Page 8

CHAPTER EIGHT

David

I watched Kassandra drive away, and when I knew she was safely out of my sight, I turned back to her house. I lifted the doormat, and sure enough, the house key was exactly where she said it would be. Shaking my head, I slid it into my jeans pocket. There was no way I would be putting the key back in the “hiding” spot. It was the first place people checked when they wanted to break into a house.

Heading straight for the kitchen, I had a long list of things I needed to get done before Kassandra and her boys got home. Kassandra mentioned no one had ever made her breakfast, so I had to assume that meant Michael didn't clean up either. I wasn't surprised. He liked the pampered life without the means to provide for it.

He had lost his job, so while Kassandra was out busting her ass to keep them financially stable, the least he could've been doing was taking care of things around the house. I figured the chances he was doing that were slim, so I made sure any messes I created were cleaned up. I wasn't about to make more work for Kassandra, or her boys.

I’d just gotten the dishwasher started and the counters wiped down when the doorbell rang.

Right on time. Not that I expected any differently from the men on my team.

I opened the door and was greeted by a smiling Rhett. "Nice digs, boss, but I'm pretty sure your place is a couple of blocks that way." He pointed down the street to where I knew my house was located.

"You know why I'm here, so don't start any of your shit. And make sure to wipe off your boots before you walk through the house. I don't have time to be mopping floors today."

Rhett chuckled. "Look at you, becoming domesticated. Never thought I’d see the day."

"Keep up your shit and you won't see it either. I'll kick your ass and put you out of commission."

The fucker continued to laugh. He was the youngest of six siblings and knew how to get on people's nerves. "Then who would help Logan set up all the cameras you want installed?"

The asshole had me there. "Correction, I will kick your ass after you install the cameras and put you out of commission."

"That sounds more like the boss I know." Rhett rocked back on his heels. "So do you plan on telling us who this mystery house belongs to, and why we’re hooking up the state-of-the-art system, our most expensive one, by the way, at no charge?"

I rubbed my fingers across my forehead and sighed. "Has anyone ever told you that you're too smart for your own good?"

"Yeah, my siblings, my entire life, but I just figured that's what family does."

Speaking of family, Rhett gave me the perfect opportunity to change the subject to one I knew he wouldn't want to talk about. "About that. Have you told your family you're back in the States yet? This time for longer than usual?"

The scowl was instant. "You know damn well I haven't, nor will I."

"And why not? From what I'm told, you’re all very close."

"Because they’re all married and some are even having kids. I'm the black sheep that doesn't want any part of that kind of life. I travel the world taking out enemies the American people are never even told about. They don't need my kind of fucked up in their perfect lives."

Well, now he was just pissing me off considering I was the reason he took the assignments he did. "Zack would never judge you for what you do. You were the one who followed in his footsteps, if I remember correctly."

"Yeah, at first, but now he's a family man. He got his high school sweetheart back and they're popping out kids left and right. We aren't the same anymore."

"He wouldn't judge you," I repeated.

"It doesn't matter. My family doesn't need to know I'm stateside. End of story. Now, I need to go help Logan with the security system. Matthew called and said he's handling your request in Pennsylvania."

Rhett walked away a lot less happy than when he showed up, and I felt bad that it was my fault his mood changed. I intentionally hit a sore spot to deflect from my current predicament and that wasn't okay.

I decided to dial Matthew, even though Rhett just told me things were being handled.

"Hey, boss," Matthew answered on the second ring.

"Hey. Rhett mentioned you made it to Pennsylvania okay."

"Yup. Parker is currently driving the other car to your place in Pennsylvania to drop it off. Then I'm going to pick him up and go check out the house you mentioned. I have cleaners on standby to deal with the mess after we see its condition."

The house he was referring to was Gage's, or more accurately, the one he grew up in and bought from his parents. Someone shot it up last night and now Gage needed me to take care of it. While I was handling my own problem here in Boston, Gage was handling his in Pennsylvania.

"Keep me posted. I want your team in Pennsylvania to back Gage up. You’re closer than pulling his own team in."

"Roger that. Just send the rest of the guys down after you're done with them. I'm sure they’ll be happy to have something to do."

I wasn't sure sitting around waiting for an MC to attack was what Matthew had in mind about making his team happy. They were used to constant action, even if sometimes their assignments required them to stay in a holding pattern.

I said my goodbyes and hung up the phone. I needed to go find Rhett and apologize for pushing him. My team deserved an explanation for the assignments I sent them on, even if this one was personal to me.

