Page 46 of The Truths We Seek

“He isn’t the doctor I’d be asking for advice,” she grumbles. “He caves to you guys too easily.”

Oh, if only she knew.

I wonder if Rory told her about the tracker yet. Actually, there’s no way; we’d have had Hurricane Quinn if she knew. Should probably do something about that, but it’s kept her safe thus far, and too many things are still uncertain.

Especially with the Knights now sniffing around. I get the feeling that kidnapping isn’t something that they have issues with if it serves their needs.

They continue their light-hearted bickering, which I know is more to keep her distracted, and I’m thankful. By the time Rory, O’Connor, Eddie, and Rob finally board, Quinn and Hunter are in full war mode with their back and forth, while I try to not clench my jaw so hard that my teeth crack over how to deal with Mateo without beating him to death.

He’s my brother, and I love him dearly, but sometimes I want to choke the life from him with my bare hands. Glancing back down at my phone doesn’t make it any easier.

Mateo

I don’t need a fucking babysitter, I can just send you whatever. But if you need to swing your dick for the princess, I guess I’ll see you in a few hours.

I have no idea what his issue with Quinn is, they’ve hardly interacted that I’m aware of. I pocket my phone, finish my drink, and start a game of chess with Rory, while Rob reads behind us next to Eddie, and Hunter and Quinn play a game of snap.

Some things never cease to amaze me, but she’s smiling and that’s what matters.

The flight passes with ease, almost too much, and the host appears to let me know we’re only about an hour out.

At that point, Rory heads to the bathroom, and Quinn jumps seats to sit next to me, leaving Hunter pouting. I smile, shaking my head at how he can be entirely himself with her. We all can. She makes it easy.

She snuggles under my arm, curling her legs up on the seat and getting comfy. “You doing okay?”

Looking up at me, it’s impossible to miss the sadness still in her eyes, but she gives me a soft smile anyway. “Better than I expected to be.”

I squeeze her against me, wishing there was something I could do. “Anything I can do to help?”

“You can distract me for the next hour?”

“And how would you like me to do that?” I ask, my mind going to places it definitely shouldn’t be while we’re on this plane.

But then… there is a bed in the back.

Focus, Meyer.

She doesn’t look back up at me, but I feel her stiffen. “You could tell me more about the business. What you guys actually do. Why we’re having to go to Tommy’s place, because I know it’s not just a simple visit. And maybe why I still require a silent ninja shadow everywhere we go?”

Well shit. Not exactly what I expected, but I did tell her I’d tell her what she wanted to know about our lives, as long as it was safe for her to know. But where the fuck to start?

I don’t really want her to know about the Knights, but I also can’t decide if it’s safer that she knows about all the threats or none of them. That said, she’s a grown-ass woman, and despite my caveman ways, I know that she’s capable of making her own decisions.

Doesn’t mean I’m not going to agree with them, or find ways to keep her safe regardless, but… I suppose I can divulge some of it.

Running a hand down my face, I let out a breath. “Okay,” I start, and she pulls back, sitting up straight as Rory returns. He looks at me, and I don’t know what he sees on my face, but he sits down opposite Hunter, giving us space.

“Let’s start with this trip. A new player on the board, an old-school power player that’s never bothered us before, made themselves known, but it turns out they had an agreement with Tommy and Pops from back in the day. I need to go through all his shit to see if he has any details anywhere about it. Unlikely, because it was probably a gents agreement, but Tommy made meticulous notes. I want to know what he knew.”

“Okay,” she says, nodding. “Do we need to worry?”

“Not yet,” I answer honestly, scanning her face as she digests my words.

“Okay, so what about the rest?” she prompts, and I can’t help the smile on my face. Our kitten definitely has claws; they’re put away, but she’s impatient today, apparently.

“You wanted to know about the business?”

She nods eagerly, crossing her legs and leaning toward me, her elbow resting on the table.

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