Page 68 of Red Queen (Red Thorns Crew 3)

“I’m not saying you’re a child. I’m saying you’ve matched me, bag for bag. Take a break.”

She wiped at the sweat on her forehead. “What? Think I can’t keep up?”

“Dani.”

She sighed. “I’m sorry. I’m sorry. It’s just…”

I stopped hoisting bags into the back of the rented truck before I cupped her cheeks.

“Gorgeous, I know you’re fully capable of stepping up to the plate. You’ve proved that to me more times than I can count. Okay?”

She nodded. “Okay.”

“You’re tired. There’s nothing wrong with that. Go get some water, take a breather, then you can get back at it. Okay? No one’s going to think anything bad about you just because you’re winded.”

“I know. I know. It’s just--”

I ran my thumb along her lower lip. “Shhhh. You need to trust that I understand a bit more than you give me credit for. And I promise you, whatever’s going through your head right now, that’s not what’s actually happening.”

After watching her nod softly in my grip, I placed a kiss to her sweating forehead. We’d been lugging these massive bags into the back of the truck for well over an hour now. And it shocked me that she hadn’t taken a break up until this point. I knew Dani was on edge. I knew she was overly concerned with how people perceived her right now. And in some respects, I understood.

But she needed to learn how to rein her emotions in during times like these.

I watched her make her way back into the house before I picked up another bag. I lugged it into the back of the truck, listening as the chassis groaned. The bed wouldn’t be able to haul much more than this. And we still had to unload them at the other end. I wiped my face off with my shirt before I dusted off my hands. The street behind me was lined with motorcycles. Lined with my men, ready to jump at the drop of a hat if someone rolled up onto us.

I just hoped this worked.

“You sure he’s going to buy it?”

John’s voice sounded behind me and I turned around.

“Yeah, I really do. Benji’s strong suit isn’t his wits. He’s going to be pissed after what I did to him in that warehouse. So if he thinks you’re offering him redemption, he’s going to jump at it.”

My brother pointed to the bags. “And all of these are necessary?”

Dani walked out of the house. “If you tell me we’ve tossed those bags onto that truck for no reason, I’m having someone’s head.”

A few of the guys chuckled as a grin crossed my face.

“I’d like to see you try that, gorgeous.”

She handed me a bottle of water. “Play your cards wrong, and you just might.”

I smiled as she winked at me, then I cracked open the bottle. The glorious cold liquid dripped from the opening, and it was all I could do not to choke myself on it. I guzzled it down, completely unaware of how much I had exerted myself up until this point. The bottle crinkled as I continued sucking it back, barely giving myself room to breathe.

Then, with a growl, I tossed the bottle into the bed of the truck as well.

“Hey, now. Don’t go ruining all of our efforts,” Dani said.

I snickered. “I would never.”

She smirked. “Uh huh.”

John piped up. “So someone want to run me through this plan one more time?”

Dani turned to face him. “Which part do you want to hear?”

John snickered. “All of it, maybe?”

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