Sloan gave Reese and then Rylan a warning sign not to release the sarcastic remark that he knew was tingling the end of their tongues.
“You’ve got a real town here,” Eric said, suspicion lining his tone. “When people dig in and grow roots, they start wanting to defend it.”
“Is that against the council’s rules?” Rylan interjected.
Eric swiveled around, the barrel of his rifle pointing directly into Rylan’s gut. “Your entire existence is against the colony laws.”
Rylan didn’t even flinch. He merely raised his hand and pushed the barrel aside. “Yeah? Sure doesn’t stop your lieutenants from popping in and drinking our booze every chance they get.”
“I can’t control what my superiors choose to do,” Eric said stiffly, “but that doesn’t mean I condone it.”
“And you can’t do a damn thing about it.” Rylan grinned at the tense Enforcer. “Damn shame, huh? That your boss Nestor won’t let you burn this place to the ground? I bet the thought of lighting that match gives you a raging boner.”
Sloan almost snorted with laughter.
“Enjoy this place while it lasts,” Eric warned. “Lieutenant Nestor won’t be there to hold your hand forever.”
“Are you guys done gabbing?” Reese muttered. “I’m sure Eric has other towns to terrorize today.”
He gave her a thin smile. “No. You’re it on my list.” But he motioned for his men to move forward, and the search began in earnest.
Foxworth had plenty of nice houses on the farthest edges of the town boundaries, but the square in the middle was small. Along with the gravel courtyard and the park Eric had pointed out, there was one main street that led from the gate down the artery of the town, with two-and three-story buildings on either side. Everyone in Foxworth lived within shouting distance of one another, and the tight-knit physical nature of the community made it easier to protect and defend. It also made the search parameters smaller for the Enforcers.
Eric and his men were well trained. They paused outside each door, sticking their rifles through the entryway before moving in silently. These Enforcers were more careful than the ones Sloan and Reese had dealt with in the past, which reinforced what Eric had warned. The game was changing.
“Think he ever takes the stick out of his ass?” Rylan asked as they lagged behind the group.
“He’s too uptight for assplay,” Sloan said.
A bark of laughter escaped Rylan’s lips, which he promptly turned into a coughing fit when a couple of Enforcers turned to glare at the two men.
Sloan slid a look of amusement toward Rylan. “Surprised I know what assplay is?”
“Kinda. The other night you were pretty resistant to someone’s charms.” Rylan tilted his head in Reese’s direction. “But now that I know what the key is to getting you in bed with us, I’ll be more persuasive next time.”
“Save your persuasion for Reese. You’ll need it.”
Rylan shrugged, undeterred by the warning. “Wouldn’t be worth it if it was too easy, brother.” Then he quickened his pace to catch up with Reese, whose fake smiles were growing frayed around the edges.
If Eric or one of his crew pointed a barrel in her direction one more time, Sloan suspected Reese would pull the rifle out of the soldier’s hands and beat him senseless with it. Sloan, of course, would hold everyone back while she delivered the well-earned thrashing.
Rylan ambled up to the front of the search team, pushing a rifle or three out of his way to take a place next to Reese. He was either making himself a target for the Enforcers or providing a buffer for Reese. Either one was good in Sloan’s book.
Truth was, he appreciated Rylan’s fearless confidence. The man would need it if he wanted to go toe-to-toe with Reese, and the more Sloan got to know him, the more he was becoming convinced that Reese needed Rylan. She needed someone to tease her out of her glum moods and fuck her hard whenever she got too tangled up in that web of worry and guilt.
Sloan tensed up again when the search party reached the last building on Main Street, which housed Christine, her brothers, and a few others. The soldiers had decided to crisscross their way down the street, instead of moving down one side and up the other as Sloan would have done.
Rylan had been cracking an inappropriate joke every few houses—“I haven’t seen this many pricks since the orgy we held over at Mosby’s camp” and, “Eric, your ass cheeks are so tight, I’m worried about chafing. You got any special oils over at your Enforcer base?”