Page 18 of Deadly North

“I do, sort of. I didn’t knowyoudid, though.”

I push a spatula through the eggs. “I picked up some stuff from Reenie when I was a kid. She told me she didn’t want me being helpless like Choppa when I grew up.”

Gigi snickers. “Hard to think of Choppa being helpless.”

“In the kitchen, he definitely is. The old man would probably starve to death if my mom didn’t feed him.”

I serve us up two plates of eggs and then watch in amusement as Gigi devours hers, plus three pieces of bacon and two pieces of toast smothered with grape jelly. She sucks down two cups of coffee, too. When she’s finished, she leans back and sighs happily. “That was amazing. I feel almost human.”

“You didn’t look too hot when you got up. You sleep okay?”

Gigi’s face flushes. “Yeah, fine.”

“So, what you got going on today?”

“Just some errands this morning, and a bridal shower later.”

“A bridal shower?” I laugh. “Like, to attend, or to do tattoos?”

“It’s a job. I guess everyone in the bridal party all want to get matching tattoos.”

“Okay. Get ready and I’ll drive you around on your errands.”

“Mack, I don’t think this bodyguard gig means you have to be my chauffeur, too,” Gigi objects. “I can drive myself around just fine.”

I cross my arms in front of my chest. “Uh-uh. Absolutely not. You know better than that. I go where you go. And if I’m going where you’re going, there’s no use you driving and me following behind you. We’ll take my truck.”

She blows out an irritated breath. “I’m not gonna win this one, am I? Okay, fine. You win.”

“When do you wanna get going?”

“I need a shower, and then some time to get ready. Maybe an hour?”

“Okay, you take the bathroom first. Don’t spend an eternity in there. I need to take a shit.”

Gigi rolls her eyes. “Charming. And sure, women are the ones who hog the bathroom. Let’s ignore the fact that there’s not a straight man in existence who doesn’t need at least thirty minutes to poop.”

I snort. “Fair.”

Gigi goes to shower while I clean up the breakfast dishes. I take a shower after her. She comes out to the living room looking hot yet casual at the same time, in a pair of denim cut-offs that mold to her ass distractingly. “You all set?” she asks, grabbing her bag and keys.

“Sure thing. Let me text Fury quick, let him know what we’re up to.”

But once we’re outside, we don’t get very far.

Because the first thing we notice is that someone has slashed the tires to the Body Bus.

“Fuck!” she cries. “I can’t believe this. When the hell could they have done this?”

Inwardly, I curse myself for letting this happen on my watch. “Must’ve been last night while we were sleeping. I didn’t hear a damn thing, though. They were pretty fucking quiet about it.”

Gigi throws up her hands. “Dammit, Mack! Do you have any idea how much it’s gonna cost to have all four tires replaced?” She looks at me ruefully. “Scratch that, of course you would. This sucks,” she finishes glumly. “I can’t afford this right now.”

Luckily, this is something I can take care of without much hassle. “Don’t worry, G. Let me handle it. Go back in the house and chill out.”

“But —”

I give her a stern look and point toward the house. “Not takin’ no for an answer. Go.”

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