Finn grinned. “It’s my natural charm.”
“Mika here got her name back when we were in the service together, so we can’t blame that one on Finn. Since her last name is Lincoln, Lynx just fit.” Brett handed Mikayla a plate of food and winked at Bella. “Lynx, our wild cat.”
Bella studied the striking woman for a moment and could immediately see how the play on her last name for a wild cat suited her perfectly. Mikayla Lincoln’s large violet eyes were slightly slanted and did indeed remind Bella of a wild, untamed jungle cat. Her gaze shifted back to Shannon and took in the miles of legs the blonde had stretched out in front of her as she gracefully crossed them and could also see why Finn had taken to calling the woman Legs.
Bella watched, amused, as Jenna strategically sat down next to Shannon, leaving no room for Adrian to follow. Both women ignored the frowning man standing behind them with his arms crossed over his chest.
“What do you guys call Tara?” Bella asked, intrigued.
“T-rex,” Finn answered with a fake shudder. “’Cuz she’s fierce and will eat you up and spit you out. Utterly ruthless.”
“Hey, watch it,” Adrian snapped sharply from where he hovered behind Jenna and Shannon.
“What? That’s why I love her.” Finn held a hand to his heart and sighed, making them laugh. Adrian slapped Finn on the head as he made his way back to the food.
Shannon smiled. “Don’t mind the animals. We haven’t quite gotten them housebroken yet.”
Finn leaned forward. “Adrian and Rock are just protective of T-rex. To them she is like a sweet little sister. Sweet my ass. That is one lady I never want to piss off, that’s for sure.”
Mikayla said nothing but raised an eyebrow in question as she popped an olive in her mouth.
Finn cleared his throat. “Actually, all the ladies we work with are pretty fierce.”
Shannon laughed and leaned over to tap glasses with Mikayla, winking at Bella.
Brett stood back up to once again make his way back over toward the food. “Truthfully I think you women are more dangerous than us men.”
“As it should be.” Mikayla grinned.
“So do you all work for Mac Securities?” Jenna asked.
“Yes, we do.”
Bella turned slightly to look back at Adrian who seemed to be hovering around the table of food picking and choosing items with great concentration. “What’s your nickname, Adrian?”
He flashed her a wicked grin. “I don’t want one, and Finn had enough sense to understand that I would hurt him badly if he gave me one.”
“He’s so sensitive,” Finn joked before jumping up from where he was seated just in time to avoid a blow to the head. “See?” Finn straightened to his full height, and he cocked his head to the side as Adrian approached him. “You know, I’m gonna quit baiting you before your twin gets here and you both open a can of whup-ass on me and break me into a million pieces.”
“You can’t help being an asshole, can you?” Adrian sighed as he grabbed Finn in a friendly headlock.
“Well, when you’re good at something, why change?”
Adrian laughed as he dragged Finn back toward the food.
Rubbing a hand over Bella’s thick hair, Jason asked, “Speaking of, where is Tara?”
“Rock and Steele are with her.” Sal turned to his sister with a glimmer of mischief in his eyes. “You remember Lucian Steele, right? You know the one you thought was really handsome?”
Bella laughed as Jason grumbled under his breath and held Bella tighter to him.
“Don’t you even start that, Sal.” Cocking her head, she smiled at Jason from her perch on his lap. “It seems to me that you have a very biased hiring system. I mean, all the men and women look like they could be on a cover of a magazine, you included, mister.” She poked Jason in the chest, but he quickly took her hand in his to kiss it.
Sal rolled his eyes at them and made his way back to the food, pushing Brett, Finn, and Adrian out of his way. “Anyways, Rock got her a new gun for her birthday and she wanted to try it down at the range. Steele went with them.”
“Oh, I guess all of you are trained with firearms,” Jenna stated, innocent interest showing in her eyes. “I’ve never shot a gun. I wonder if I could in the right situation.”
“You’d be surprised what you could do if you had to,” Mikayla replied kindly.
“I could take you shooting.”
Adrian’s offer had Jenna’s back straightening. “Ah, no, that’s okay. I don’t think I really want to shoot anything.”
The door opened, and Tara, Lucian, and Rock strode in to a cheer of birthday greetings. Dinner was a big robust affair. Laughter and conversation flowed as easily as the wine. Bella couldn’t help being amused by the baffled expression on Jason’s face. He was totally out of his comfort zone, and it was apparent to her that he had not spent much time hanging out with his people on a social level before now.