Proud of me and my job? It took my head and my heart a moment to process that. Finally, I cleared my throat.
“But you want me to stay,” I clarified. “And you’re upset that I’m traveling again.”
“We don’t care that you travel,” Dash said slowly, took a sip of his beer to pause. “We just want to make sure you’re safe when you do. The thought of you being in danger…” His voice trailed off as he shook his head, as if the very thought was too horrible to speak of. “We’d feel this way if you had to go to Brazil or Butte. Hell, even to the grocery store on 7th, especially this time of year with the roads being icy.”
Their genuine concern softened the last of my defenses and I leaned back against Dash’s chest, wrapping his arm around me once more before taking Jackson’s hand in mine.
“You have a point,” I admitted. It took a lot for me to say this out loud but they’d been honest with me, so it was the least I could give in return. “I love my job, but I don’t always like the situations it puts me in.” I shivered at the memory of those gunshots in Mexico.
Dash kissed the top of my head as if to say thank you for my admission. “We’d never ask you to quit. Besides, I wouldn’t mind going with you some time, someplace tropical where I can make sure you’re completely covered in sunscreen. Completely covered, then sit back and stare at your gorgeous tan lines.”
That sounded pretty good.
Jackson squeezed my hand and gave me that slow grin that drove me crazy. Hell, their kisses made me crazy. Everything about them made me crazy.
“We just want you to come back to us between assignments so we can pamper you and make sure you’re safe and healthy. We want to share our lives with you. Our jobs, yours. Everything.”
I stared at him for a moment as Dash nuzzled the side of my neck. Holy shit, that sounded too good to be true.
“As long as you come home and get in bed between us, I’ll be a happy man,” Dash admitted.
There was a silence as I processed that, and I knew they were waiting for me to respond. But my attention was snagged by a familiar figure dancing by the jukebox on the far side of the bar.
I sat up so quickly I accidentally elbowed Dash in the gut, which made him grunt.
“What is it?” Jackson asked. “See someone you know?”
I smiled at the sight of Jackie laughing and dancing. “You could say that.” I gave Jackson a nudge. “Let me out, I need to say hi to my sister.”
Jackson helped me up, but stayed behind with Dash. I grinned as I walked up to her. I hadn’t had a chance to see her yet since she lived with her fiancé. She’d been tied up with wedding preparations and I—my mind flashed back to the way my men had cuffed me and I stifled a laugh. Well, I guess I’d been pretty tied up, too.
Jackie’s back was to me and I’d nearly reached her when I slowed my steps. She was dancing, all right, but not with her fiancé. I’d met Collin over the summer and he was a tall, thin, blond guy. The man Jackie was grinding up against on the dance floor was burly, bald-headed, and looked more like a biker than a car salesman. Definitely not Collin.
She spun around and caught sight of me. Her eyes grew comically wide and she burst out in a squeal that had every eye in the place glancing in our direction. “Oh my God!” she screamed as she tackled me with a hug. “My sis is here!”
“Hey, Jackie,” I said, untangling her arms from around my neck as the bear hug lasted just a bit too long. “Good to see you.”
I looked from her to the biker dude who’d moved to lean against the bar and guzzle half a beer, his gaze never leaving my sister. Or rather, my sister’s ass.
“How, uh…how are the wedding preparations going?” I asked.
She rolled her eyes. “Ugh. Don’t even talk to me about the wedding. I wish it was over already.”
Huh. Okay. That was not exactly the happy bride-to-be response I’d expected. I figured she’d gush about her dress or the cake or something. Even the honeymoon.
“Is everything okay with you and Collin?” I asked, my gaze once again moving meaningfully toward Baldie at the
bar.
Jackie shrugged. “Yeah. It’s fine. Whatever. Same old, same old.”
Same old, same old? How romantic. She finally seemed to see where I was looking and she slung an arm around my neck with a laugh. “Oh him? He’s just in town for a few days. It doesn’t mean anything.” She leaned in close so she whispered in my ear. “You should see the cock on him. Huge.”
I nodded. Sure. A big cock. Dirty dancing with a near stranger days before her own wedding didn’t mean anything?
She rolled her eyes. When a new song blared, she started to sway to the music. “Don’t give me that look, sis. It’s not a big deal. Collin wouldn’t care if he was here.” She sniffed and her tone was laced with derision. “He probably wouldn’t even notice.”
I recognized that tone. She sounded exactly like my mother when speaking about my father. My stomach sank. Jackie leaned back and asked, “Do you need a drink? Let me grab you a beer.”