Page 22 of Kane (Ghost Ops #4)

“I got it.”

“You done apologizing now? Because I need some of Theo Harper’s fried chicken or my stomach’s gonna eat itself.”

“All done.”

They went inside the Dawg and found the gang at the usual tables pushed together.

Rory smiled and waved from the bar. Of course she was still working, because she was Rory, but she’d slowed down a little bit.

She didn’t work every night anymore, and she’d agreed to Theo’s suggestion they hire a couple more people to tend bar and wait tables.

“Do you have a new set of wheels?” Callie asked.

“Yes I do! Very happy.” Daphne reached for a chair, but Kane pulled it out for her.

She sat, conscious of the way his friends exchanged glances.

Kane took the chair beside her, because it was the only one left.

He didn’t usually sit next to her in public, and she found it distracting.

His leg touched hers from time to time while they ordered dinner and ate, and his voice was disturbingly close to her ear whenever he spoke.

By the time he got up for a game of pool with Chance, she practically sagged in relief.

Not because she didn’t like him close, but because it was like sitting next to a live wire and feeling the energy prickling along her nerve endings. She wanted to fly into the light like a moth.

Emma and Callie moved closer once the guys got up to watch pool and take their turns too.

Nikki was at the stable, preparing for a horse show next weekend, but Rory left the bar to join them when Waitress Nikki kicked her out and took over.

All the Bookalicious Besties in one place, except for the teen.

“Did that Neanderthal really find you a car?” Rory asked. “Or did he bail at the last minute when you went to pick it up?”

Emma snorted and Callie tried to hide a smile.

“He did,” Daphne said. “I handed over the check and drove it back. It’s in the parking lot.”

“Oooh, I want to see,” Rory said. “But not right now. My feet are killing me.”

Emma arched an eyebrow. “I told you, ma’am, more breaks, less stubbornness.”

“I know, I know. I’m on a break now, aren’t I?

” Rory put a hand on her belly. It was just starting to show a little bump.

If you didn’t know, then you’d think it was normal weight gain.

“My doctor said everything is going well. My blood sugar is controlled, and the baby is developing normally for where we’re at. ”

They all expressed happiness at the news.

Rory was a type 1 diabetic, and though she was healthy overall and took care of herself, pregnancy was harder and potentially more problematic for someone with her disease.

She pretended to be stubborn about breaks and working less, but the truth was she knew her own body and did everything she could to give herself the rest she needed.

Daphne hadn’t known any of them long, but she knew that the Rory of six months ago and the Rory of right now were not the same person in terms of workaholic tendencies.

“So,” Emma said, exchanging a look with Rory and Callie. “Inquiring minds want to know if you kissed that man senseless yet.”

Daphne’s entire body flamed hot. She glanced quickly around before leaning toward them and pitching her voice low. “I told all you nosy beyotches that was not going to happen. Y’all read too many romance novels.”

They laughed.

“Right, sure,” Rory said. “You read them too, my Bookalicious Bestie. And I’ve never seen a woman who needs a good orgasm more than you do.” She cut a glance at Emma. “Well, I have, but Emma Grace solved the problem by shagging the hell out of Blaze at the time.”

Emma bumped shoulders with Rory but Rory only laughed. “Come on, you know it was true.”

“It was, but you’ve got all the subtlety of a red flag waved in front of a bull. Despite pretending to be British or whatever with the shagging talk.”

Rory rolled her eyes. “Nobody’s listening to us talk, babe.

Even if they were, it’s obvious you’re shagging him on the regular.

Same as I’m doing with Chance and Callie’s doing with Seth.

And I like that word because it sounds sooo polite.

Anywho, nobody is surprised about what’s going on with us, Emma Grace.

But what we need to happen is for Daphne to take the bull by the horns because Kane never will. Even though he wants to.”

Daphne loved these women. She’d never had friends like this before, mostly because she hadn’t known she needed them. And even though she thought she probably shouldn’t, she leaned in and told them about finding Kane shirtless at the range and what’d happened next.

Emma’s eyes got big. “You did not say that! Oh my God.”

Rory smacked the table. “Ha, I knew it! You did take action. Maybe not a kiss, but something even better.”

