Total pages in book: 40
Estimated words: 36646 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 183(@200wpm)___ 147(@250wpm)___ 122(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 36646 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 183(@200wpm)___ 147(@250wpm)___ 122(@300wpm)
“He must not have told you everything.”
“Why?” Mike grinned at me. “Because I’m not afraid of you?” When I shrugged, he gave me a cocky smile that threatened to melt my panties. “Make no mistake, Mama. I know exactly what you’re capable of. The first time I saw you, I pegged you as the most dangerous person in the room. Even more than me. As to being a vicious killer? I’m sure you are. Aren’t all mama tigers?”
I gave him a disgusted snort. “You have no idea what I really am, Pops.” I spat out the name he’d used, meaning it as an insult. “You should be afraid of me. Very fuckin’ afraid.”
If anything, his grin got wider. “You’re not gonna hurt me. Not because we’ve fucked either. You’re not gonna hurt me because I’ve not broken your code. And I’m pretty sure you know I never will.”
“You’re so fuckin’ frustrating.” I muttered my complaint as I opened the door and got out of the car. Poor Gracie sat there, not saying a word. She hadn’t spoken since the beginning of the trip. Even now, she looked like she was in her own world. Likely deep in thought about what she was going to do with her life in the foreseeable future. I opened the back door and jerked my head for her to get out. “You don’t need to stay by yourself until I’m sure of everyone in this place, Gracie. Come with me.”
“I don’t want to cause trouble.”
“You won’t.” Mike and I spoke at the same time. I scowled. He smirked.
“Fucker.”
Mike just chuckled. “Come on, Mama. Let’s get this over with so we can all have a rest.” He made me crazy, but I kind of had to admire him. I knew the man saw me for what I was. It was why he’d willingly followed my lead in the airport and at Fort Knox. He knew I was capable and more than a little ruthless. Yet he stayed with me. Supported me when I’d never asked him to. He was an enigma and a refreshing change all at the same time.
Gracie followed me, her arms wrapped around herself protectively. The clubhouse looked like some old hotel they were fixing up. Men were everywhere, working. There were at least fifteen or twenty. None of them paid us any attention. Well, except one guy. And he was most definitely the Taz I knew.
“Jo?”
I lifted my chin. “Taz.”
He turned his attention back to Mike. “You didn’t tell me you knew Dr. Peyton.” Taz’s slight English accent always threw me. Although his parents were Brits, he’d been born in the U.S., yet managed to pick up a bit of their accent. It wasn’t pronounced, but there all the same.
Mike shrugged. “Just met her when we landed in Louisville. You hear about what happened?”
Taz nodded. “Yes. You there when it happened?”
“Yep.” Mike nodded in my direction. “Mama here talked the kid down.”
“Where’s he now?”
“Holding cell at Fort Knox, where he was stationed,” I offered. “He’ll be moved at some point, but Ry and Ian are going to try to keep him there until his trial is over.”
“Rylan Gill and Ian McGregor?” When I nodded, he snorted. “If it can be done, those two will do it.” Taz turned his gaze to Gracie. “And who’s the girl?”
“She’s the soldier in question’s woman. She’s pregnant with his child.”
“I see. She got any place to go?”
I took a threatening step toward Taz. “She stays with us.”
Taz chuckled. “Pops give you the name Mama?”
“He did. Don’t mean I accepted it.”
“Well, he named you well.”
“What the fuck is that supposed to mean? Just because you guys think you have me figured out doesn’t mean you do.”
“Oh, I think we do, Mama.” Taz sobered then. “You’re the most ruthless warrior I’ve ever met, but only when someone you love is threatened. In my case, it was my whole company.”
I sighed. “They were just kids.”
“They weren’t any younger than we were.”
“They weren’t as prepared as we were, Taz.” This was fucking exasperating. “I had a demon for a stepfather and you grew up on the streets. We were at least a decade older than those kids in life experiences.”
“Whatever. You took them all under your wing and when they were threatened, you did what you could to protect us all. Myself included.”
“Then my temper got me a dishonorable discharge.”
Taz just grunted. “Controlled yourself better’n me.”
“I heard you killed that fucking general.”
“Maybe.”
“Then you disappeared off the face of the fuckin’ planet. Until now.”
“It’s amazing what you can do when you’re willing to lie low.” He tried to give me a superior smirk, but I could see the underlying tension in the set of his jaw.
“I heard you had some help.” That wasn’t all I’d heard. If the rumors were to be believed, Taz was in deep shit. “An organization older than the fuckin’ country is what I heard.”