Page 46 of Unbound

But this hug feels like we’re turning a corner. Like maybe I don’t have to walk such a fine line, trying to make sure he doesn’t still consider me a threat.

And also doesn’t discover I’ve been lusting after him for months.

Walker opens his mouth and I find myself very interested to see what comes out of it. Will he tease me back? Maybe flirt a little? Possibly boss me around some more?

I don’t get to find out.

Before he can offer a single word, the door to his office flies open. In the blink of an eye, my body is wedged behind his, one strong arm pinning me against his back.

“Sorry. Didn’t know I was interrupting.” Tucker’s voice carries a smile.

“Why the fuck would you come barging in like that with everything that’s going on?”

Walker sounds pissed. Legitimately angry. And I wish I could see his face. I’m not sure if he’s ever been genuinely mad at me, and now would be a great time to figure that out.

But even though Tucker poses no threat to me—that I know of—Walker doesn’t ease his hold, so I’m stuck staring at his spine.

It’s a pretty good spine, so I’m not super mad about it.

“My bad.” Tucker steps into view, giving me a wide grin. “Morning, Sybil.”

I can’t really lift the arm he can see, so I give him a sideways wiggle of my fingers. “Good morning.”

“How was your night?” His grin is wide, but that’s not unusual. Tucker’s usually grinning. “Anything exciting happen?”

“What the fuck do you want?” Walker steps between us, severing the conversation I’m having with his cousin. “And why in the hell are you here so early?”

“I gotta take Birdie to swim lessons today, so I have to cut out early this afternoon.” Tucker pauses. “Are you seriously going to keep standing between us? You know damn well I’ve got no interest in your⁠—”

“Shut it,” Walker snaps, cutting his cousin off. “Just tell me what you need and get the fuck out.”

“Touchy, touchy.” Tucker again moves into view. “I came here to get a camera to put in Birdie’s room. She’s started sneaking out of her bed to play with toys instead of going to sleep.” He props both hands on his hips, all his attention on me. “Kids are a freaking handful.” He looks me over. “You think you’ll ever have kids, Sybil?”

“I haven’t really thought about it.” I’ve been too busy tracking a decades-old unexplained death across the dark web to consider my biological clock. “Maybe?”

“Walker said the same thing to me.” Tucker is back to grinning, only this time there’s a mischievous edge to the expression. “I had to break the news he’d have to get laid in order for that to happen.”

“That’s enough.” Walker suddenly shifts away from me, grabbing his cousin by the collar of his shirt. “Time for you to go.” He manhandles Tucker to the door before shoving him out. “Go get your camera and get the fuck out of here.”

The door slams a little harder than I expect and Walker stares at it a few seconds in silence. Almost like he’s trying to figure out what the fuck just happened.

I will admit, Tucker’s kind of an instigator. But he seems relatively harmless, and Ruth loves the fuck out of him, so he’s kind of a hard guy to be mad at.

Walker seems to be attempting the feat anyway.

When he finally turns to face me, his brows are low and his mouth is pressed into a thin line. The scowl on his face is kinda cute, but now seems like a bad time to mention it, so I manage to stay quiet. Not sure how I accomplish it, but I’m kind of proud of myself.

When the urge to start talking strikes a few seconds later, I collect the first cup of coffee from the maker. Normally, Walker gives it to me, but he seems to be much more in need of caffeinated positivity than I am. I carry it to him, holding it out. “I’m sorry your cousin drives you crazy.”

Walker lets out a sigh, taking the coffee. “It’s fine. He doesn’t mean to.”

I snort. “Absolutely he does.” I go back to the coffee maker, slotting another cup onto the tray before popping in a pod. “That’s like, at least half of his personality. Meaning to drive people crazy.”

“In that case, I guess I’m glad he found something he’s good at.” Walker takes a sip of his coffee. “I should probably get on the floor and start working.” He lifts his brows at me. “You okay in here?”

“Does it matter if I’m not?” I’m not trying to be a pain in his ass, but it’s probably at least half of my personality too, so…

Except Walker doesn’t seem perturbed by me the way he does by his cousin.