Miah (Lane Brothers #2) Read online

  The situation would be laughable if not for the fact that Clari is naked beneath the thin sheet, and I don’t want anyone within spitting distance when she’s still warm from sex and cuddly.

  “Wyatt, calm the hell down and go back to your wife so we can get dressed, asshole.”

  He turns in circles before facing me with a look of pure dread and husbandly fear.

  “But, but she’s still got a whole week before she’s due, Miah.”

  “Bro, that kid can’t possibly have any more growing to do with the way poor Ellie’s been looking lately. Everything is just fine, okay? Now take a nice deep breath and calm the fuck down before I slap you for acting like a little bitch.”

  His eyes spark and I breathe a sigh of relief that the rational Wyatt is making a return.

  “You can try, asshole. I’m still bigger than you. Military training or not, I’ll kick your ass to hell and right on back so you can go crying to your mama,” he says before turning on his heel and storming out with a huff.

  “Get dressed! We need to leave soon.”

  I lift the sheet to see Clari laughing so hard that her eyes are watering.

  “They are all adopted, I swear. No way am I blood related to that pack of pansies.”

  That earns me a playful slap before she shoves the sheet away and rises to her feet, making my dick go hard immediately. Damn tease.

  “You look just like your big brother, Jeremiah Lane, and you love him for his weird and wonderful foibles, so don’t try to deny it. Now come on and get dressed before he comes tearing back in here.”

  I follow her into the closet and cop a feel or two as we throw on clothes and run a brush through our hair.

  Wyatt’s pacing like a madman when we get downstairs and keeps yelling at Ellie to stop trying to calm him down when he knows she’s in pain. Poor fool looks about ready to pass out, he’s so pale, and poor Ellie seems more harried by his behavior than she is at the thought of pushing that monster baby out of her body.

  “Miah, would you please tell your brother to calm down before I lose my temper and bean him,” she says through gritted teeth.

  I go to do just that when she doubles over and clutches at her stomach, moaning long and low.

  “See! I told you. Ma! Hurry the hell up! I need to get my wife to the hospital!”

  Jace and Jared come running down the stairs, shaking their heads at the madman currently pacing and cursing like a trucker while Ellie breathes through her contractions like a real trooper.

  “You’re acting like an idiot. Come on over here and hold your wife’s hand instead of pacing like a caged beast. Clari, I’ll stay here with Josh since I don’t trust anyone else on the security alone with my bro. Ma! Get on down here already before Bruce Banner loses the fight against his dumber side!” Jared says.

  Ma comes running down the stairs with Pop hot on her heels and almost squeals with joy when she spots Ellie having a contraction.

  “Calm down, Grandma. I don’t think your son would appreciate your enthusiasm right now. He’s acting nuts,” I warn her, keeping an eye on Wyatt and a scowling Ellie.

  By the time I’ve got everyone in the cars and we’re on our way to the hospital with Wyatt bounding around like he’s on something, I’m not too convinced this baby thing is worth it. Ellie’s been making a hell of a lot of noise back there, and every time I look over at Clari she’s grimacing from the tight grip Ellie has on her little hand.

  We get to the hospital not too long after, since Mr. Nuts beside me has planned the route so much that he is able to direct me through the shortcuts.

  “Woman in labor!”

  “Oh, Wyatt, for the love of God! Calm down already!” Ellie yells, losing her patience for the umpteenth time since we left the house.

  My brother completely ignores her and continues to pull his town crier act like a pro till the nurses come running out with a wheelchair and the doctor on their heels.

  “Mr. Lane, everything is just fine. Why don’t you take a deep breath and—”

  “I’ll shove my foot up your ass if you tell me to calm down, Doc. My wife is in pain and I want her to be comfortable—right now.”

  We’re all grateful when the doctor takes him and Ellie into the delivery room while we take up seats in the waiting room. The man has gone and lost his damn mind, and if this is what a man has to look forward to, I’m really glad me and Clari don’t want kids.

