Chapter 17

Chapter Seventeen

Gunner

" W here is she?" I growl, shoving my way inside as soon as Maverick opens the door.

"She's on the couch. Dial it back a few notches," Maverick huffs, grabbing my arm. My helmet almost goes flying, but I catch it with my free hand. "She's stressed to the fucking max. Do not add to that right now. She can't handle it."

My instincts are fully feral, making it nearly impossible not to take a swing at my best friend.

Maverick leans in, getting very close to my ear. "She's seven months pregnant and hiding it from literally everyone. Do not stress her out needlessly. Calm the fuck down before you make it into the living room."

"Fuck you," I hiss, and I don't even know why.

Maverick grates on my nerves regularly, but that's more because he's happy-go-lucky, where I am a pessimist through and through.

Still, I never feel the urge to rip his head from his shoulders, which should give me some indication that my instincts are riled to the point I'm on the edge of going feral.

Or, at the very least, losing myself to the alpha fog.

How the hell did I miss the pregnancy thing?

Isn't seven months considered pretty far along?

Jesus Christ.

No wonder I thought her hips looked fuller.

My mind replays her curves as she grabbed for her sweater on the back of her chair in the bookstore.

There were signs, but I still can't believe I missed it.

It's also really fucking inappropriate to mention any changes like weight gain or weight loss, so she's probably got that going for her with the general public.

"Don't be a dick, or I'll kick your ass out," Maverick says, grabbing my helmet. "I should probably put my bag up in case Libby wakes up. Go say hello , but tone down the feral alpha bullshit." He stomps over to grab his backpack, but I still have no idea why he's putting it up.

Fuck.

Kids touch everything, meaning no more weapons tossed down without thought.

Everything is about to change.

Well, unless Brooklyn tells us to fuck off.

No, I'm not even putting that negativity out in the world.

"Where is Haze?" Maverick shoves me out of the way, tugging open the hall closet.

"I dropped him off with my mom. I didn't know if we would be going back to the rental house tonight," I say, swiping my hands off on my jeans. "And he was feeding off my mood, so I figured now wasn't the time for an introduction."

"That makes sense." Maverick places his backpack up on the top shelf and drops my helmet on the floor.

I finally get my shit together and head to find Brooklyn.

Coming around the corner, I see her sitting on the couch with Nova's head in her lap. Nova immediately moves to stand to assess the threat, but she snuggles back in as soon as she realizes that it's just me.

I can't seem to stop myself as I stomp over, lifting Brooklyn and pulling her into my lap as I sit down.

She wiggles and says, "Sorry, I feel like I'm squishing you like this."

She's absolutely not, but I help her spin to face me. "Are you okay?" I ask, running my hands over her hair.

Her head tilts as she blinks up at me from behind her dark lashes. "I'm pregnant."

I'm really grateful Maverick gave me that warning. If not, I'd probably sound like a real idiot right about now.

"That isn't as surprising as I think you expected it to be," I murmur, studying her sparkling hazel eyes. "Did you know unbonded female omegas smell exceptionally enticing to compatible alphas during pregnancy? I didn't. Not until recently. Our boss met his omega while she was pregnant, and he was fascinated by her scent from the very first moment. I suppose that helps explain why I'm half feral to bury my face in your throat and breathe you in."

Her nose scrunches, and I feel a little like Ranger looks whenever he says something dumb as hell to Laken.

"Maverick and I weren't drawn to her scent at all, just so you know." I tease my thumbs over her cheeks as my fingers work through her hair. "Where's your daughter?"

Her head twists toward the hallway that I assume leads to the bedrooms.

"She fell asleep on the walk home." She swallows thickly. "I didn't even get to feed her lunch."

"Are you hungry?" I ask.

"I can order delivery," Maverick says, tossing himself down on our other side.

Nova has her head on my thigh, and it reminds me of the way she was with Laken. I'm fairly sure dogs can sense pregnancy.

Or, at least, that one can.

"I'm not hungry, but Libby will be when she wakes up. I can make something," Brooklyn says, pulling her hand up to rub at her forehead.

"Give me the address and a few ideas on what the two of you like, and I'll order." Maverick leans over, brushing his lips along her cheek.

She doesn't push either of us away.

That has to be a good sign, right?

Maverick tackles ordering lunch, while Brooklyn stays plastered to my chest.

Fuck if I know when we got to this level of comfortable, but I'm not complaining.

Being able to touch her soothes the rage I feel whenever I think about Avan Barrett.

"Sorry, I sweated all over you," Brooklyn says against my throat. "I was hot at the park, but even the air conditioning isn't helping."