Daphne laughed. “I did say it. And I don’t know if it was better than kissing him because he didn’t take me up on it. Honestly, short of making him strip nekkid at gunpoint, I don’t know what else is left. Kane has an iron will, and he’s decided I’m not what he wants. Maybe it’s best that way.”

Kane thought it was. He’d said he had nothing to give her. Right after he’d told her he masturbated to thoughts of her. Not that she planned to mention that exchange. It was too charged and too personal. For both of them.

“Honey,” Rory said. “You’ve got the goods. Parade around naked in his house. That will jumpstart his engine.”

“Uh, Ethan lives there too.”

Rory waved a hand. “Minor inconvenience. You’ll figure it out.”

Daphne wasn’t sure she would. Or could. Maybe, considering everything else going on in her life right now, it wasn’t a good idea anyway. She needed to worry about staying clear of Nathan Fader just in case, watching her back, and praying that he never figured out why he thought she looked familiar.

She didn’t know if he’d ever been to The Diamond Queen or not, but if he had she really hoped he never put Daphne and Josie in the same thought. Ever.

The talk moved to Callie and Seth for a while, and their plans to buy the farm they lived on in the absolute middle of nowhere.

The owner was talking about selling, and they had big plans for renovating the house and building a bigger barn should he decide to actually pull the trigger and let the place go.

Daphne had been out there a few times now, and she could see the appeal.

The house was nothing special, but the land was stunning.

Rolling pastures, woods, and not far from the river.

You could walk to it if you were so inclined.

It was a long way to Research Park where Callie worked, but her plan was to quit her job at some unspecified date in the future and do consulting work from home.

Seth seemed to be completely on board with the idea.

Nikki had one more year of high school and then it was college, but she was already talking about going to the University of Alabama in Huntsville and getting a STEM degree.

It was a bit of a change from the girl who’d just wanted to be a horse trainer, but that’s what teenagers did. They changed their minds.

Daphne had never had the luxury. She’d always been destined to work in the O’Malley empire.

Trained for it from birth practically. Her father hadn’t trusted just anyone with the books, but he’d trusted her once she’d gotten her accounting degree and proved she could handle it.

She’d handled it so well she’d gotten to take on The Diamond Queen when Jackson had shown he didn’t have the vision or the ability to run an entertainment venue.

“Hey, you ready to go?”

Kane stood over her and Daphne forced a smile. Thinking about her family always made darkness seep through her veins like spilled ink.

“I’m ready.”

It was only eight o’clock, but she had a sudden desire to get out of the public eye.

A chill skittered down her spine. She peered into the corners of the Dawg, looking for a threat.

All she saw was Bonnie Warren, the intrepid mail carrier, leaning toward her husband of fifty years and giggling like a schoolgirl.

Judy Simpson from the Bee was at a table with Celia Lincoln, scribbling on a pad of paper while Celia talked.

Probably taking notes for her upcoming issue.

The tourism issue, in which the Wheeler Inn was bound to figure predominantly.

There was nothing suspicious happening in any dark corner.

Just people eating and drinking and having a good time.

Daphne said goodbye to her friends, who made meaningful eyebrow gestures at her now that Kane was there.

She shook her head slightly, laughing, before walking to the parking lot with Kane.

“What was that about?” he asked.

She decided to play dumb. “What was what about?”

“The contortions Rory made with her eyebrows. Emma and Callie did it too, but Rory’s the obvious one.”

Daphne’s skin heated. “It’s an inside joke. About the book we’re reading.”

He must have bought it because he didn’t press further. When they reached her new ride, he opened her car door, his arm brushing against hers. She shivered anew, but for a different reason this time. A more pleasant reason than thinking someone was lurking in the shadows, watching her.

“I’ll follow you,” he said. “But remember we’re shooting tonight, so stop at the range.”

There went the warm feelings. “I’m tired, Kane.”

“No excuses, Daphne. We’ll spend an hour. Don’t tell me you won’t feel better having a weapon once you go back to your place.”

There was nothing she could say. She’d hoped he’d forget about it, but he clearly hadn’t. Which meant she had a choice. Shoot and shut him up, or keep making excuses.

Excuses would only last so long. Eventually, Kane was going to make her step onto the range and hold a pistol in her hands. Might as well be tonight since she couldn’t avoid it forever.

“Fine. I’ll see you at the range.”