax.”
“Ah, but you know I can’t because the minute anyone moves but you and me, your men will blast those windows out of the plane and an all out war will start.”
“True. So then what do you suggest we do, big brother?”
The term had me reeling back, and I caught myself, understanding the opening he was offering. This was it, the only one he would present and if I did the wrong thing, he would recant it and turn around and leave. Find Ava on his own, competing with me to get to her first. Our competition would hurt her in the long run and all of us would lose.
“You look good, little brother. Almost like dad.”
He chuckled. “That’s because I got the good genes. One of us had to be the good-looking one.”
“Fuck off. I was always better looking. With more muscle.”
His forehead creased, his eyes growing serious. “I’m sorry for being such an ass. If I’d known what it would do, I would never have done it.”
I shrugged. “I was thick-headed, and she did give good head, so…”
