Page 121 of Joker

Actual children.

“This is why people shoot presidents,” I mutter.

Logan grins wider. “And yet I remain beloved.”

“Debatable.”

“Sit on it for a couple hours,” he says, still clearly enjoying himself far too much. “Then we’ll figure out how much shit you’re in.”

“I’m not in shit.”

Logan raises a brow. “You’re fucking the Louisiana president’s daughter in the room next to yours while she’s under our protection.”

I open my mouth. Then close it. Because when he says it like that, it does sound a little like maybe I’m in some shit.

Cain laughs into his hand.

Dom says, without looking up, “That is, in fact, a high-risk operational choice.”

I point at him. “I’m gonna unplug your whole setup.”

“Threat noted.”

Logan pushes off the bar and claps me once on the shoulder, amusement fading just enough to let something steadier through. “You good with it?” he asks.

That question matters. Not because he needs permission from me. Because he’s asking if I understand what I’m saying.

What it means. What it could cost. What I’ll have to do if Cal gets close enough to make this personal in a way it isn’t already.

I don’t hesitate. “Yeah.”

He nods once.

That’s it. That’s all. No lecture. No warning.

Just acknowledgment.

Because he knows me well enough to know I wouldn’t be standing here saying it if I wasn’t already sure.

The conversation shifts after that, back into security and routes and the kind of practical shit that keeps people breathing, but I only half hear it.

Because out the window by the lot, I catch sight of Raven again. She’s kneeling in front of Lexi now, fixing the kid’s sleeve while Amy says something dramatic enough to make Raven laugh.

That laugh carries through the cracked door.

Soft. Real. And I feel the truth of it settle all the way down into bone.

This isn’t about wanting her anymore. That part’s old news. This isn’t about attraction or chemistry or the fact that she sounds fucking wrecked when she says my real name and I’ll probably never recover from that.

No.

This is bigger now.

Meaner. Cleaner. This is the kind of thing that changes how a man moves through the world. Because now, every decision gets filtered through one question first.

How does it affect them?

That’s not lust. That’s not a fling. That’s not temporary.