“Yes. And before you lecture me about safety, I promise to ride under the seat the entire time. Trust me, I nearly peed myself last time we almost got caught. I won’t take that kind of risk.”
Nile reached for her hand as she walked by him, brought it to his lips, and kissed her knuckles gently. “Be careful.”
She nodded and walked out the door.
She wasn’t sure why she was being so defiant. She wasn’t usually the sort of person who would do anything dangerous or reckless. Her parents had hidden her in a secret underground bunker on their property more times than she could count. Any time a stranger came, the two of them would pretend they didn’t have kids. They would do that sometimes for months or years until they trusted the visitor enough to let them in on the secret.
Layla needed to do this for several reasons. One, like she’d said, it was important for her to understand the research and help improve their farming skills. Two, she needed to establish a clear understanding with her family unit that she would not be treated like a child or somehow weak. And three, honestly, she needed some space. A night away would help her clear her head and think about the decisions she was making.
When she was with the men, she seemed to fall under some sort of spell, fawning over them. They made it hard to think. They constantly touched her, usually more than one of them at a time. She hadn’t slept alone since she’d arrived. Two of them always flanked her.
Granted, that made her feel safe and cherished. She couldn’t really complain about the sleeping arrangements. And as for the constant physical contact… She couldn’t complain about that either. She loved how they doted on her, all of them vying for her attention like she was royalty. Who wouldn’t love having four men worship them?
There was one step missing from literally consummating their relationship, making it official. Not for anyone outside of their family unit. It was none of their business. As far as The Wanderers were concerned, Layla was under no obligation to commit to anything. She could decide she liked being fucked by four men on the regular and stay with them for two months, a year, or forever without ever promising them a thing. As long as they agreed of course.
Other than Ariel, no one else would probably guess that Layla hadn’t had sex with anyone in the two weeks since she’d arrived. Who would believe that?
She chuckled as she arrived at the exit where she was meeting up with the team.
“Hey, Layla. What’s so funny?” Jeremy asked. Jeremy was essentially her boss. He managed the agriculture department for this particular compound. He was beyond grateful to have her join his team, and extremely polite and not fazed when she pointed out as delicately as possible new ideas or things that could use improvement to increase production.
It made Layla uncomfortable when she had more knowledge than someone, but she simply did in this case. Her parents were botanists. She was raised by two people with a PhD in their field. She cared about plants. She cared even more about sustainability in a world that was unkind.
“Nothing.” Layla cleared her throat, sobering as she shook away thoughts of sex. She needed to be sharp and on her game for this trip.
Two other men would be along. Tarin, another man who worked in the agricultural department. And Stuart, who it turned out was something of a bodyguard when called for. The Wanderers were by and large a peaceful people, but when threatened, they would protect their own.
Stuart was armed and lethal when necessary. Layla had heard that he could and had broken up more than one intense situation without ever pulling a weapon. Shooting off guns drew attention no one wanted.
“You ready?” Stuart asked as he nodded toward the exit.
“Yep.” Layla pulled her pack up higher on her shoulders. She hadn’t been outside since they’d arrived. In her entire life, she’d never been inside this long. Never even a full day. Thank God she did see sunlight working in the agricultural end of the compound, but it wasn’t direct, and it felt weird and fake.
“The guys give you any grief about leaving the compound?” Stuart asked teasingly as they reached the stairs that would lead up to ground level.
“They tried to stick to grunts of displeasure.”
Stuart laughed. “I don’t blame them. I’d probably flip a table or two if I thought my woman was in danger.”
Tarin chuckled. “And this is why you don’t have a woman.”
“Precisely.”
Layla wondered if there was any chance Stuart was the man Ariel had the hots for. She decided to test the waters as they all stepped onto the top landing. “Ariel was plenty vocal about me leaving the compound. Worse than the men.”
Stuart glanced at her. “Yeah, well, your sister does tend to be vocal. That’s for sure,” he muttered under his breath.
Interesting. So, Ariel definitely had at least some communication with Stuart, and Layla already knew from the day she’d met Stuart and the rumblings of her men that Stuart thought Ariel was too young for him.
“Wait,” Tarin said. “Ariel is your sister? The blonde who’s been staying with the Tillsons? How did I not know that? You two look nothing alike, by the way.”
Layla chuckled. “Yep. I look like our dad. Ariel looks like Mom.”
Stuart finished punching in the exit code and turned toward Tarin before opening the door. “How do you know Ariel?”
Tarin shrugged. “Doesn’t everyone? Cute new woman moves into the compound. People notice.”
Stuart grunted. “She’s too young for you.”