My hand moves to brush the backs of my fingers over her forehead, and my head tilts. She might be a little warmer than normal.

"Would you like to go change? Maybe take a quick shower?" I offer. "Maverick and I can keep an eye out for Liberty."

Someone knocks on the door, and Maverick instantly pushes himself up to go collect the food.

"I don't know what to do," she whispers. "My instincts are a mess. Half of me wants to frantically pack everything I own. The other half wants to hide in my bed in a makeshift nest and burrow until all my problems disappear."

My chest aches from hearing how miserable she sounds. "We've got you now. No matter what comes next, Maverick and I will protect you. If it comes down to it, we can get you out of New York in a single night, and if we need to call in the rest of our team from Assurance, then we will. You are safe. Just tell me how to help you feel better."

"You are." She nuzzles her face deeper into my neck. "I just feel bad for getting you involved in all of this."

"Don't. I'm exactly where I want to be." I run my hand up and down her spine. It's a little crazy to realize my words are true.

I've never been omega obsessed.

Their impulses are cute and sometimes endearing, but I've always been content to watch them from a distance.

That doesn't apply to Brooklyn.

There's a physical compulsion to keep her close, so she can't disappear on me again. It doesn't help knowing that danger looms because of her shitty ex.

I really do wish she would agree to let us get her out of the city. We could be back in Virginia within three days—and that's taking our time because of the dogs and a toddler. Once we're there, we'd have guys I trust backing us up.

There's a ruckus at the front door, and my head tilts.

Bless comes around the corner with Maverick right behind her. She has an armful of huge plastic bins, and my eyes widen.

Holy fuck.

"What are those for?" Brooklyn asks in a wobbly tone.

Bless tosses the bins down by the barstools and strides over. "Our timetable has moved up significantly."

"I don't understand," Brooklyn whispers.

"We need to talk." Bless plants her hands on her hips. "I was trying to give you time to come to terms with things, but that time has run out."

Brooklyn freezes.

I don't even think she's breathing, but she finally shudders out a heavy breath.

"Tell me what's going on," she says firmly as she climbs from my lap.

Maverick grimaces, dropping the plastic totes he's been carrying next to the others.

Bless tosses her long hair behind her shoulder, walks over, and pulls Brooklyn in for a hug. "I don't want to stress you out with the details, but Brook, I don't think we can put it off any longer."

"Is Avan trying to kill me?" Brooklyn asks.

Bless hugs her tighter, and her eyes meet mine over Brooklyn's shoulder.

The look on her face says it all.

My fists clench as I shove myself off the couch to pace.

"I don't know," Bless says finally. "But I'm not taking any chances. I wanted to wait until Ivanov made a move to take the city back. I thought it would give us the best chance to get you out amidst the chaos. Or I wanted to wait until the wedding. If nothing else, it felt like the next best distraction, but we can't wait any longer."

My head tilts.

We have a direct line to Ivanov's former top enforcer.

Soren Nikolov worked for Ivanov for years. There were rumors that Soren would replace Ivanov when the time came.

Only, Ivanov's daughter, Keeley, was kidnapped by Avan and married off to some old fuck that Soren killed.

The world thinks Soren is dead.

But Maverick and I know better.

Soren got Keeley back, they fell in love, and ended up packed up with two of our close friends.

Merrick and Steele now live in North Carolina with Soren and Keeley.

If anyone could appeal to Ivanov to move up his timeline…

It would be Soren.

Or maybe Keeley.

Merrick is already looking into the camera feeds to see if he can find a license plate number or anything else we can use to track down the assholes trying to take out Brooklyn and Libby.

Maverick catches my gaze, scratching his beard. His hair is a mess from running his hands through it or maybe from wearing his hat earlier.

The look on his face tells me he followed my train of thought. That's one of the few benefits of being partnered up for as long as we have.

"He's sending me to some dress shop to get Libby fitted for his wedding," Brooklyn says, shaking her head as she pulls back from the hug with Bless. "I almost feel like he's taunting me."

Bless sighs. "I don't know what he's doing, but I need to talk to these guys. Why don't you go take a nap while Libby is sleeping?"

"No, she could be up any time, and I always feel worse after a nap," Brooklyn says, rubbing her eyes.

"Then, we'll snuggle and nest for a bit." I stride forward, grabbing her hand and leading her toward the hallway I assume has the bedrooms. "Let us know if Libby wakes up."

"I'm sticking around for a while," Bless says. "Get some sleep."

Brooklyn leads the way into her bedroom, but she stops next to the bed.

