Bennett Mafia(60)

He rolled his head to face forward and lifted a shoulder. “I got it from my dad. I think the way he thought.”

Which was why Kai had moved first.

“He sent me to college early, like Jonah. I had the scores for it, but he assumed I was going back after Cord passed.” His mouth closed. His eyes grew hard.

He’d assumed wrong.

The unspoken said so much.

Knowing the monster their father had been, I found myself in a position I’d never experienced before. I was okay with what Kai had done. I was thankful for it.

“He would’ve killed you?”

Kai didn’t respond. But he rolled his head to look at me again, and I saw it there. He would’ve, and that sent a pang through my heart.

I don’t know what he saw in my eyes, but he reached over in response. I waited, suspended, as his finger tipped my head toward his and he leaned down. I reached up.

My decision faded, and our lips met.

Softly. Briefly.

A tingle.

It meant something.

He pulled back, and the flutters within me multiplied.

I turned back to the window. We didn’t speak the rest of the ride.

I touched a hand to my lips after a minute, still feeling his there. And those flutters just kept flying around.





CHAPTER THIRTY-FIVE


I still wasn’t clear on the plan.

I hadn’t thought Kai was serious when we pulled into a driveway, but he motioned for his men to fall back. Two started to protest, but he just turned his back, grabbing my hand. Threading our fingers, he tugged me after him.

My eyebrows raised. We’re doing this? On the flight, I’d decided we wouldn’t be again. Then we’d kissed…

He leaned in, dropping his voice low. “If anyone is watching, a couple is less imposing.”

Ah. Got it.

We were pretending. I could do pretending.

I bounced right into Raven’s cover and smiled brightly at him.

His eyes widened, and he fell back a step.

Raven wasn’t one to be deterred. I pushed up on my toes, placed my hands on his chest, and bounced up and down. “You know what they say.” Another dazzling smile.

Kai had fear now. Real fear.

“Be the inspiration for someone every day, and be the reason that person smiles.”

He cursed under his breath. “Your cover?”

“You bet!” I bounced back a step and gave him a thumbs-up. I pointed to the door. “Let’s turn someone’s frown upside down.”

I started off, almost at a march.

I knew I didn’t look like myself. With my smile in place, different clothes than when Brooke saw me last, and the sun going down, I was different. If Brooke was watching us come up, I hoped she wouldn’t recognize me. Kai, on the other hand…that was his problem to solve. I knew the pretending to be a couple was more for curious onlookers outside, but if Brooke really was scared for her life, she’d have cameras set up and some way to be alerted.

The second we’d pulled into this driveway, she would’ve known. Or she should have, if she’d followed my instructions.

Kai caught up with me, tucking my hand under his arm, and I leaned into him.

“She’s going to know it’s you, if she’s looking out,” I told him.

“You’re pretty convincing, though. I know you, and I’m having second thoughts on your identity.” His gaze studied me a moment. “You’re good at your job. You can change your perception by holding your head at a slightly odd angle, or having your hair parted on the wrong side. But it’s more than that, isn’t it? You change something on the inside and that emanates out, doesn’t it?”

I grew quiet. Yes. That was a thing—change how you feel inside and people sense it. They sense it without even realizing they do. I’ve used that trick for many disguises, but I decided to keep it light.

“Har, har.”

“I’m not joking.” He flashed a grin at me, but tightened his hold on my arm and headed for the back door.

I was still waiting for his diversion. Anything.

But he went right up to the back and opened the screen door.

I shot him a look. “For real?”

He raised his hand.

“You’re just going to—”

He knocked.

“—knock?”

Amusement flashed in his eyes as he stepped to the side, pulling me so I was front and center before the door.

“What if she has cameras?”

He let go of my arm and leaned against the wall. “This is my sister.” He could’ve yawned from the alarm that wasn’t in his tone. “If she’s here, we’re safe.”

As if on cue, I heard from inside, “Coming! Hold on.” Someone was running up some stairs.

“Kai!” I hissed under my breath.

He motioned to me. “You know what to do. Get her to open the door.” He shook his head. “This is going to be anticlimactic. I feel like I should apologize to you for this.”

“All of this—” I motioned between us. “—for a fucking knock on a door?”

He raised an eyebrow just as the person got to the other side of the door.

“The climactic part was finding her,” he said.

“Coming! Hold on. This door jams sometimes.”