and then she turns and walks away. I look back to Captain, but he doesn’t move, his eyes follow her.
Just as I look back, a streak of blonde catches my eye.
“What the...”
Captain bends at the knee and a teeny tiny little thing, with a little blonde, bouncy ponytail, and chubby cheeks runs straight into his open arms.
My jaw drops.
Captain buries the little one against his chest and her baby hand sneaks over his shoulder and pats. He pulls back to look at her, only to hug her close again.
He stands, lifting her with him.
And then he carries her down the hill as she giggles in his arm, patting his cheeks playfully.
I’m not sure how long I stare after the two, but when I snap out of it, I lay flat in the front seat, staring up at the roof forcing myself to think of any and everything other than that fact that I just forced him to share something he wasn’t ready to.
Captain was right, I shouldn’t have come.
The door opens and closes with a soft thud.
I wait for the engine to start but nothing happens, so I don’t move.
After about five minutes, his low sigh has my chest growing tight.
“You can stop pretending to be asleep now, Carver.”
“I don’t wanna look at you, Cap. I’m a bitch.”
“That’s not news to me.”
My eyes pop open and I slowly sit up when a hint of a smile hits his lips.
“I shouldn’t have forced you to bring me,” I tell him.
“Nope, you shouldn’t have,” he agrees. “But you did and now here we are.”
“Cap... I...” I throw my hands up and shrug.
“You can’t tell anyone.”
“I don’t have anyone to tell.”
“I’m not playing.” His tone is sterner this time.
I shrug again. “Neither am I, Cap. I have no one to tell, but even if I did, I wouldn’t.”
He eyes me a minute before nodding back and then we’re back on the road.
I try not to stare as he drives, but it’s impossible.
He’s smiling so bright, probably replaying the last hour in his head, but it’s short-lived and the closer we get to the house, the more his shoulders sag, and his face morphs back into the blank stare he shares with the world.
“Do they know?” I ask him quietly.
“They’re my brothers. They know everything...” He trails off.
“But?”
He swallows. “But they haven’t met her yet.”
“Well,” I whisper. “She’s beautiful, packman.”
He smiles wide, a light laugh leaving him.
I bet he’s picturing her little curls and the sound of her voice.
“Tell me her name?”
His features tighten along with his grip on the wheel. “Not today.”
“Fine.” I bounce in my seat, knowing neither of us needs to go back like this. “Take me to get ice cream then.”
Captain throws a grin my way. “All right. Ice cream I can do.”
I jog down the stairs, moving to check the garage, finding nobody. I pull out my cell.
“Yo?” Royce answers on the first ring.
“Where the fuck you guys at?”
I look over when the front door opens and Royce holds his hands out, the phone still to his ear.
I roll my eyes and toss mine to the couch. “Where’d you guys go?”
“I went to Rumi Grey’s house for some solid cardio.”
I look past him, but he shuts the door.
His frown meets mine. “What’s up?”
“Where’s Raven?”
“With Cap, I think.”
“Nah, man, it’s the second Sunday of the month.”
“Fuck.” He winces. “I forgot. It was my turn to make a plan for tonight this time.”
“It’s cool. I’ll message the team, tell them to gather some people and meet at the party pad. But where the fuck is Raven?”
“No idea, but chill. She’s probably hiding in the trees smoking or something.” He grabs a water from the fridge and we both drop on the couch.
I turn on the TV, but when a half hour passes, I turn it off and sit back.
When Royce sits forward instantly, I know I’m not the only one on edge here.
“Think she’s fighting?”
I frown. “No. Told Bishop if he so much as invited her to watch a fucking fight, he’d get his ass beat and lose his gig.”
Royce nods. “She wouldn’t leave would—”
The front door flies open, banging against the security screen as it does. Raven stumbles in as Captain tries to keep her steady and carry a bag of shit at the same time. She trips, catching herself with her palms against the wall, and starts laughing, dropping her head lazily.
Captain laughs and moves to help her, but she only trips over his shoe and smacks her ass