"I feel like things are moving really fast, and I'm not opposed to that." She swallows thickly, looking up at me from under her lashes. "But there's someone else in my life that I don't think you know about. My neighbor. He's a great guy. He's lived there for a few months, and he does know about the baby. He also knows about you and Maverick, but he asked if he could court me?—"

"You're in the process of being courted by another alpha?" I growl as my hands land on her hips.

She nods tentatively and takes a slight step back.

I immediately leash my attitude. It bothers me on a foundational level to see her so skittish.

"You never have to be afraid to tell me anything." I exhale heavily, shaking my head. "I didn't mean to make you uncomfortable. Telling me now was the right call."

"He's working today, but I think he'll come over tonight. He's been stopping by in the evening…" She frowns. "Would you mind grabbing my phone? I think I left it on the counter when I dropped the rest of my stuff."

"You got it." I bend, brushing a quick kiss over her forehead. "Snuggle in and relax. I'll be right back."

I make it back into the living room, and Bless is in the kitchen while Maverick leans over the island as they talk in hushed tones.

Bless is dropping small kitchen appliances into one of the plastic bins, and I actually stumble at the sight.

She wasn't exaggerating about the timeline being moved up considerably. Not if she's starting to pack up Brooklyn's apartment.

"Tell us what the fuck is going on," I growl, trying to keep my voice low enough that Brooklyn won't catch it.

Bless sighs, dropping several small pans into the bottom of the bin before standing. "I don't believe in coincidences under the best of circumstances. Anything that involves my family immediately makes me even more suspicious."

"Well, that was a roundabout way to say nothing new." Maverick snorts.

"You know information that you're not sharing," I accuse at the same time.

"Avan placed a contract in one of the marketplaces I don't actively monitor. I would have missed it completely had the individual he initially reached out to not made me aware of the situation." Bless tucks her hair behind her ear. "I'm doing everything I can, but I'm not infallible. Luckily, Avan approached the wrong man."

"Who?" I growl, trying to fathom exactly how vile a person would have to be to try to kill their child's mother.

"The Cleaner," she says, glancing between us to see if we recognize the name. "Deveraux isn't perfect, but he wasn't about to take a contract that involves a kid."

I step back at her words, like I can physically distance myself from their meaning.

"Fuck," Maverick growls.

"Okay, so, one guy refused the contract," I say. "Is it still live?"

If it is, that means anyone could take it at any time.

"It is, but he's monitoring it. Anytime it disappears, he's aware he needs to be on the hunt." Bless steps closer to the counter. "He's who has been handling close contact, but Brooklyn doesn't know. And neither of you are going to tell her."

"The neighbor she just told me about?" I choke out.

I'm not sure why it's the first place my mind goes, but I'd bet I'm right.

"He's positioned to be able to intercede at any time—day or night—and he's ruthless when the need arises. Also, keep your fucking voice down," Bless hisses in barely more than a whisper. "They have feelings for each other. He already said he's going to tell her everything, but he's trying to ease her into it."

"Fuck," Maverick mutters again, like that's the extent of his vocabulary.

"You think it's fine to have an assassin around Brooklyn and her fucking daughter?" I snap.

"Don't go all high and mighty on me now, Gunner." Bless snorts derisively. "You do the same work."

"No." My head shakes. "We're not assassins. We do contract jobs, but that's not the same thing."

"You're sounding kinda hypocritical right now," Maverick whispers out of the side of his mouth.

"She's attached to Deveraux. Liberty loves him." Bless shrugs. "Show your ass if you want to. I have a feeling you won't like the outcome. He's been around daily, putting in the work to earn her trust."

I growl, and Maverick elbows me in the gut.

"Grab whatever you came for before she comes looking for you," Maverick says. "We'll handle him if he becomes a problem."

I sigh heavily, scooping up Brooklyn's cell phone and shoving it into my back pocket. "Fine, but you need to check in with Merrick. See if Stone can give us any assistance in case the timetable needs to be moved up with Ivanov."

Bless doesn't know Soren, Ivanov's former enforcer, is alive, so I use his new, assumed name of Stone.

"Go cuddle with Brooklyn," Bless says, dismissing me. "Trust me when I say she deserves all the pampering after the hell Avan put her through."

My jaw slides from side to side, but I give a clipped nod.

I tug off my leather jacket and get myself out of my holster before taking both to the closet by the door. I shove them onto the top shelf, where I'm sure no toddler would be able to reach and move swiftly back toward Brooklyn's bedroom.

It's time I put in the work to earn her trust.