Page 54 of The Devil's Reward
I shake my head. “When you’re around them as much as I am, you have no choice.”
“What are you two whispering about?” Raven teases, drawing my attention.
I arch a brow at her. “The highlights of this crazy family tree.”
She waves that away. “Yeah, it will take some time to get used to,” she agrees with a smile at Quinn. “Just know we’re a loud bunch, but we have a lot of fun.”
“Until you tick her off,” I add pointedly at Raven, who grins wickedly. “Raven is a prank queen,” I explain to Quinn. “Some of the stuff she comes up with scares even me.”
Quinn laughs. “Don’t tell Macy or she’ll try it,” she warns.
“Mom, can I go play with the kids?” Macy begs.
“Sure,” Quinn says with a smile.
“Falcon will watch them,” Raven assures her. Falcon hands Knox to Ash and then heads back to the play area, with Ellie trailing him by the hand. He shoots her a warm smile and points at a few things as they go by.
I look back at the women who are now quiet. “Now that we’ve all had the introductions, can you all go away so I can get back to my date?” I ask pointedly.
Thankfully, they agree and head back to wherever they were sitting, just in time for our waitress to come back to bring our drinks and take our orders. When she leaves and we’re finally alone, I sigh. “I’m sorry,” I apologize.
“Why?” Quinn asks, confused. “They’re wonderful.”
I stare at her and then lean my head back to stare up at the ceiling. “Why?” I ask dramatically to whatever deity might be listening. “Why are you punishing me? Haven’t I been through enough? Why does she have to join the coven too?”
Quinn snickers. “I don’t think God is punishing you,” she teases. “I think he’s trying to liven up your life a little bit.”
I give her a bland look. “A little bit? More like he decided to shove me head first into the lion's den covered in barbeque sauce, and wish me good luck. I don’t even want to think about what schemes they’ll get you involved in. We’ve only just started dating, I thought I’d have more time before I introduced you to the whole crew. Preferably in smaller doses. God help us when they recruit Macy. They’ll have her planning a jailbreak for the next time they get arrested.”
She shakes her head. “You’re crazy.”
She doesn’t believe me, and why should she? I guess I should resign myself to what will eventually happen.
“Let’s forget about them and focus on our date, huh?” I suggest. “I have questions.”
“What do you want to know?” she asks, a bit shyly. Now that the girls are gone, she doesn’t have a buffer anymore and is back to being shy.
“Where did you grow up?” I ask her, figuring that’s a good place to start.
“Virginia. That’s where my parents and sister are now, actually,” she says with a smile.
“You’re close with your family,” I remark. It’s an observation, not a question.
She nods. “My family are very outspoken, confident people, but I love them to pieces. My father is a retired construction worker, and he’s driving my mother crazy with all the home projects he’s trying to tackle now. Mom was always home with us but was super involved in everything we did. She didn’t miss a single lesson, game, or event in our lives. My sister, Peyton, is an architect for a big firm there, and she’s a bit of a live wire but she’s also my best friend.”
I smile at her. “Did she get you into trouble when you were a kid?”
She shakes her head. “I was a super shy kid and a bit of a goody-two-shoes if I’m being honest. I was super focused on getting good grades and getting a scholarship. I didn’t even have a boyfriend until my senior year. What about you? Were you a busy kid?”
I never mind telling people about my past, but now I’m wondering just what Quinn is going to think of me. “No, I grew up in New York, with a single mom that preferred having fun and screwing around to raising a kid. I did enough to graduate and then I enlisted as soon as I turned eighteen. At the time it was to get away, but I found that I liked it and kept moving up until I reached the Special Forces. No siblings biologically, but I have my club brothers now and that’s better than my biological family any day.”
She cocks her head slightly. “So you consider your MC your family now?” she asks. There’s only curiosity behind her question, so I nod.
“Without them, I wouldn’t be here. As much as they drive me crazy sometimes, I wouldn’t want anything else. For a while, my family was my team in the Forces, but now that they’re gone, I have a new family.”
“Do you talk to your mother?”
I shake my head. “She died not long after I enlisted. She got drunk and got behind the wheel of a car and smashed into a pole. From what the cops told me, she died on impact, so she didn’t suffer.”
