Page 57 of Shaken

I stopped by Quinn’s desk after my meeting, and she was more than happy to help me however she could, including letting me know Wren isn’t on-call today and should have been home almost an hour ago. I debate texting her, but knowing Wren, she’d ignore me on principal alone.

Luckily, I don’t have to debate with myself for long because moments later, a car pulls down the gravel driveway in front of her house. I double-check to make sure it’s not a delivery truck, then send Zeus on his way.

Phase One of my plan is a go.

If she wants to treat me like her archnemesis, I’ve devised a plan like an evil mastermind. My goal is to get her to admit we can bemore. That we could work. That it’s worth giving us a real shot at being more than friends with benefits. Or as she’d put it,enemies with benefits.

But first, I need to get her to forgive me.

I’m not expecting her to jump at the idea, but I don’t mind playing the long game if she’s the prize waiting for me at the end.

I watch through the window as Zeus trots right through the goddamned electric fence like it’s not even there, then sits at Wren’s feet once she gets out of the car.

Bend down, Red.

She scratches behind his ears, then under his chin.

That’s when she notices the note hanging from his collar.

She straightens and looks over at my house.

Come on, Red. Don’t let me down.

She grabs a bag out of her car, then slams the door shut behind her. For a moment, I think she’s going to ignore me and head into her house. She looks between our houses, like she’s not sure what to do, but eventually, she turns left instead of right. And when I open my door, her cheeks are already on fire.

“You’re using your dog to get me to talk to you now? Who knew you’d stoop so low, Kingston?” She slips her arms out of a cashmere coat and throws it at me as she walks in. “Do I smell pasta?”

“Yeah.” I hang her coat up and slide my hand to the small of her back, then guide her to my kitchen. “It’s lasagna. Are you hungry?”

She whips her head around, surprised. “You made lasagna?”

“Notexactly.” I hold up a bottle of red wine in one hand and a bottle of white in the other, then wait until Wren taps the red. “Lenny and Amelia’s husbands’ grandmother always makes extra food for all of us to take home. Nona’s lasagna is my favorite, so she drops off a tray for me to freeze whenever she makes it. She basically adopted all of us after Lenny met Bash. By the time Amelia married Bash’s brother, Sam, she’d become part of our family.”

“Do you think she’ll adopt me too?” She sits down at the kitchen table and drops her head. “I may be on the lookout for some new family members after today.”

I hand her a glass of wine, then sit next to her, pulling her feet into my lap. Her shoes have tiny buckles that are a bitch to unclasp, and she seems amused to watch me struggle until I eventually undo each one and drop them to the floor. “Care to fill me in?”

“Can we call a truce for tonight, Sawyer?” Her voice softens and reminds me of the last time we called a truce.

I don’t bother telling her we don’t need one. She won’t believe me anyway. She’s going to have to come to that conclusion on her own.

Once I nod in agreement, she crosses her legs over my thighs, and the tightness she’s holding within her slightly relaxes. “You first. Tell me how your meeting went today. Did Max and the others like your presentation?”

Wren closes her eyes and moans as I dig my thumb into the arch of her foot, the sound shooting straight to my dick. This woman has no fucking clue what she does to me. But that isn’t what tonight is about.

Tonight is about trust. It’s about laying groundwork. It’s the first step in breaking through the box Wren Davenport put me in twenty fucking years ago. Because I refuse to accept I’m destined to be this woman’s enemy forever. “They loved it. Max wanted to fold it in under the King Corp. umbrella, but that’s not what I want.”

“I told you they’d want it. Did you tell them no, or did you cave?” There’s something so fucking sexy about a woman who knows you well enough to call you out on your shit.

I run my hands up her calf, then switch my focus to her other foot. “I told them this is something I want us to do as a family, but not under King Corp. Not under the board of directors. I don’t want us to answer to anyone but each other. I think we can do more good this way.”

“And...?” she pushes as she sips her wine.

“They all agreed. Eventually.” She looks up at me through her long lashes in question. “It took a while. Max and Scarlet didn’t understand why I didn’t want to add it to the King Corp. portfolio. Becks and Lenny understood my reasoning right away. But in the end, they all agreed. We’ve got to talk to Hudson, Jace, Amelia, and Ashlyn to see if they want to be involved too. But everyone loved the idea of helping people who haven’t had the same opportunities we’ve been given our entire lives.”

“Sawyer.” Wren’s voice shakes hesitantly. “I think what you’re going to do is amazing.” When my smile stretches across my face, she rolls her eyes. “Don’t let it go to your head, Kingston.”

“I’ll try not to.” This. This right here. Relaxing with her. Talking about our day. How can she not see this could be something more than either of us imagined? “Now, tell me what happened with your parents and why you want to be adopted by Bash and Sam’s Nona. I mean, she’s fantastic, but I’m willing to bet she’s shot a person or two in her lifetime. I don’t know if you’re cut out for that life, Red.”

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