Page 166 of A Lick and A Promise
“…the girls, and Titus,” I hastened to add Titus in there, “are going to the Red Bear for dinner.”
I sat on my barstool, watching in horrified fascination as his nostrils flared, contracted, flared again (you get the picture) while he struggled with this information.
In order to assist him with his struggles, I shared, “This move is threefold. One, Dimitri asked us, and it wouldn’t be good to dis him on an invitation.”
That was weak, I knew it, Knox knew it, so I carried on.
“Two, regardless of who he is and what he does, he’s an ally. We don’t know him very well. We’re currently missionless, but you never know when you’re going to need someone. We’re going to strengthen our relationship.”
Knox’s nostrils flared again.
I socked him with the last.
“And I was hoping he’d hear me out about going to Gypsy and explaining you’re off limits to all of them. I figure that message coming from Dimitri wouldn’t be ignored.”
“I do not want that guy taking my back,” Knox said through his teeth.
“Okay then, we won’t broach that.”
Knox didn’t reply.
I gave him time.
He took it…and more.
“We need to be on the same page with this kind of thing, honey,” I told him carefully. “I know you don’t like me around these kinds of people. I can promise I won’t start hanging at the Red Bear on the regular. Titus will be with us, and you know he wouldn’t let anything happen to us. We’re not asking Dimitri to have a sleepover and braid our hair. This is business. Not paid, not professional, but I think you understand what I’m saying.”
“I do,” he pushed out.
“Are we going to have a problem with this?” I asked hesitantly.
“Cap lived on the streets, and now Cap deals every day with shit going down on the streets. He wants Raye taking on the streets like he wants a hole drilled into his head. She lost Macy. She’s on a mission she can’t control. It’s part of who she is.”
“Like all of you guys,” I put in.
“Like all of us guys,” he stated.
“Like me,” I whispered.
Knox gave that a tick to absorb before he spoke again.
“He hates what she does, but he loves that’s a part of her. So he finds it in himself to deal.”
“Yeah,” I agreed.
He held my gaze then lifted our joined hands to press his lips to my fingers.
I let out a sigh of relief.
He put our hands back to the counter and said, “You need us, you don’t hesitate to call on us.”
“We always would. Swear. And I definitely would. Swear.”
He kissed my fingers again.
“It’s a little early, but do you want to start dinner?” he asked.
“You hungry?”
