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My breath caught in my throat as he released me and stepped back, and I pressed my thighs together discreetly.

"We're leaving, and there's a few things you need to understand before we get there." He stepped to the side and motioned for me to go first, pulling my bedroom door shut behind me. "We're taking my car and L is following on his bike. If you have any questions, I'll answer them on the drive. But the long and short of it is this: to everyone else, Az runs things. He'll be doing most of the talking for us, and when you want to refer to us as a group, make sure his name is the first. It reinforces that perspective."

I raised an eyebrow. It was evident that the guys deferred to Rich for direction most of the time. How did they expect anyone to buy that? Especially since Az was such a hothead.

"And I have to hide the fact you're the obvious leader from my father because…"

"We don't trust him, so he gets to know what everyone else knows. We're going with our gut on this." Rich responded simply, opening the door for me to the garage. I strolled past him with a shrug.

"I don't see what that has to do with me," I responded casually. He grabbed my wrist and spun me around to look athim. The touch was electric, reminding me of the heat in his eyes moments ago.

"Be honest with yourself, Princess. Is your first instinct to trust him right now?" His voice was pitched low and husky again. It didn't match the question, and I wasn't sure my brain registered it properly, but it left my body screaming for me to respond.

Shaking my head to clear the feeling, I scowled. "My relationship with my father is none of your business. But fine. I'll keep your silly little secret for now."

"See that you do." He drawled, gesturing towards the black classic car a few feet away.

Joey was waiting for me by the open passenger side door and helped me slide inside. I ran my hands over the dash, admiring the interior.

"Well, hello, Baby," I whispered, recognizing the make and model from one of my and Tiff's favorite shows.

"Hello to you too, baby." Joey chuckled, sliding into the backseat.

"I was talking to the car. She looks just like Dean's Baby."

Leighton cackled from the other side of the car, leaning down into the open driver's side window. "Hunting's the family business." He winked before stepping away and hopping on his bike.

"Same rules apply here, Princess." Craig added, sliding into the backseat beside Joey. "Driver picks the music, shotgun shutshercake-hole."

"And no chick-flick moments." Rich said, a rumble of amusement in his voice.

I turned toward him, my mouth hanging open in shock.

"Idjits." Az muttered, climbing in the back on the driver's side.

I whirled to face him. "You're not good enough to be Bobby, Az-hole."

Rich sighed, turning the key in the ignition. "Don't start, children. We have bigger issues tonight than whatever is going on between the two of you."

I faced forward again, crossing my arms with a huff. "Yes, Daddy." I muttered.

Rich groaned so soft I barely heard it and pulled out of the garage. Dad rock played on the radio, but otherwise, we rode silently to my father's house. Leighton followed close behind on his motorcycle, my eyes drifting to the side mirror occasionally to look for him. By the time we pulled into the driveway of my dad's, the tension in the car had become palpable. The guys were noticeably on edge.

We climbed from the car as Leighton parked his bike beside it and headed toward the entrance. Looking back, I caught sight of Joey. He had a gun in his hand, aimed toward the ground as he released the magazine before holstering it back under his jacket. I'm sure my eyes looked like they were about to pop out of my head as I watched.

"At my father's house? Really?" I said, aghast.

"Don't worry, sweetheart. I'm not going to cause any trouble, I promise. I'd rather have it and not need it than need it and not have it." He said, approaching me and gently chucking me under the chin before placing his hand on my lower back and leading me toward the house.

"Like a condom!" Leighton said as he walked past us, laughing.

Rich shot Leighton a look before pressing the doorbell. I snorted, brushing past him and letting us in. Theo and my father had just entered the foyer from the drawing room to the left.

"Honeybee, it's so good to have you back home." My father smiled broadly, stepping forward to embrace me.

"Father." I replied curtly, pulling away and moving to hug Theo. "Uncle Theo, I didn't know you'd be here."

"Wouldn't miss it for the world, Jellybean. When Hugo told me he'd asked you to have dinner, I may have invited myself to attend." He winked. The sound of one guy clearing their throat drew his attention to them standing behind me, and he stiffened. "Boys."