He stretched as much as he could in the tight confines of the rear bench seat of the SUV, careful not to whack Jayna in the head with his elbow. “I know, but I feel better coming with you.”
She smiled, her blue eyes teasing. “Okay, but if you fall asleep while we’re in there, I’m not going to drag your big butt back to the vehicle. You’re too heavy.”
He grinned back. “Deal.”
Becker wouldn’t have cared if he’d had to mainline caffeine to stay awake? there was no way in hell he’d ever have let Jayna go on this job by herself.
Two days ago, he’d been so sure his simple plan was foolproof. All he had to do was stick close to Jayna and her pack mates and keep them safe, then text Cooper when it looked like the Albanians or the omegas were heading out to do something suitably nefarious.
The only problem was that the Albanians and omegas were up to something nefarious twenty-four hours a day. Worse, almost any time they went out, they took at least one of Jayna’s pack mates with them. It was like Kos and Frasheri didn’t trust the omegas—or hell, even their own men—to get anything right without one of the pack werewolves being with them. Either that or Kos and Frasheri thought they were some kind of frigging good-luck charms. Then again, maybe the Albanians wanted to ensure that their pack didn’t take off. And since Becker was determined to keep them safe, he went out of his way to go on every job they did, even if that meant going without sleep. And for the last two days, that was exactly what he’d done. Liam didn’t like it, of course, but Becker ignored the pack alpha and jumped in whichever SUV headed out. So far, all he’d gone on were recon missions, so he hadn’t broken the law, and he didn’t plan to.
That might be difficult today though, since this morning, they were hitting a small family-owned jewelry store that had recently bought a collection of rough diamonds from a dealer in New York. According to Kos, the store didn’t employ a lot of guards, so the big mobster was of the opinion that it should be an easy job. Becker wasn’t too sure about that. If they’d just bought a big load of diamonds, they’d likely have extra security on hand. Thank God he’d been able to text Cooper before they’d left. He had a feeling this job was going to go bad.
The two omegas were talking about what they could do with diamonds like the ones they were on their way to steal. Becker ignored them until one of them pulled something shiny out of the pocket of his tactical vest and rolled it back and forth between his fingers.
Well, he’d be damned. The fuckers had skimmed some of the platinum medallions from the warehouse job. He vaguely remembered the officer standing guard the day he and Cooper had gone there saying something about some pieces being stolen, but the other day, he’d heard Kos bemoaning the fact that none of it had made it back to the loft. Clearly, omegas weren’t big on the whole loyalty thing. Made him wonder why the Albanians were even willing to trust them.
Becker glanced at Jayna. She was gazing out the window, unaware that he was watching her. The sun highlighted her naturally blond hair, making it look even silkier, and he had to resist the urge to run his fingers through it. Usually he hated being stuffed into tight places, but right then, being squeezed into the seat beside her was pretty close to heaven. Even though he’d been on the go nonstop since he’d infiltrated the pack and hadn’t gotten to spend nearly as much time with her as he would have liked, he was still having a good time. For now, being under the same roof was good enough for him.
Yesterday, they’d been able to compare notes in the privacy of his apartment on the information they’d been able to get to Cooper, but unfortunately, there hadn’t been a repeat of that magical moment from his first night at the loft, when the sparks had zipped between them. Everything about that moment, from their private conversation to the feel of her warm, soft hands on his skin, made all the risks he was taking seem worthwhile. Controlling himself had been tough though. Being that close to her without kissing her had been pure misery, especially because he’d been able to tell she’d been experiencing the same sensations he was. The delectable change in her scent had been a dead giveaway.
But he’d also sensed something else coming off Jayna—hesitancy verging on downright panic. Something was holding her back when it came to her giving in to the same feelings and emotions that were rushing through his body every time he was around her. Until he figured out what that something was, there was always going to be a wall there. It was frustrating, but he wasn’t going to push.