Chapter 17

Chapter Seventeen

Caesar was the last to hold the talking spoon near the end of dinner. “So, the plan is to go out tomorrow at high tide. If we have the entire team, minus Magnus on the boat, plus most of the Littles, we will easily look like a regular excursion. If anyone stalks us from another boat or the shore, they won’t know some of us are actually under the water looking for any hint of the treasure.”

Magnus nodded. “I’ll stay here in the basement with Juniper, watching all the cameras. Two sets of eyes are better than one.”

Sadie wiggled on her Daddy’s lap. “I got someone to replace me at the front desk for several hours.”

Rocco gripped her thigh, silently reminding her to sit still. This made Caesar suspect she either had a sore bottom, a plug, or both. Caesar knew, from the way Isla had glanced at Sadie several times, that she was wondering the same thing.

“How many of us are scuba certified?” Celeste asked. “I’m certainly not. I’ve never been willing to stick more than my face in the water. Anything deeper makes me freak out.”

Hawking kissed her cheek. “Phoenix and I have both gotten certified since we started working here. So has Zara.”

Kestrel nodded. “I’ll stay at the surface, snorkeling with Celeste, Lyra, and Sadie.”

Rocco nodded. “I will stay on the boat with Jack and watch for any possible threats.”

It was rare, but Caesar felt kind of choked up. “Thank you. All of you.”

Rocco leaned forward, keeping one arm tight around Sadie. “No need to thank us. We’re a team. We’ve all been there for each other, and we will all see this threat through to the end.”

All Caesar could do was nod as Isla wrapped her arms tight around his neck and leaned her head against his shoulder.

Phoenix lifted Lyra out of her chair and pulled her onto his lap. It seemed all of them were feeling possessive and a bit emotional. Every face was somber, and the room was rather quiet.

Phoenix cleared his throat. “I know something big is going to happen. I can feel it in the air. We all know Kingsley doesn’t assign anyone the task of protecting a Little without a serious threat following on her heels. All we can do, for now, is do this dive tomorrow and see what we can find. We all know the danger is real. We will all be cautious and observant at all times. We’ll take our time, be meticulous, and scour the ocean floor.”

“What if we don’t find a single thing?” Zara asked.

Hawking sighed. “That’s the most likely outcome, unfortunately, and I don’t know what happens next. As long as there are people out there who believe there’s a treasure buried in that cove, there will be boats in the Danger Bluff waters, scouring the sea floor, even if they have to do so in the dark of night. Treasure hunters can be ruthless.”

Caesar patted Isla’s bottom and drew in a deep breath. “Which is why it’s crucial that we find something. It’s the only way we can put a stop to the nonsense. Otherwise, we’ll be out there looking again every few days until we do.”

“What if there’s nothing to find?” Isla asked, her voice cracking. She rubbed her temples. “I feel so bad about this. If I hadn’t dug around in my grandfather’s belongings and decided to follow in his footsteps, none of this would’ve happened. No one would have ever known who took that map out of a toilet tank all those years ago.”

Caesar hugged her tighter. “Little Fish, if you hadn’t found that map and headed out on this adventure, I wouldn’t have met you, and that possibility is unimaginable. You’re my life. I’ll never understand how you got put in my path or how Kingsley could possibly know to send you to me, but you’re here now, and I’m so damn glad. I’ll never regret a thing. We will resolve this matter and live happily ever after. There are no other options.”

The remaining Littles who’d been sitting next to their Daddies climbed up on their laps so that all twelve of them were snuggled in with their loved ones.

After a few minutes of silence, Rocco said, “Am I the only one wondering what happens to us after we solve this problem? What happens to the twelve of us? I consider you my family now. I can’t fathom a world in which we all go our separate ways.” He shuddered.

“Me neither,” Hawking agreed.

Kestrel nodded. “I think that goes for all of us.”

“Definitely,” Magnus muttered. His ball cap helped him hide his expression, but Caesar knew he was feeling emotional.

Phoenix smiled at everyone. “So, it’s settled. We stay together. We’ll talk to Kingsley and tell him we want to continue working here at Danger Bluff. Hopefully, he won’t evict us.”

Caesar shuddered. The idea of Kingsley sending them all back to their previous lives made bile rise in his throat. For many of them, there was no previous life. They’d been merely existing between the time Kingsley had sent a team to rescue each of them and when he’d called in their markers.

Return? To what? Caesar’s life was here. He and Isla hadn’t discussed her willingness to stay in New Zealand again since the first time he’d suggested she find a nursing job here, but they would soon, and he knew she would not want to part from him or her new family. He could tell by the way she was gripping his neck as though if she let loose, she might be ripped from him and float away.

Isla cleared her throat. “I know I’m the newest member of the family, and I’ve only been here a few short days, but I feel like I belong. Like I’m home.” She let out a sob and wiped tears from her face.

All the Littles nodded their agreement, murmuring words of acceptance and agreement. It warmed Caesar’s heart. So, that was settled. Now, they just needed to solve this unknown crime and arrange a meeting with Kingsley.

Rocco set Sadie on her feet and rose to stand. “Enough with the long faces. Let’s have a movie night.”

Sadie clapped her hands together. “Something scary?”

“Hell no.” Caesar couldn’t even be certain who, besides him, blurted that out. It had to have been several of the Daddies all at once.

Rocco took Sadie’s hand and headed for the giant sectional to pick up the remote. “I’ll look for something light. Maybe a rom-com. Something the Littles will enjoy that will make us all laugh.”

Hawking leaned to one side and pulled his phone out of his pocket. “I’ll see if the restaurant can make us a huge batch of popcorn.”

Celeste grinned. “Can we have soda, too?”

Kestrel groaned. “Lemon-lime. No caffeine.”

Zara pushed out her bottom lip. “Then can we at least get candy, too? Maybe some chocolate?”

Magnus shook his head. “Oh boy. If we start adding soda and candy, the Littles will end up conspiring against us.”

Juniper giggled. “You love it when we conspire, though. Admit it. It makes your palms twitch.”

Phoenix flexed his hand. “Guess we better start stretching our fingers and wrists. I say we Daddies place bets on what percentage of the movie we’re able to watch before bottoms end up in the air.”

Lyra swatted at his flailing hand. “Don’t be ridiculous. We can watch an entire movie without getting into trouble.”

Caesar’s face hurt from smiling. Yeah, bottoms were going to get spanked. Fun was going to be had. And he wouldn’t have it any other way. These men were his brothers. These women were their perfect Littles. If they didn’t find a way to get into trouble, life would be boring.

Isla set her lips on his ear and whispered. “I’m going to fit in just fine. I feel some seriously naughty behavior bubbling up inside me.”

Caesar rubbed her back as he continued to grin. He kissed her cheek and nibbled on her ear. “I hope so because I’m looking forward to spanking your bottom with that plug inside you. After all, that’s what happened in the book you were reading.” He leaned back and lifted a brow.

Damn, she was cute when her cheeks turned pink and she couldn’t meet his gaze. “I’m never sharing my books with you again.”

“You will, Little Fish. You will,” he promised.