Take (Fury Brothers #4)

I spotted Beau pounding on a punching bag. The man was good. Every blow packed a punch.

He’d done a stint in the Army when I’d joined, determined to keep an eye on me. But the rules and regulations of military life hadn’t suited him so well. He’d decided to become a mercenary. After that had gotten old, he’d taken up boxing. He’d been good and won a few championships.

“Hey.” Dante rose from a bench, tying wraps on his hands.

I lifted my chin. Today, my brother had traded the fancy suit for black workout gear. “Let me get changed. Want to spar?”

“Sure.”

As I headed back to the locker rooms, I spotted Colt and Kavner already in one of the rings. The pair were trading solid punches.

I changed, then pulled on my wraps and boxing gloves. When I stepped out of the change room, Dante was already in a ring, warming up. I climbed through the ropes. My brother might be a nightclub owner, but he’d learned to fight young. I knew he had a wicked right hook.

He slapped his gloves together. “Let’s go, pretty boy.”

I rolled my eyes and jabbed. We traded a few lazy punches as we warmed up.

“So, who’s the woman?” Dante asked.

My pulse tripped. I kept my face blank. “What woman?”

“The one you kissed at the party last night. Beau told us.”

Of course, Beau couldn’t keep his mouth shut. “No one.”

Dante’s gaze narrowed on my face. “You’ve got that look, like you’re hiding something.”

“I don’t have a look.” I’d worked for the CIA for years. I’d perfected not having a look.

“You have a look. I pulled the security footage to take a little look-see. She’s easy on the eyes.”

I stiffened. “She’s no one. It was a heat-of-the-moment thing.”

Dante paused, lowering his gloved hands. “You don’t do heat of the moment, Reath. You analyze, strategize, and overthink everything.”

I lifted my gloved hands. “Are we going to fight or what?”

Dante smiled. “You know we’ll get it out of you. Eventually.”

He swung.

I let myself get lost in the fight. Thud, thud, thud. Dante didn’t go easy, and there wasn’t room to get distracted.

I definitely wasn’t thinking about Frankie Parker, or that damn mouth of hers.

6

FRANKIE

Humming, I studied the produce on the shelf in the grocery store. I wasn’t exactly sure what the bundle of green was, but I wanted to cook it. I grabbed it and put it in my basket.

I wasn’t the best cook. After my dad had died, Mom had gone back to work. She’d never had the time to show me, and I preferred to spend my time studying.

But New Orleans had some amazing food culture, so I was going to try and cook.

My cellphone rang and I juggled my basket and handbag. I snatched the phone up. “Frankie, here.”

“Frankie, did you forget I exist?”