feeling he had to up his game fast if he wanted to keep up with Jayden. He had street smarts in spades, making him quick on his feet and even quicker with smartass replies.
“Shit.” Jayden dropped his phone on the carpet and bent down to pick it up again. Which gave Gray an idea. They’d buy him a case for his phone tomorrow.
“I have to take a shower,” Gray said. “You wanna get some dinner after?”
“Sure.” Jayden nodded and scratched his nose.
So Gray ducked into the bathroom with a change of clothes, and he spent the following five minutes hoping Jayden hadn’t bailed by the time Gray returned. At this point, he’d realized he had to be ready for anything with that boy.
Thankfully, Jayden was there. Still on the bed, playing with his phone.
Gray righted his T-shirt and buttoned his jeans, then used the towel around his neck to dry his hair a bit.
Jayden glanced over at him briefly.
“Do you wanna shower too?” Gray asked. “Or take a bath?”
Jayden shook his head. “Did that this morning.”
“Okay.” Even so, it was a reminder. Gray had to step up and be the adult; from now on, he had to make sure they both ate, cleaned up, got into bed on time, and…whatever else. Structure was important to children, and chances were Jayden hadn’t experienced much of that. “Let’s go grab some dinner, then.” He tried to sound a bit more upbeat. “You have to tell me if you need anything too. Maybe some new clothes? We could hit up an outlet on the way out tomorrow.”
Jayden shrugged and slid off the bed. “I have an extra T-shirt, underwear, and pants in my backpack.”
The kid should take a look in Gray’s twin brothers’ closets. They shopped more than most girls.
“I need a new toothbrush, I guess,” Jayden said on the way out.
Gray nodded to himself and grabbed his wallet, phone, and a hoodie. There was a burger joint across the street they could go to. Tomorrow, he’d try to find something healthier.
“Shit.” Jayden dropped his phone again, this time right before the carpet ended in the hallway. The floor by the elevator was hardwood and wouldn’t be as kind to the phone, nor would the pavement outside.
Gray pulled his phone from the case and pressed the elevator button. “Here, buddy. I have the same phone. Use my case until we get you a new one.”
“Can you help me put it on?”
“Of course.” Something fell to the floor just as the elevator arrived, so Gray picked it up and ushered Jayden into the car. Then he flipped the little…whatever it was in his hand and frowned. What the fuck? It looked like a microchip for computers, but without the green plastic. Thin wires were stuck to a transparent piece of tape, and it was no larger than a thumbnail. The wires connected at a flat, tiny metal box. Or maybe it couldn’t be called a box when it was essentially as flat as a piece of paper, but he could see the metal threads disappearing into it. Only the center of the metal piece was less flat. Three dots protruded from the surface.
Gray shoved it into his pocket for now and helped Jayden put the case on his phone. But on the inside, he was reeling. Why was “tracker” the first thing that popped into his head? Was someone tracking him? His immediate thought after that was Alfred Lange’s criminal organization, which caused a brick of fear to smash right into his chest, only it was followed by the next option. Kellan Ford. Had he come remotely close to Gray’s phone? Hell, had anyone who could be working for Alfred?
It seemed unlikely.
Then, what the hell did he know? Gray wasn’t fluent in Spy…oh. Oh fucking Christ.
Darius.
Darius was definitely fluent in Spy.
Gray narrowed his eyes at nothing and left the elevator with an oblivious Jayden in tow.
Darius had had more access to Gray’s phone too.
Yanking up his hood as the cold from outside hit them, Gray placed a hand on Jayden’s shoulder and guided him across the street. There was a 7-Eleven on the next block, he remembered. They’d go there after dinner and buy a toothbrush for the kid.
The burger place was fairly crowded, but Jayden came to life in here and he sprinted to grab the only empty table. Gray smirked to himself and hollered, asking what Jayden wanted.
Another shrug was what he got in response. The boy wasn’t picky, Gray guessed.
While he