Chapter 6

“Who do we have here?” Joining them in the hall, Keiran looked at the baby in Jamie’s arms and turned almost as gooey as the other sub. That baby-talk seemed contagious. Keiran practically melted as the baby’s hand popped out from under the blanket and latched on to his finger. “She’s too precious. And so strong!”

“Her name is...Melissa. I’m babysitting.” Jamie cast Avery a pleading look before flashing Keiran one of his practiced smiles. “I agreed without really thinking it through—you know how I am.” He let out a nervous laugh. “I want to set up a comfy space for her in the loft upstairs. Reggie’s going to pick up some stuff. Would you mind going with to deal with the food situation?”

Keiran’s smile almost mirrored Jamie’s. He never glanced Avery’s way, but this was where how well they read one another came into play. Without having to say a word, the slight shift in posture, Keiran’s too bright tone, told Avery he knew Jamie was lying. But he’d reserve judgment until he had all the facts. “Of course. I’m not sure what babies eat, but I’ll find out. How old is she?”

The blank look on Jamie’s face was followed by him counting quietly under his breath, likely trying to figure out how long Judy had been gone and guessing the baby’s age. “About four months.”

“Got it.” Keiran brushed his hand over the baby’s fluffy blonde hair. “We won’t be long, but it’s a bit nippy down here and that blanket’s seen better days. Why don’t you get Melissa set up the best you can for now and we’ll bring everything up when we get back?”

Relief filled Jamie’s eyes, as though the directions somehow had his foolish plan coming together smoother than expected. He nodded quickly, then headed off toward the stairwell.

Keiran leaned close to Avery, whispering in his ear. “Get Jacks and Danny up there, maybe one of them can talk some sense into him. Wren’s trying to track down the baby’s mother. He’s keeping this to himself too—I got a nice long text explaining how Jamie has a big heart, and with what he knows about Reed and Ez being in the system the idea of putting a baby there would scare him.” He sighed and shook his head. “I know all that, but this situation is completely different.”

“So what do we do if neither Jacks or Danny can get through to him?” Not having a solution of his own felt wrong. Avery was used to thinking on his feet. Glancing toward Reggie—who’d moved further down the hall to give them some privacy—Avery kept his voice low. “I can keep them busy and when you get back you can swipe the baby. Get her where she needs to be. Make a nice clean break and we can go ahead with planning Christmas in September like normal people.”

Snorting, Keiran slid his hand in the back pocket of Avery’s jeans, tugging him close and kissing his cheek. “I’m not kidnapping the baby.”

“Do you have a better plan? You know excluding the Doms never ends well.”

“We’re not excluding them all. Jacks is here.”

Avery gave Keiran a dry look. “He’s too easy-going to count. Be serious.”

Slipping his hand free, Keiran lifted his shoulders. “Rhodey wants him toughening up as a Dom. This is a good opportunity. Let’s give him some credit and see what he does with it.”

All right, that was a plan Avery could live with and multitasking made better use of his time. He flashed Keiran a grin, patting the other sub’s hip to make sure he was decently armed before letting him go off alone—which he always hated doing. Either Rhodey or Dallas, he’d do it because they were in control and he accepted that. Keiran was...different. Being on the same level with him, sharing so many of the most dangerous—and most tender—moments of his adult life with the other man, gave them a unique connection.

One he never could get enough of, but life kept getting in the way lately.

What I wouldn’t give for a nice cozy trench in a war zone right now, extracting a valuable asset and stealing kisses while the sand and smoke blows around us. Or on a rooftop while waiting for a target to pass. Or escorting some asshole politician…

Blowing out a breath, he turned, jogging across the hall when he spotted Danny slipping out of the conference room with Jacks. “Keiran’s on a supply run with Reggie. Jamie went up to the loft. Come on, he’s going to need us.”

“Is he o—?” Danny pressed his lips shut. “Stupid question. You’d have said if he wasn’t. Sorry.”

Quickly shaking his head, Avery took Danny’s hand, tugging him to his side and giving Jacks an expectant look so he’d lead the way. “Don’t be sorry, even I’m not sure how this’ll turn out. But it’ll be fun to watch.” He winked at Danny as they headed to the stairwell behind the Dom, who was going to faceplant if he kept glancing back over his shoulder that way. “Sir, I have him.”

The flash of doubt in Jacks’ eyes was quickly replaced by something more neutral, if a bit indulgent. “I know you do, my boy, but the meeting took a...negative turn for a bit there. Danny’s not comfortable with meetings like that in general, so I check on him after. We usually get some quiet time together to decompress before moving on to the next thing, you know?”

“Do you…” Avery frowned, searching for the meaning behind the Dom’s words. “...need me to give you some space? Rhodey’s more direct when he wants that, I apologize if I’m missing something, sir.”

Jacks’ lips curved as he stopped a step above them, reaching out to cup Avery’s cheek. “No, I’m glad you’re here. I never saw you as a sweet one, but you really are.” His gaze drifted down to Avery’s hand around Danny’s, his smile widening. “I’m not Rhodey, but I’ll be clear with anything I ask of you, all right?”

Warmth spread over Avery’s cheek, the softness he usually only accepted from Rhodey, Dallas, or Keiran almost strange coming from someone else. But it was...nice. Jacks was nice and gentle and that wasn’t...bad. Just different.

“He’s really good at that.” Danny’s eyes filled with love and admiration as he stared up at his Dom. “He doesn’t get upset or strict about much, so it’s easy not to break the rules. And to make him happy.” He looked down at Avery’s hand too, his hood almost completely hiding his face as he lowered his head. “I...like this. A lot. I know I’m a big wimp next to you, but you never make me feel bad about it.”

Easing Danny into his own space in what could be considered a complex relationship, but was very simple to Avery, hadn’t seemed like a huge deal. It was what Rhodey wanted. The sub would get a bare minimum of training for his own safety, but wouldn’t go on missions. His Doms were...somewhere on the sidelines.

But the whole dynamics of The Asylum’s core was deeper than that. And each internal group had their own way of interacting with the others. Danny and his Doms felt...closer now. Getting the chance to understand what that meant, what he could offer Danny, or Jacks, or even Shea, was very satisfying.