Page 38 of Little Bird (Advantage Play 3)

Ace tilts her head before registering Queena in the back.

“Oh. Hi. I’m Ace. And you’re Q?”

Q stares blankly out the window, not bothering to respond. She does that a lot.

Tossing a wide-eyed look of helplessness our way, Ace hesitantly opens the back door and offers her hand. “Come on, Q. Let’s get you inside and out of those cuffs and dress.”

Apparently, the promise of freedom is enough to get Q moving. She slides out of the car and follows Ace inside, leaving me alone with my girl.

“Alright, babe, let’s get you out of these cuffs.” I reach for the keys in my pocket that I’d swiped from Sei and unlatch the locks with ease as Regina watches my every movement. Once she’s free, we head toward the front door in silence, and I can tell something is bothering her.

“Guess it’s time to face my brother, huh?” Regina states sadly.

I stop her from entering the house and turn her around until we’re chest to chest. “What’s wrong, Little Bird?”

“I don’t know how much you know about me,” she hedges. “But I was pretty much bred to be a bargaining chip with another family. Combining bloodlines and all that.” She waves her hand in the air while a light sheen of tears gathers in her eyes.

“I may have heard that,” I confirm, watching her closely.

“I’ve been a brat to Kingston my entire life. Between my disappearance, and my future, I’m a little freaked out to talk to him. Especially when I tell him what I want.” Looking up at me, she whispers, “I’m terrified he’ll say no.”

“And what do you want, Little Bird?”

Her heels are busy kicking a few pebbles across the pavement before she peeks up at me. “What do you think I want?”

I shake my head. “That’s not what I asked. You’re allowed to have your own opinions. Your own wants. Your own needs.”

With a gulp, she probes, “There’s only one thing I want and need, Dex. And after the hell I’ve been through, I’m pretty sure you can guess what it is. I think the real question is, do you want it too?”

“I put my life on the line for you, Little Bird. You’re my oxygen, remember? But you’re right. Your brother holds all the cards right now and hiding out here isn’t going to give us our answer. We need to be brave. Together. We’ve already been through more than anyone should ever have to endure. I think we can make it past your brother’s verdict too.”

Her hand is trembling as she lifts it and touches the side of my face, piercing me with her hypnotic eyes. “I think I’m in love with you, Dex. No matter what my brother says in there, that’s not going to change, okay? I just…I need you to know that.”

Bending closer, I brush my lips against hers then whisper, “Have a little faith, Regina. It’s going to work out.”

“You don’t know how awful I was to him. How much harder I made his life just because I was grieving and thought he didn’t care—”

“Regina. Give your brother a little more credit. It’s going to be fine,” I reiterate.

“How can you be so sure?”

With a confident smirk, I razz, “‘Cause he owes me.”

My sarcasm is enough to break her somber attitude, and she responds by smacking me in the chest.

“I guess we’ll just have to wait and see.” Then, she heads to the front door while I trail behind, enjoying the view of her round ass in a tight red dress.

“Like what you see?” she calls over her shoulder.

“Maybe,” I throw back at her before rushing up the steps and grabbing her hand. Together, we walk through the expansive foyer and toward Kingston’s office. Because I know that with her by my side, we can get through anything.

Chapter Twenty-Seven

Diece

I can’t take my eyes off the girl who’s clinging to Ace’s hand like it’s a lifeline. Soft blonde hair, sexy black dress, perfectly polished complexion. There are remnants of discolored skin on her upper arm along with what looks like the shadow of a bruise below her right eye, but I can’t be sure unless I get a closer look.

I’ve been watching her for the past five minutes while the room is blanketed in silence as we all wait for Dex and Regina to join us. As the time ticks by, I’ve decided I could do it for an eternity, and it still wouldn’t be enough. The way she lets her hair hang down, covering the side of her face, pretending it’s a barrier between her and the outside world. The way her hands are trembling, but she tries to cover it up by clenching them into tight little fists. The way her eyes keep darting to mine before staring down at the hardwood floor like it’s the most fascinating thing on the planet.

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