“Thanks a lot,” came the sleepy reply.
Reese studied him curiously, as if she didn’t quite believe what he was saying. But Sloan was dead serious. Yesterday, as he’d counted the guns for the third time because he wasn’t paying close enough attention the first two times around, he’d come to a conclusion: he was perfectly willing to take whatever scraps Reese threw his way.
He knew she was a complicated woman. Only a person who felt as deeply as she did would’ve ever thought to shake her small fist at the council and believe she could take it down. And he loved her for it. He loved her enough that anything she gave him would be enough.
“I love Foxworth, so no, please don’t set it on fire when we get back,” she retorted, but her twinkling eyes belied her indignant tone.
“Nah, you don’t love Foxworth,” Rylan spoke up, leaning forward to fill the open space between the two front seats. “You love the people. And you need to stop obsessing over Bethy’s baby—you already have a town full of kids, gorgeous. Maybe it doesn’t register for you since you’re so used to it, but those kids look to you for guidance and comfort and support. You’re their mama in every way that counts.”
Reese frowned.
“Hey, it’s true. We both know passing a kid through your legs doesn’t give you some kind of special status. It’s what you do with the kid afterward that makes you a parent.”
“Well, then that makes Foxworth all the more important, doesn’t it?” Reese replied with a faint smile.
Sloan looked up to meet Rylan’s eyes in the rearview mirror. Thank you, he silently conveyed, and Rylan tipped his head in response.
“You promised to keep Foxworth safe,” Reese said softly, reaching out to touch Sloan’s arm. “I hope you haven’t forgotten that.”
“Sweetheart, I haven’t forgotten a single promise I’ve ever made to you.”
“What about all the promises you made me?” Rylan piped up, his blue eyes dancing playfully.
Sloan lifted a brow. “And what promises would those be?”
“You know,” Rylan gave the careless wave of his hand, “how you’ll suck me off whenever I ask, how you’ll let me fuck your ass, all that fun stuff.”
Sloan snorted loud enough to drown out the engine.
Yeah, he’d definitely take the man in the back along with Reese. And a part of him suddenly felt like pulling over, hauling Reese out of the truck, and laying her on the hood. Rylan could fuck her mouth while Sloan ate her out, all of them heated by the engine and the sex.
They were a unit now, whether Reese liked it or not.
22
As Reese had expected, the outpost was nearly deserted. There were two Enforcers stationed out front, two in the back, and, she assumed, four more inside. That was the configuration they’d found at the other stations, though she supposed the Enforcers could’ve boosted security to protect the interior.
Only, there was nothing to protect. All of Reese’s scouting had shown that this outpost didn’t contain any provisions; it was used only as a watch station. Which was the reason it hadn’t been included on their initial attack list, though they planned to take it out eventually.
But the thought of eight Enforcers right there within her reach was too tempting to ignore. She needed to spill more blood. She needed to release the aggression that had been coiled tight in her gut ever since last night.
She knew Sloan was still mad at her, but at least Rylan had her back. He fully agreed that they should take out this last western outpost, and he and Beckett were currently watching the front of the building. During these past three hours of watching and waiting, Rylan had been cracking jokes over the radio.
Sloan, on the other hand, hadn’t said much. He’d spent most of those three hours sharpening his knife on a stone, which was pointless because he wouldn’t be using the blade. He and Reese were both armed with assault rifles, along with the handguns strapped to their hips and hidden in their boots.
The guards they were watching were oblivious to the fact that Reese and Sloan were hunkered down a hundred yards away in the wooded area bordering the outpost. Reese’s binoculars allowed her to keep a close eye on the Enforcers, who’d been smoking cigarettes and chatting since Reese’s group had begun their covert surveillance. Both Enforcers were in tactical gear, but the taller one also wore a winter coat with a ridiculous fur hood.