  No way would I ever put her through this shit if I could avoid it. If later down the road she changes her mind, we’re adopting, and that’s that.

  “Phew! I haven’t seen a body go that crazy since I was in labor with Wyatt and your father went nuts.” Ma chuckles, fanning her brow at the heat of the early morning air.

  “Oh hush, Judy. You were bawling enough to raise the dead when you went into labor. What did you expect me to do?” Pop gripes, huffing loudly.

  “You punched the only doctor on staff at the time, George. If the nurses hadn’t managed to revive him, I’d hate to think about how I’d have gotten your eldest son into the world in one piece.”

  Clari sputters out a laugh and looks at me, shaking her head emphatically.

  “Why did you punch the doctor, Pop?”

  “He said your mother’s vagina looked good, and I took exception to it, boy.”

  Ma starts spluttering before rolling her eyes and pursing her lips in disgust.

  “He said it looked good, as in I was dilated fully and the baby was ready to come. Jesus, George, at least be honest when you tell that horrid story.”

  I laugh so hard that I have to sit down. I take a seat beside my girl and pull her onto my lap, settling in for a long night and a lot more craziness from my family.

  Clari soon falls asleep and I just enjoy the quiet for once, reveling in the excitement that a new little Lane’s about to join our merry band of misfits and make our family that much happier.

  It takes hours and we all take turns checking on Wyatt and the now screaming Ellie. The shouts I hear coming from that room when the woman has a contraction make my balls shrink, and it’s not even my dick she’s threatening.

  This time when he comes out, he’s grinning from ear to ear and looks so happy that I can’t believe this man is the same maniac from just an hour ago.

  “I’m proud to announce the arrival of Alexander George Lane. Six pounds, four ounces, and he’s already letting the world know how he feels about being woken so early.”

  We all share a few back slaps and tearful hugs before he leaves to rush back to Ellie.

  “You know, Jeremiah—”

  “Not happening, Ma. Not ever,” I interject, knowing what the greedy old fox is about to say. “The day I do that to the woman I love, you may as well shoot me. We’re happy with Josh and being an uncle and aunt.”

  Clari smiles and winks at me before excusing herself to go to the bathroom.

  “Wait, babe, just let me call Jared and Jace and I’ll come with you.”

  She nods and stands, talking to Ma while I fill my brothers in on the happy news and promise to text pictures of the newest arrival.

  “Ma, you need anything?”

  “No, son. You take Clari home and your father and I will stay with Wyatt. They’re keeping little Alex on lockdown for now since there’s been a flu bug going around. We’ll send photos soon and call if we need anything.”

  “Thanks, Ma. Give Ellie and the kid a kiss and tell Wyatt he’s a damned maniac.”

  It’s only when we’re back in the car and halfway home that my girl turns to me with a somber look.

  “You’re sure you don’t want babies of your own, Miah? Your mom seemed so upset that we’re not planning to have a family, and if you’re just saying these things because of what I said—”

  “Clari, I absolutely do not want children, babe, and that’s the plain truth. If you change your mind, I’ll try to be okay with a few rug rats under foot, but for now I’m not thinking I’ll ever want to go through what Ellie and
Wyatt just endured. Besides, who needs kids when I have you? You’re everything I need.”

  That makes her smile tearfully and I grin.

  “I am so glad I don’t ever have to go through that. I almost died when Ellie started threatening Wyatt with castration if he so much as dared look at her funny ever again.”

  “Babe, she threatened him with castration when he told her last week she couldn’t bathe in a warm bath without supervision.”

  She laughs again and yawns through her mirth, sending me a look from beneath her lashes.

  “You want to do the practice without the actual results when we get home, handsome?” she purrs, licking her lips.

  “Yes, please, babe.”

  It’s only when I pull into the garage and shut the car off that I notice Clari fast asleep against the door, looking for all the world as if she didn’t just spent three hours asleep on my lap at the hospital.

  “Sorry, boy, I guess practice is cancelled,” I say to my dick, who whines in pain.

