Addict (Hunter #2)(40)

“I told you I would handle it, sweetheart,” Gray insisted.

“And stop calling me that.” It was hard to be around him. “Marcus won’t like it.”

Gray laughed for the first time that whole evening with genuine mirth. “He would prefer cara mia, I suppose.” He grinned and it softened the hard lines of his face. “I might have a little fun with this, Kelsey. Vorenus can dish it out all day. It’ll be fun to see if he can take it. The man isn’t famous for keeping his hands off other men’s women. Your boyfriend is quite the player. Ask the king.”

“I’ll take a pass, thanks.” I didn’t need to hear stories of how Marcus chased after Zoey Donovan-Quinn.

We were comfortably out of sight of the club. I slipped the mask off my face. Gray clicked a button on his keys, and the security alarm chirped on his truck. Something to his left caught Gray’s attention and his head turned. He smiled, and I followed his eyes. My brother Jamie walked out of the abandoned building across from the club. He had a camera around his neck, and I had no doubt there was a gun in a holster under his coat. I smiled broadly and rushed to hug him.

“Kelsey Jean Atwood.” Jamie picked me up and whirled me around. I hugged him tight. Most of my life, any positive male influence I’d enjoyed had come from this man. My brother. I loved him unconditionally. He might be my half brother, but Jamie Atwood had my whole heart. “I thought we’d never get you back in the States.”

I smiled up at my big brother, who was six years older than me. “They had to drag me back kicking and screaming. I’m so international now.”

“And you’ve stopped wearing pants,” Jamie pointed out, looking at my bare legs with a fierce frown.

Gray sighed and reached out to shake my brother’s hand. “That was not my idea in any way. I’m just as surprised as you to see her. Can you get her home?”

“Of course,” Jamie replied, slapping his friend on the back. “I’ll e-mail the pictures to you tonight. I got a lot of good shots, but I’ll need someone to ID all those faces. I’m doing surveillance on Winter’s place tomorrow.”

“We’re going in Sunday night, so get me everything you can,” Gray requested.

“We?” Jamie asked, looking between the two of us.

Gray nodded, not looking pleased at the situation. “Yes, she’s on his radar. He requested I bring her along to our business meeting. I have no doubt he’s told my brother to come with Tristan. You know Julius. He wants his business partners to have wives or lovers. It gives him someone to threaten when he needs to keep us in line.”

Jamie snorted. It was a family trait. “He’s going to threaten my sister? He has no idea.”

Jamie had seen me fight. He was a true believer now.

“The fact that he has no idea who she is, is the only reason we’re still alive. Take him seriously, Jamie. He’s a duke. His human form might be non-threatening, but he could kill her. Don’t underestimate him. And I’ll figure out what’s happening with Scott. I don’t want you going into that bar.” Gray backed up toward his truck. “Take care of her, Jamie. And Kelsey, tell Vorenus I’ll call him in the morning.”

Gray got in his truck and with a final nod my way, turned the engine over and took off into the night.

Jamie stared at the truck as it sped away. “He’s making a man-date with your boyfriend?”

I rolled my eyes. “No, it’s about work. Why didn’t you tell him I was with Marcus?”

He shook his head. “I’m not going there with him. Look, Kels, I did what you asked. I didn’t leave him alone. We’ve managed to get back to being friends. He lost his damn head over a girl. I wish it hadn’t been my sister, but we’re good, Gray and me, as long as we avoid the subject of you. Nate, on the other hand…”

I brushed a hand through the air. The snow was starting to come down now, falling on my skin. “I don’t want to hear about Nate.”

Jamie’s eyes narrowed, a sure sign he was irritated with me. “He’s completely alone, Kels. He won’t talk to Dan anymore, or Justin or Blake or Mike. He’s been with those guys since he was seventeen freaking years old.”

Too bad. I was the injured party. Everyone kept forgetting that. “I don’t see how it’s my fault.”

Jamie took my arm. “If you would just talk to him. Tell him you forgive him. Kelsey, he thought he was doing the right thing for you. Tell him it’s okay to be friends with the same guys he’s been friends with for years. I’m worried about him. He’s skipping classes.”

“Hey, he has a guilty conscience. It’s not my fault he decided to betray me to his gaming group.” I didn’t mention that, at one point in time, they’d been my gaming group, too. I’d never met them in person. I played with them over the computer and they’d gotten me through many, many a lonely night. I knew the names they used when we played online games. Now I wondered which one Justin was. I would have to think about maybe not being so mean to him tomorrow.

Jamie frowned as he started clicking off talking points. “Yeah, you got a real bad deal out of it, Kels. Your life is rough, little sister. Let’s see, Marcus sees to your every need. You work because you want to, not because you have to. You have an entire team working to train you to be some sort of superhero. Tell me, deep down, you don’t like this. I remember your childhood. You and Nate spent all your time reading comic books and pretending to be X-Men. Did you ever think about how hard it was for him to realize his sister was the one with all the power?”