Chapter Six

Evianna curlsagainst me on the couch, her head resting on my shoulder. Rip and Cara went back to their place so he could start checking the traffic camera footage for any evidence of the guy who tailed the women. Graham went home too. And Sampson never came up with them. He had a Krav Maga class to teach at his dojo.

"You doin' okay?" I ask.

"Jet-lagged," she says on a sigh. "And I hate the Five Points' new beds."

"They're too soft." More than once over the past few nights, I'd thought about moving to the couch in our hotel suite, but then I wouldn't have her in my arms, and I'm not sure I could sleep a wink without her. "Maybe we should look into getting a place out here. Something small. If we found a studio?—"

"I have a better idea," Ryker says from behind us. "Though I'm a little pissed you stole my thunder."

He takes a seat across from us, and with the sun shining through the windows, I can make out his silhouette. Mostly. "What are you talking about?"

"The seventh floor is empty. I can have it converted in a month. At most. Maybe less. You can't tell me you like staying at the Five Points all the time."

"I hate it—we hate it," I say. "Housekeeping is banned from the room because they've been moving all the shit on the counters. Pretty sure someone stole a couple of my Imitrex last time we were here too."

"And the beds are awful," Evianna adds.

"Then I should call the contractor?" Ry's voice holds more hope than I've heard in months. He's been so worried about becoming a father, he hasn't let himself relax since Wren found out she was pregnant.

Evianna squeezes my hand, and I nod. "Do it. But I'm paying for it."

"Dax—"

"I mean it. You're about to have a baby. Put whatever you were planning on spending for the renovation into Harlow's college fund. In eighteen years, Harvard will be up to half a million dollars a year."

"Harvard?" He chuckles, the sound a hell of a lot less raspy than it used to be. Proof we're not the same men we were when he strong-armed his way back into my life after six years. "You're so sure she'll want to go to college in Boston?"

"That's where her cool aunt and uncle live. Part time, anyway. That and any kid with both your DNA and Wren's is going to be a goddamn genius."

"Then she can go to MIT," Evianna says. Her warm fingers flutter over mine. "Like I did. She'll practically be a legacy."

"Are you sure?" Ry leans forward—I think, as the angle of his voice changes. "Footing the bill for the renovations."

"Yes. I did pretty damn well for myself in the six years you had your head up your ass. And Second Sight has a couple of clients who keep us on retainer and rarely ask us to do anything but run background checks."

Despite how close we've become in the three years since Ry burst into my office and offered me an olive branch, we don't talk about Second Sight much. I think he feels guilty I had to turn to Ford as my partner. That it should have been him.

He might be right. But without Ford, without the shit Joey went through in Afghanistan, we never would have found Ripper. Cara would probably be dead. He might have regrets, but I know we're all right where we're supposed to be.

"Let me do…something," he says quietly.

"Oh, you'll do plenty. Like finding us someone you're willing to let into this fortress to clean. Unless you're going to mop the floor on the regular."

"Fuck no. I have a company I've vetted."

My brows shoot up. "Wait. You let someone besides your team into this condo?" I turn to Evianna. "Something's wrong with Ry, darlin'. This whole baby thing broke his brain."

"I don't let them in here alone," he says with a huff. "And they aren't allowed in the bedroom. The hardline and the safe are in there."

Evianna laughs. "He's fine. The same paranoid grump we've come to know and love."

My phone buzzes, and the clipped, British voice announces, "Text from…Ford. Text from…Ford."

"Voice Assist, read text message."

"Message reads: ‘Got a situation with the Boston Medical Research Fund. Vasquez and Tank have been working a case for the past three days, and shit just went sideways. Can you be available for a call in ten minutes?'"

I pull off my glasses and pinch the bridge of my nose. I knew I should have asked Ronan to work with the two junior associates on this one. But it should have been a simple job.

"You can use Wren's office," Ry says. "All the rooms are soundproofed. After that, we can go check out the seventh floor."

"Thanks." I turn and slide my fingers into Evianna's hair. "I don't know how long I'll be. Do you want to go back to the hotel?"

"God, no," she says. "I have my tablet. I can work from here. We're still having dinner together tonight?"

"Yeah, but I'll order in." Ry stands, his large frame casting a dark shadow over the couch. "Until we figure out who was following Wren today, I'm not taking any chances."

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