  By the time I’ve gotten Ellie tucked in and shown the guys all the pics Ma sent me, Josh is up and awake and ready to start his day. I guess I’m operating on minimal sleep from here on out.

  “Hey, Miah, go get some sleep, bro. Me’n Jace have Josh covered since we caught some shut-eye after you all left. Oh, and remember to call Roman later, would you? The guy’s been bugging the shit out of me.”

  I wave him off and take the stairs two at a time, deciding to call Roman before settling in for a nap. I can actually go a couple of days without sleep, if need be, so losing a night isn’t that bad. But I have to admit to being tuckered out from all of Wyatt’s yelling and emotional drama.

  “Yo, Miah, man, I need to meet you sometime today and it can’t be at the house. I have Dobson’s guys following me around since last night, and Melissa’s still riding my ass about it all. I don’t want to bring the heat home with me.”

  The news makes me feel old all of a sudden, and I regret this whole assignment more than anything I’ve ever done. By agreeing to this, I endangered my family, and my own brother can’t even risk coming home because he’d rather be shot down in the street by dirty cops than risk the lives under our roof.

  “Where, bro?”

  “Eazy’s at noon. Come in through the back. Melissa’s cousin Sharon will let you in and show you to the back where I’ll be waiting. And, bro? Thanks for not going nuts on me about the route I took. I know it was reckless.”

  “It worked though, right? So no worries. Just promise me you’ll stay safe, Roman. I’d never forgive myself if something happened to you. You’re my brother, not just my partner, and I love you more than the success of this mission.”

  We ring off. Instead of snuggling down behind Clari like I want to, I kiss her and make my way downstairs, walking to the safe hidden in the floor behind Pop’s desk.

  The files I’ve hidden in here are top secret and have been gathered over a few months thanks to Jared’s dedication and my own very insane need to have everything on file, just in case.

  “Hey, Miah.”

  “Jace.”

  “What are you doing now? Obssessing over that file you got on Dobson again?”

  “Roman isn’t coming home, and from the way he sounded on the phone, he won’t come back till this mission is over and done with and all the assholes are dead or behind bars. I need this to get moving, Jace. We still don’t know who sent those guys after Clari, and the longer we leave Roman under deep cover, the longer it’ll take him to come back home.”

  “Bro, I’ve been over the intel a million times. I’m telling you, there’s nothing there. Dobson’s covered his tracks well, and the militia players are too well hidden. Roman is our only chance right now.”

  I sigh and replace the files before grabbing an ice cold beer and leaning back against the desk.

  “Do we at least have some progress with the family?”

  Jace shrugs and leans back in his seat.

  “You’re going to have to accept that Jerry and Ronny and whoever you’re playing with are just not worth your time or effort. Ronny showed up in France but never got past Paris before doing some shopping and coming back home. Even Paulie doesn’t have anything new. Drop this family thing and move on.”

  Drop it? After everything I heard coming from Ronny’s mouth and the way Al had been badmouthing my girl? Not fucking likely. I also can’t shake the feeling that Lynn still had information about what they were planning after she killed Ellie.

  She wasn’t intending to just disappear after killing Ellie. She thought she could slide back into her spot in the family, so I know that Lynn had something more planned for us.

  “Go to the sanatorium and talk to Lynn.”

  “Bro…that chick gives me the straight-up creeps. Make Jared do it, he doesn’t give a damn,” Jace complains, shivering delicately.

  “No, I need Jared here on the rifle in case something goes wrong with Roman. You know he’s the better shot of the three of us, so don’t argue. Suck it up and get to Lynn. Make her talk, Jace. I want peace of mind in at least one area before Ellie and little Alex come home.”

  “Fine. Shit. You’re a real peach, you know that?”

  “You can take Wyatt’s jet after I get back from my meet with Roman. I want both you and Jared here with Clari, Josh, and the parents.”

  I’m being paranoid, but I’ve got this terrible feeling in the pit of my stomach and my gut is never wrong.

