is only because of our long-standing relationship that I have not called the police!” Matthieu was an odd guy. Ink had never once heard him swear. Or lose his temper. Seemed like he was close to completely losing his shit.
“Okay, calm down. Why would they do that?”
“I do not know.” The other man took a ragged breath in. “They were asking me a lot of questions last night. About why their mother would send me to get them and where was she and why they could not speak to her.”
“Shit. They figured out something is going on.”
“They are not stupid,” Matthieu growled. “They were in the midst of organizing a large rebellion at that school. Had they been left there long, I have no doubts they would have stormed the gates. One of them is bad enough, but two…they could take over the world. They’d charm the knickers from a nun.”
He’d grin at Matthieu’s words if he hadn’t lost the two people that Betsy had risked her life to keep safe.
“Shit. Okay. I’ll get someone to track them down. I’ll get your car back.”
He knew Matthieu considered that car his baby.
“If there are any scratches on her…”
“I’ll pay for them.” He ended the call.
“Boys have gone?” Duke asked with a frown.
“Yep. Fuck.” This was a nightmare he didn’t need.
And what the hell was he going to tell Betsy?
20
“Did a glitter bomb go off in here?”
There was glitter all over the coffee table, their hands, their hair and the floor. He was shocked any glitter had actually made it onto the picture they were decorating.
Both girls glanced up at him guiltily. But he caught the way Betsy’s lips twitched.
“This place is a mess.”
“Daddy doesn’t like glitter,” she said to Sunny.
Daddy, huh? She must be feeling comfortable with Sunny. Satisfaction filled him. He wanted her deeply entrenched in his life, with his friends. He wanted her happy.
“How can he not like glitter?” Sunny scowled up at him. “What kind of a person doesn’t like glitter?”
Betsy shook her head. “It’s so sad. I think he was deprived of glitter as a child.”
“Must have been. Maybe he got some in his eye once, that would hurt.” Sunny gave him a sympathetic look.
Okay, he could see he was fast losing control of this conversation.
Did you ever have control?
“Or maybe he got it up his nose,” Betsy added.
“Or down his shirt.”
“Or up his bottom,” Betsy whispered. Both girls started laughing hysterically.
He groaned. Beside him he heard a deep chuckle. He turned to glare at Duke. “You’re supposed to be on my side here, man.”
Duke held up his hands. “I am. You’re right. Sorry. Sunny, you need to apologize to Ink.”
“Why?”
“For suggesting that Ink might have gotten glitter up his ass and that’s why he’s so uptight about it.”
“I am not uptight about it.” Ink placed his hands on his hips.
“But I didn’t suggest it. Betsy did. I thought it went down his shirt or in his eye.”
“Sunny,” Duke warned.
She huffed out a sigh. “Sorry, Ink.”
Yeah, she didn’t look sorry at all.
“I don’t think we can leave the two of them alone in future,” Ink told Duke. He gave Betsy a firm look.
“Sorry, Daddy,” Betsy said, looking up at him with those big, brown eyes. Christ, he was completely and utterly wrapped around her little finger.
“This is gonna be hell to clean,” he muttered.
“I don’t envy you, man. This is why Sunny is supposed to keep her glitter contained to the play room. How did that glitter get here, by the way?” Duke asked Sunny.
Her eyes widened innocently. “I don’t have control over the glitter, Daddy. The glitter has a mind of its own. It goes where it wants to go.”
“Uh-huh. The glitter is sentient? And I have magic beans to sell you.”
“You do?” Sunny bounced up and down on the sofa sending more glitter flying around the place. “Magic beans. Yay!”
Ink had to grin at that. Glittery mess aside, the two of them were adorable.
“Come on, little rebel, let’s clean you up before you traipse glitter through the place. Don’t think that will help Ink’s rep any.” Duke grinned at his growl.
“Like our picture, Daddy?” Betsy asked, pointing down at the huge mess on the coffee table with a smile.
“Beautiful, button. Although next time, might be best to put down a cloth first.”
“Does that mean Sunny will come back again?”
He loved how carefree she looked. And at the same time, he hated it. Because soon he was going to have to burst her happiness.
“Of course she