Total pages in book: 136
Estimated words: 125037 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 625(@200wpm)___ 500(@250wpm)___ 417(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 125037 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 625(@200wpm)___ 500(@250wpm)___ 417(@300wpm)
“Are you feeling okay, Pepper?” Diego asked.
Leila really looked at the other woman, trying to see beyond her natural beauty. It was difficult, but Diego wouldn’t have asked if he hadn’t seen—or felt—something worrisome.
“I’ve been really tired,” Pepper admitted.
“You may be anemic.”
Pepper nodded. “Wyatt said I was, but I don’t seem to be responding to the iron supplements.”
“Does he know why you’re anemic?” Diego persisted. “Have you had Rubin take a look at you?”
“Not yet. Wyatt was going to talk to him today.” She gestured toward the swamp. “It isn’t life-threatening, but Wyatt said he wanted Rubin to take a look. They’re at Trap and Cayenne’s, doing something in the laboratory. Trap wanted Joe, Wyatt and Rubin to look at something important he’s working on. I just got a text from Wyatt. They’ll be home soon.”
What laboratory? Leila tried to keep anxiety out of her mind, but she’d brought Grace to this place believing no one would ever experiment on her. Leila had gifts, and she was enhanced genetically, just as Grace’s biological father had been. She could already see how advanced Grace was physically. There was almost an animal quality to the way she moved, fluid like a cat, sure-footed when she was only seventeen months and should be off-balance occasionally. And she could climb anything.
Diego brushed his palm soothingly down the back of her head before settling his fingers against her scalp. “Trap spends a great deal of his time in his lab. Wyatt is like he is.”
“The girls would bite when they were teething or afraid,” Pepper said, lowering her voice. “Trap and Wyatt developed antivenom specifically so that no one here could be harmed if there was an accident. They’ve removed tracking devices Whitney put in a few of the women. They’re pretty remarkable.”
“Did they take the girls to the lab?” Leila challenged.
“Not Trap’s lab. The one here.” Pepper indicated the locked garage. “We talked to them first and explained what we were doing so they wouldn’t be afraid. It was hardest on Thym, but she does whatever her two sisters do. The best thing is always to convince Ginger first, and the other two will follow her lead. By the time we made that decision, they trusted Trap and Wyatt. They adore Zeke. Actually, all the men on the team.”
Nonny smiled and shook her head. “They get a little jealous when one of their uncles finds his woman. In particular, Bellisia, Ezekiel’s wife. They did their best to run her off, but it only lasted a day or two.”
“Zeke sings to them,” Pepper said. “And tells them stories. If Grace is having a difficult time sleeping or she’s sick, call Uncle Zeke. He has a gift for soothing a baby, although he’d never admit it.”
Diego’s finger and thumb found Leila’s chin, and he tilted her head back, forcing her to meet his gaze. No one will ever touch our children without our permission. You have my word, Warrior Woman.
It was impossible not to fall in love with him.
18
Leila clung to Diego’s hand as he pushed open the door to her new home. Diego held Grace against his chest, her booty tucked in tight against his arm. She was sleepy and cuddled against him, her eyelids drooping and her wealth of thick red-gold hair gleaming in the last light of the day.
The sight of her daughter held so protectively made Leila’s eyes burn with tears and her heart flutter. She involuntarily tightened her grip on Diego’s hand. This man. Handing her the world. She’d never thought she could be so happy. And it was all so unexpected.
The house was large and positioned back from the river, but where she could hear and see the water, just as Nonny could from her front porch. The covered wraparound deck added another dimension to the outside, expanding the house by quite a bit. Just as the Fontenot home had hand-carved rockers on the porch, so did this one. All cypress wood, the planks fit tightly into one another, matching the exterior of the house. She loved it, and she hadn’t even seen the inside.
The wind ruffled the surface of the river, turning the water into dark, shimmering jewels. Overhead, the sun had already dropped so that layers of deep purple, blue and orange streaked the sky. The beauty of the surrounding swamp matched the river as the wind set the branches swaying. Moss lace, looking like intricate shawls, swayed and danced, hanging from the twisting outstretched boughs of trees. To Leila, it looked like a scene out of a movie.
“Baby’s already falling asleep,” Diego said as he indicated for her to open the door. “Long day for her. Meeting new friends, Nonny especially, who loved to have her on her lap.” He stopped and looked down at Leila, meeting her eyes. “If Grace had been uncomfortable with her, I would have intervened.”