  Chapter Sixteen

  Clara

  My Monday morning starts just like any other Monday morning has since I moved in with the Lanes and adopted my little brother. I shower, dress, and eat breakfast with the family while trying to draw my little brother into conversation despite his reticence around me.

  Miah’s got three guards to watch me at work, and today I’m going to try and take Josh with me to see how he responds to other children.

  He seems fascinated by Alex and talks to him constantly since he and Ellie came home four days ago. I am looking to see if socializing is one of Josh’s trouble areas.

  Jones only agreed because I told her that a school discriminating against a child with special needs would not look good on my new blog.

  “Hey, Alex. Hey, little man. Aren’t you just a precious little bugger? Yes, you are, sweetheart. Come on over here and give your aunt Clari a kiss good-bye.”

  Ellie laughs and lets me kiss her kid to death before taking him back to let me approach Josh.

  “Josh, buddy? Remember how we talked about you coming to work with me so you can meet some new friends?”

  “Me play.”

  “That’s right, buddy, you can play at recess with all of the other kids. Are you ready?”

  He claps excitedly and runs around the room to say good-bye to everyone, especially Alex, before allowing Miah to lift him into his arms so we can leave.

  Strapping him into his booster seat isn’t easy since he’s the squirmiest kid ever, but we finally get him settled before Miah pulls out and starts on the deserted road to the school.

  “You okay, babe?”

  I look over at him and shrug, feeling out of sorts.

  “Just nervous about Josh is all. What if he doesn’t like it and starts yelling like he did when Jared tried to buy him a new puzzle?”

  “He’ll be fine. You just need to trust in him and yourself. If he doesn’t respond well, call me and I’ll swing by to pick him up.”

  “Thanks.”

  “No problem. He’s my kid, too. Now stop worrying and relax. It will be okay. Hey, Josh, you want music, buddy?” he asks, grinning into the rearview mirror when Josh starts clapping and singing “Humpty Dumpty” at the top of his lungs.

  The kids songs have a soothing effect on me, and by the time Miah sees us to my classroom and leaves us to go to work, I feel a little calmer. The meet and greet goes okay, except for one incident when Billy tried to touch Josh and got an earful of recriminations for his efforts.

  When play
time rolls around I’m feeling great and so jazzed about this progress that I’m giddy and tempted to call Miah and tell him all about Josh’s day.

  For the rest of the school day, Josh shows the children how to do multiplication tables—Jared actually taught our four-year-old multiplication and he picked it up almost instantly—and by the time last bell rings, I can see the benefit of putting Josh in a nursery school at some point.

  I turn from tidying my desk and notice Josh is hiding between the lockers, making himself almost invisible, and I smile until I feel a hand wrap around my mouth from the back and the hard muzzle of a gun at my temple.

  “Scream and I will kill you. Now drop your phone on the desk and move. We don’t have all day.”

  That voice is so familiar, it sends chills up my spine. It’s the second man from the night I hid in the window seat.

  He’s the one Miah kept asking me questions about, and now that he’s touching me I know why. This man is no civilian contractor. He must be military from the way he stalks and holds himself.

  Josh moves to scream and I shake my head once. He freezes and follows my eyes as I lower my phone to the desk and let him know that he should use it to call Jared, the number I swiped onto the screen before dropping it to the desk.

  We start walking when he transfers the gun from my head to my back and digs the metal into me. Making me cry out in pain.

  “You warn anyone and they die, too. Walk, Miss Elms, and don’t try to run. I’d hate to have to shoot you in the back of the head.

  I’m shaking so hard that he’s forced to help me along when my knees threaten to give out, but we eventually make it outside to the back parking lot and a dark SUV that’s still idling.

  “In.”

  I hop up with difficulty and scoot over, almost biting into my tongue when my teeth start rattling dramatically.

  “Give me your hands.”

  He uses cable ties to restrain me, making me wince when the thick plastic is pulled too tight and cuts into the tender skin of my wrists and ankles and then a sack of some sort lands on my head and the world goes dark.