Hostile Ground (The Arsenal #7) - Cara Carnes Page 0,140

commandoes to call on if we get into trouble.”

Dom took his turn, slamming one in and missing the next.

“Real commandoes?” Kristof asked, amusement in his voice.

“The little Mason here hasn’t ever asked Jud about his past,” Thunder said with a smirk. “She thinks he’s a private dick.”

“Why would I? He’s got a license. I know he can kick ass. I saw him kick said ass when he helped secure the compound. Dallas said that’s all I needed to know.”

Either she didn’t know he was a former assassin or ignored that fact for some reason. Interesting. Beast chuckled. “By the way, solid work out there. Appreciate you having Addy’s back. And the others. Heard you did a great job sniping.”

“It was better than good,” Johnny said. “Not sure I could’ve done better.”

Admiration sounded in the sniper’s voice. “Appreciate it. I’m up for helping out wherever I can, Riley. And I’ll always have Addy’s back.” Against anyone. The unspoken words loomed between him and Addy’s team.

“If you get tired of playing private dick with Jud and his sidekick here, we’ll make room on the team for you,” Thunder said. “We’ve all agreed. You’d be a good fit.”

Warmth spread through him. Acceptance. “Appreciated. You all have Addy covered. She deserves her space to do her thing without me.”

Shep crossed his arms. “I didn’t expect that, but I’m pleased as hell you trust us with your woman.”

“Not sure she’d appreciate being called my woman,” Kristof commented.

“You’re right,” Beast said. “She wouldn’t. Offer’s open, if you want on a team.”

“If he wants on a team, you’ll need to fight Raul for him,” Dom said. “And Sanderson.”

Surprise filled him. He hadn’t expected The Arsenal to welcome him so quickly.

“Risking your ass the way you did to get Spade out vetted you,” Johnny said. “But you were already in. Jud vouched for you.”

“Get real. He was already in because Red vouched for him,” Thunder said. “Sanderson too.”

“And Nolan,” Beast said.

“If y’all are done stroking his ego, can he please take his shot?” Riley asked.

Kristof chuckled. He glanced at the youngest Mason. “You want this over quick or slow?”

“We’re doing best of three. This is round two and we’re down because someone over there couldn’t hit for shit,” she answered. “You’d have to clear our three left and then another rack. If you’ve got what it takes, go for it.” She glanced at Dom. “I need my girl for the weekend to do some surveillance.”

“She’s not your girl,” Dom growled. “Leave my ride alone, you hellion.”

Riley grinned. “That’s not happening.”

Kristof laughed and got into position. It’d been a while since he played, but the dust sloughed off his memory after the first hit. He’d already won what he’d set out to get—the approval of the team who’d had Addy’s back when he couldn’t.

Silence descended as he cleared the table. Riley whooped her delight and racked the final set.

“I’m thinking we should’ve asked a few more questions about his experience,” Thunder said.

Kristof laughed outright as he finished off the game. He set the cue on the table and looked at Beast, then the rest of Addy’s team. “I appreciate you all being there for Addy when I wasn’t. You don’t know me, but she means the world to me. I won’t let anyone or anything hurt her again. Ever.”

“Neither will we,” Johnny said.

“Good.” Kristof glanced at Riley, who was hopping circles around Dom.

The man growled when she held out her hand. “You get one scratch on her and I’ll spank your ass.”

Riley batted her eyelashes. “You promise?”

Kristof laughed as she headed out of the rec room, keys in hand. Dom approached. “She’s spirited.”

“She needs a damn babysitter.” Dom clapped him on the back. “I hope you’re going to work with Jud. He needs the help. You need anything, let me know.”

“Thanks.”

“Should I ask what’s going on? Riley was way too happy when I ran into her just now.” Addy smiled at Dom. “She stole your ride again.”

“Yeah. She’s a menace.”

Addy laughed and wrapped her arms around Kristof when Dom left. “How’s it going?”

“Great.” And it was. “I’ve got to go pick Olaf up from Sinclair’s, then get his meds from Logan, though.”

“I’ll get the meds,” she offered. “Then we can grab some food from the mess hall and…visit.”

Blood surged to his cock. Yeah, he was fully down with a “visit.” He loved her more than he could’ve ever imagined.

Love.

It’d gotten easier to admit the sentiment to himself. Now all he needed to do was find the guts to tell