“Or I could quit.”
“Let me ask you this . . . do you want to quit? And before you answer, I’m not asking if you think you should quit or if you think your siblings want you to quit. I’m asking you if you want to quit?”
Toni was silent for a long moment before she replied, “I don’t think so. At least not yet.”
“Then go get your plane and do your job.”
“And you guys?”
“We’ll be fine. I promise.” He leaned down and kissed her cheek. “I love you, baby.”
“I love you, too, Dad.”
“And be careful.”
“Yes, sir.”
Toni headed out, stopping to hug her mother and Irene. She motioned for Cooper to follow her.
Ricky Reed nodded at Paul. “I’ll protect her with my life, sir.”
“You better,” Paul told him plainly. “Because I will kill you if anything happens to my daughter. And I mean anything.”
“I understand, sir.” And Paul believed him, which was surprising because Paul rarely believed wolves unless it was Niles Van Holtz.
Jackie faced Paul once the kids were down the hall and at the door, saying their good-byes to Toni. “We’re letting our daughter go off to negotiate with bears?”
“No. We’re letting our daughter go off and be an adult. It’s time, Jack. You know that.”
“I know. I know.”
He wrapped his arms around his mate and hugged her tight. “Of all our kids, she’s the one I know can handle herself in any situation. So don’t worry.”
“Okay.”
They held each other for a bit until Jackie asked, “Where’s that dog you insist on keeping around?”
“I like that dog. She’s the only one in the family who doesn’t talk back.”
“Excuse me.” Blayne, who Paul hadn’t realized was still in the room, smiled and gave a little wave. “Your dog is under the couch.”
Still holding on to each other, Paul and Jackie leaned over a little so they could look under the couch.
“Huh,” Jackie said. “She sure is.”
“That’s kind of Bo’s fault,” Blayne explained. “He scares regular dogs. He doesn’t mean to, of course, but there’s no helping it.”
Paul shook his head. “That’s fine. It’s not a—”
“I’m really excited he’ll be spending some time with your kids,” Blayne went on, cutting Paul off but somehow not being rude about it. She just seemed to have all this energy that simply could not be contained. “I plan to have a whole busload of kids myself, and he needs to learn how to deal with children without making them cry or hide or scream hysterically.”
Jackie tensed in Paul’s arms, so he held his mate a little tighter, keeping her in place.
“He’s such a great guy, but no one ever sees it because, ya know, the glower and all is off putting, but that’s just his focus. But now that I’ve met your kids, I see you guys totally understand that. What’s it like having so many prodigies in one family?”
“Well—” Paul began.
“Although I don’t know if they’ll all be like Bo. I’m honestly terrified they’ll all be like me. I’m not sure how he’ll handle that. But this is a good start, don’t cha think? Let him deal with kids just like himself and then I can ease him into more . . . challenging children. Yeah. That’s a good plan.”
“O—”
“Anyway, it’s really nice of you guys to let us stay here. We’ll just sleep on the couch. Don’t worry”—she grinned and winked—“no hanky-panky while we’re here.”
Paul held Jackie even tighter. “You’re staying here?”
“Oh, yeah. I thought maybe a day for this thing but after meeting your kids and realizing how much like Bo they are . . . you’re looking at a minimum of a two-day but more likely a three-day ordeal to get them all to agree. But according to Ricky Lee, most classes and whatever don’t really start until next Monday, so that’s enough time. I wouldn’t worry.” She stepped closer. “I just have to say you two are such a cute couple and I think we’re going to be such great friends!”
Paul’s grip on his mate at this point was so tight, he was surprised he hadn’t broken any of her ribs. But he had to take the risk because Jack hated people who, in her words, “chatter on.” And holy hell could this wolfdog chatter! And too much chatter meant that every once in a while, Jackie started swinging, and Paul really didn’t want to have to listen to the whining that would inevitably arrive come practice time once Jack’s knuckles started to swell. It was really hard to play violin when one’s knuckles swelled.
“While we’re waiting for Bo to come back with the kids,” Blayne went on, “would you like to go get some coffee or—”
Irene suddenly took hold of Blayne’s forearm, gripping her tight. Like Paul, Irene knew how to read Jack like a book. It helped them work together to keep her calm. “Come with me,” Irene ordered.
“Where to?” Blayne innocently asked.
“Any place where we can intelligently discuss why your fiancé is so freakishly large and inhuman looking. Was he subject to radiation while in his mother’s womb?”
Jackie snorted a laugh and quickly buried her face against Paul’s neck while Paul bit the inside of his cheek hard so he didn’t laugh.
Blayne stopped walking right outside the living room and frowned at Irene. “Wait . . . what?”
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
Nothing like a nearly fourteen-hour flight to make a girl miserable.
Even though flying on Madra Airlines meant that Toni and the wolf could stretch their legs out since the plane was designed with Russian and Alaskan bears in mind. They also got to choose between entrees like cow, gazelle, buffalo, zebra; and for the polars, whale and seal blubber.
Other than that, it was still the same, excruciatingly long flight it always was whether a shifter-run flight or full-human.
Dropping her bag to the ground, Toni took a long, much-needed stretch, then did an allover shake.
Once done with that, Toni pulled out the itinerary from the back pocket of her jeans.
“Okay. Now we need to get to . . .” Toni’s words faded out when she sensed someone standing in front of her. Slowly, she raised her gaze up and up and up some more to the male standing in front of her.
“Hi ya,” he said, and smiled at her.
“Hello.”
“I’m Vic Barinov.”
“Hey, Vic,” Ricky said, holding out his hand and shaking.
“Ricky Lee. Long time.” He motioned with his head. “Let’s go. I’ve got a car waiting for us. It’ll take us to a private airstrip.”
Toni looked down at the itinerary. “But we’re taking the Trans Siberian Ex—”
“That’s changed,” Barinov told them. “You don’t want to be caught on a train if there’s a problem.”
Toni, completely confused, shook her head. “I don’t . . . I mean . . .” She looked at the two males watching her. “What I’m trying to say is . . . you both know I’m only going to negotiate a deal between our hockey team and the Russians’, right? It’s not like I’m Double O-Seven, trying to set up an arms deal.”
A low rumble rolled out of Barinov while Ricky just grinned at her.
“Ain’t she cute?” the wolf asked.
“Very. Let’s go.”
Great. Another male ignoring her.
“Who is that guy?” she asked Ricky.
“That’s Vic Barinov.”
“I know his name, Ricky Lee. Who, and for that matter, what is he? Because he’s not just some security guy.”
“He’s a former Marine or Navy SEAL. Something like that. Born and raised in the States, but his parents were born and raised here in Russia. His daddy’s Kamchatka grizzly and his momma’s Siberian tiger.”