The problem was I couldn't explain my sudden need to be there for Kassandra. Yes, in high school she was a great friend, but it was more than that. I fell in love with Madalyn because of her outgoing personality. She shined brighter than anyone I had ever met. Everyone in school wanted to be around her and I was no exception.

But with Kassandra it was different. We had a deeper connection. She was my best friend. I could talk to her about anything and always felt comfortable in her presence. That didn't change just because we spent years apart. I instantly felt that connection again the second I was around her and the need to protect her was bone deep. I would do anything to make sure she was safe.

I hadn't been this vulnerable since high school, and based on how I acted toward Rhett, I wasn't handling it properly.

I went outside in search of the two men who were here to help. I found Logan on a ladder, but Rhett was nowhere in sight.

"Have you seen Rhett?"

Logan didn't bother to look back at me when he answered. "He stormed away and said he was going to work on the front. I'm guessing his bad attitude is your fault, since on the ride over he wouldn't shut the fuck up."

"You could say that. I'll go fix it."

"Appreciate it." Logan was a man of few words. Most of his teammates made up for it. Rhett and Matthew talked the most. They were goofy when not on an assignment. Graham was equally as quiet, but that had more to do with the fact that he was trying to raise a teenager with a narcissistic ex who made seeing his son difficult.

I reminded myself I needed to talk to him about teenagers, but that would have to wait until after I apologized to Rhett.

I found him in the front yard stomping around just like Logan said.

"Are you going to be pissy for long?"

"Maybe." Rhett grabbed a box from the truck and pushed past me. "I'm told I can hold a grudge better than any of my other siblings and that's saying something since Zack is the dramatic one."

I smirked. Zack worked for a buddy of mine and I had the pleasure of meeting him a few times. The man was over-the-top dramatic, but in a funny way.

"I didn't mean to overstep, but you know how I feel about family. I never intended for your team to spend so much time away from them."

"It doesn't bother me. We stay in touch through text messages. My family is all up in each other's business, so they wouldn't know how to let me slip away."

I didn't agree, but it wasn't the time to further push Rhett. He would figure it out on his own when the time came.

"I have to run a few errands including stopping into the office. Call me if you need anything. I'm not sure I’ll be back before you're done, so just lock up on your way out."

"Will do, and you know how the system works, so you can show the owner the setup."

I thought about how that conversation was going to go. It was likely Kassandra would be pissed I went behind her back and had it installed so quickly, but I wouldn't apologize. It needed to be done.

"Oh, and, Black?"

I stopped my forward progression to my SUV and looked back at my employee. "I know you push because you care. I'm not mad. I'm just not ready to be the brother they deserve."

"You're a good man, Rhett. I wish you could see that about yourself."

I managed to get back to Kassandra's house about fifteen minutes before the boys got home. I was still trying to figure out how to relax around them since I had yet to call Graham like I wanted to. Time got away from me.

Mikey was the first to walk through the kitchen and stumbled to a stop when he saw me. "You're still here. And you're putting away the dishes."

I paused putting a dish in the cabinet and tried not to overthink his words. I had to remind myself they weren't used to seeing anyone other than their mother doing chores.

"Yup. I made the mess, so it's only fair that I clean it up. I was also thinking about starting dinner before your mom got home. How does chicken marsala with grilled asparagus and baby potatoes sound?"

Nate and Mikey exchanged a look but it was Nate who spoke up. "You're going to cook dinner too?"

I shrugged like it was no big deal when I could see it was anything but. It was obvious what a shitty person Michael was. "Why not? I got home before your mother and managed to stop at the grocery store for what I needed. No reason I can't have dinner ready for when she comes home."

They exchanged another look. "Can we help?" Mikey asked.

I smiled. "Absolutely, but I'm not looking to get either of you in trouble, so is there something you're supposed to do after school?"

It was blatantly obvious I didn't know the first thing about teenagers. Did they have chores? Homework? I wanted to make Kassandra's life easier not throw a wrench into anyone's routine.

"Just homework, but I did mine during study hall," Mikey answered.

Nate looked down at his feet and mumbled. "I have some math homework to do."

I remembered what Kassandra said about Nate’s difficulties with math, so I offered, "I can help you if you like. I used to help your mother all the time when we were in high school."

Nate picked his head up and the uncertainty on his face nearly gutted me. He should never have been made to feel bad about the struggles he faced.

Finally, he shrugged. "Yeah, if you want."

So that was how we spent the next hour until Kassandra came home from work. I helped Nate with his homework and they both helped me prep dinner in between math problems. It was surprisingly normal and even made me feel like I had this whole teenager thing under control.